Name: Little Richard on Letterman, October 17, 1984
Uploaded: 2016-06-05T22:04:32.000Z
Description: Watch the stand-up comedy video 'Little Richard on Letterman, October 17, 1984' from Don Giller on Comedy Buff. Published 2016-06-05. Transcript available.

Watch the stand-up comedy video 'Little Richard on Letterman, October 17, 1984' from Don Giller on Comedy Buff. Published 2016-06-05. Transcript available.

okay without the contributions of my next guest rock and roll probably would
not be what it is
today he is the subject of this book right here the life and times of little
richard please welcome
little richard
i'm so glad i got it think all about it i want to shout about it
i got the joy joy joy joy down in my heart down in my heart down in my heart
i got the joy joy joy joy down in my heart down in my heart
i know the devil doesn't like it but it's down in my heart
down in my heart down in my heart
i know the devil doesn't like it but it's down in my heart
down in my heart
i got the joy joy joy joy down in my heart
down in my heart
down in my heart
i got the joy joy joy down in my heart
down in my heart
down in my heart
down in my heart
down in my heart
down in my heart
down in my heart
down in my heart
down in my heart
Down in my home, down in my home.
Down in my home, down in my home.
To death.
Thank you.
How are you?
Nice to see you again.
Have a seat, Richard.
Richard, Richard, Richard.
How you been?
Woo, I'm tired.
Tired from that or other...
Oh, boy, from that.
Yeah?
It's joy, but it's tiresome, you know.
Yeah, it's hard work.
Yes, it is.
Now, let me ask you about the book here a little bit.
First of all, it says,
Little Richard, the quasar of rock.
That's right.
What does that mean?
The brightest star in the universe.
Oh, my.
The star that shoots off energy.
Uh-huh.
That's you.
I've been shooting for years.
Who are some of the people...
Shut up.
Who are some of the people you started in this business?
Or you claim, not that it's a...
No, I don't claim it.
It's the truth.
The truth.
That's what I mean.
I started, um...
Pat Boone came for me.
Elvis Presley.
James Brown.
Joe Tex.
Jimmy Hendrix.
The Beatles.
Rolling Stones.
Um, um, Don Covey.
Titus Turner.
Um, oh, my God.
Everybody.
Yeah.
Uh, do you...
Now, you know, Pat Boone seems like a strange, uh, person for you to...
But he did...
He did some of your early songs, didn't he?
Yeah, well, my...
His first hit was my song, Tootie Fruity.
Yeah.
Uh, what happened is, see, it was so...
The racism was so heavy back at the time, Dave, that down in Macon, Georgia,
where I'm from,
they wouldn't let a black artist through.
You know, it was hard to get pop play.
The music was called race music.
Mm-hmm.
And when I recorded this, uh, Tootie Fruity, I was the first black artist to
cross over.
And so when I crossed over, wearing all this hair and all the eyelashes and all
these headbands
and all the sequels and stones and all the rhinestones and the beads and the
mirrors,
but I had to dress like that in order to get through because I was a threat.
I was a threat.
So they wouldn't let me through.
So when I dressed like that, uh, they would look at me and say, oh, Richard,
yeah, when
I talked to a white girl, he, he's all right.
But when my band boys talked to me, they said, watch it, boy.
Mm-hmm.
They figure you're too busy.
You're spending too much time on your hair to be a real friend.
No, no.
Oh, no, I was spending most time with the makeup, they felt.
Yeah, all right, now, now I want you to, this is a picture.
I guess this photo's in your book.
Now, now, how do you get your hair to do that, Richard?
I think they're, what is that exactly?
I don't know what that is.
I think you whoop it over and knock it in and push it up.
Do you, uh, do you remember the first time you met the Beatles?
Yes.
When I first met them, uh, Brian Epstein brought me to Liverpool.
His daddy owned seven record shops there.
And he brought me at the ballroom, and he said, I got four guys that loves you
so much.
He says, and I just want you to take a picture with them.
He said, and I'll give you 50% of them if you take a tape back to America.
No, wait a minute.
Brian Epstein promised you half?
He offered me 50%, but I didn't think that he was going to make it.
Yeah.
So, I thought Paul could, but I didn't think the rest of them would.
Now, uh, uh, uh.
Now, that's an amazing thing that you, uh.
And I refused.
Yeah.
So.
Well, let me, let me, we got to do a commercial.
We'll be right back.
We'll, we'll come back, folks.
Thank you.
Oh, good.
Good.
Oh, hi.
Listen, we're out of time.
I want to thank everybody who was here.
Little Richard.
Nice to see you again, Richard.
Thank you.
Also, my thanks to Dick, a handful of leaves, Wilson.
And, uh, George Burns.
Good night, everybody.
Thank you.
Thank you.