He was versatile enough to do folk songs, blues, covers of old-time Rock n' roll songs, and some original material, all of them in his own unique style. Rivers's greatest success came in the mid and late 1960s with a string of hit songs (including "Seventh Son," "Poor Side of Town" and "Secret Agent Man") but he has continued to record and perform to the present.
In 1960, Rivers met fellow Louisianan, James Burton, the guitar player for Ricky Nelson. Burton later recommended one of Rivers's songs to Nelson, who went on to record it. In 1961, Rivers went to Los Angeles to meet Nelson, and ended up relocating there, working as a song writer and studio musician. In 1963, Rivers's big break came when he temporarily filled in for a jazz combo at Bill Gazzari's night club; the temporary gig became long-term due to positive customer response.
In 1964, Elmer Valentine then gave Rivers a one-year contract to open his new club, Whisky a Go Go, on Sunset Strip in West Hollywood. The Whisky opened three days before The Beatles released "I Want To Hold Your Hand" and the British Invasion knocked almost every American artist off the top of the charts. But Rivers was so popular, producer Lou Adler decided to issue Johnny Rivers Live At The Whiskey A Go Go. The live album reached #12 on the charts and the single "Memphis" (a Chuck Berry cover) reached #2. Rivers made the successful transition from nightclub entertainer to chart-busting pop singer and had created the Go Go sound, part of a scene which included Go-Go dancers.
Into 1965, Rivers continued to record mostly live, Go Go style records including "Maybellene" (another Berry cover), which he followed "Mountain of Love", "Midnight Special", "Seventh Son" (written by Willie Dixon) e "Where Have All The Flowers Gone" (with Pete Seeger's), all of which were hits.
Rivers wanted to try something different and adopted a more idiosyncratic approach as from 1966. Characterized by his smooth, soulful voice, he produced hit portrayals as "Poor Side Of Town", which would be his biggest hit ever and his only number one record. Into another hit was "Secret Agent Man", the theme from Secret Agent television series (written by P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri). He also started own record company, Soul City Records, where he won a Grammy Award as the producer of the 5th Dimension, which eventually recorded "Aquarius/Let The Sun Shine In" and "Wedding Bell Blues", two number one hits on Rivers' label. Johnny is also credited with giving songwriter Jimmy Webb a major break when they recorded Webb's song "Up, Up, and Away". James Hendricks, one of the artists of that signed with Soul City, wrote "Summer Rain", a song that Rivers recorded and turned a hit.
Johnny Rivers continued to record more hits, including "Baby I Need Your Lovin'" and "The Tracks of My Tears" (cover of The Miracles), both top 10 in 1967. In 1968, Rivers released what many fans consider his best album, Realization, a number five album on the LP charts. The album was evocative of the psychedelic influences of the time and marked a subtle change in his musical direction, with more thoughtful types of songs, included such ballads as "Going Back to Big Sur".
In the 1970s, Rivers continued to record more songs and albums which were a success with music critics, but did not sell as well as some of his earlier hits. One of these albums, "L.A. Reggae" in 1972, reached the LP charts as a result of the top 10 "Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu" (a cover of Huey Smith & the Clowns). Anothers hits that time were "Blue Suede Shoes" (a cover of Carl Perkins), in 1973, which would reach the top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100, and "Help Me Rhonda", in 1975 - a cover of The Beach Boys on which Brian Wilson helped with backup vocals. His last entry on the charts was "Swayin' to the Music (Slow Dancing)", a top ten hit in 1977.
1980's until nowadays
Rivers continued recording into the '80's, although his recording career wound down somewhat. In spite of his music hasn't reached the best seller charts for quite a while, Rivers is still touring, doing 50 to 60 shows a year, increasingly returning to the blues that inspired him initially.
In 1998], Rivers reactivated his Soul City imprint and released Last Train to Memphis, his first new studio album in 15 years.
In early 2000, Johnny recorded with Eric Clapton, Tom Petty, and Paul McCartney on a tribute album dedicated to Buddy Holly's backup band, "The Crickets".
In all, Rivers had 9 top ten hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and 17 in the top 40 from 1964 to 1977. In total, he has sold well over 25 million records.
Sunny
Johnny Rivers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sunny, yesterday my life was filled with rain
Sunny, you smiled at me and really eased the pain
Oh, the dark days are gone and the bright days are here
My sunny one shines so sincere
Oh sunny one so true, I love you
Sunny, thank you for the love you've brought my way
You gave to me your all and all
Now I feel ten feel tall
Oh sunny one so true, I love you
Sunny, thankyou for the truth you've let me see
Sunny, thankyou for the facts from A to Z
My life was torn like wind-blown sand
Then a rock was formed when we held hands
Sunny one so true, I love you
Sunny, thank you for that smile upon your face
Sunny, thank you for that gleam that flows with grace
You're my spark of nature's fire
You're my sweet complete desire
Sunny one so true, I love you
Johnny Rivers’s song “Sunny” is about a man who experienced a lot of sadness and pain in his life, and how the love of a woman named Sunny has completely changed that. The first verse starts with the singer’s life being filled with rain, which is a metaphor for pain or sadness. However, when Sunny smiles at him, he feels better and her love eases his pain. The dark days are gone and the bright days are finally here thanks to her. He refers to her as his “sunny one,” which could be taken literally as a synonym for the word ‘sun,’ but it is actually a term of endearment that he uses throughout the song.
