Poor Side of Town
Johnny Rivers
1966
Annual listening-list association, separate from the source-supported original release year reviewed in v3.7.
Release: 1966
Release: 1966Source checked
V3.7 reviewed original release year: Reviewed original album/single year. Later chart placement and reissues do not reset the first release; exact mix and worldwide day remain unspecified.
The large badge identifies this listening list, not a newly issued recording. Later reissues and renewed chart popularity do not replace an original release date. How years are assigned.
Johnny Rivers - official 1964-1969 discography
Original album years and programs for Changes (1966), and I Know You Wanna Dance (1966), At the Whisky a Go-Go (1964), Meanwhile (1965), and Rewind (1967). Memphis and the Whisky-era performances are not relabeled as studio recordings.
Johnny Rivers - official recording history
Firsthand recording accounts for By the Time I Get to Phoenix, Poor Side of Town and the expanded Secret Agent Man single, plus the dated 1972 Rockin Pneumonia and 1977 Swayin to the Music releases. The short TV theme and expanded commercial recording are distinct.
Inspiration and background
Researched recording background
Poor Side of Town marked Johnny Rivers' move toward an orchestrated ballad sound. Rivers recalled recording his vocal with Larry Knechtel, Joe Osborn and Hal Blaine before Marty Paich's strings were added. The song appears on the 1966 Changes album alongside his interpretations of material by other writers. Retained list context: Poor Side of Town by Johnny Rivers appears at number 18 in the reviewed U.S. year-end table for 1966. No reliable song-specific account of its inspiration was established in this review.
Evidence scope: Sourced recording and release context; private songwriting inspiration or exact audio identity is not inferred.
Sources for this information
Johnny Rivers - official 1964-1969 discography
Original album years and programs for Changes (1966), and I Know You Wanna Dance (1966), At the Whisky a Go-Go (1964), Meanwhile (1965), and Rewind (1967). Memphis and the Whisky-era performances are not relabeled as studio recordings. | Retrieved 2026-10-19
Johnny Rivers - official recording history
Firsthand recording accounts for By the Time I Get to Phoenix, Poor Side of Town and the expanded Secret Agent Man single, plus the dated 1972 Rockin Pneumonia and 1977 Swayin to the Music releases. The short TV theme and expanded commercial recording are distinct. | Retrieved 2026-10-19
Billboard year-end 1966 table (Wikipedia transcription)
Secondary transcription reviewed 2026-10-11: title, artist and annual chart association; not original release date or complete recording metadata.
Earlier note and its recorded status
Earlier status: Basic catalog context. This earlier wording is retained as historical context; the reviewed account above is the current summary.
Poor Side of Town by Johnny Rivers appears at number 18 in the reviewed U.S. year-end table for 1966. No reliable song-specific account of its inspiration was established in this review.
Other appearances and versions
catalog version unspecified
Original release date and exact pressing/version are not independently established.
An annual chart year and an original release date are different. Similar titles may be covers or different masters; no audio fingerprint has been performed.
Sources and scope
Source-backed annual association (secondary source; not a complete discographic review)
Editorial artist-repertoire classification
Billboard year-end 1966 table (Wikipedia transcription)
Secondary transcription reviewed 2026-10-11: title, artist and annual chart association; not original release date or complete recording metadata.
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