Note: Creedence Clearwater Revisited performed as "Cosmo's Factory"
while the Court's Injunction Order against them using the CCRv was in force

Cosmos' Factory with River Rising friends. Left to right: Debbie and Kenny; Millard; Elliot Easton [guitar]; Rick Hawley; Mike 'RAZ'; DOUG; STU; Steve Gunner [keyboards/harp]; John Tristao [vocals/rhtm. gtr.]; Alex.- Photo sent by Alex. Keep Rockin' River Risin'!

photo by Jesee Cook

• Creedence Clearwater Revisited in Salem, Oregon August 26.
  By Kevin Mulvey, Australia. Arrived in Salem, 26/8/97, and presented backstage with the pass Stu had left at the gate, the boys having just finished a sound check, and the security person doing her best to keep me out. Stu says let him in, and we had a bottle of wine, light meal and even got to do some physiotherapy on Doug's sore neck, pre show. (An Aussie but licensed in Oregon!)
  
  We had a long discusion about many things, met Steve, John and Elliot pre show, and then out I went for the event. After seeing JCF four times in eight days, his sound was fresh in my mind, but the sound and the show by CCr was just as special, and in many ways closer to the original 'feel' of the band's. This is only natural I suppose, given the strong 'sound' dominance of the original music.
  
  
  Some have said they didn't like the length of Grapevine, but for me 14 minutes was barely enough. Elliot was smokin here, and the whole band choogled like the "Indian Pacific" during this mammoth workout.
  Only drawback was the having to sign a sound limiting local ordance just before the show. It didn't let the boys just give that big last energy feel, but only a minor thing.
  
  
  After show, I met a couple in their late 60, early 70's who had known Doug and Stu since childhood, and they were all very pleased to meet up again.  Despite all that has been said in some circles, it is obvious that these are two pretty genuine guys, who love their part in some special music, and it's just two different groups of people with differing opinions on the same subject, all out there performing music we love. Both are performing it well. 
  
  Thanks for a very special evening guys.

• Cosmo's Factory in Interlochen, Michigan July 23rd
  By Carol Spence: "After arriving at this "Cosmo's Factory" concert in Northern Michigan with more than a few doubts (CCR without John Fogerty??!?, will this be lame or what??), I was proved wrong very quickly. They gave a great performance and seemed to be enjoying it all tremendously, which was
  contagious to the audience. In under 15 minutes, Cosmo's Factory had them standing in the aisles (much to the annoyance of the concert attendants), dancing, clapping and screaming their lungs out. Since Interlochen is a student music camp, there were quite a few teenage girls there who seemed quite impressed by the whole thing, which was surprising to see for such a.... 'well seasoned' band!
  
  Doug & Stu gave heartfelt introductions of each other, telling us about their friendship for the past 40 years, and also emphatically introducing the band as "Creedence Clearwater Revisted", not Cosmo's Factory as was advertised. That made many of us wonder if there had been some movement in the lawsuit?? But all in all, the name just didn't matter, because the band was great - seeing Eliot Easton up there was a real surprise for us all, but he did a fantastic job on all the songs, sounding true to all the old classics we remember so well, but injecting his own style as well. Plus, even from our close-up 5th row seats, the man still looks like he's 16 years old! Amazing! And once John T. started to sing, you forgot all about your "NO JOHN F.??!?" fears. His vocals were great, and so was his energetic rhythm guitar, played on a beautiful Telecaster Thinline - he looked like he was having the time of his life up there! In fact they all did; the interplay between the band members showed they truly enjoy playing together and it really came through in their songs. They also seemed to enjoy being in our picturesque part of Northern Michigan on such a beautiful night too; Doug remarked that "as a 'weird kid' he used to be an amateur entomologist, and loved nature & the outdoors - i.e. the nickname 'Cosmo'". Hopefully that means they might be back next year to play again for us; I know I'll be there!

• Cosmo's Factory at Knocti Harbor Inn, Clear Lake, California.
  
