John Fogerty DÉJÀ VU ALL OVER AGAIN (Geffen)

John Fogerty’s first album of new material since 1997’s Blue Moon Swamp begins with the foreboding title track, a song that echoes Credence’s Vietnam-era lament "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?" The déjà vu being referred to is, of course, our increasingly precarious position in Iraq. It’s a simple but effective minor-key protest song — something Fogerty has a knack for. Unfortunately, much of the rest of the album is merely minor. With silly titles like "Honey Do," "Rhubarb Pie," and "Sugar-Sugar (In My Life)," he’s not exactly crafting a big statement, and at 34 minutes, the album is pretty slight for his first release in seven years.

Still, the CD’s charms, modest as they may be, are charms nonetheless. "Honey Do" cops Carl Perkins, "Wicked Old Witch" has an irresistible two-step groove, and "I Will Walk with You" wanders delicately through bluegrass country. On "Nobody’s Here Anymore," Fogerty swaps stinging licks with Mark Knopfler. Too bad the anti-Internet lyrics are so trite: "He’s feeling so connected/But he don’t talk to a soul." At this point in his career, it may be too much to ask Fogerty to turn out another classic. And by that standard, this is a pleasant little album that will soon be forgotten.