Little Richard’s voice aged like fine wine, as the rock ‘n’ roll pioneer proved when, at age 59, he sang at Muhammad Ali’s birthday. The singer and pianist performed his classic hit “Good Golly Miss Molly” at the legendary heavyweight champ’s 50th birthday. The life of a touring rock ‘n’ roller isn’t an easy one, but Little Richard’s voice at the concert was out of this world and he just sounded better than ever.
The Architect of Rock and Roll hit the stage in a sparkling black suit and warmly embraced Ali. The champ shouted something to the audience, but Little Richard declared, “You didn’t say that loud enough. Say it again, honey.” Ali then declared into Little Richard’s mic, “The king!” Ever the consummate entertainer, the singer then joked around with Ali and the audience before launching into a blistering version of “Good Golly, Miss Molly”.
Little Richard drove the band real hard with his rhythmic piano playing, and the audience instantly started clapping along to the beat. As soon as he sang the famous opening line, a big cheer went up in the audience. Little Richard has always had a great voice, but to hear him at age 59 slaying it like that on the mic was really something, especially with those big high notes in the chorus.
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Little Richard’s performance at Ali’s 50th birthday in 1992 attracted 11 million views on YouTube. This made it the rocker’s most popular live performance on the platform. Little Richard’s second most popular performance is his take on “Tutti Frutti” at the 1995 Concert for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The singer was inducted into the Hall of Fame in the inaugural year of 1986, and was invited back in 1995 to help celebrate the opening of the museum.
Fans were in awe of Little Richard’s performance at Ali’s birthday, adding comments such as “When the champ calls you the king you know that’s an honour” and “Little Richard actually got better and better as he got older. I loved his high pitches when he was younger but loved his overall voice as he got older. And what a piano player!”
Ali, who was born on January 17, 1942, celebrated his 50th birthday in 1992. An all-star lineup of stars appeared at the event, which was captured for the Muhammad Ali 50th Birthday Celebration television special. The special guests included Whitney Houston, Dustin Hoffman, Dan Aykroyd, Billy Crystal, Diana Ross, Nelson Mandela and many more.
If you would like to hear more from the legendary Little Richard, also known as the “Architect of Rock and Roll”, you can subscribe to his YouTube Channel to listen to more of his incredible performances.