The sound of Rock & Roll was beginning to take shape gradually over the course of first half of the twentieth century. As a genre that took it's influence from so many other styles (blues, boogie woogie, country, rhythm and blues etc) it was some time before it's own unique style had a clear voice. The early 1950s saw some singles released that hinted at what was to come but when people turned on their radio in 1955 and heard Tutti Frutti, there was no doubt that this is how Rock and Roll was meant to sound.

Little Richard is often credited as cementing the sound of Rock and Roll, his infamous "A-wop-bop-a-loo-bop-a-wop-bam-boom!" intro to Tutti Frutti, combined with his screeching vocals and boogie woogie piano burst onto the music scene and things were never the same again. He even calls himself the architect of Rock and Roll, which is hard to deny as hit's like Long Tall Sally, Good Golly Miss Molly, Tutti Frutti, Rip It Up and Lucille are all staples of the genre.

Born Richard Wayne Penniman on December 5, 1932, he was only 22 when he re-defined popular music with his first single, a far cry from the churches he played at as a child. However, Rock and Roll wasn't received well by all, some viewed it as immoral and un-Christian, and Little Richard's persona played a part in that too. As a black, homosexual, flamboyant man who wore make-up when performing, he quickly enraged parents who were worried about the bad influence he could be having on their children.

Suddenly, in 1957, Little Richard stepped down from the limelight. His religious upbringing had caught up with him and he was having personal conflicts between his career and his beliefs. He stopped making music and became a born-again Christian. He would later come back in the early 60's, but his two year stint from 1955-1957 would be his most memorable and important.

The influence of Little Richard is a testament to the respect that later artists had of him. Otis Redding said that he was inspired by him to enter the music business. Mick Jagger's performance style was heavily influenced by that of Richard's and he states him as his first idol. Jimi Hendrix said that he wanted to do with his guitar what Little Richard did with his voice. As Rock and Roll was a huge influence to many big artists, most say that Little Richard was their first inspiration, from David Bowie and Rod Stewart to Bob Seger and John Fogerty. James Brown states that Little Richard put the first funk into rock and roll, which would later go on to have a huge effect on Brown's own career and sound.

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Trivia

Tutti Frutti was voted by Mojo as the number one record that changed the world.

In 1962 he came back into music and toured Europe, at one time he was supported by some band called The Beatles.

He once starred as himself in an episode of Columbo.

He performed the theme song to television series The Magic School Bus.