Althouse: I see a reference to Little Richard... Oh! Does that mean that Little Richard died?

May 9, 2020

I see a reference to Little Richard... Oh! Does that mean that Little Richard died?

I quickly go to the NYT and search the page for "Little Richard" — "Little Richard, Flamboyant Wild Man of Rock ’n’ Roll, Dies at 87/Delving deeply into the wellsprings of gospel music and the blues, and screaming as if for his very life, he created something new, thrilling and dangerous."

I'm so sad to see that. Here's my favorite Little Richard song:

Well, along about ten I'll be flying high/Rock on out unto the sky/'Cause I don't care if I spend my dough/Tonight I'm gonna be one happy soul...

Rock on out unto the sky, Richard... tonight and forever, one happy soul.

ADDED: Not that he was always happy!

AND: My son John has a long blog post, with lots of excerpts from the NYT obituary and clips of Little Richard.

32 comments:

LYNNDH said...: Another Great has Passed. I am 73 and he was someone I listened too. And the front band is awesome! The Sax can wail!!!; 5/9/20, 10:17 AM
LYNNDH said...: I listened/watched the next song. Oh Man!!! Very early Little Richard. No makeup. A Zoot Suit to boot. And again the Band. What a Sax Man. What a Performer.; 5/9/20, 10:20 AM
Michael K said...: He was a great entertainer and I loved his small part in the movie "Down and Out in Beverly Hills" , a parody of the rich black complaining about racism.; 5/9/20, 10:23 AM
tcrosse said...: He saw Aunt Mary coming and he jumped back in the alley.; 5/9/20, 10:27 AM
brylun said...: I was watching Joe Walsh last night on Live from Daryl Hall's House, and Joe (starting at minute 19) said:

"Records, record stores, record sales, it's all gone.
And it's up to the young musicians to try and figure it out.
There's no money in it, no record companies, it's free, you can download it.
Nobody gets paid, so they can't afford to make music.
That's what's happening.
And they're just cranking out music, that is, like, just a recipe.
Y'know, nobody's playing it at the same time.
Everybody's adding on virtual instruments that don't exist,
On to a drum machine that somebody programmed.
And you can tell, in the music that's out now.
It's all been programmed, there's no mojo, there's nobody testifying.
There's not the magic of a human performance,
Which is never perfect.
And the magic of a human performance is what we all know and love,
In the old records, by the way they were made.
And it's all gone."; 5/9/20, 10:35 AM
Mr. D said...: He was great. What a performer and a talent. His imprint is everywhere you look in rock history.; 5/9/20, 10:41 AM
Lyssa said...: Very sad news. I showed my kids the clip of him on Sesame Street, singing “Rubber Ducky.” (Seriously, it’s good!); 5/9/20, 10:44 AM
Mark said...: The surprise isn't that he has died. The surprise is that he was still alive -- and only 87.; 5/9/20, 10:46 AM
J. Farmer said...: My mother called earlier to ask if I heard the news and to tell me her Little Richard story, which I had last heard about 20 years ago, when it happened. She and my aunt were having breakfast around midnight at a Denny's in a central Florida town called Leesburg. My father's family owned a fish camp there at the time, and Leesburg is the kind of place where a fish camp is a big attraction.

A large bus pulled up to the parking lot and started unloading. They thought it was a church group at first, as it was all black men in loud suits. But in trailing behind and in the loudest suit of all was Little Richard. She recalled being surprised at how slight he was. He also refused to be seated and attended to ahead of waiting customers. He ended up waiting about 10 minutes for a table. Of course, he spent the entire time walking around to tables, shaking hands, and conversing with patrons.

I could see my mother being very impressed by that. She has very strong opinions on queuing, and she detests even a whiff of arrogance or entitlement from celebrities. She once had a three-minute encounter with Barbra Streisand at a casino in Connecticut 25 years ago, and every time she sees her on TV or comes across her name, exclaims, "Oh, that fucking bitch."; 5/9/20, 11:10 AM
Yancey Ward said...: Walsh is wrong- there is money still to be made, but you have to tour and perform live.; 5/9/20, 11:11 AM
J. Farmer said...: I hate to say it, but I really wish Little Richard had outlived Pat Boone. I hate that lame, smarmy bastard.; 5/9/20, 11:15 AM
Yancey Ward said...: My biggest memory of Little Richard is the role he had in Down and Out in Beverly Hills- that and the song Tutti Frutti- the 45 of which my mother had purchased as teenager.

He was two years older than Elvis- think about that. There are few left that were there in that period of 1954-1955 when Rock and Roll was born. Right now, I can't think of any that are still alive.; 5/9/20, 11:18 AM
George Leroy Tirebiter said...: Little Richard was the surprise closing performer Sunday night at the Atlantic City Pop Festival. Only time I ever saw him in person, on stage, and pounding away on that glossy white grand piano, wow. You were there too Ann, yes? Near the end of his set he waved to get audience folks to join him on stage. Great times for a not quite yet 17 year old from Raleigh,North Carolina (me).; 5/9/20, 11:22 AM
Molly said...: (eaglebeak)

Also still alive is Jerry Lee Lewis, another Elvis contemporary.

