Found Performance: “Summer Rain” by Johnny Rivers

Anyone twisting the radio dial, tuning in to ‘Colorful KOL” in late 1967 or ’68, might have heard something akin to this lead in (Terry McManus’ great voice and a Colorful KOL jingle). I was in high school when Johnny Rivers released this one. It holds a certain mystique for me, probably because it pays homage to Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Actually, I liked lots of the songs performed by Rivers – Memphis, Seventh Son, Poor Side of Town, Secret Agent Man, Baby, I Need Your Lovin,’ Tracks of My Tears and several others. In Nov. 1967, Summer Rain was released as a single, but come January ’68 it peaked at #14 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart and at #10 in Canada.

This video was shot at the Montreux Music Festival in Switzerland. It dates to 1973, only five years after the record was a hit, so Johnny Rivers was still in his youth and looked as he did when the song came out. The music track was of marginal quality, typical of a live performance, and it was replaced with a stereo version of the original recording. Lip sync has been optimized as has the video (as much as was feasible).