Coming of Age at J.D.'s In The Riverbottom

 

October 7, 2023

   It's not hard for me to imagine when and where I came of age.

The Coming of Age Sign

   This is the sign for a legendary Valley nightclub that was built on the Salt River flats (north of the bridge that connects Scottsdale to Tempe) on Scottsdale Road, thus the moniker—JD's In The River Bottom.

  At midnight on December 19, 1967 I turned 21 and, thanks to Renee Prefontaine, I got in to see the second show by Waylon Jennings, upstairs. After the set, I got his autograph and what I remember most about the show is that Waylon kept giving the drummer, Richie Albright, a hard time about his "long hair," which was a modest Beatle cut. Waylon (who at the time had a Nashville-slicked-back-hairdo) kept turning towards his drummer on the small bandstand and saying they were going to take him out back and "give him a haircut." A little ironic considering where Waylon's hair went a couple years down the road.

   It must have been all good-natured-ribbing because Jennings named his son, second-generation rock-country musician Waylon Albright "Shooter" Jennings, in-part after his drummer. 

   In addition to both Waylon and Mike Condello, I saw Buffalo Springfield in the basement. It was a very small room and held perhaps 75 people, 100 max.

"I knew he was going to be big, I was just there for the ride man." 

—Richie Albright, from Bagdad, Arizona