Richard Berry (musician) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Richard Berry
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Richard Berry, Jr. |
| Also known as | Ricky, Jasper Woods |
| Born | April 11, 1935 Extension, Louisiana, United States |
| Origin | Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Died | January 23, 1997 (aged 61) Inglewood, California |
| Genres | Doo-wop, R&B |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, composer |
| Instruments | Piano, vocals |
| Years active | 1950s–1996 |
| Labels | Modern (Flair, RPM, Crown), Flip, Happy Tiger, Smash, others |
Richard Berry, Jr. (born April 11, 1935 – died January 23, 1997) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He was famous for performing with many doo-wop and close harmony groups in Los Angeles during the 1950s. Some of these groups included The Flairs and The Robins.
He is best known for writing and first performing the famous rock song "Louie Louie". This song became a huge hit for The Kingsmen and many other bands. It is one of the most recorded songs ever! However, Richard Berry did not make much money from it for a long time. This was because he signed away his rights to the song in 1959. In the same year, he also wrote "Have Love, Will Travel", which many other artists have recorded.
Contents
Early life and musical beginnings
Richard Berry was born in Extension, a town in Louisiana. When he was a baby, his family moved to Los Angeles, California. As a child, he hurt his hip and had to use crutches until he was six years old.
His first musical instrument was the ukulele. He learned to play it at a summer camp for children with physical challenges. Richard went to Jefferson High School in Los Angeles. There, he and many other students practiced singing vocal harmonies in the school hallways.
Starting a music career
Richard Berry began singing and playing in local doo-wop groups. He recorded with several of them, including The Penguins and The Cadets. He also worked with the Dreamers, a group of four girls from Fremont High School.
In 1953, he joined a group called The Flairs. They also recorded music under other names like the Debonaires.
Working with The Flairs
The Flairs' song "She Wants to Rock" came out in 1953. It featured Richard Berry's deep bass voice. A few months later, music producers needed a bass voice for The Robins' song "Riot In Cell Block #9." They asked Richard to sing the lead part, but he was not given credit because he was already signed to another record company.
Richard's voice was also used without credit on Etta James's first big hit song, "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)". By the end of 1954, Richard left the Flairs to start his own group, the Pharaohs. He also kept working with other groups as a singer and songwriter.
"Louie Louie" and its journey
One of the groups Richard Berry played with after leaving the Flairs was Rick Rillera and the Rhythm Rockers. They played Latin and R&B music. In 1955, Richard was inspired to write "Louie Louie". He got the idea from a song called "El Loco Cha Cha" by René Touzet. He also got ideas from Chuck Berry's "Havana Moon" and Frank Sinatra's "One for My Baby".
One night, while waiting backstage, Richard started writing the lyrics for "Louie Louie" on toilet paper.
Richard Berry and the Pharaohs recorded "Louie Louie" in 1957. It was released as the B-side (the less important side) of a record, with his cover of "You Are My Sunshine" on the A-side. "Louie Louie" became a small hit in some areas, selling 130,000 copies. It was later re-released as the main song. When the group toured, other local bands started playing "Louie Louie," making it more popular.
The song became a huge national and international hit in 1963. This happened when The Kingsmen released their wild version of it. Their version sounded very different from the original calypso-style song. The lyrics were hard to understand, and some people thought they were rude, even though they were not. Because of this, some radio stations banned the song, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) even looked into it!
"Louie Louie" has been recorded over 1,000 times by different artists. But for many years, Richard Berry did not get much money from its success. He had sold the copyright for only $750 in 1959 to pay for his wedding. In 1993, he said, "Everyone sold their songs in those days. I was never angry with the record companies. They helped five young Black guys make a record."
Richard continued to write and record music in the early 1960s. He wrote "Have Love, Will Travel", which later became a hit for The Sonics. However, he did not have much other commercial success.
Getting his rights back
In the mid-1980s, Richard Berry was living on welfare at his mother's house. A drinks company called California Cooler wanted to use "Louie Louie" in a commercial. They found out they needed Richard Berry's permission to use the song.
The company asked a group that helps artists to find him. A lawyer visited Richard and told him he might be able to get the rights to his song back. The publishers of the song settled the case outside of court. This made Richard Berry a millionaire!
Later years and legacy
In the early 1980s, Richard recorded a song called "The World Needs Peace" with his ex-wife Dorothy. He later re-recorded it as a gospel song called "What We Need," with his six children singing backup.
During the 1980s, "Louie Louie" received many awards and honors. Hundreds of new versions were released, and radio stations played it for hours. Richard continued to perform live shows. In 1993, he played two concerts in London.
In February 1996, Richard Berry performed for the last time. He reunited with the Pharaohs and the Dreamers for a concert in California. His health got worse soon after this. He died of heart failure in 1997 and was buried in Inglewood Park Cemetery in California.
"Louie Louie" is known as the most recorded rock song of all time. Rolling Stone magazine ranked it as No. 54 on its list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
Family life
Richard Berry married Dorothy Adams, a girl he went to high school with, in 1957. They had two children, Pam and Marcel. They divorced in 1968. Dorothy also had a music career and sang for Ray Charles's group, the Raelettes, until the early 1980s.
Richard had six children in total: Pamela, Richard Marcel, Stephani, Karen, Linda, and Christy. Christy, who was born in 1969, helped manage his career in his later years. Marcel played bass guitar on stage with his father in the 1980s.
Partial discography
Albums
- Richard Berry & The Dreamers (1963) - Crown Records
- Wild Berry! (1969) - with the Soul Searchers - Pam Records
Singles
- I'm Still in Love with You / One Little Prayer (1953)
- You Are My Sunshine / Louie Louie - with the Pharaohs (1957)
- Have Love, Will Travel / No Room - with The Pharaohs (1960)
See also
In Spanish: Richard Berry para niños
