Little Richard
Reviewed on this page:
Here's Little Richard - Little Richard -
The Fabulous Little Richard - Pray Along With Little Richard -
The Explosive Little Richard - Little Richard's Greatest Hits - Recorded Live! -
Lifetime Friend
Richard Penniman has had one of the longest and most bizarre careers in rock and roll history. He invented uptempo rock and roll in 1955 with "Tutti Frutti" and almost immediately
every would-be hip singer was covering his every single (the Beatles recorded "Long Tall Sally" and "Kansas City/Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey," and played "Ooh! My Soul" in live shows).
But the cover versions always fell flat because the songs were designed especially for Richard's 12-cylinder vocal delivery, wild-eyed
outrageous persona, the joyful abandon of his piano playing, and his top-flight backing band, the Upsetters. But fifteen frantic
months after hitting it big, he quit the devil's music for gospel. After getting kicked out of the seminary, he started a comeback effort that's
lasted nearly forty years, scoring one hit in the early 70s ("Freedom Blues") and one in the mid-80s ("Great Gosh A'mighty") but never again coming close to his former glory.
All of Little Richard's original records are out of print: pick up the excellent compilation 18 Greatest Hits if you can find it. Whatever you do, don't buy any of the
many rerecordings he made of his hits: if it doesn't say it's the original Specialty masters, leave it on the shelf. If you get a chance to see him in concert, though, check it out: I saw him in June 2008 and reviewed the show.
I only know of one book about Little Richard, and I've reviewed it on our book reviews page.
You better believe there's a fan site, complete with many of his best quotes. (DBW)
Little Richard released four singles on RCA in 1951 and 1952; they didn't chart. "Taxi Blues" and most of the other tracks are in the smooth jazz/R&B style of Bobby
Short, or maybe Cab Calloway meets Nat King Cole; "Get Rich Quick" is a bit livelier but with the same basic approach. Richard seems to be affecting a Northern urban
accent, and the effect is bizarre enough that most fans should hear this material at least once.
He cut two singles for Peacock in 1953 and 1954, and they didn't chart either.
(DBW)
 Here's Little Richard! (1957)
By the time of this release, he's been recording hits for Specialty for over a year, and the label put together a flat-out classic.
Aside from the historical impact, this contains several of the finest rock 'n' roll vocal performances ever recorded: "Long Tall Sally," "She's Got It" and especially
"Tutti Frutti," Richard's first Specialty single and the tune which, more than anything except maybe "Rock Around The Clock," put rock music on the map.
Mostly electrifying fast rockers ("Rip It Up," "Ready Teddy") though he includes a few slower numbers for balance ("Baby," "Miss Ann"), but all are belted out at a force of
ten tons per square inch.
With the brief track times and Richard emoting like crazy, you may not notice the Upsetters, but they're tighter than a pair of Gloria Vanderbilts, and the tenor sax players
get in some admirable honking though neither gets a proper solo.
(DBW)
 Little Richard (1958)
More consistent and more varied than the first Specialty LP, from the ballad "Send Me Some Lovin'" to the incredibly fast "Keep A-Knockin'."
It's also the source of his two best songs ever, "Good Golly Miss Molly" and "Lucille," plus the hilarious, amazingly singleminded "Ooh! My Soul."
Half these tracks are from late 1956 and 1957 ("I'll Never Let You Go"); the rest were already in the can when Here's Little Richard was released, but are far from also-rans
("Hey-Hey-Hey-Hey"), with the arguable exception of "Heebie Jeebies." So despite the impact of Richard's debut and the brilliance of Chuck Berry's Berry Is On Top,
this stands out as the best early rock and roll LP.
(DBW)
 The Fabulous Little Richard (1959)
With Richard in the seminary, Specialty pumped out another LP of leftovers and outtakes, many of them sweetened with post-dubbed female backing vocals and strings.
Usually a record like this will have at least one overlooked masterpiece, but this time:
nearly all these tunes were originally passed over because they were slow and not particularly distinctive ("The Most I Can Offer"), and the rest are just lackluster
("Shake A Hand," a cover of "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On").