The thing is, compared to these guys, Elvis lived only half a life. He was 42 when he died.; 5/9/20, 11:24 AM
Amexpat said...: Bob Dylan listed "to join Little Richard" in his HS yearbook. Let's hope it's awhile before he achieves that goal.; 5/9/20, 11:37 AM
Gahrie said...: Little Richard was the true King of Rock and Roll. What he did, and how he did it, is sadly overlooked by most people. His influence was fundamental.

Michael Jackson was a great performer. But Little Richard was better, and a better person too.

R.I.P. to one of the greats.; 5/9/20, 11:50 AM
YoungHegelian said...: This CD has given me many hours of great listening over the years.

It's a little jarring when the previous CD in the car's stack was Josquin Des Prez motets & the next one blasts out:

WOP BABBALO BOP AH WOP BAM BOOM -- TUTTI FRUTTI

but that was it's own kind of enjoyment.

He often was involved in his work in Christian ministry. I'm sure even many Christians wished he preached less & sang more, but it was his life & his soul.

May he rest in peace & rise in glory.; 5/9/20, 11:52 AM
Gahrie said...: I hate to say it, but I really wish Little Richard had outlived Pat Boone. I hate that lame, smarmy bastard.

That's a little harsh! True, he did make a living by exploiting the talents of Black people, but so did a lot of people at the time. I believe his religious beliefs are sincere. And you have to give him a little credit for his heavy metal stage.

His daughter though.....; 5/9/20, 11:54 AM
Ozymandias said...: If you'll excuse an extended post, in “Mystery Train,” his great book on rock history, Greil Marcus captured Richard’s incendiary incandescence, writing about his appearance on the Dick Cavett show circa 1970, and describing Richard’s suppressed but mounting agitation during a pretentious argument, alternately bombastic and maudlin, between critic John Simon and Love Story novelist Erich Segal:

Segal has now slumped even lower in his chair, if that is possible, and seems to be arguing with the ceiling. “You're only a critic," [Segal] says as if to Simon. "What have you ever written? What do you know about art? Never in the history of art..."

"WHY, NEVER IN THE HISTORY!"

The time has come. Little Richard makes his move. Leaping from his seat, he takes the floor, arms waving, hair coming undone, eyes wild, mouth working. He advances on Segal, Cavett and Simon, who cringe as one man. The camera cuts to a close-up of Segal, who looks miserable, then to Simon, who is attempting to compose the sort of bemused expression he would have if, say, someone were to defecate on the floor. Little Richard is audible off-camera, and then his face quickly fills the screen.

"WHY, YES, IN THE WHOLE HISTORY OFAAAART! THAT'S RIGHT! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! WHAT DO YOU KNOW, MR. CRITIC? WHY, WHEN THE CREEDENCE CLEARWATER PUT OUT WITH THEIR 'TRAVELIN' BAND' EVERYBODY SAY WHEEE-OOO BUT I KNOW IT ONLY CAUSE THEY DOING 'LONG TALL SALLY' JUST LIKE THE BEATLES ANDTHESTONESANDTOMJONESANDELVIS - I AM ALL OF IT, LITTLE RICHARD HIMSELF, VERY TRULY THE GREATEST, THE HANDSOMEST, AND NOW TO YOU (to Segal, who now appears to be on the floor) AND TO YOU (to Simon, who looks to Cavett as if to say, really old man, this has been fun, but this, ah, fellow is becoming a bit much, perhaps a commercial is in order). I HAVE WRITTEN A BOOK, MYSELF, I AM A WRITER, I HAVE WRITTEN A BOOK AND IT'S CALLED -

"'HE GOT WHAT HE WANTED BUT HE LOST WHAT HE HAD'! THAT'S IT! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! HE GOT WHAT HE WANTED BUT HE LOST WHAT HE HAD! THE STORY OF MY LIFE. CAN YOU DIG IT? THAT'S MY BOY LITTLE RICHARD, SURE IS. OO MAH SOUL!"

Little Richard flies back to his chair and slams down into it. "WHEEEEE-OO! OOO MAH SOUL! OO mah soul..."

Little Richard sits with the arbiters of taste, oblivious to their bitter stares, savoring his moment. He is Little Richard. Who are they? Who will remember Erich Segal, John Simon, Dick Cavett? Who will care? Ah, but Little Richard, Little Richard himself! There is a man who matters. He knows how to rock.

A phrase that Little Richard snatched off Erich Segal stays in my mind: "Never in the history - in the whole history of art..." And that was it. Little Richard was the only artist on the set that night, the only one who disrupted an era, the only one with a claim to immortality. The one who broke rules, created a form; the one who gave shape to a vitality that wailed silently in each of us until he found a voice for it.; 5/9/20, 12:21 PM
Rory said...: "Little Richard was the true King of Rock and Roll."

