Realization is the fifth studio album by the American musician Johnny Rivers, released in 1968. Rivers wrote two of the songs and co-wrote a third. The remaining seven are covers of popular songs from the mid-1960s.
Reception
The album reached No. 5 and included the No. 14 pop chart single "Summer Rain", written by James Hendricks, a former member of the Mugwumps. The album reflected some of the psychedelic influences of the time, like the song "Hey Joe" with a two-minute introduction and also marked a change in Rivers' musical direction with more introspective songs such as "Look to Your Soul" and "Going Back to Big Sur".
Track listing
Side one "Hey Joe" (Billy Roberts) – 4:49 "Look to Your Soul" (James Hendricks) – 3:11 "The Way We Live" (Johnny Rivers) – 3:08 "Summer Rain" (James Hendricks) – 3:52 "A Whiter Shade of Pale" (Keith Reid/Gary Brooker) – 5:36
Side two "Brother, Where Are You" (Oscar Brown, Jr.) – 3:36 "Something Strange" (Johnny Rivers/James Hendricks) – 3:28 "What's the Difference" (Scott McKenzie) – 2:48 "Going Back to Big Sur" (Johnny Rivers) – 2:28 "Positively 4th Street" (Bob Dylan) – 5:03
Personnel Musicians Johnny Rivers – vocals, electric guitar Hal Blaine – drums Joe Osborn – electric bass guitar, guitar Larry Knechtel – organ James Burton – guitar James Hendricks – rhythm guitar
Technical Johnny Rivers, Lou Adler – producers Armin Steiner – engineer Marty Paich – horns and strings arranger/conductor Woody Woodward – art direction George Rodriguez – photography Wayne Kimbell – design and collage
Charts + Chart performance for Realization Chart (1968) Peakposition US Billboard Top LPs 5
Certifications
References
External links Johnny Rivers official website