AllMusic critic Joe Vilione describes the album as "totally bogus" and adds:
Fraudulent recordings like Friends from the Beginning serve no purpose but to confuse the public and harm the reputations of the artists whose names appear on these travesties. It is a deception.
Over the years, similar albums have been released in various formats by small record labels in many countries (see Discogs link at bottom of page).
Hendrix was an off-and-on member of Richard's backup band, the Upsetters between late 1964–January 1965 until June–July 1965. So far, Hendrix biographers have identified only two songs he recorded with Richard, but are uncertain about the dates: "I Don't Know What You've Got (But It's Got Me)", a two-part single released by Vee-Jay Records in November 1965, and "Dancing All Around the World".[4] Neither song appears on this album, although they are included on the West Coast Seattle Boy: The Jimi Hendrix Anthology (2010).
In July 1965, Hendrix played guitar during a WLAC-TV television appearance by Upsetters backup singers Buddy & Stacy.[5] They performed the Junior Walker hit "Shotgun", which was broadcast on Night Train, a Nashville, Tennessee, music variety show. Soon thereafter, Hendrix moved to New York City, where he sent a postcard to his father:
He [Little Richard] didn't pay us for five and a half weeks, and you can't live on promises when you're on the road, so I had to cut that mess loose.
Richard's brother, Robert Penniman, later claimed that Hendrix was fired because "he was always late for the bus and flirting with all the girls and stuff like that.
Keep A Knockin'
Jimi Hendrix & Little Richard Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Keep a knockin' but you can't come in
Keep a knockin' but you can't come in
Come back tomorrow night and try it again
You said you love me and you can't come in
You said you love me and you can't come in (wooooo)
You said you love me and you can't come in
Keep a knockin' but you can't come in
Keep a knockin' but you can't come in
Keep a knockin' but you can't come in
Come back tomorrow night and try it again
You said you love me and you can't come in
You said you love me and you can't come in (woooo)
You said you love me and you can't come in
Come back tomorrow night and try it again (woow)
Keep a knockin' but you can't come in
Keep a knockin' but you can't come in (wooo)
Keep a knockin' but you can't come in
Come back tomorrow night and try it again
You said you love me and you can't come in
You said you love me and you can't come in
You said you love me and you can't come in
Come back tomorrow night and try it again (woow)
The lyrics to Jimi Hendrix & Little Richard's song Keep A Knockin' depict a common theme in blues and rock and roll music: unrequited love. The repetition of the phrase "keep a knockin' but you can't come in" emphasizes the frustration and desperation felt by the singer, who is being rejected by the person they love. The singer tells their suitor to "come back tomorrow night and try it again," indicating that they are not ready to give up on their love just yet.
However, there are also hints of resistance and empowerment in the lyrics. The singer is the one in control of the situation, telling their suitor when and if they are allowed to enter. The repeated line "you said you love me and you can't come in" suggests that the singer is not convinced of their suitor's love, and is perhaps even challenging them to prove their feelings.
Overall, the lyrics to Keep A Knockin' suggest a complex and dynamic relationship between two people, defined by desire, rejection, and a power struggle.
Line by Line Meaning
Keep a knockin' but you can't come in
Don't stop trying, but you cannot enter yet.
Come back tomorrow night and try it again
Try again later when the time is right.
You said you love me and you can't come in (wooooo)
You may love me, but that alone cannot ensure your entrance.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Richard W. Penniman
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
juha vesanen
I love these simple recordings, they're something very special, not great but very nice to listen to...!
ernesto torres
When I bought this album back then I thought it was going to sound like Hendrix a bit! But I was very disappointed cause no Hendrix nor little Richard was heard in it!
Casey Van
I got suckered into buying this. I don't know how much it cost me, not much. This did not have Hendrix on it. There was another bogus album I bought that I don't think Hendrix on but it was pretty good. They sang Hendrix Experience songs. I would love to find those recordings somewhere but I have no idea what it was called.
ToasterTwo
@Васил Хаджийски He was in 1964-65. But this was recorded and released in 1971, after Hendrix died and probably without Richard too.
Васил Хаджийски
I tought Hendrix is in Richard's band ?
juha vesanen
I love these simple recording, they"re something speci
Phil Silverman
probably cut April, 1971, while Richard was with Reprise Records.
Jim Danger
Wah-wah peddle on guitar gives away that this guitar could not have been recorded prior to 1967 - the year the wah-wah pedal was invented. Hendrix was too busy by '67 to be doing this kinda crap, I think.
Cat Daddy
That’s what I was gonna say.The wah wah peddle wasn’t invented during Jimi’s LR days.