Customer Reviews

Essential

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I would tend to disgree with the other reviewers who claim this is the best Little Richard collection short of the Specialty Boxed Set. The collection titled "The Georgia Peach" (also in the Specialty Legends series) is preferable to this one. Let's compare them in detail. This one contains 21 tracks, "The Georgia Peach" includes 25. The two collections have 17 tracks in common. So the difference lies in the tracks beyond those 17. This collection offers "Baby Face," "By The Light of The Silvery Moon," "I Got It," and "Directly From My Heart." "The Georgia Peach" includes "Oh, Why?," "All Around the World," "Shake A Hand," "Kansas City," "Can't Believe You Want to Leave," "She's Got It," "Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On," "Baby," and "I'm Just A Lonely Guy." To simplify the choice: Which would you rather have, Little Richard's rendition of "By The Light of The Silvery Moon" or his version of "Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On"? The choice is clear.

Few albums are so aptly named. This CD not only comprises "essential" Little Richard (on his original label, yet), it comes as close as possible to essential 20th Century listening. "Long Tall Sally," "Lucille," "Tutti Frutti," "Good Golly Miss Molly" are among the songs that seperated teenage culture from the one that preceded it. It gave youth a new musical language that Richard disciples on both shores (Mitch Ryder, Paul McCartney, John Fogerty) would take to greater heights.

Although Little Richard has claimed ever since (bitterly, although somewhat justifiably) that he is the architect of rock n' roll, he had help from a stellar backing band including Lee "Walking With Mr. Lee" Allen (who shouted those classic sax solos after Richard's screams), Huey "Piano" Smith (who attended some Richard sessions and jammed with him) and much of Guitar Slim's band. While some choices near the disc's end are baffling or amusing ("By The Light of The Silvery Moon" and "Baby Face" are not, will not, cannot be rock n' roll) this disc will put a smile on your face and pep in your step each time you play it. Highly, highly recommended.

For anyone looking for the rockin' originals with great sound, this is the cd. I have bought some of the re-released material in the past and was diappointed because it didn't have the original sound. If you love Little Richard's rock 'n' roll, definitely do not pass this up!

This is a fine collection of the songs Little Richard recorded for the Specialty label.
Back in the day, Little Richard scared the hell out of middle class white American parents but the kids knew what was good!
You've got Little Richard pounding away at his piano and singing in his own inimitable style, a great sax player who sounds like he might blow out a lung at any moment and a drummer who provides the steady rockin' beat to Richard's anarchic style of rock!
The last two cuts ("Baby Face" and "Silvery Moon") are pretty tame but the rest of this album is terrific.
The songs have been digitally remastered from the original tapes and sound great.
The only minus is a lack of decent liner notes.

First, let me say that this is a great CD. In fact, it is probably the best collection of Little Richard's original recordings available unless you consider the Specialty box set (just too many repeated songs in that one). The reason I don't give this five stars is the incredibly poor packaging. Usually, when we see the word 'essential' in the title of a CD these days, it includes several pages of liner notes, with a biography, pictures and perhaps a discography. All you get here is a few pages of black and white photos (albeit pretty good ones). The biographical information takes the form of three paragraphs; the same three that you see on the back of the CD. They don't even tell you who wrote the songs.

As I stated above, this is a good CD, probably the best value available. But, given Little Richard's place in music history, he deserves better

this man changed music.anybody who was any one came thru his camp Jimi Hendrix,James Brown etc.. to name just a few. his rock to church feel has been going to know and will propbably last until the end of time.forget the awful pat Boone remake of tutti frutti and the other shamless interpertations of this genius work get the source.you won't be disappointed. he is one of the fathers of music period and many people need to go to school on this talented Man.

When you`ve had to much to drink or smoke,this is the music you want to hear.Good for dancing,fighting or um...being with your girl.All classics usually have to stand the test of time and the Georgia Peach still delivers.Its real rock and roll by a real rock and roller.This,the early Sun Records sides with The Killer and Chuck Berrys Great 28 are essentials and the conerstones that modern popular music is built on.Believe it.

Dear music fan from Wild in Roxbury, this is music fan from Missouri City, Texas who made the stupid comment on June 9, 2004 about white people writing most of Little Richard's material. I like to truly apologize for the statement I had made. What I should have did was explain the first time that John Morascalco co-wrote some (not all) of Little Richard's material (which means that there were other writers including African-American writers who co-wrote some of Little Richard's songs along with John Morscalco and Little Richard himself). Because of the uneducated statement I had made, it was declared offensive, and I am so sorry for offending you. And yes, I am African-American, and I have always known about the history of Rock 'n'Roll music being started by African-Americans such as Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Fats Domino, and Bo Diddley (who was famous for coming up with different unique sounds on his amplified electric guitar). I also have always known that white america did not give black musicians, black writers, and black performers enough credit for their achievements of making this music. However,at the same time, I do not believe that all white musicians and writers have stolen black music because some of them have helped to keep black music alive. White Blues guitarists Eric Clapton is a perfect example of this. The main reason why I had made the comment about white writers writing Little Richard's material was because I had read about this information in several history books (and on the internet) that talked about the history of Rock 'n'Roll music. Another reason why I had made this comment was because I was afraid for Little Richard. I was so afraid mainly because Little Richard had worked so hard to prove to people, especially white people, that he was one of the originators of Rock 'n' Roll music that I thought that white corporate america would deny that African-Americans had any history with the creation (or making) of this music mainly because of the information that was being presented in Rock 'n' Roll history books. And that would not have been a very good thing for our people, especially African-American musicians and performers. I am so sorry, my brother, for offending you. Please forgive me and write me back to let me know if you accept my apology, because I will never write another offensive music review ever again.

This, I would have to say, is one of the best CD's in my collection, and i have some brilliant stuff. Great songs from start to finnish, and all the original Speciality Recordings Little Richard did those many years ago. The Fities were host to many great singers (Nat Cole, Dean Martin, Rosemary Clooney etc), and up there with those artists greatness is Richard, despite being a totally different style. I've loved Little Richard since i was six, and haven't heard these versions in years, they are exactly as i remember them. I cannot understand and maybe never will, how any music lover could not love him and also this compilation, it starts with the stompin' Tutti Frutti, Long Tall Sally, which, needless to say are rock and roll classics, Good Golly Miss Molly, Slippin' and Slidin', Lucille, Keep A Knockin' and many more classics which are better today than they were in the day, due to the nostalgic qualities. Richard was the originator, a pioneer, and a truely gifted artist, which this CD illustrates. The Essential Little Richard, The Essential Rock 'N' Roll, The Essential CD. Well Worth The Money To Any Music Lover (With Taste).

The Rev was so incredibly different from anyone else at his time. As he says, he was the Originator, and all others just Immitators (and pretty poor ones at that). But he was, and the rest all were.

The only way to appreciate how different he was back then was to listen to his music covered by others. "Tutti Frutti" by Pat Boone? PLEASE! But that was the way it was back when listening to Black Rock and Roll would pollute and pervert youn America's minds!

His classics are all here, from "Long Tall Sally" to "Slippin' and Slidin'". If I thought it would get past Amazon's censors, I would add: "Awompbopaloobomppalampbamboom"!

Good Golly, indeed. The only way it could be improved upon would be if the CD was done also as a video.