In the second verse, the singer thanks Sunny for the love she has brought into his life. She has given everything to him and as a result, he feels ten-feet tall. Her love is so true and he loves her for that. He then proceeds to thank her for the truth she has let him see – the real facts from A to Z. This reveals that perhaps the singer has been lied to or deceived in the past, and Sunny has been able to show him the truth. Their connection is so strong that it has formed a rock out of the wind-blown sand that was the singer’s life before her.
In the final verse, the singer thanks Sunny for her smile and the gleam that comes with it. She is his spark of nature’s fire and his sweet complete desire. This final verse really shows how much the singer loves Sunny and how much their love has impacted his life. The recurring phrase “sunny one so true, I love you” reinforces how important she is to him.
Line by Line Meaning
Sunny, yesterday my life was filled with rain
Before I met you, Sunny, my life was full of sadness and hardship.
Sunny, you smiled at me and really eased the pain
But when you smiled at me, you made all my troubles disappear, Sunny.
Oh, the dark days are gone and the bright days are here
Since I met you, Sunny, my life has been filled with happiness and the future seems bright.
My sunny one shines so sincere
Your pure and genuine love shines on me like the sun, Sunny.
Oh sunny one so true, I love you
I am deeply in love with you, Sunny, and your love for me is genuine and pure.
Sunny, thank you for the sunshine boquet
Thank you for bringing light and warmth into my life, Sunny.
Sunny, thank you for the love you've brought my way
I am forever grateful for the love and joy that you have brought into my life, Sunny.
You gave to me your all and all
You gave me everything you had, and I am thankful for it, Sunny.
Now I feel ten feel tall
With your love by my side, I feel strong and confident, like I can conquer anything, Sunny.
Sunny, thankyou for the truth you've let me see
Thank you for opening my eyes and showing me the truth, Sunny.
Sunny, thankyou for the facts from A to Z
Thank you for being honest and straightforward with me, Sunny.
My life was torn like wind-blown sand
My life was unstable and fragile, like sand being blown by the wind, before I met you, Sunny.
Then a rock was formed when we held hands
But when we came together, our love became strong and unbreakable, like a rock, Sunny.
Sunny one so true, I love you
Your love is genuine and pure, Sunny, and I love you deeply.
Sunny, thank you for that smile upon your face
Thank you for always brightening up my day with your beautiful smile, Sunny.
Sunny, thank you for that gleam that flows with grace
Thank you for the graceful and elegant way that you shine, Sunny.
You're my spark of nature's fire
You are the spark that ignites the fire in my heart, Sunny.
You're my sweet complete desire
You are everything I could ever want or need, Sunny, my sweet and complete desire.
Sunny one so true, I love you
Your love is genuine and pure, Sunny, and I love you deeply.
Contributed by Wyatt V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@javiercoronel3457
Sunny thank you for your smile! You´re my sweet complite desire! Hi from Argentina Johny sunny fans!
@lautaroviolini8301
Yo también soy de Argentina, temaso.🎉
@Steviepinhead
Put this man in the Hall of Fame!
@abelbustos4855
Los escuché por primera vez en 1971, tenía once años y el Long Play (disco), era de mi hermano Antonio. Pasaron muchos años y Johnny Rivers está en muchos corazones.
@user-zo9gd7jc4j
Música que no volverán jamás son unicos
@monicabeatrizcana4743
Cierro mis ojos y me remontó en un vuelo hacia el pasado,q magia tiene la música q te puede transportar en un abrir y cerrar de ojos,cuanta nostalgias, q FELICES fuimos CON TAN POCO.
@pedritomelo
Que temaso! Me acuerdo que lo escuchaba cuando recién estaba en la primaria porque mi viejo ponía su cd de johnny rivera en casa. Ahora tengo 19 y me sigue encantando este tema!
@oscarbarrerapacha4799
+pedritomelo Soy de la epoca de Jonny Rivers. Te creo que tu papá lo escuchaba pero no en CD (no exixtian) solo discos de pastas en tocadiscos
@pedritomelo
Si existían los CD cuando yo era chico! jajaja si tengo 19 nomás
@oscarbarrerapacha4799
Seguro que grababas Casettes tambien y los comprabas ja ja ja Andaaaaaa Preguntale a tu Papá el seguro sabe de que hablo.