Editing Little Richard (section)

===1962–1979: Return to secular music===
{{quote box
| width = 20%
| quote = I heard so much about the audience reaction, I thought there must be some exaggeration. But it was all true. He drove the whole house into a complete frenzy&nbsp;... I couldn't believe the power of Little Richard onstage. He was amazing.
| source = —[[Mick Jagger]]{{sfn|White|2003|p=119}}
}}

In 1962, concert promoter [[Don Arden]] persuaded Little Richard to tour Europe after telling him his records were selling well there. With soul singer [[Sam Cooke]] as an opening act, Richard, who featured a teenage [[Billy Preston]] in his gospel band, figured it was a gospel tour and, after Cooke's delayed arrival forced him to cancel his show on the opening date, performed only gospel material during the show, leading to boos from the audience expecting Richard to sing his rock and roll hits. The following night, Richard viewed Cooke's well-received performance. Bringing back his competitive drive, Richard and Preston warmed up in darkness before launching into "Long Tall Sally", resulting in frenetic, hysterical responses from the audience. A show at [[Mansfield]]'s Granada Theatre ended early after fans rushed the stage.{{sfn|White|2003|p=112}}

Hearing of Richard's shows, [[Brian Epstein]], manager of [[the Beatles]], asked Don Arden to allow his band to open for Richard on some tour dates, to which he agreed. The first show for which the Beatles opened was at [[New Brighton, Merseyside|New Brighton]]'s Tower Ballroom that October.{{sfn|Winn|2008|p=12}} The following month they, along with Swedish singer [[Jerry Williams (singer)|Jerry Williams]] and his band The Violents,<ref name="liret">{{Cite news|last1=Steen|first1=Håkan|title=Håkan Steen: Tack så mycket för liret "Jerka"|trans-title=Håkan Steen: Thanks so much for the jive "Jenka"|url=https://www.aftonbladet.se/nojesbladet/a/Kvq3L6/hakan-steen-tack-sa-mycket-for-liret-jerka|access-date=March 28, 2018|work=[[Aftonbladet]]|date=March 26, 2018|archive-date=March 28, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180328003311/https://www.aftonbladet.se/nojesbladet/a/Kvq3L6/hakan-steen-tack-sa-mycket-for-liret-jerka|url-status=live}}</ref> opened for Richard at the [[Star-Club]] in Hamburg.{{sfn|Harry|2000|p=600}} During this time, Richard advised the group on how to perform his songs and taught [[Paul McCartney]] his distinctive [[vocal music|vocalizations]].{{sfn|Harry|2000|p=600}} Back in the United States, Richard recorded six rock and roll songs with his 1950s band, the Upsetters for [[Little Star Records]], under the name "World Famous Upsetters", hoping this would keep his options open in maintaining his position as a minister.

In the fall of 1963, Richard was called by a concert promoter to rescue a sagging tour featuring [[The Everly Brothers]], [[Bo Diddley]] and [[the Rolling Stones]]. Richard agreed and helped to save the tour from flopping. At the end of that tour, Richard was given his own television special for [[Granada Television]] titled ''The Little Richard Spectacular''. The special became a ratings hit and after 60,000 fan letters, was rebroadcast twice.{{sfn|White|2003|p=121}} In 1964, now openly re-embracing rock and roll, Richard released "Bama Lama Bama Loo" on Specialty Records. Due to his UK exposure, the song reached the top twenty there but only hit 82 in the U.S.{{sfn|White|2003|p=248}} Later in the year, he signed with [[Vee-Jay Records]], then on its dying legs, to release his "comeback" album, ''[[Little Richard Is Back (And There's a Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On!)|Little Richard Is Back]]''. Due to the arrival of the Beatles and other British bands as well as the rise of soul labels such as [[Motown]] and [[Stax Records]] and the popularity of [[James Brown]], Richard's new releases were not well promoted or well received by radio stations. However, his first Vee Jay album made number 136 on a major chart. In November/December 1964, [[Jimi Hendrix]] joined Richard's Upsetters band as a full member.{{sfn|McDermott|2009|p=13}}<ref>{{Cite book |first1=Richard |last1=Havers |first2=Richard |last2=Evans |title=The Golden Age of Rock 'N' Roll |publisher=Chartwell Books |year=2010 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AZSeU_rmdxYC&pg=PA126 |page=126 |isbn=978-0785826255}}</ref>

