The Hollies "Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress"

Did you think that The Hollies, Creedence Clearwater Revival, or another band performed on this 1972 hit Hollies record?

 

I recall when the record came out, the simple production resulted in it always jumping out of the transistor radio. I loved the strong echo on the vocals, I didn't really understand what the effect was but it made the single sound different.

 

My CD said "The Hollies," so I figured it was probably them.

 

Nah, I knew it was the Hollies. The deejay said so. But it sure has that CCR "swamp-rock" vibe, doesn't it? Great record!

 

I don't remember.

 

I recall John Fogerty once joking that "Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress" was "the best CCR song that we never recorded."

 

That's great! Next time I go to one of his shows, I'll shout out a request for that one.

 

Great tune! I also like Dave Edmunds "I hear u Knocking"!

 

Mike Love. LOL

 

When I first heard the single I liked it but I didn't have any idea who it was. I was surprised when I found out it was the Hollies because it was atypical for them.

Even though it's a riff driven rock song I never thought it was CCR. The vocals do not sound like John Fogarty at all to my ear.

 

I sort of assumed it was Creedence. I never suspected it was The Hollies. I thought it was far better than anything else I'd ever heard from Creedence and later I found out why.

It's a great song but it doesn't sound like the same band that did "Carrie Anne".

 

Same here... the vocals sound absolutely nothing alike.... I've never understood why so many people thought it was CCR.

 

So it didn't remind you of a Creedence production style either?

 

I thought it was CCR when I first heard it, and I'm pretty certain it was influenced by CCR. The great majority of Hollies' songs were rich with vocal harmony. "Long Cool Woman" had none, so I never would have guessed it was the Hollies until I saw their name on the record.

 

I wasn't very familiar with Creedence, only some of their singles which were played on the radio, and I lived with very poor quality radio (an old mantle radio, and I had a very small transistor, at the limit of the popular station's range). Didn't have many records or access to other's collections. I think I have over-compensated for these childhood deprivations now.

 

Seem to remember that Alan Clarke played the guitar riff on this track, as the other members could not get it to sound like Alan wanted.

 

I had to buy the single

 

A great great great single.

The Hollies were a great band in the sixties and seventies.

 

Worth noting that Creedence had broken up by the time the Hollies song hit.

 

The opening guitar riffs, and the lead guitar in general
The over the top lead vocals reverbed
No harmonies

I had no idea who it was for a couple of days. I was surprised because He Ain't Heavy was the last big hit and that one was DRENCHED in Hollies harmonies

 

I thought it was The Standells.

 

Was listening to this with some friends the other day. We all agreed that the opening riff is one of the best ever. Personally, I never confused it with CCR though.

 

It didn't sound typical Hollies but they were getting a bit experimental at that time so not totally unexpected.

 

When the intro started i thought it was Blue Oyster Cult. Then when the singer started i realized my mistake. It was CCR!

Imagine my surprise when I found out the truth...

 

I thought it was Creedence. I'm not even sure I heard anything played by the Hollies on the radio in my area.