  Review by Douglas Reagin: "I have to say I did not realize Stu gave us backstage passes!! When I looked at the stage passes I couldn't believe it. Well, I just about soiled my pants when I received the passes. It was an honor and a dream come true to meet one of my favorite bands and my greatest musical influence in show biz. You guys are really cool and I wish many more bands of your caliber would take a hint to treat their fans the way you do.
  
  This is the 2nd time I have seen Cosmos Factory and the 2nd show was even stronger than the last one in late January. The crowd reaction I have to say was as good as the newer bands that are out like Bush, No Doubt, Red Hot Chili Peppers etc. The women especially went crazy! They were dancing right in my face. I was lovin' it!! The band was very,very tight and the band really grooved on I heard it thru the Grapevine, Run thru the Jungle, the rhythm was very catchy. You made a great choice of putting Elliot Easton in your band. He's no Joe Satriani but, he plays with so much emotion, much like Eric Clapton does. John Tristao was an excellent choice as your vocalist too. He has a cleaner edge than JCF, is a great showman and gives the Creedence songs new life. The sound mix of the band is perfect. You can hear all of the instruments and the Bass and Drums just pound on you like Mike Tyson hitting you in the chest. Keep that mix the way it is. Also, hats off to Steve Gunner.
  
  My friend Florence wants me to remind Cosmos for a pair of Autographed Drumsticks. If its not too much I might want to ask questions periodically about promoting/playing in a band since you and Doug have great experience in that area. If you guys are ever up for fishing, let me know because I know a few places in the Brideport area that have fantastic fishing!! Keep on Chooglin and I hope to see you guys on the David Letterman Show.
  

• COSMO'S FACTORY IN ST. John's, NF, CANADA - July 1st
  
  By Gregory Lush: " It was a great time - over 10,000 people down on the waterfront...", including dozens of NATO sailors looking on as their ships were docked adjacent to the concert. During BOTB, John Tristao. sang "I can remember the 1st of July" (as opposed to the 4th) in honor of Canada Day. Also, during Midnight Special he sang "in St. John's" (as opposed to Houston) - also a nice touch. Those who caught on certainly appreciated it. It seems like many bands these days don't know (or care) what city they're in, let alone acknowledging it on stage.
  I held up my River Rising certificate during the concert and gave a thumbs up, when Stu saw it he smiled and gave me a thumbs up back. There wasn't an opportunity to track the guys down before or after but it felt great to be personally acknowledged by Stu on stage.For someone living on a sparsely populated Island who is used to only (and often horrible) renditions of CCR tunes by less than capable bands, you can imagine what a great experience it was. Thanks Stu and Cosmo!
  

• COSMO'S FACTORY IN ATLANTIC CITY
  
  By Hank Bordowitz: "Those that stayed for Cosmo's Factory at the beautiful temporary venue Donald Trump set up by his new Marina Hotel Casino saw a great show. For me, personally, it was a great ending to a short vacation . Eliot Easton uses Fogerty's well known guitar parts as a starting point. After establishing that, yeah, he knows what the original sounds like, he plays circles around JCF, while staying in Fogerty's stylistic ballpark. No mean feat, to play someone else's parts and still sound like yourself, but Easton does it with aplomb. And he looks like he's having a whole lot more fun than I ever saw him have playing the Cars antiseptic (or at least astringent) pop. At times, John T sounded eerily like John F. At other times (like "Grapevine" -- see my Hammerstein review) he sounded more like JCF than JCF. At least he got the high notes. It was a kicking show, despite the fact that the band had been up and travelling since four in the morning after doing a show in -- dig this -- Green River, Colorado. Add to the lattice of coincidence, right by the venue, in the Marina, was a Criss Craft called Proud Mary. After the show, my wife and another (recently engaged couple) hung with Stu, Doug and Doug's ultra-charming wife Laurie (I'm very jealous of Doug and Laurie -- they're over ten years older than my wife and I, but both look younger).

You were there too?
Send your review for publication.