Little Richard: I Am Everything (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Little Richard

Released on 16/6/23 by Varese Sarabande
Main artists: Little Richard
Genre: Film Soundtracks

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There are very few figures in the history of rock & roll more fascinating than Little Richard, an explosive blend of talent, influences and contradictions who represented the Dionysian freedom of the music like no one else, before or since. Richard's story has been worthy of a movie for decades, and in 2023, filmmaker Lisa Cortés released the documentary Little Richard: I Am Everything, which traced the peaks and valleys of his career as well as his importance as one of the Black artists who birthed rock & roll (and watched white artists make more money with his songs and style years later), as well as an icon of Queer identity when it dared not speak its name in the entertainment mainstream (though he would also renounce homosexuality after one of several spiritual awakenings). You couldn't tell Little Richard's story without his music, and Little Richard: I Am Everything [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack] is an album that collects eleven songs from his catalog that were used in the film. This album wasn't compiled to summarize Richard's musical career, but to match the musical content of the film, and outside of an early demo for the song "Baby," this strictly features material from his heyday at Specialty Records from 1956 to 1957, and the music sounds just as wild, energetic, and dangerous as it did when it was first recorded. However, the songs have also been reissued umpteen times before, and the 1991 compilation The Georgia Peach presents a more complete and satisfying overview of this period. The album also includes three cuts not by Little Richard; Valerie June summons the spirit of Sister Rosetta Tharpe with a cover of her classic "Strange Things Happening Every Day," Corey Henry delivers a faithful but slightly overpolished version of "Tutti Frutti," and Tamar-Kali contributes an atmospheric jazz piece titled "Quasar." If you enjoyed Little Richard: I Am Everything and want a souvenir of the film, this soundtrack album is an enjoyable release that replicates the experience and offers some fine, soul-satisfying music. But if you want the full story of Little Richard's life as a musician, this leaves something to be desired.

© Mark Deming /TiVo

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Little Richard: I Am Everything (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Little Richard

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