In December 1964, Richard brought Hendrix and childhood friend and piano teacher Eskew Reeder to a New York studio to re-record an album's worth of his greatest hits. He went on tour with his new group of Upsetters, to promote the album. In early 1965, Richard took Hendrix and Billy Preston to a New York studio where they recorded the [[Don Covay]] soul ballad, "I Don't Know What You've Got (But It's Got Me)", which became a number&nbsp;12 R&B hit.<ref>{{harvnb|McDermott|2009|p=12}}: Hendrix recording with Penniman; {{harvnb|Shadwick|2003|pp=56–57}}: "I Don't Know What You Got (But It's Got Me)" recorded in New York City.</ref> Three other songs were recorded during the sessions, "Dance a Go Go" aka "Dancin' All Around the World", "You Better Stop", and "Come See About Me" (possibly an instrumental), but "You Better Stop" was not issued until 1971 and "Come See About Me" has yet to see official release.{{sfn|Shadwick|2003|p=57}} Around this time, Richard and Jimi appeared in a show starring [[Soupy Sales]] at the [[Brooklyn Paramount]], New York. Richard's flamboyance and drive for dominance reportedly got him thrown off the show.

[[File:Little Richard (1966) (cropped).png|thumb|Little Richard in 1966]]
Hendrix and Richard clashed over the spotlight, as well as Hendrix's tardiness, wardrobe and stage antics. Hendrix also complained over his pay. In early July 1965, Richard's brother Robert Penniman "fired" Jimi, however, Jimi wrote to his father, Al Hendrix, that he quit Richard as "you can't live on promises when you're on the road, so I had to cut that mess aloose". Hendrix had not been paid "for five-and-a-half weeks" and was owed 1,000 dollars. Hendrix then rejoined [[the Isley Brothers]]' band, the IB Specials.{{sfn|Shadwick|2003|pp=56–60}} Richard later signed with [[Modern Records]], releasing a modest charter, "Do You Feel It?" before leaving for [[Okeh Records]] in early 1966. His former Specialty labelmate [[Larry Williams]] produced two albums for Richard on Okeh - the studio release ''[[The Explosive Little Richard]]'', which used a [[Motown]]-influenced sound and produced the modest charters "Poor Dog" and "Commandments of Love" and ''[[Little Richard's Greatest Hits: Recorded Live!]]'' which returned him to the album charts.<ref name="HallofFame1986">{{Cite web|publisher=The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame|year=1986|title=Little Richard|url=https://rockhall.com/inductees/little-richard/|access-date=March 6, 2013|archive-date=July 5, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160705051632/http://rockhall.com/inductees/little-richard/|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|White|2003|pp=253–255}}{{sfn|White|2003|pp=268–269}} Richard was later scathing about this period, declaring Larry Williams "the worst producer in the world".<ref>{{Cite magazine |last1=Dalton |first1=David |date=May 28, 1970 |title=Little Richard: Child of God |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/little-richard-child-of-god-2-177027/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=August 12, 2020}}</ref> In 1967, Richard signed with [[Brunswick Records]], but after clashing with the label over musical direction, he left the following year.

[[File:Little Richard (1967).png|thumb|upright|Little Richard in 1967]]
Richard felt that producers on his labels did not promote his records during this period. Later, he claimed they kept trying to push him to  make records similar to Motown and felt he was not treated with appropriate respect.<ref>"Religion and Rock and Roll", ''Joel Martin Show'', WBAB 102.3 FM, NY. Guests: [[Harry Hepcat]] and Little Richard, August 16, 1981.</ref> Richard often performed in dingy clubs and lounges with little support from his label. While Richard managed to perform in huge venues overseas such as in England and France, in the U.S. Richard had to perform on the [[Chitlin' Circuit]]. Richard's flamboyant look, while a hit during the 1950s, failed to help his labels to promote him to more conservative black record buyers.{{sfn|Gulla|2008|p=41}} Richard later claimed that his decision to "[[backslide]]" from his ministry, led religious clergymen to protest his new recordings.{{sfn|White|2003|p=132}} Making matters worse, Richard said, was his insistence on performing in front of integrated audiences at the time of the black liberation movement, which caused many black radio disk jockeys in certain areas of the country, including Los Angeles, to choose not to play his music.{{sfn|White|2003|p=133}} Now acting as his manager, Larry Williams convinced Richard to focus on his live shows. By 1968, he had ditched the Upsetters for his new backup band, the Crown Jewels, and performed on the Canadian TV show, ''[[Where It's At (TV series)|Where It's At]]''. Richard was also featured on the [[Monkees]] TV special ''[[33⅓ Revolutions per Monkee]]'' in April 1969. Williams booked Richard shows in [[Las Vegas]] casinos and resorts, leading Richard to adopt an even wilder, flamboyant, and androgynous look, inspired by Hendrix's success. Richard was soon booked at rock festivals such as the [[Atlantic City Pop Festival]] where he stole the show from headliner [[Janis Joplin]]. Richard produced a similar show stealer at the [[Toronto Rock and Roll Revival]] with [[John Lennon]] as the headliner. These successes brought Little Richard to talk shows such as the ''[[Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson]]'' and the ''[[Dick Cavett Show]]'', raising his celebrity status.{{sfn|Gulla|2008|pp=41–42}}

