“Fortunate Son” Lyrics & Meaning (Creedence Clearwater Revival)

What’s the point of this article?

I mean, everyone knows that Fortunate Son is a song protesting the Vietnam war, right?

Well, not exactly.

Most people think that’s what it is about. Others think it’s a patriotic song.

Donald Trump’s famous misuse of the song in the most ironic way possible is a great example (more on that below).

But Creedence Clearwater Revival were actually singing about something else, though it was still essentially a protest song.

Keep reading to learn the true Fortunate Son lyrics meaning. We’ll also explain that whole Trump self-own.

 

Fortunate Son Lyrics And Meaning

This song was initially released as the B-side of the single Down on the Corner in October 1969, released weeks before Creedence Clearwater Revival’s fourth studio album, Willy and the Poor Boys, hit the record store shelves.

Fortunate Son was prominently placed as the opening track on side two of Willy and the Poor Boys. The track piqued the public’s interest and the single rose to number 14 on the United States charts on November 22, 1969.

The song was penned by Creedence Clearwater Revival’s lead singer and principal songwriter, John Fogerty. Its release coincided with the height of the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War.

Fortunate Son has since featured heavily on Vietnam War movie soundtracks, and the song is essentially a protest song about the US’s involvement in that war. Although John Fogerty himself stated that the song “speaks more to the unfairness of class than war itself.”

Fogerty and his bandmates took exception to the way that certain wealthy young men were not drafted into the US military due to their high-profile connections.

One such fortunate son who dodged the draft was David Eisenhower, the grandson of former President Dwight D. Eisenhower. He married Julie Nixon, the daughter of then-President-elect Richard Nixon, in 1968.

Let’s take a look at the complete lyrics to Fortunate Son, before getting much deeper into their meaning.

 

Fortunate Son Lyrics

Verse 1

Some folks are born made to wave the flag
Ooh, they’re red, white and blue
And when the band plays “Hail to the Chief”
Ooh, they point the cannon at you, Lord

Chorus

It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no senator’s son, son
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no fortunate one, no

Verse 2

Some folks are born silver spoon in hand
Lord, don’t they help themselves, no
But when the taxman come’ to the door
Lord, the house lookin’ like a rummage sale, yeah

Chorus

It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no millionaire’s son, no no
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no fortunate one, no

Verse 3

Yeah, some folks inherit star-spangled eyes
Ooh, they send you down to war, Lord
And when you ask ’em, “How much should we give?”
Ooh, they only answer, “More, more, more, more!”

Chorus

It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no military son, son, Lord
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no fortunate one, one
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no fortunate one, no no no
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no fortunate son, no no no
It ain’t me…

 

Fortunate Son Meaning

Fortunate Son has often been misinterpreted as a patriotic song, in the same way Bruce Springsteen’s hit Born in the USA was misunderstood. The most telling lines in the song are in the chorus, which varies slightly each time it is sung. The first time we hear the chorus, the lyrics are:

It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no senator’s son, son
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no fortunate one, no

The second and fourth lines of this first chorus reveal Fogerty’s feelings towards people like David Eisenhower using their political connections to avoid being drafted to fight in Vietnam.

Meanwhile, the men of eligible age from the lower classes were forced to fight, and those who refused were summarily convicted of avoiding the draft.

The second time we hear the chorus, the second line has changed, with the words “senator’s son” changed to “millionaire’s son.” In its third iteration, the chorus varies again, and this time “senator’s son” changes to “military son.”

These changes highlight the fact that the band was disgruntled by the way people with various high connections avoided the draft.

While the intended meaning of the song should become clear upon inspection of the lyrics, there have been many times since its release when the message has been overlooked.

In recent times, the song has been famously misinterpreted by Donald Trump, who used Fortunate Son at one of his high-profile rallies. Trump, a millionaire’s son who infamously dodged the Vietnam draft, should have paid more attention to that first chorus.

The daughters of the doctor who diagnosed Trump with bone spurs in his heels recently said that the diagnosis was made as a favor to their father’s landlord, Fred Trump. This is exactly the kind of privilege that the song was intended to protest about when it was penned.

 

Interesting Facts About Fortunate Son And CCR

• Before settling on the name Creedence Clearwater Revival in 1967, the band recorded under the names The Blue Velvets and Vision & The Golliwogs.
• Creedence Clearwater Revival released seven studio albums between the years 1968 and 1972.
• Rolling Stone placed Fortunate Son at number 99 on its “500 Greatest Songs of All Time” list.
• Down On The Corner/Fortunate Son spent fifteen weeks in the US charts after its initial release.

 

Fortunate Son Lyrics Meaning: Final Thoughts

The Fortunate Son lyrics meaning is not patriotic. Most of us knew that, although there are a shocking number of people who fail to get even that much. But CCR weren’t exactly protesting the Vietnam war either.

They are specifically protesting the inequality of the war. People with connections are able to avoid being drafted, while the less fortunate have no choice but to go risk their lives.

For another song that briefly touches on the Vietnam War, along with every other major occurrence from 1949 to 1989, check out our analysis of the We Didn’t Start The Fire lyrics meaning.