‘Proud Mary’ by Prinz Grizzley | New dolefully gentle, banjo and acoustic guitar rendition of CCR’s ‘Proud Mary’
Austrian Alps-based Americana songwriter Prinz Grizzley recently recorded dolefully gentle, banjo and acoustic guitar rendition of CCR’s ‘Proud Mary’.
”If someone would’ve told me a year ago that I’d do a cover of a CCR song, I would’ve laughed out loud and called them crazy! I would’ve said that I’d never, ever dare to do a cover of a CCR song and particularly not ’Proud Mary!’ Because of two things, first, nobody, I mean really nobody, sings these songs better than John Fogerty! Second, John Fogerty´s music has been with me as long as I can remember. It kind of became the holy grail for me. These songs are not to be messed around with or changed. For example, I never liked the Tina Turner version, although I know it’s a killer one. I know I broke my own rule, but with this version of mine, I think this exception is acceptable, at least for me!” Prinz Grizzley
From his Austrian Alps forest home, Americana songsmith Prinz Grizzley is releasing a series of singles leading into 2023. These songs of finding hope, revenge and eventually serenity will make you look for your own secluded mountain town to settle down in, get drinks with friends and maybe even start a family.
Chris Comper doesn’t overthink it when it comes to changing up genres in the music he releases via his alter ego Prinz Grizzley. “It’s all about the songs,” the Austrian musician explains. “I like writing songs. It’s just which dress you put on them. If it works on acoustic guitar, it’s a good song, and if it doesn’t work on acoustic guitar, it’s a shit song. And then when you go into production, if there’s a synthesizer or pedal steel, if the song asks for it, give it to him.”
It’s an ethos that’s served Comper well throughout his career, which included indie-rock success with his band Golden Reef and a brief foray into synth-pop.
As much as ‘Proud Mary’ has been covered, Prinz Grizzley’s version, featuring his lovely banjo work, coaxes wistful beauty out of it anew. It captures what Comper hears in the protagonist’s plight: “Having hope and having no hope at the same time.”
Comper, a longtime Creedence fan, found inspiration for his take in a YouTube video of John Fogerty playing a solo concert while at odds with his former band. “I thought he looked really cool, like ‘I don’t give a fuck, I have enough hit singles, just leave me be,’ Comper explains. “My version is like John Fogerty at 40 when he had a lot of lawsuits against him and was depressed. Maybe if he would have played the song then, that’s how I think it might have sounded.”
Comper cite Sturgill Simpson as an influence, particularly in his willingness to keep changing things up, even at the risk of defying audience expectations. “What shall I change to make it interesting to me again?” is how he approached the new singles. “With these releases, it’s a bit to show another side of me.”
Comper will be back in the studio shortly to complete the follow-up to his first two Prinz Grizzley albums, 2018’s ’Come On In’ and 2020’s ’To My Green Mountains Home’. In fact, he says that the new record will complete his trilogy.
“A trilogy,” Comper laughs. “It’s out of fashion now, but when I started it, it was just fucking in fashion.”
Headline photo: Pia Pia Pia
Prinz Grizzley Official Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter / Bandcamp / YouTube
