Little Richard
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Biography
With his electrifying piano playing, flamboyant showmanship and full throttle cry of "A-wop bop-a loo bop, a-wop bam boom!", Little Richard transformed rhythm and blues into early rock'n'roll, inspiring the likes of Elvis Presley, The Beatles and James Brown. Born on December 5th, 1932 and raised on the gospel music of his local church in Macon, Georgia, Richard Wayne Penniman played in New Orleans jazz and blues bands before adopting a sexy, frantic boogie woogie style on his breakthrough hit âTutti Fruttiâ. It became a watershed track, cited by many as the birth of rock'n'roll and, alongside follow-up hits âLong Tall Sallyâ, âGood Golly Miss Mollyâ and âLucilleâ, has become an all-time classic. Richard quit the music industry suddenly in 1957 and became a travelling preacher, but he returned as a gospel singer a few years later and reverted to rock'n'roll while on a British tour supported by The Beatles in 1962. A divisive figure, he frequently made headlines over the course of a career spanning multiple decades, in part due to his relationship with a sixteen-year-old, his experimentation in cross-dressing and his drug and alcohol problems, but even his most vocal critics seldom disputed his role as a bona fide rockânâroll pioneer. At 87 years of age, he lost his life to bone cancer on May 9th, 2020 in Tullahoma, Tennessee, leaving behind a plethora of prestigious accolades including honours in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
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Albums
Top Tracks
- Track Popularity
- Tutti Frutti
- Good Golly Miss Molly
- Ready Teddy
- Long Tall Sally
- Jenny Jenny
- Kansas City
- Baby Face
- Rice, Red Beans and Turnip Greens
- Joy, Joy, Joy (Down in My Heart)
- Ooh My Soul
- I'll Never Let You Go (Boo Hoo Hoo Hoo)
- Heeby-Jeebies
- Every Hour
- Taxi Blues
- Please Have Mercy On Me
- Get Rich Quick
- Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On
- Rip It Up
- She's Got It
- Hound Dog
- Slippin' and Slidin'
- Miss You
- Entertainer featuring Little Richard
- Strange Cat featuring Little Richard
