Little Richard

In the 50s, he was the real deal.  The king of rock n roll perhaps?  Perhaps he could have laid a bigger claim to that title had he not gone into religious music.  But Little Richard Penniman never did leave rock n roll.

The Specialty sides are reasons why he is considered King of rock.  The Atlantic and Mercury sides showed his gospel roots.  But by 1964, when The Beatles took over, Little Richard was thrown into the also rans, but The Beatles were so awed by him, they asked him to open for their tour in the UK.  Likewise The Rolling Stones.  When he came to Vee Jay, he redid the classics, and while they may have not measured up to the real classics, Richard sang them with new intensity.  However while playing on these sessions, Don Covay wrote I Don't Know What You Got But Its Got Me, featuring some dark guitar playing from one James Marshall Hendrix.   Between that and a menacing horns and a pleading Covay backing vocal, Richard, pleads, screams and sobs along the way on a heartless and cheating woman.  To me, this was Richard's shining moment and I played this 45 till the grooves wore off.   Look for the full 4:46 version, instead of the 4:12 edit, the best part is those extra 34 seconds.

While Little Richard toiled around with his tenure with Okeh and Brunswick, to which spot singles still showed he had grit and soul, his last classic efforts was on Reprise and on Freedom Blues to which he wrote with Esquertia, a person that influenced the sound of Richard. One more single charted in 1986 and Richard would spend the rest of his years participating in rock revivals.

With the passing of Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis and Dion remain the last two rock n roll giants.  Flamboyant and outrageous, Little Richard was rock n roll.  He will be missed.