It’s been more than a half-century since Little Richard Wayne Penniman and Specialty Records producer Bumps Blackwell went to New Orleans and made rock ’n’ roll history. Blackwell had clean lyrics fitted to Little Richards’ bawdy stage number “Tutti Frutti, Good Bootie” and the singer recorded it with Crescent City session stars like drummer Earl Drummer and saxophonist Lee Allen at famed Cosimo Studio (Fats Domino, Professor Longhair) in 1955. The resulting “Tutti Frutti” reached No. 2 on Billboard’s Black Singles chart the following year (No. 17 on the Pop singles survey) — and influenced virtually every young musician who heard it, especially The Beatles.
Little Richard cut several dozen more juiced jump blues numbers for Specialty that played an integral role in defining rock 'n' toll. Less than two years later, after nearly dying in airplane crash, Little Richard refused to continuing making “the devil’s music.” He would return to secular music but never with much success although he remains a popular concert draw (and ad pitch man) to this day. Listening to spruced-up versions of fireballs like “Long Tall Sally,” “Jenny Jenny” and “Good Golly, Miss Molly” is by no means a history lesson. It’s moving, joyous, sexy music that still resonates — especially below the hips. Since 1991, the essential Little Richard CD was the 25-track Georgia Peach. The 25-track Very Best of Little Richard bests it thanks to superior fidelity and more informative liner notes. 5 stars
Release date: July 29; Click here to read my interview with Little Richard.
This article appears in Jul 23-29, 2008.