"Run Through the Jungle" is a 1970 song by American rock band

Creedence Clearwater Revival Creedence Clearwater Revival, commonly abbreviated as CCR or simply Creedence, was an American Rock music, rock band formed in El Cerrito, California. The band consisted of lead vocalist, lead guitarist, and primary songwriter John Fogerty, h ...

. It was released as a double A-side single with " Up Around the Bend" and on the album ''

Cosmo's Factory ''Cosmo's Factory'' is the fifth studio album by the American rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival, released by Fantasy Records on July 8, 1970. Six of the album's eleven tracks were released as singles in 1970, and all of them charted in the ...

''.

History

The song was written by Creedence's lead singer, guitarist and songwriter,

John Fogerty John Cameron Fogerty (born May 28, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. Together with Doug Clifford, Stu Cook, and his brother Tom Fogerty, he founded the swamp rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival (CCR), for which he was th ...

. It was included on their 1970 album ''

'', the group's fifth album. The song's title and lyrics, as well as the year it was released (1970), have led many to assume that the song is about the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. The fact that previous Creedence Clearwater Revival songs such as " Fortunate Son" were protests of the

added to this belief.Run Through The Jungle by Creedence Clearwater Revival Songfacts
/ref> However, in a 2016 interview, Fogerty explained that the song is actually about the proliferation of guns in the United States. The song's opening and closing both featured jungle

sound effects A sound effect (or audio effect) is an artificially created or enhanced sound, or sound process used to emphasize artistic or other content of films, television shows, live performance, animation, video games, music, or other media. In m ...

created by, according to the band's bassist Stu Cook, "lots of backwards recorded guitar and piano." The harmonica part on the song was played by John Fogerty. The song was also Tom Fogerty's favorite CCR song: "My all-time favorite Creedence tune was 'Run Through the Jungle'. . . . It's like a little movie in itself with all the sound effects. It never changes key, but it holds your interest the whole time. It's like a musician's dream. It never changes key, yet you get the illusion it does." ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...

'' called the single with "Up Around the Bend" a "two-sided monster." ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said that the double-sided single "takes the act out of its sustained bag of either

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American singer, pianist, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the "Ar ...

or 'bayou-tagged' music" but that compared to "Up Around the Bend", this song "presents a less-removed glimpse of the familiar Creedence." ''Ultimate Classic Rock'' critic Bryan Wawzenek rated the lyrics of "Run Through the Jungle" as Fogerty's 8th greatest, saying "Fogerty has written many songs cloaked in ominous foreboding...But the danger in the song feels just a little more imminent, especially when you’ve got Satan on your tail."

Controversy

The song was later the subject of controversy when

Saul Zaentz Saul Zaentz (; February 28, 1921January 3, 2014) was an American film producer and record company executive. He won the Academy Award for Best Picture three times and, in 1996, was awarded the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award. Zaentz's film pr ...

, the boss of CCR's record label,

Fantasy Records Fantasy Records is an American independent record label company founded by brothers Max and Sol Stanley Weiss in 1949. The early years of the company were dedicated to issuing recordings by jazz pianist Dave Brubeck, who was also one of its inves ...

, which owns the distribution and publishing rights to the music of Creedence Clearwater Revival, brought a series of lawsuits against John Fogerty, including a claim that the music from Fogerty's 1984 song " The Old Man Down the Road" was too similar to "Run Through the Jungle." Zaentz won some of his claims against Fogerty, but lost on the copyright issue (''Fantasy, Inc. v. Fogerty''). The judge found that a songwriter cannot plagiarize himself.John Fogerty News on Yahoo! Music
/ref> After winning the case, Fogerty sued Zaentz for the cost of defending himself against the copyright infringement claim. In such (copyright) cases, prevailing defendants seeking recompense are bound to show that the original suit was frivolous or made in bad faith. '' Fogerty v. Fantasy, Inc.'' became

precedent Precedent is a judicial decision that serves as an authority for courts when deciding subsequent identical or similar cases. Fundamental to common law legal systems, precedent operates under the principle of ''stare decisis'' ("to stand by thin ...

when the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

(1993) overturned lower court rulings and awarded attorneys' fees to Fogerty, without Fogerty having to show that Zaentz's original suit was frivolous.

In popular culture

"Run Through the Jungle" has appeared in films such as '' Air America'' (1990), '' My Girl'' (1991), '' Rudy'' (1993), ''

The Big Lebowski ''The Big Lebowski'' () is a 1998 crime comedy film written, directed, produced and co-edited by Joel and Ethan Coen. It follows the life of Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski (Jeff Bridges), a Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler. He is assaulted ...

'' (1998), ''Radio Arrow'' (1998), ''

Tropic Thunder ''Tropic Thunder'' is a 2008 Satire (film and television), satirical Action comedy, action comedy film directed by Ben Stiller, who wrote the screenplay with Justin Theroux and Etan Cohen. The film stars Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., ...

'' (2008), '' The Sapphires'' (2012), '' Kong: Skull Island'' (2017), '' Triple Frontier'' (2019), and the trailer for ''Jungle Cruise'' (2021). In television, the song is used in season 3 episode 1 of '' Hardcastle and McCormick'', season 2 of ''Fargo'', season 1 episode 8 of ''Lethal Weapon'' and season 4 episode 19 of the 2018 TV series Magnum P.I. The song has appeared in many

video games A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...

that depict the

, notably licensed for '' Rising Storm 2: Vietnam'' and in the reveal trailers for '' Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War'' and Mafia 3.

Certifications

References

External links

Columbia Law School case summary of Fantasy v. Fogerty
{{Authority control Creedence Clearwater Revival songs 1970 songs Songs written by John Fogerty Song recordings produced by John Fogerty Swamp rock songs Fantasy Records singles Protest songs