Little Richard, flamboyant founding father of rock and roll, dies at 87
by Jay Gabler
May 09, 2020
Little Richard — a flamboyant founding father of rock and roll, one of the most charismatic and influential artists in the history of American popular music — has died at age 87. His son confirmed the news to Rolling Stone, but said the cause of death is unknown.
As rock and roll was storming the world in the 1950s, Little Richard landed a series of hits that brought style, fun, and frantic rhythm to the newborn genre. His high-octane blend of gospel-styled shouts and frenetic R&B rhythms laid the groundwork for generations of electric artists, and his winking, glittery self-presentation challenged gender binaries.
Little Richard's hits include "Good Golly Miss Molly," "Long Tall Sally," "Rip It Up," "Lucille," and of course his signature song, "Tutti Frutti." Written by Little Richard with Dorothy LaBostrie putting a polish on the suggestive lyrics, the single was released on Specialty Records in 1955 and became Little Richard's breakout hit. In 2007, a panel of recording artists assembled by Mojo magazine voted the track number one on a list of "records that changed the world," calling it "the sound of the birth of rock and roll."
Richard Wayne Penniman was born in Macon, Georgia, in 1932. His family didn't appreciate his musical interests, and he left home at age 13 and took the stage name Little Richard two years later. After failing to find success with tamer material, he finally hit the jackpot when he embraced his wilder side and turned "Tutti Frutti" into one of the key early tracks that showed the world rock and roll was a powerful new force that could appeal to black and white audiences alike.
Little Richard's peak years as a star came in the late '50s, when he landed nine Top 40 hits and starred in movies like The Girl Can't Help It. From the beginning, other artists loved to cover his songs; they were a core part of the early repertoire of the Beatles, who opened for Little Richard in Germany. In a sign of the segregated times, Pat Boone's infamously tame cover of "Tutti Frutti" even charted higher than Little Richard's original.
After a turn to gospel in the early '60s, Little Richard returned to his now-iconic hits and settled comfortably into the oldies circuit, watching the rise of superstars influenced by his music and style. In 1986, he was one of the ten original inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Little Richard said a wide variety of things about his own sexuality, retaining lifelong ties to the church. Even so, his unapologetic style — with makeup and a high pompadour — helped generations of artists across the rainbow to be more fully themselves. One of the artists Little Richard most powerfully influenced was Prince. In 1989, Little Richard said that "Prince is the Little Richard of his generation" — and pointed out who was wearing purple first.
Tributes to one of rock's most inimitable, yet widely imitated, artists are coming in from around the world. To keep it concise, though, there may be no better words than those of the late David Bowie, who said that when he was a boy and heard "Tutti Frutti," he thought he had "heard God."
