Though it would take a miracle for Creedence Clearwater Revival to reunite, it only took a little detective work by John Fogerty's wife Julie to reunite him with a guitar that was his mainstay in the band.
Fogerty used the 1969 Rickenbacker 325 Sunburst in the studio as well as on stage at Woodstock. But after the band broke up, he wanted to cut all ties to CCR and gave the axe to a 12-year-old boy.
He found the guitar years later in California but decided not to spend $40,000 to reclaim it. But last year he mentioned it to Julie, and she surprised him with it at Christmas.
Fogerty tells Rolling Stone that he saw the large package, turned to his wife and asked, "Am I about to get overwhelmed here?" He opened the case and broke down. "I never imagined I'd see it again. Eventually these things, like works of art, end up getting bought by some billionaire and go into some secret closet so nobody can know about it."
He plugged the guitar in and started playing the solo in "Green River." He recalls that "the hairs stood up on the back of my neck. It was exactly that sound, 100 percent. I daresay I haven't heard that sound since those days when I had the guitar."
The guitar will return to the stage when he resumes his Fortunate Son in Concert residency at the Wynn Las Vegas on March 3rd.