Today I was honored to have the two-time Grammy Award winning artist Johnny Rivers at Los Angeles City Hall to proclaim June 13, 2014 as Johnny Rivers Day throughout the City of Los Angeles in honor of this great artist and the first ever benefit concert for New Horizons!
New Horizons is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping individuals with special needs reach their potential and fulfill their dreams. Founded in 1954 by eight parents whose children had developmental disabilities, it has evolved to provide services and support each year to nearly 1,000 individuals and social/recreational services to nearly 3,000 individuals throughout the greater San Fernando Valley.
Johnny Rivers is a two-time Grammy Award winning artist is most famous for his “Go-Go” style records incorporating pop, blues, folk and of course, rock’n’roll. He has nine Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and 17 in the Top 40 from 1964 to 1977 and has sold well over 30 million records. Raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Johnny learned to play guitar from his father at age 8. By junior high school he had formed his own band, The Spades, and made his first record at age 14, while still a student at Baton Rouge High School.
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In 1961, Johnny moved to Los Angeles to meet and record with Ricky Nelson.In January of 1964, Rivers opened the now world-famous Whisky à Go Go, where he recorded “Johnny Rivers Live at the Whisky à Go Go.” This album ushered in the decade known as The Go Go Generation.
Some of his best know hits are: "Memphis" (a Chuck Berry cover),"Mountain of Love", "The Seventh Son","Secret Agent Man","Poor Side of Town","Baby I Need Your Lovin'" (a Motown cover), and "Summer Rain."In 2009, Johnny was inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame.
Click here to watch Johnny Rivers on American Bandstand with Dick Clark in 1964....
For his dedication to the preservation of Go-Go style music and for his continued commitment to New Horizons and helping adults with developmental disabilities reach their potential and fulfill their dreams, I would like to declare June 13, 2014 Johnny Rivers Day throughout the City of Los Angeles.
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Next Saturday, June 21st, Johnny Rivers will be hosting the first ever benefit concert for New Horizons at the Ford Ampitheatre. To purchase tickets call 323-GO-1-FORD or 323-461-3673.
-Mitchell Englander, Councilmember Twelfth District
