RIP Little Richard

Truly a pioneer in the early days. Rock n' Roll would've been quite different without Little Richard's penchant for the outrageous and his over-the-top persona. He gave rock n' roll flair.

Godspeed sir and thanks for the music.

R.I.P.

RIP to a true music legend

R.I.P. to a true original!

I always laughed at his appearance in the video for Cinderella's "Shelter Me."
"WOOOOOOO....shut up!"


I also learned thanks to FB that Little Richard played piano on this track by the Throbs:

Wow!  I have that Throbs album (and love it!) and I had no idea he was on it.  That's cool!

The guy was truly a pioneer in rock n roll.  RIP sir.

I was saw a local metal band do a cover of this. They really rocked it.
This was in the 80s.

Penniman said in 1984 that he played only with girls as a child
and was subjected to homophobic jokes and ridicule because of his manner of walk and talk.
His father brutally punished him whenever he caught him wearing his mother's makeup and clothing.
The singer said he had been sexually involved with both sexes as a teenager.
Because of his effeminate mannerisms, his father kicked him out of their family home at 15.
In 1985, on The South Bank Show, Penniman said, "my daddy put me out of the house.
He said he wanted seven boys, and I had spoiled it, because I was gay."

Penniman first got involved in voyeurism in his early twenties:
a female friend would drive him around and pick up men
who would allow him to watch them have sex in the backseat of cars.
Penniman's activity caught the attention of Macon police in 1955 and he was arrested
after a gas station attendant reported sexual activity
in a car Penniman was occupying with a heterosexual couple.
He spent three days in jail and was temporarily banned from performing in Macon.

In the early 1950s, Penniman became acquainted with openly gay musician Billy Wright,
who helped establish Penniman's look, advising him to use pancake makeup on his face
and wear his hair in a long-haired pompadour style similar to his.
As Penniman got used to the makeup, he ordered his band, the Upsetters, to wear it too,
to gain entry into predominantly white venues during performances,
later saying, "I wore the makeup so that white men wouldn't think I was after the white girls.
It made things easier for me. Plus it was colorful too."
In 2000, Penniman told Jet magazine, "I figure if being called a sissy would make me famous,
let them say what they want to."
But Penniman's look still attracted female audiences,
who sent him naked photos and their phone numbers.
Groupies began throwing undergarments at Penniman during performances.

During Penniman's heyday, his obsession with voyeurism carried on
with his girlfriend, Audrey Robinson.
Penniman later wrote that Robinson would have sex with men
while she sexually stimulated Penniman.
Despite saying he was "born again" after leaving rock and roll for the church in 1957,
Penniman left Oakwood College after exposing himself to a male student.
After the incident was reported to the student's father, Penniman withdrew from the college.
In 1962, Penniman was arrested for spying on men urinating in toilets
at a Trailways bus station in Long Beach, California.
After re-embracing rock and roll in the mid-1960s,
he began participating in orgies and continued to be a voyeur.

^Is that really necessary?

Sadly there do not seem to be any videos of Jimi and Richard performing together. All I could find was this one with Jimi playing with Little Richard's band. 

Yeah, I was sad to hear this. 87 is a nice full life though and he seemed to very much live it to the fullest.

R.I.P. to the great Little Richard!

mikeinfla wrote:

Sadly there do not seem to be any videos of Jimi and Richard performing together. All I could find was this one with Jimi playing with Little Richard's band. 

A rare shot of Jimi on stage with Little Richard.

From what I gathered, Hendrix only played with the LR band for a few months on the road. Depending who you ask, Jimi was either fired by LR's brother and tour manager for constantly being late or Jimi quit because Richard didn't pay him (and other band members) what he owed him.