I think this is right, in the sense that those who followed him wanted to match his impact on stage.; 5/9/20, 12:45 PM
William said...: I clicked on the song that Althouse linked to. I remembered when I had the kind of energy that Richard demonstrated in that song and regretted its passing and then I looked down and noticed that my foot was tapping furiously to keep time with the song. He really had something that you wanted to be part of.....Thanks Ozymandias for the passage above. I guess Richard was never taken quite seriously during his lifetime, but, if he wanted gravitas, he should have gone into opera.; 5/9/20, 12:59 PM
JMW Turner said...: While rummaging through YouTube the other night, I stumbled upon several interviews and performances of one of my favorite bands of the eighties, The Divinyls, fronted by the devine Christine Amphlett,beautiful, quirky, with an amazing voice. She died of MS in 2013. It prompted me to consider the period that the Silent generation and Baby Boomers are entering: observing our mortality through the death of various music icons. Recently, entertainers such as Rick Ocasek of the Cars, Prince, and Tom Petty come to mind. Earlier, Glenn Frey of the Eagles, not of typical Rock n Roll self immolation, but of one of the many diseases that take us down if we live long enough. Little Richard was an anomaly for Rock; his life and career out lived his contemporaries and influenced succeeding generations. But, nevertheless, his death is part of a depressing trend of watching the aging and checking out of an amazing group of performers who produced a body of work during a period approximately fifty years. Unfortunately, the latest generation of musicians don't seem to have the magic mojo of their predecessors. Which brings us to the recent development of interviews and first hand witness profiles by the survivors. My generation's music legacy laid out for all to peruse.; 5/9/20, 1:32 PM
Stephen said...: Rest in peace Richard.

For me, the great creators of the 50's--Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, with Fats and Buddy Holly just behind. They channeled the source and opened the way. Elvis may have been bigger, but by my lights he wasn't the musician, writer or performer that those guys were.

Knew Little Richard only through The Beatles, growing up, and found their covers tame, but in the summer of 1969, before I went to college, some older co-workers took me to see him in concert in Central Park. I couldn't believe it--such pure drive, sexuality, and outrageous fun. "I'm so pretty...I'm bigger than Elvis...Shut up!!!" Ran right out and got Little Richard's 17 Grooviest Original Hits, and never looked back.

Started out loving Tutti Frutti the best. Now, for me, like Jaltcoh, it's Lucille--it's New Orleans rock and roll, very special.

I think I'll have me some of that right now!; 5/9/20, 1:55 PM
effinayright said...: I just love it that the dog who chases him in the Beverley Hills clip is named "Matisse".

So prissy. So precious.

So white.; 5/9/20, 2:05 PM
Clyde said...: In 1988, I got a CD titled Folkways: A Vision Shared; A Tribute to Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly by various artists including Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp. It had a lot of great songs on it, but one of my favorites was an incandescent version of "Rock Island Line" by Little Richard and Fishbone. In his memory, here's the YouTube audio of the song:

♫ LITTLE RICHARD with FISHBONE ♫ ROCK ISLAND LINE

"I may be right or I may be wrong, but you're gonna miss me when I'm gone..."; 5/9/20, 2:08 PM
traditionalguy said...: Richard was anything but little in the development of Rock and Roll music. He was one of many that got his style from southern Pentecostal worship services , including Elvis and Jerry Lee Lewis. RIP Richard.; 5/9/20, 2:19 PM
William said...: I suppose he caught his share of slings and arrows, but he looked like he had his share of good times. He made his living dong something that gave him joy and that dispensed joy, and he lived to 87 doing it. He had a successful live. It's reassuring to know that such things are possible.; 5/9/20, 2:36 PM
Charlie Currie said...: My younger sister's Little Richard story took place in the late sixties while I was away playing war. She went to see him at the Olympic Auditorium in Los Angeles. While performing one number in his usual enthusiastic style, the stage collapsed. She said, one second he was there and the next, he was gone. Disappeared.

Still cracks her up.; 5/9/20, 2:44 PM
Earnest Prole said...: Oh Rudy! Rest in Peace.; 5/9/20, 2:46 PM
BUMBLE BEE said...: Back in the day, I had the distinct pleasure of listening to the Right Reverend Richard Penniman preaching live at a Pentacostal Tent Revival. It was magical. When he got filled with the spirit, he outdid anything I'd ever heard him do musically. What energy!. He was best memorialized on "Leon Russell Live" who called him "the undisputed queen of Rock n Roll - SHUT UP! - you know who he is"!
As for our hostess... The Girl Can't Help It; 5/9/20, 3:20 PM
tcrosse said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/9/20, 5:08 PM
Tomcc said...: When I was just a lad, I saw him perform on TV (late 60's I'd guess). At the time, I thought him crazy.
I read elsewhere that Elton John considered him an influence. Hmmm, I thought; "The Lion King" Elton John?; 5/9/20, 6:17 PM