(DBW)
 Pray Along With Little Richard (1960)
Whatever you say, Mr. Record Company Guy. Though I'm more moved to pray for him whenever I listen to this...
I'm no gospel expert, but this is easily the least affecting and most poorly recorded example of the genre I've heard to
date. The usual bases are covered - uptempo handclappers ("Every Time I Feel The Spirit"), slow lamentations
("Jesus Walked This Lonesome Valley"), spoken exhortations ("Coming Home") - but somehow none of it connects.
Richard's voice is as huge as ever ("Does Jesus Care"), and I don't question his commitment, but his usual intensity is nowhere
to be found. He does sound a bit more comfortable on the tunes which are closest to his usual four-chord rock and roll
("Milky White Way"). The backing on most tracks is organ, piano and drums, but the "recorded in a cavern" fidelity makes
it hard to get much out of what they're playing.
Available on CD under the title God Is Real.
(DBW)
Pray Along With Little Richard Volume 2 (1960)
More tracks recorded at the same 1959 sessions. (DBW)
The King Of Gospel Singers (1962)
Produced by Quincy Jones, no less. (DBW)
Little Richard Is Back (1964)
After a brief return to Specialty (which produced a couple of singles but no album), Richard moved to Vee-Jay and cut this disc of oldies like "Hound Dog" and "Short Fat Fannie."
If you've already heard all the key Richard tracks, there's some interesting secondary material here: a big-band jazz version number with wild falsetto ("Only You"), a slow soulful rendition
of "Goodnight Irene" with prominent congas.
Despite claims to the contrary,
Jimi Hendrix wasn't in the band yet and doesn't appear.
(DBW)
Little Richard's Greatest Hits (1964)
Vee-Jay re-recordings of, well, his greatest hits. It's not terrible: "Good Golly Miss Molly" doesn't have the tautness of the original but it's even more urgent, and the layers of horns add
a nice touch.
Over the next year he released three singles of new material, including the pleasant uptempo "Cross Over" and a lovely, soulful version of "I Don't Know
What You've Got (But It's Got Me)" (which does feature Hendrix). Though "I Don't Know" was a charting single, due to Vee-Jay's financial problems none of those tracks were collected on album until many years later.
(DBW)
The Incredible Little Richard Sings His Greatest Hits - Live! (1966)
At least this release doesn't seem quite as likely to fool the unsuspecting. And there is one new song here: "Do You Feel It." Recorded for Modern. (DBW)
The Wild And Frantic Little Richard (1966)
The second and last Modern LP, contains some new material and some more re-recorded early hits ("Miss Ann").
(DBW)
 The Explosive Little Richard (1967)
Now recording for Okeh, Richard covered a batch of almost-current R&B hits like "Land Of 1,000 Dances" and Sam Cooke's "Well All Right." Producer Larry Williams
sneaked several of his own compositions onto the LP, though none of his hits: they're mostly four-chord tunes built on
simple catchphrases ("A Little Bit Of Something (Beats A Whole Lot Of Nothing)"; "It's A Poor Dog (Who Can't Wag His Own
Tail)"). The good news is, Richard is near his electrifying best ("I Don't Want To Discuss It"), and the
clean small-band recording - with Richard on piano and Johnny Guitar Watson on, well, guitar - lets his enthusiasm pour
right out of the speakers. He even gives his best on a couple of hokey ballads ("I Need Love"; "The Commandments Of Love").
If only there were a couple of good songs here, it would rank among the best of his post-Specialty work.
Released on CD with some inconsequential bonus tracks - recorded in London under the supervision of Norman Hurricane Smith - under the title
Get Down With It.
(DBW)
 Little Richard's Greatest Hits - Recorded Live! (1967)
Like the title says; the last Okeh disc and his last recording for a few years. Richard knocks off the hits vigorously, but in truncated versions that make it obvious he's rather bored with
the material. An inordinate amount of album space is devoted to his speeches to the audience (in which he sounds more like a preacher than ever, though he doesn't discuss religion) - electrifying
as he is, I'd much rather have heard less ranting and more complete songs.
