Jimmy Rivers

Born Walter James Fewell on Feb. 12, 1926 in Hockerville, Oklahoma, and later changing his name to Jimmie Rivers, he picked up his first instrument, a fiddle, at age four. His father, a coal miner and accomplished hoedown fiddler, bought him his first guitar at age six. He was first exposed to western swing via the Wills KVOO broadcast and first heard the electric instruments of Leon McAuliffe and Eldon Shamblin. Jimmie remembers their harmony parts blowing his mind.
At this same time he got a trumpet and quickly took first chair in the school band. In 1940 the family moved to Oklahoma City and he quit school to work at Douglas Aircraft. He played in a couple of local bands and acquired his first electric guitar and amp. Shortly after, the family headed to California.
One Night while sitting in with some jazz musicians in Oakland, Jimmie ripped off a solo on “Honeysuckle Rose”. The piano man leaned over and said, “You’ve been listening to a lot of Charlie Christian?” To which young Jimmie replied, “Who is Charlie Christian?” It is true, he had never heard of Charlie Christian. But he had played with Oklahoma natives and fellow guitar giants, Benny Garcia and Barney Kessel. When Jimmie finally heard Charlie Christian, he was a fan for life.
Jimmie did his stint for Uncle Sam in the Navy and the band they started there continued to play after their discharges. While working the Nevada club circuit he turned down an offer from Spade Cooley. Around the same time he turned down an offer from Bob Wills. He was making more money on his own and was close to his family.

Jimmie took a job as a DJ and when asked his name the man said Jimmie Fewell wouldn’t work. He asked about Jimmie’s ancestry and being half Cherokee, the family Indian name was Twin Rivers. “Jimmie Rivers that’s it.” When the broadcast began Jimmie began to introduce himself but switched off the microphone in mid sentence and asked, “What the hell is my name?”
He formed an 8 piece western swing band called The Cherokees and became regulars on the California Hayride TV show. With this band he frequently backed Tommy Duncan when he recorded for Cavalier. In 1958 he moved his show to Demarco’s 23 Club in Brisbane, CA. In the early 60’s along with Vance Terry, Rivers packed the club. Vance recorded some of those sets and that music was dubbed, “Brisbane Bop.” These recordings have been released on the Joaquin Record Label and are a combination of western swing and bebop jazz. It is as exciting today as it must have been in the crowd of the 23 Club where Rivers announced that the music starts at 9:00, the fight starts at 10:00. Brisbane was a tough town to say the least.
Jimmie continued to play regularly at Powell Brother’s Steamers Company in his hometown of Placerville CA. He was a true guitar genius.
Originally submitted by Gary Howe