I mean, wasn't he a major influence on Prince too? The make-up, the high heels, the crazy piano tricks, the loss of the shirt halfway through the song. If you think Prince invented this, then obviously you've never heard of the "architect of Rock & Roll".


WHOOOOO!!!!!

NWF said:

it's true, prince looks and acts so much like him but no one ever talks about it. i wonder if it ever bothered little richrd. someone should finally give him his props.

Little Richard was an influence one everyone in rock music-whether they know it or not. By the time Prince had imitated Little Richard it was an imitation already thrice removed. Meaning, Prince imitated Sly, James, Jimi, The Beatles etc-all who owed debts to Little Richard.

Little Richard created the androgany of Rock n Roll.Little Richard influnced the Beatles,the Stones,the Who and Jimi Hendrix. Prince's generation was more influnced by David Bowie (Ziggy Stardust/Aladden Sane) Glam Rock. Bowies changes of looks. Bowie producing Iggy Pop and Lue Reed. Prince is more like Hendrix then Little Richard. Prince is a powerful guitarist. The paisley look and Psychedelic style is Hendrix. Purple Haze/Purple Rain. Humping the guitar. With a Curtis Mayfield falsetto. George Clinton funk. James Brown dancing.

Some of Prince's showmanship (especially the facial expressions) is too much like Little Richard.

But Lil' Rich may not mind. Remember he flocked to the Purple Rain premiere like everyone else and stopped in front of cameras to declare "Prince IS me for this generation."

The gender-twisting, the flirting with the crowd --- straight up Richard.

SynthiaRose said:

.....the gettin' religion, the career tankin'.....

SynthiaRose said:

Yep, Little Richard did all that stuff way before Prince. Prince acted a lot like Little Richard from 1982-1985.

rudeboynpg said:

prince is only like hendrix cuz he's black and is a bad ass guitar player...hell hendrix took a lil bit from lil richard...them frilly clothes....lil richard is kinda feminine..so is prince....lil richard wore a shit load of make up and was into them frilly clothes..so is prince...that lil thin mustache richard be wearin...prince had around the atwiad/parade era....prince even be doin them lil richard screams. c'mon now..

dancerella said:

When Prince was first breaking nationally, people talked about it. Every single review mentioned Little Richard.

Stax said:

At least comparing him visually.

jackflash said:

I can't think of his name right now but there was a jazz musician, a piano player from the thirties or forties that first did all the expressions and mannerisms that little richard then used.

I see similarities in the hair and the make-up.

jackflash said:

HAHAHAHA, that's really funny! Here's something funnier though, Prince made millions this year, how about you?

paintsprayer said:

Both "Fats" Waller and Willie "The Lion" Smith were exceptional musicians who were also physically entertaining showmen, in the way you described, in live performance. "Fats" also dressed "to the nines", had an "insatiable" appetite for women and was quite the notorious "partyman".

SexyBeautifulOne said:

Oh, I'm so devastated. WAAAAAHHHHH
























you fucking moron

Oh, and I believe that Little Richard made all his bandmates wear make-up and stuff too. Didn't Prince do that too?

Watch Prince's performance of "let's Pretend we're married" on 1985's "Prince and The Revolution: LIVE!" that will answer your questions.

Snap said:

Those faces are too similar.

jackflash said:

[Edited 12/2/04 9:57am]

Yeah, the influence is pretty obvious.

A couple of years ago, they made a TV movie about Little Richard's life. Richard reportedly wanted Prince to star:

"You know, I wanted Prince to be me because he reminds me of myself when I see him"

I wonder if they really offered him the part...?

jackflash said:

another inspiration for the stage zaniness of little richard, and indeed a major antecedent for all of R&B and Rock N' Roll was "jump blues" tenor sax player Louis Jordan.

Not that I claim to be a music historian, but be truthful Little Richard got most of his inspiration from a well known but local Memphis TN musician named Esquerita. If you can find out about him at some site, you'd be amazed to know that nothings new under the sun. So lets give proper respect to Esquerita, who infulenced Little Richard, who influenced .....etc....

Here's a link to some info on Esquerita. http://www.geocities.com/eskew_reeder/
[Edited 12/2/04 13:46pm]

2 words - Panacake 36!

If anything he influenced Prince on what kind of record deal to stay away from...

"Maybe at one time the record companies could get Little Richard for a new car and a bucket of chicken. We don't roll like that no more." ~ PRINCE

jackflash said:

Yes Fats was who I was thinking of (my brain is still swiss cheese at five a.m.)

From what I've seen of him it is exactly like little richard later acted

Universaluv said:

RealMusician said:

o0o0o0 that woulda been interesting..

jacktheimprovident said:

Louis Jordan's music and style was and is very influential. For example, if you see B.B. King in concert, you'll hear him perform several Louis Jordan songs.

Little Richard is a musical legend and his ijfluence on prince is obvious. However, is their anybody/anything he claims not to have influenced.

Here are some quotes by the man himself

"yesssss, little old beethoven is just like me. He studied my style an' ..WHOOOOO...he's just being me in the classical period of the eighteen hundreds" (cue Richard - overlong silence and uncomfortable stare)

"Whooooo, well i invented the microwave oven, the vacuum cleaner, the lap top computer, the internet. All by my pretty litle self. Yeahsssss. Praise tha' lawd jehova! Whooo"
[Edited 12/3/04 5:04am]