Johnny Rivers

Johnny Rivers (born John Henry Ramistella; November 7, 1942) is an American musician. His repertoire includes pop, folk, blues and old-time rock 'n' roll. Rivers charted during the 1960s and 1970s but remains best known for a string of hit singles between 1964 and 1968, among them "Memphis" (a Chuck Berry cover), "Mountain of Love" (a Harold Dorman cover), "The Seventh Son" (a Willie Mabon cover), "Secret Agent Man", "Poor Side of Town" (a US No. 1), "Baby I Need Your Lovin'" (a 1967 cover of the Four Tops single from 1964) and "Summer Rain". Life and career Early years Rivers was born John Henry Ramistella in New York City, of Italian descent. His family moved from New York to Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Influenced by the distinctive Louisiana musical style, Rivers began playing guitar at age eight, taught by his father and uncle. While still in junior high school, he started sitting in with a band called the Rockets, led by Dick Holler, who later wrote several hit songs, including "Abraham, Martin and John" and the novelty song "Snoopy vs. the Red Baron". Ramistella formed his own band, the Spades, and made his first record at 14 while he was a student at Baton Rouge High School. Some of their music was recorded on the Suede label as early as 1956.