JOHNNY RIVERS: "Meanwhile Back At The Whisky À Go Go"

Original released on LP Imperial 12284

(US, 1965)

You'd think that by his third album in this format from this venue, Johnny Rivers would start to get a little redundant, but that wasn't the case, as is obvious from the opening track, "Seventh Son" - Rivers takes an approach that manages to intersect with swamp rock, white soul, and garage punk, all neatly wrapped up in three minutes so potent that it shot into the Top Ten on the Billboard Hot 100. One doesn't need to check a release date on this album to know that folk-rock was still the happening sound at the time Rivers cut it; he successfully puts his own lean, mean stamp on the sound with his ominous, stripped-down rendition of "Greenback Dollar," presenting a side of the song totally missed by the Kingston Trio, and a version of "Silver Threads and Golden Needles" owes a lot to Dale Hawkins (whose "Suzie Q" also gets covered here) and Chuck Berry. Rivers also presents a powerful white soul sound on this record, reaching back to his New Orleans background for "Land of 1,000 Dances" (as well as "Stagger Lee") and out to Motown on his guitar and bass-driven version of "Stop in the Name of Love." Indeed, one has to wonder how many times a struggling young John Fogerty, living on the other end of California and the far side of success, listened to this record (and also the pounding versions of "Parchman Farm" and "Suzie Q" here) and started germinating his own ideas about an even more suitable song like "I Heard It Through the Grapevine." He also gives a nod to the Beatles, covering their most stripped-down rock & roll number, "I'll Cry Instead" - one of their least-covered songs - in a slightly more loping, relaxed, and soulful manner. (Bruce Eder in AllMusic)

Johnny Rivers Again at the Whisky à Go Go

Original released on LP Imperial 9274 (mono)

(US, November 1964)

JOHNNY RIVERS At The Whisky à GoGo"

Original Released on LP Imperial
9264 (mono) - 12264 (stereo)
(US, February 1964)

The Whisky a Go-Go is a nightclub in West Hollywood, California, at 8901 Sunset Boulevard on the Sunset Strip. It has been called the first real American discothèque. It was opened January 11, 1964, at the site of an old bank building that had been remodeled into a short-lived club called the Party, by a former Chicago policeman, Elmer Valentine. Though the club was billed as a discothèque, meaning only recordings with no bands, the Whisky a Go-Go opened with a live band led by Johnny Rivers (born John Ramistella in New York City on November 7, 1942, he changed his name by suggestion of disc-jokey Alan Freed) and a short-skirted female DJ spinning records between sets from a suspended cage at the right of the stage. When the girl DJ danced during Rivers' set, the audience thought it was part of the act and the concept of Go-Go dancers in cages was born. 

Johnny Rivers rode the Whisky-born "go-go" craze to national fame with records recorded partly live at the Whisky. This Rivers debut album was one of the first LPs that I’ve bought with my own money. The year was 1965 or 1966 and I was just beginning to discover all the excitement of rock ‘n roll. The main attraction of those days were of course The Beatles but this album meant really something new to me. The tracks seemed very carefully chosen to introduce me to such classics like “Memphis”, “Oh Lonesome Me”, “Walkin’ The Dog” or “Multiplication” (only some time later I’ve discovered the original versions of Chuck Berry, Don Gibson, Rufus Thomas and Bobby Darin). I’ve listened to these ten tracks hundreds of times and through the years I’ve always returned to this exciting album with the same pleasure: old passions never die! I have made a new back cover, because my original LP is very damaged and no one could read anything at all. And I didn't forgot to include some of the celebrity endorsements that appeared on it.