Responding to his reputation as a successful concert performer, [[Reprise Records]] signed Richard in 1970 and he released the album, ''[[The Rill Thing]]'', with the philosophical single, "Freedom Blues", becoming his biggest single in years. In May 1970, Richard made the cover of ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' magazine. Despite the success of "Freedom Blues", none of Richard's other Reprise singles charted with the exception of "Greenwood, Mississippi", a [[swamp rock]] original by guitar hero, [[Travis Wammack]], who incidentally played on the track. It charted briefly on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]], Cash Box pop chart, and ''Billboard'' Country charts. It made a strong showing on [[WWRL]] radio in New York. Richard became a featured guest instrumentalist and vocalist on recordings by acts such as [[Delaney and Bonnie]], [[Joey Covington]] and [[Joe Walsh]] and was prominently featured on [[Canned Heat]]'s 1972 hit single, "Rockin' with the King". To keep up with his finances and bookings, Richard and three of his brothers formed a management company, Bud Hole Incorporated. By 1972, Richard had entered the rock and roll revival circuit, and that year, he co-headlined the [[London Rock and Roll Show]] at [[Wembley Stadium]] with [[Chuck Berry]]. When he came on stage he announced himself "the king of rock and roll", also the title of his 1971 album. He was booed during the show when he climbed on top of his piano and stopped singing; he also seemed to ignore the crowd. To make matters worse, he showed up with just five musicians and struggled through low lighting and bad microphones. When the concert film documenting the show came out, his performance was considered generally strong, though his fans noticed a drop in energy and vocal artistry. Two songs he performed did not make film's final cut. The following year, he recorded a charting soul ballad, "In the Middle of the Night", released with proceeds donated to victims of [[tornadoes]] that had caused damage in twelve states.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NkMDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA62|title=New York Beat|date=July 5, 1973|magazine=[[Jet (magazine)|Jet]]|volume=44|number=15|page=62}}</ref>

Richard did no new recordings in 1974, although two "new" albums were released. In the summer, came a major surprise for fans, ''Talkin' 'bout Soul'', a collection of previously released Vee Jay recordings, as well as some unreleased numbers, all never before available on a domestic LP. Two were new to the world: the title tune and "You'd Better Stop", both up tempo.

Later that year came a set recorded in one night, early the previous year, called ''Right Now!'', and featuring "roots" material, including a vocal version of an unreleased Reprise instrumental "Mississippi", released in 1972 as "Funky Dish Rag"; his third try at his gospel-rock tune "In the Name"; and a 6-minute plus rocker, "Hot Nuts", based upon a 1936 song by Li'l Johnson ("Get 'Em From The Peanut Man").

1975 was a big year for Richard, with a world tour and acclaim over high energy performances throughout England and France. His band was perhaps his best to date. He cut a top 40 single (US and Canada), with [[Bachman-Turner Overdrive]], "Take It Like a Man". He worked on new songs with sideman Seabrun "Candy" Hunter. In 1976, he decided to retire again, physically and mentally exhausted, having experienced family tragedy and the drug culture. He was talked into once again recutting his greatest hits, for Stan Shulman in Nashville. This time, they used original arrangements. Richard re-recorded eighteen of his hits for [[K-Tel Records]] in stereo, with a single featuring the new versions of "Good Golly Miss Molly" and "Rip It Up" reaching the [[UK singles chart]].<ref name="betts">{{Cite book| first= Graham| last= Betts| year=2004| title= Complete UK Hit Singles 1952–2004| edition= 1st|publisher= Collins| location= London| isbn= 978-0-00-717931-2| page=457}}</ref> Richard later admitted that at the time he was addicted to drugs and alcohol.

By 1977, worn out from years of drug abuse and wild partying as well as a string of personal tragedies, Richard quit rock and roll again and returned to [[evangelism]], releasing one gospel album, ''[[God's Beautiful City]]'', in 1979.{{sfn|White|2003|p=201}} At the same time, while touring as a minister and returning to talk shows, a controversial album was released by the discount label, Koala, taken from a 1974 concert. It includes an 11-minute discordant version of "Good Golly, Miss Molly". The performances are widely panned as subpar and it gained notoriety among collectors.