The King of the Gospel Singers

The King of the Gospel Singers is the sixth studio album from Little Richard, discounting compilations. A gospel album from sessions he recorded for the Mercury Records label, it is generally regarded as being a better recording than his two albums with the Goldner label.^[1]

History

The tracks making up the album were recorded in New York City with an approximate recording date of June 1961. Recalling the sessions, producer Quincy Jones noted: I had the pleasure to record with Little Richard "Joy Joy Joy" and "He's Not Just A Soldier" for his albums [...] It was truly a joy working with Little Richard in New York; though he was still very religious I noticed that he never lost his feeling for Rock 'n' Soul. ^[1]

A further twelve gospel tracks were recorded for the Mercury label at an unknown location in March 1962. Of these additional tracks, only two were released at the time, with "Change Your Ways"/"He Got What He Wanted" an April 1962 single. The remaining tracks were issued only as bootlegs, or as archive releases in the 1980s.

After this period Richard continued his commitment to gospel, recording eleven tracks for Atlantic Records between June 1962 and April 1963. Finally, he was enticed back into the rock 'n' roll genre during a tour of England, cutting five tracks for Specialty Records between April 1963 - April 1964.

Legacy

The King of the Gospel Singers would indirectly lead to the resurrection of Richard's rock 'n' roll career, as the touring schedule saw him sharing bills with The Beatles and become inspired by his old sound. Richard himself observed of the album that it was the thing that really put me back in business. It was just the kind of music I had always wanted to record. After it was released the offers for gospel concerts started pouring in. ^[1]

Track listing

1. It's Real
2. Joy Joy Joy
3. Do You Care
4. The Captain Calls For You
5. In Times Like These
6. Do Lord, Remember Me
7. Ride On, King Jesus
8. (There Will Be) Peace In The Valley
9. He's Not Just A Soldier
10. My Desire
11. He's My Star
12. It Takes Everything To Serve The Lord

Personnel

• Little Richard – vocals

The Quincy Jones Orchestra

The Howard Roberts Chorale

Plus unknown instrumentalists.

References

Little Richard Studio albums Here's Little Richard Little Richard The Fabulous Little Richard Pray Along with Little Richard Pray Along with Little Richard (Vol 2) The King of the Gospel Singers Little Richard Is Back (And There's a Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On!) Little Richard's Greatest Hits The Wild and Frantic Little Richard The Explosive Little Richard The Rill Thing Mr. Big The King of Rock and Roll The Second Coming Southern Child Friends from the Beginning - Little Richard and Jimi Hendrix Right Now! Talkin' 'bout Soul Little Richard Live God's Beautiful City Lifetime Friend Shake It All About Live albums The Incredible Little Richard Sings His Greatest Hits - Live! Little Richard's Greatest Hits: Recorded Live! Singles "Tutti Frutti" "Long Tall Sally" "Slippin' and Slidin'" "Rip It Up" "Ready Teddy" "She's Got It" "Heeby-Jeebies" "The Girl Can't Help It" "All Around the World" "Lucille" "Send Me Some Lovin'" "Jenny, Jenny" "Miss Ann" "Keep A-Knockin'" "Good Golly Miss Molly" "Ooh! My Soul" "True Fine Mama" Baby Face" "Kansas City" "By the Light of the Silvery Moon" "He's Not Just A Soldier" "He Got What He Wanted (But He Lost What He Had)" "Crying in the Chapel" "Bama Lama Bama Loo" "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin On" "Goodnight, Irene" "I Don't Know What You've Got (But It's Got Me)" "Poor Dog" "Commandments Of Love" "Freedom Blues" "Greenwood, Mississippi"" "In The Middle of The Night" "Call My Name" "Great Gosh A-Mighty!" "Operator" "Somebody's Comin'" "Twins" Related topics Discography Songs Albums Songs by Little Richard Billy Wright Robert Blackwell Art Rupe Esquerita Jimi Hendrix James Brown Larry Williams Little Richard (miniseries) Book:Little Richard