Agent Palmer

Generally speaking, I would say Creedence Clearwater Revival is the forgotten great band of their era. When conversations about the greatest rock bands pop up, before people start acknowledging their preference for Lynyrd Skynyrd or Aerosmith or Thin Lizzy as outliers, the default options are The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Cream, and the like.

But as the Netflix music documentary Travelin’ Band: Creedence Clearwater Revival at the Royal Albert Hall reminds us all, there was a time when CCR was the absolute cream of the crop!

Hunter S. Thompson is much more than just Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. I knew that, but knowing that isn’t the same as knowing the wider breadth and depth of that statement. Alex Gibney’s 2008 documentary “Gonzo” filled in a few gaps for me, but for those uninitiated it may just enlighten you to just how much more than one book Hunter was.

Gibney does an amazing job throughout the documentary weaving Thompson’s words with his life. As a writer, even one like Hunter, not everything is relevant, yet it all could be usable depending on the story you want to tell.

I thought about being a rock star as an early teen as if it was that easy. I also thought about becoming a journalist for a period in my late teens, which seemed much more realistic. I even minored in journalism in college, so it was definitely in my wheelhouse.

Somehow, being a rock journalist never made the list, even temporarily, of things I want to do when I grow up.