His name was Richard Wayne Penniman. We all knew him as Little Richard, one of the most dynamic entertainers of all time and an idol of Boomers everywhere.
Richard Penniman was born in Macon, Ga, the third of twelve children of Leva and Charles Penniman, a church deacon and brick mason who sold a little moonshine on the side. The youngster was dubbed L’il Richard by his family because of his small and thin statue. Like many great Rock and Roll stars, Little Richard sang in church groups. His unique voice and style caught the attention of a gospel star, Sister Rosetta Tharpe. She invited him to sing and open her show.
Game on.
Little Richard wore outrageous clothes and displayed over-the-top behavior. After much struggle, including a stint as a dishwasher, Little Ricard cut a demo song called “Tutti Fruiti”. It was a racy R&B song that was cleaned up and released in November 1955. Tutti Fruiti was an instant success followed by other mega hits like “ Rip It Up”, “ Keep A-Knockin’”, “ Long Tall Sally”, “ Good Golly, Miss Molly”, “ Lucille”, “Slippin’ and Slidin’“, “Ready Teddy“, “The Girl Can’t Help It“, “Lucille” and “ Jenny Jenny”.
Undoubtedly, Boomer kids of the 50’s and early 60’s danced to more Little Richard songs than of any other artist of that day.
In 1962, after a five-year period during which Richard abandoned rock and roll music for born again Christianity, concert promoter Don Arden persuaded him to tour Europe. During this time, the Beatles opened for Richard on some tour dates. Richard advised the Beatles on how to perform his songs and taught the band’s member Paul McCartney his distinctive vocalizations.
Richard is cited as one of the first crossover black artists, reaching audiences of all races. His music and concerts broke the color line, drawing black and white people together despite attempts to sustain segregation. Many of his contemporaries, including Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, Bill Haley, Jerry Lee Lewis, the Everly Brothers, Gene Vincent and Eddie Cochran, recorded covers of his works.
For 70 years Little Richard both amazed and dazzled his audiences. He was the architect of Rock and Roll.