Little Richard Reissues 1957 Debut LP With Demos, Unreleased Takes
Little Richard will celebrate the 60th anniversary of his debut LP Here’s Little Richard with a deluxe reissue that pairs the original 1957 album with a disc full of alternate takes and demos.
Eight of the 22 tracks found on Here’s Little Richard (60th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)‘s are unreleased, including never-before-heard takes on “Ready Teddy,” “Rip It Up” and “Slippin’ and Slidin'” from the original recording sessions.
One of the standouts is an electrifying alternate take of “Can’t Believe You Wanna Leave,” a deep-album cut that eventually came out as the B side to “Keep A-Knockin’.” The previously unreleased version, premiering here, finds Richard overpowering his vocal mic (which is probably why it wasn’t selected for the album version) but it’s so raw and unwieldy when compared to the (only slightly more) subdued LP cut that it’s a bonafide lost rock & roll gem.
Here’s Little Richard placed Number 50 on Rolling Stone‘s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. The two-disc set, which features liner notes by music journalist Chris Morris, is due out November 3rd.
Here’s Little Richard (60th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) Track List
Disc 1
1. Tutti Frutti
2. True, Fine Mama
3. Can’t Believe You Wanna Leave
4. Ready Teddy
5. Baby
6. Slippin’ and Slidin’
7. Long Tall Sally
8. Miss Ann
9. Oh Why?
10. Rip It Up
11. Jenny Jenny
12. She’s Got It
Disc 2
1. Tutti Frutti (take 2)
2. True Fine Mama (incomplete take)
3. Can’t Believe You Wanna Leave (take 6)*
4. Can’t Believe You Wanna Leave (take 8)
5. Ready Teddy (take 1)*
6. Ready Teddy (takes 2 & 3)*
7. Baby (demo)
8. Baby (take 1)
9. Slippin’ and Slidin’ (demo)*
10. Slippin’ and Slidin’ (piano & drums demo)
11. Long Tall Sally (take 1)
12. Long Tall Sally (take 6)
13. Miss Ann (demo)
14. Miss Ann (take 1)
15. Miss Ann (take 6)
16. Oh Why? (takes 3 & 4)*
17. Oh Why? (take 9)
18. Rip It Up (take 1)*
19. Rip It Up (take 3)
20. Rip It Up (take 4)*
21. Rip It Up (take 6)*
22. She’s Got It (alternate version)
*previously unreleased