Little Richard

Little Richard (born Richard Wayne Penniman, December 5, 1931 in Macon, Georgia) is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist, and an early pioneer of rock and roll. One of twelve children, Little Richard says he "came from a family where my people didn't like rhythm and blues. Bing Crosby - 'Pennies from Heaven' - Ella Fitzgerald, was all I heard." (Hamm 1979, p.391) Raised in the Seventh Day Adventist church, he learned gospel music in Pentecostal churches of the U.S. South. His early recording career in the 1950s was a mix of blues music and rhythm and blues, heavily steeped in gospel music, but with a driving beat and breathlessly delivered lyrics that marked a decidedly new kind of music.

Source

• Middleton, Richard (1990/2002). Studying Popular Music. Philadelphia: Open University Press. ISBN 0335152759.
• Hamm (1979). Yesterdays.

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