Poor Side of Town


"Poor Side of Town" is a song by Johnny Rivers that reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and the RPM Canadian Chart in November 1966.

Song

It was a very important record for Rivers and represented a change from the musical style that provided him with his early hits and acclaim. With "Poor Side of Town," he moved into the pop-soul style.
The melody is a soulful version of California-based pop, with some strong folk elements as well. Marty Paich provided the song's string arrangement.
There are two versions of the song. The single edit version fades out earlier, in order to avoid repetition, due to its length, following the repeated lyric line: "Oh with you by my side". The longer version goes on, finishing up the verse, and following the repeated guitar riff, repeats the sung introduction of the scatting, before the song fades out.

Cover versions