Bad Moon Rising

The song is a prophecy of impending doom. Fogerty warns of hurricanes, lightning, and rage and ruin. It taps into a primal fear of nature's wrath and societal collapse, potentially reflecting the anxieties of the Vietnam War era.

"I see the bad moon a-rising
I see trouble on the way"

Despite the dire warnings ("Don't go around tonight, it's bound to take your life"), the song invites a kind of toe-tapping acceptance of the chaos.

Released in April 1969 as the lead single from Green River, it reached No. 2 on the Billboard 100 in the US and No. 1 in the UK.

John Fogerty was inspired after watching the 1941 film The Devil and Daniel Webster, specifically a scene involving a hurricane. He wanted to capture that spooky, foreboding atmosphere in a rock and roll song.

Musically, it's straight-ahead rockabilly. The simple chord progression (D-A-G) and driving rhythm give it a joyous, danceable feel that completely contradicts the lyrical content.

Fogerty called this contrast "a little joke of mine." You're dancing while the world ends.

The line "there's a bad moon on the rise" is famously misheard as "there's a bathroom on the right." Fogerty himself has embraced this mondegreen, sometimes singing the "bathroom" line live for a laugh.