KEEP A KNOCKIN’
“Keep A-Knockin’ (but You Can’t Come In)” is a popular song that has been recorded by a variety of musicians over the years. The lyrics concern a lover at the door who won’t be admitted — in some versions because someone else is already there, but in most others because the knocking lover has behaved badly. Early versions are sometimes credited to Perry Bradford and J. Mayo Williams. In 1957, when Little Richard recorded it as an uptempo rock and roll song, “Keep A-Knockin’” reached number two on the U.S. R&B charts and number eight on the U.S. pop charts. (More from Wikipedia)
Little Richard is another man who helped lay the foundations of rock and roll. His hit songs – “Tutti Frutti”, “Long Tall Sally”, “Slippin’ and Slidin’”, “Jenny, Jenny”, “Ready Teddy”, “Keep a Knockin’”, “Good Golly, Miss Molly”, etc. – are so primal and so ingrained in the rock and roll milieu that it seems like they have always been there. Little Richard (real name: Richard Penniman) is sometimes unfairly dismissed as a one-dimensional shouter, but he brought a passion to his music – and a flamboyant personality to match – that made even Elvis Presley seem tame by comparison. His short stature only exaggerated the vehemence of his performances.
(June 2013/1)
