The co-founder of Creedence Clearwater Revisited says watching three generations of fans rocking out in the sunshine to their greatest hits never ceases to amaze and delight.
Drummer Doug "Cosmo" Clifford and fellow Creedence original member, bass player Stu Cook, plus multi-instrumentalist Steve Gunner, guitarist Kurt Griffey and lead singer-guitarist John Tristao return to the Wakatipu region when the band plays on the cricket oval at the Queenstown Events Centre on Sunday, February 5.
Proud Mary, Bad Moon Rising, Green River, Travelin' Band, Lookin' Out My Back Door, Suzie Q, Down on the Corner, Fortunate Son and Who'll Stop the Rain will be among the hits belted out by the globetrotting band at their sixth and final date in New Zealand.
Clifford said thousands of partying people was "an interesting thing to watch and something to really enjoy because the response that we get, it's energising; that's why we do this".
Clifford spoke to the Queenstown Times last week from his home in the Nevada mountains, between Lake Tahoe and Reno. He was looking forward to escaping the northern hemisphere winter and enjoying the summer down under again.
The powerhouse quintet shared the bill with Dr Hook and band at the inaugural Gibbston Valley Winery Summer Concert in March this year, which was hailed as the biggest live-music concert held in the Southern Lakes.
"It was a fantastic day, great atmosphere, the weather held out great for us, there were about 15,000 people there, and it was at a winery," Clifford said.
"All things are on the up and up down there; I'd like to have all my shows like that.
"We love New Zealand and the people of New Zealand, so it was a win-win-win."
This time around, Creedence Clearwater Revisited will be supported by Made in New Zealand. Jackie Clarke and Rikki Morris sing Kiwi summer classics from the past 50 years with a full backing band.
Rising star Bex Murray, of Lake Tekapo, will be a guest support act for the Queenstown show only.
Clifford and Cook were inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and, in one of those enduring rock 'n' roll marriages, have known each other for 53 years. They were members of Creedence Clearwater Revival along with lead singer-guitarist and main songwriter John Fogerty and his late brother and rhythm guitarist Tom Fogerty, until the band broke up in 1972.
Clifford said he did not miss Revival's pressure of having to create an album a year, and Revisited allowed them to focus on playing music in a party atmosphere.
"We take the music seriously, but we don't take ourselves seriously, so the object for us is to have as much fun as we can.
"I get a huge adrenalin rush at every show."