The backing band includes Billy Preston and Johnny "Guitar" Watson, but you can't hear them doing much - I wish I knew who was playing the wah-wah trumpet on the
slow blues "Anyway You Want Me," though, that's hot stuff.
Definitely seek out the Specialty stuff, but if you can't find any of it, this is a decent introduction to his schtick.
(DBW)
The Rill Thing! (1970)
Recorded for Reprise, Richard's biggest post-religion hit single is here: "Freedom Blues."
(DBW)
Well Alright! (1970)
Specialty rushed out another compilation, including some previously unreleased 50's tracks like alternate takes of "Kansas City" and "Wonderin'," and all of the 1964 material (title track,
by Sam Cooke).
Also in 1970, Richard apparently cut a track with Paul Kantner and Grace Slick, "Bludgeon Of A Bluecoat," but it was never released; he also performed "Miss Ann" on Delany & Bonnie's To Delaney From Bonnie.
(DBW)
The King Of Rock 'N' Roll (1971)
Another Reprise release of new material and covers ("The Way You Do The Things You Do"); a single was released around the same time, "Shake A Hand," but it isn't on the LP.
(DBW)
The Second Coming (1972)
Third and final album for Reprise, with characteristic titles like "Sanctified Satisfied Toetapper" and "Rockin' Rockin' Boogie."
Also in 1972 he contributed a couple of tracks ("Money Is," "Do It - To It") to the Dollars soundtrack. (DBW)
Friends From The Beginning - Little Richard & Jimi Hendrix (1972)
A compilation of 1964 Vee-Jay material, with three that were previously unreleased: "Belle Stars," "Funky Dish Rag" and "Why Don't You Love Me."
Listed here to warn you that Hendrix didn't play on a single track of the LP. (DBW)
Right Now! (1973)
Now on United Artists, he cut a combination of other people's hits ("Dock Of The Bay") and what sound like Richard originals ("Hot Nuts").
Also in 1973, Richard appeared in Let The Good Times Roll and remade three of his hits for the soundtrack.
(DBW)
In 1975 Little Richard apparently cut two songs with Bachman-Turner Overdrive (!) - "Take It Like A Man" and "Stay Alive." (DBW)
Little Richard Live (1976)
Little Richard and K-Tel was a marriage made in heaven: a label which specialized in recreating hits, and an artist who specialized in recreating them. Anyway, with
20 cuts it's a decent value in terms of quantity. (DBW)
God's Beautiful City (1979)
Back to gospel - the must-have tracks are surely "Little Richard's Testimony" and "Little Richard's Testimony (Part 2)." (DBW)
Lifetime Friend (1986)
This year he released "Great Gosh A'mighty" (by Billy Preston) on the Down And Out In Beverly Hills soundtrack - it was his first charting single in fifteen years.
This album followed, Little Richard's first thorough attempt to blend his religious preaching with his piano-pounding rock 'n' rolling.
Produced by Stuart Coleman, who unfortunately fell prey to the mid-80s Phil Collins Snare Sound ("Great Gosh A'mighty," not the hit version from the movie soundtrack). But there's so much else going on in the mix - blaring sax, pounding piano, Richard's raucous vocals - it's not overwhelming.
The songs are mostly new, written by some combination of T. Womack (title track), J. Boyce (the city blues "Operator") and Richard (the touching ballad "Someone Cares"), making this probably your safest Little Richard purchase after the Specialty years.
(DBW)
The Specialty Sessions (1989)
This 72-track compilation is excessive (four versions each of "Slippin' And Slidin'" and "Kansas City"), with only a few eye-openers like "I Got It" (the ancestor
of "She's Got It"), but it's a reasonably cost-effective way of reconstructing the original Specialty albums.
(DBW)
In 1990, Little Richard contributed guest vocals to Living Colour's "Elvis Is Dead." (DBW)
Shake It All About (1992)
A children's album: "The Hokey Pokey," "On Top Of Old Smokey," etc. (DBW)
In 1993, Little Richard sang a duet with Elton John, "The Power." (DBW)
In 1998, Little Richard recreated "Keep A-Knockin'" for the Why Do Fools Fall In Love? soundtrack. (DBW)
Shut up!
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