The Second Coming
Omnivore, 2020
8/10
Little Richard is a legend who needs no introduction, and here his 3rd album from the Reprise label, The Second Coming, sees the reissue treatment with some bonus tracks and new liner notes to accompany the 1972 album that recruited session players Lee Allen, Jim Horn, Earl Palmer, Chuck Rainey, and Sneaky Pete Kleinow.
“Mockingbird Sally” starts the listen with all the hallmarks of Richard that we’ve come to expect and enjoy- howling vocals, plenty of energy and certainly no shortage of grooves amid the lively piano fueled sounds, and “Second Line” follows with much funk spirit where talking and singing alternate amid bright brass.
Other highlights from the original include the punchy and shuffling take on “The Saints”, where Richard turns the traditional into a dance-friendly, soul rocker, while the busy display of “Prophet Of Rage” possesses rock’n’roll, R&B, funk and soul in a dizzying display of varied skill. “Sanctified, Satisfied Toe-Tapper” exits the listen and lives up to its name with 7 minutes of rhythmic, memorable and infectious instrumentation where Richard’s pipes are absent.
The bonus material includes “Money Is” and “Do It- To It”, both of which are culled from the $ (Dollar) soundtrack and were composed by Quincy Jones, as well as the single edits of “Mockingbird Sally” and “Money is”, all of which add much to the original album and sound right at home here.
Although it wasn’t a commercially successful album, The Second Coming is, of course, an important piece of Richard’s catalog, if not rock’n’roll’s past, too, and it lives here again in an excellent package from the Omnivore label.
Travels well with: Mike Zito & Friends- Rock’n’Roll: A Tribute To Chuck Berry; Jerry Lee Lewis- Touching Home