Joy of My Life

"Joy of My Life"
Song by John Fogerty
from the album Blue Moon Swamp
Released	May 20, 1997
Recorded	1997
Genre	Country rock
Length	3:52
Label	Warner Bros. BMG
Songwriter(s)	John Fogerty
Producer(s)	John Fogerty
Audio video
"Joy of My Life" on YouTube

"Joy of My Life" is a 1997 song written and originally recorded by American musician John Fogerty. It was released on his 1997 fifth solo album Blue Moon Swamp . In 2022, the song was released by country music singer Chris Stapleton as a single from his album Starting Over .

History

The tenth track on Blue Moon Swamp, "Joy of My Life," was written, produced and arranged by Fogerty, engineered by John Lowson and mixed by Bob Clearmountain. It is a conversational song about his wife Julie, and the first love song Fogerty has written unless "Long As I Can See the Light" is counted. The tune started to evolve in 1991 when Fogerty attended the Oshkosh aviation show in Wisconsin. When the organizers asked "How's Julie?" Fogerty always answered "Well' she's the joy of my life". Then the organizers: "You're always saying 'She's the joy of my life'. You should write a song." After getting serious with the dobro in 1992, Fogerty wrote the riff for the song at the Kern River draining an area of the southern Sierra Nevada mountains northeast of Bakersfield in California. The words started coming after returning back home, putting the kids down and lying in bed with his wife. ^{[1] [2]} Fogerty also stated he sings "Joy of My Life" to his wife every night. ^[3] Eventually, it became John Fogerty's first love song.

Personnel

Source ^[2]

• Dobro, bouzouki (Irish), acoustic guitar, vocals: John Fogerty
• Bass: Bob Glaub
• Drums: Kenny Aronoff
• Claves, tambourine: Luis Conté

Chris Stapleton cover

"Joy of My Life"
Single by Chris Stapleton
from the album Starting Over
Released	March 22, 2022
Genre	Country
Length	4:34 (album version) 3:43 (radio edit)
Label	Mercury Nashville
Songwriter(s)	John Fogerty
Producer(s)	Dave Cobb Chris Stapleton
Chris Stapleton singles chronology
"Easy on Me" (2022) "Joy of My Life" (2022) "We Don't Fight Anymore" (2023)
Audio video
"Joy of My Life" on YouTube

On March 22, 2022, country singer Chris Stapleton released his version of the song as a single. ^{[4] [5] [6] [7]} The song was originally included on his 2020 album Starting Over . ^[8] After being released as a single it charted at number 27 on the US Hot Country Songs chart. ^[9]

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for "Joy of My Life" Chart (2022) Peak position Canada Country ( Billboard ) [10] 43 US Bubbling Under Hot 100 ( Billboard ) [11] 1 US Country Airplay ( Billboard ) [12] 25 US Hot Country Songs ( Billboard ) [13] 27

Year-end charts 2022 year-end chart performance for "Joy of My Life" Chart (2022) Position US Hot Country Songs (Billboard) [14] 44

Certifications

Certifications for "Joy of My Life"

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada) [15]	Platinum	80,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ) [16]	Gold	15,000‡
United States (RIAA) [17]	Platinum	1,000,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

1. John Fogerty (2015). Fortunate Son.
2. "Electric Bayou - Creedence Clearwater Revival & John Fogerty - Joy of My Life". sites.google.com.
3. "Billboard". Nielsen Business Media, Inc. August 1, 1998 – via Google Books.
4. Houghton, Cillea. "Chris Stapleton covers John Fogerty with new single, "Joy of My Life"".
5. "Chris Stapleton releases 'Joy of My Life'". March 22, 2022.
6. "Chris Stapleton Announces Latest Single from Starting Over - "Joy Of My Life"". The Country Daily. March 22, 2022.
7. "Morgan Wallen 'Sand in My Boots': Lyrics & Story Behind the Song". Outsider. March 24, 2022.
8. "Starting Over - Chris Stapleton | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
9. "Chris Stapleton". Billboard.
10. "Chris Stapleton Chart History (Canada Country)". Billboard. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
11. "Chris Stapleton Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved October 18, 2022.
12. "Chris Stapleton Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
13. "Chris Stapleton Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
14. "Hot Country Songs – Year-End 2022". Billboard. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
15. "Canadian single certifications – Chris Stapleton – Joy of My Life". Music Canada . Retrieved March 3, 2025.
16. "New Zealand single certifications – Chris Stapleton – Joy of My Life". Radioscope. Retrieved January 17, 2025.Type Joy of My Life in the "Search:" field.
17. "American single certifications – Chris Stapleton – Joy of My Life". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved April 28, 2023.