BOB SMITH:
Oooh good question as the sounds are very hard to identify, but thankfully John Fogerty explained this and more in his 2015 autobiography. The song is a cover of a "Screamin' Jay" Hawkins song from 1956 done by Creedence ClearWater for their self titled album in 1968.
In an attempt to create a “ other dimensional” sound , Fogerty and crew used his young sons toys to make the sounds heard. These were recorded at various speeds to achieve the desired effect.
A spinning top, jack-in-the-box and several pull toys that emitted sounds make those mysterious sounds no one could correctly identify all those years.. Fogerty had said regarding the idea, the budget for the album was tight so improvisation to satisfy inspiration was required.
The song “ Gloomy” off the same album incorporates those sounds or a variant of in the song also.. Another long time puzzle resolved. Now we can all sleep soundly at night 😉
