''The Second Coming'' was

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the " ...

's third album for

Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels. Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Enya, Michael ...

, released in 1972. The album saw him reunited with Robert "Bumps" Blackwell from his Specialty days, with them co-writing the majority of the album together. The concept was to unite the best rock studio musicians of the '50s with the best rock studio musicians of the '70s. The album failed to chart.

History

Little Richard's profile was high during this period, with works including a track, "Miss Ann", on the album '' To Bonnie from Delaney'', a still unreleased track with

Joey Covington Joseph Edward Covington (born Joseph Edward Michno; June 27, 1945 – June 4, 2013) was an American drummer, best known for his involvements with Jefferson Airplane, Hot Tuna and Jefferson Starship. Early life Though best known for his work w ...

of The Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna, "Bludgeon of a Bluecoat (The Man)", a duet with

Mylon LeFevre Mylon R. LeFevre (born October 6, 1944) is an American Christian rock singer best known for his work with his band Mylon and Broken Heart. He is a member of the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. He travels around the United States, ministering, teachi ...

on his 1972 release, "He's Not Just a Soldier", a cover of his 1961 Mercury track, and two tracks on the soundtrack to '' $''. He also cut "But I Try" with

The James Gang James Gang is an American rock band formed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1966. The band went through a variety of line-up changes until they recorded their first album as a power trio consisting of Joe Walsh (guitars, lead vocals), Tom Kriss (bass), and ...

(unreleased until 2013), and "Rockin' With the King", with Canned Heat, in late 1971. However, his own records weren't selling, and a fourth (apparently planned as his third) and final album for Reprise - ''Southern Child'' - was dropped from release. The tracks to all of Richard's Reprise sessions, including the ''Southern Child'' album, were finally released on CD in 2005 by

Rhino Records A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species o ...

. ''Second Coming'' was recorded in 1972, at the Record Plant, in Los Angeles, California, and employed top 1950s and 1970s players. Whereas the previous Reprise album, ''King of Rock and Roll'' was considered to be under-produced and too commercial, the third released album was considered vastly over-produced, yet featuring little of the star himself. To wit, the 7 minute, one-chord instrumental, "Satisfied, Sanctified, Toe-Tapper", was a standout. Richard recalled: "I left Reprise because I felt that the producers didn't have me at heart. ''The Rill Thing'' was a good album. All the Reprise albums were, but they didn't push them. So I left them. It wasn't mutual. I went to Reprise because I felt the company could do something. ..I think the producers and people who worked there thought I wasn't their main singer."White, Charles. (2003). ''The Life and Times of Little Richard: The Authorised Biography.'' Omnibus Press. (page 167).

Track listing

All tracks composed by Richard Penniman; except where indicated # "Mockingbird Sally" - 3:41 # "Second Line" (Penniman, Robert "Bumps" Blackwell) – 4:50 # "It Ain't What You Do, It's the Way How You Do It" (Penniman, Pete Kleinman) – 2:45 # "The Saints" – 5:03 # "Nuki Suki" (Bill Hemmons) – 5:32 # "Rockin' Rockin' Boogie" (Penniman, Seabrun Hunter) – 5:28 # "Prophet of Peace" – 3:19 # "Thomasine" (Penniman, Maybelle Jackson) – 3:11 # "Sanctified, Satisfied Toe-Tapper" – 7:12

Personnel

–

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

, electric piano, Clavichord *

Lee Allen Lee Allen may refer to: *Lee Allen (wrestler) (1934–2012), wrestler and coach * Lee Allen (baseball) (1915–1969), baseball historian *Lee Allen (musician) (1927–1994), saxophone player *Lee Allen (artist) Lee Allen (1910 – May 5, 2006), bor ...

, Bill Hemmons -

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while th ...

Jim Horn James Ronald Horn (born November 20, 1940) is an American saxophonist, woodwind player, and session musician. Biography Horn was born in Los Angeles, and after replacing saxophonist Steve Douglas in 1959, he toured with member Duane Eddy for f ...

baritone saxophone The baritone saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of instruments, larger (and lower-pitched) than the tenor saxophone, but smaller (and higher-pitched) than the bass. It is the lowest-pitched saxophone in common use - the bass, contra ...

Chuck Rainey Charles Walter Rainey III (born June 17, 1940) is an American bass guitarist who has performed and recorded with many well-known acts, including Aretha Franklin, Steely Dan, and Quincy Jones. Rainey is credited for playing bass on more than 1,00 ...

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

* Sneaky Pete Kleinow -

pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...

* Mike Deasey, George Davis, Adolph Jacobs,

David T. Walker David T. Walker (born June 25, 1941) is an American guitarist, born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In addition to numerous session musician duties since the early 1970s, Walker has issued fifteen albums in his own name. Career David T. Walker was born to ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

* Earl Palmer -

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

;Technical * Ed Thrasher - art direction *

David Willardson David Willardson is an American artist. He attended the Art Center College of Design. He has worked on Disney characters, designing a "new look" for many of Disney's movie posters, and worked on Disney movie campaigns for 17 years. As an award- ...

- cover artwork * Ed Caraeff - photography

Charts

Album Single

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Second Coming 1972 albums Little Richard albums Albums produced by Robert Blackwell Reprise Records albums