The multi-talented Johnny Rivers brings us today’s classic song of the day, “Poor Side of Town.” Released as a single in August of 1966, this one went all the way to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. (It was also a number-one hit in Canada.)
“Poor Side of Town” was written by Johnny Rivers and producer Lou Adler. Adler produced the recording, which employed several members of the Wrecking Crew for backing, including Larry Knechtel on piano, Joe Osborn on bass, and the ubiquitous Hal Blaine on drums. Darlene Love and the Blossoms supplied background vocals.
Johnny Rivers was a major force in the pop music world of the 1960s. He was born (as John Ramistella) in New York City but grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He first picked up the guitar when he was eight years old and formed his first band when he was in junior high. In 1958, when the 16 year-old Johnny Ramistella was on a trip to New York, he met DJ Alan Freed who suggested he change his last name to something shorter and more memorable, such as “Rivers.” Freed also helped Johnny sign his first recording contract.
Johnny moved to Nashville a year later and found work as a songwriter and demo singer. He moved to Los Angeles in 1963 and, a year later, got a one-year contract to open at the Whiskey a Go Go. Johnny proved so popular there that producer Lou Adler, who’d become a fan, recorded his set and released it as the album Johnny Rivers Live at the Whiskey a Go Go. That album was a smash, reaching #12 on Billboard’s album chart and spawned his first hit single, a cover of Chuck Berry’s “Memphis” that hit #2 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100.
Other hits soon followed, including covers of “Maybellene,” “Mountain of Love,” “Seventh Son,” “Baby I Need Your Lovin’,” “Tracks of My Tears,” and “Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu,” as well as originals like “Secret Agent Man,” “Summer Rain,” and “Swayin’ to the Music (Slow Dancin’).” As well as “Poor Side of Town,” of course, his only number-one hit.
In 1966, Rivers started his own record label, Soul City Records. One of the groups he signed to the label was the 5th Dimension, who had a cornucopia of hits in the late-60s and early-70s. Rivers is also credited with discovering ace songwriter Jimmy Webb, who wrote “Up, Up and Away” for the 5th Dimension. (Webb also wrote “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” which Johnny Rivers recorded before Glen Campbell’s hit version.)
Johnny Rivers continued recording through the turn of the century, although his last big hit was 1977’s “Swayin’ to the Music (Slow Dancing).” He continued to perform until just recently, giving his final live performance in July of 2023 at the Commerce Casino near Los Angeles. He’s currently 83 years old.
So here’s today’s daily bonus video of the day, Johnny Rivers lip synching “Poor Side of Town” on some television program back in 1966. It’s a damned good tune.
