Little Richard est le nom de scène de Richard Wayne Penniman, chanteur de gospel et de rhythm & blues, Rock’n’Roller, homosexuel, adventiste du septième jour, personnalité hors norme et inventeur de l’un des cris de ralliement les plus emblématiques d’une jeunesse en mal de nouveau monde et de Rock’n’Roll : « A Wop Bop A Loo Bop A Lop Bam Boom ! ». Il suffit de lire la liste des titres de cet album pour comprendre l’importance du personnage dans l’histoire de la musique des années cinquante : Tutti Frutti, Long Tall Sally, Lucille, Good Golly Miss Molly ... On n’imagine pas le Rock’n’Roll sans Little Richard et son influence sur des artistes aussi importants que Prince ou les Rolling Stones le place en haut de la pyramide des influenceurs.
It is the fusion of Gospel, Blues and Jazz that gives birth to new rhythms during the 50’s in the United States. Black artists are the first ones to associate upbeat tempo with jazz and blues. But it is a revolution of the minds that gives to the 50’s its frenetic momentum that rocks the old world into the modern world. Every single area is touched by the revolution : music and painting, obviously, but also and maybe mainly society at large, ways of consuming, the new industrial era, urban life, advertising, marketing and design. The movement develops in every dimension. Rock’n’Roll is the permanent mark left by the youth of that time, embracing the new world and giving it the rhythm that fits.
The Masters of Rock collection traces back the history of these great Rock’n’Roll figures without whom Rock and music in general would not be what they are today. And just like a natural phenomenon, Rock was born at the same time as the LP, absolute revolution in the music world which marked every generation since 1950 and until today. The world could not go round without the collection that pays homage to Vinyl Records and Rock’nRoll : Masters of Rock