Chuck Berry Passes at 90

[5StringBlues]

 

[5StringBlues]

 

[Bard2dbone]

My first guitar influence. RIP Mr Berry.

 

[planetdrumz]

RIP Chuck, you were one of the greatest!

 

[Oddly]

First song I ever learnt back in 1982 was Johnny B Goode.
Still playing it today and loving it as much now as then.
RIP Mister Berry.

 

[Bob_Ross]

Despite the fact that it is probably completely imperceptible when listening to my music, Chuck Berry was a huge influence on me. I was 11 years old, just starting to play guitar, when my crazy Uncle Harold played me the version of "My Ding-A-Ling" from the just-released London Sessions album. I got such a kick out of his bawdy humor I went out to a record shop the next week...they didn't have a copy of London Sessions but they did have a double album of Chuck's greatest hits, which included the original recording of "My Ding-A-Ling" plus all his classics. I wore the grooves off that album. Probably the only record in my collection that my Dad ever wanted to borrow!

RIP Chuck, you were a genuine Mover & Shaker, in every sense.

 

[bassliner50]

RIP Chuck. You were R&R royalty. It is because of you that many of us are here.

 

[tpaul]

Lots of people assume that all his songs sounded like Johnny B. Goode. In fact he wrote and recorded blues, country and jazz influenced songs. His verses were so far beyond anything else that was being done at the time, and most of what has been done since.

 

[TigerInATrance]

On his way...

 

[kobass]

RIP Chuck.

Thanks for everything!

 

[grrg63]

He motorvated over the hill. Rock In Peace Chuck.

 

[bobyoung53]

Chuck came through town many years back and hired a band from the local union hall. He met them for the first time right before the show and only had a single instruction for them.

"Watch my feet. If you are playing when i stomp my foot, stop. If you are not playing when i stomp my foot, start."

It was a great show.

RIP Mr. Berry. Your gift to us was one of the greatest mankind ever received.

The same here, some of my friends backed him up (early 70's I think) A few of them went into his dressing room and asked him what they were going to play, Chuck looked over their heads at his manager (or whoever, promoter?) and said, "You mean to tell me you hired a band that doesn't know my songs?" haha! He didn't call out keys or anything (all horn keys) and they all had to look at the keyboard player who I guess was quick at picking up the keys at the beginning of every song, all in all a VERY memorable night for them.

 

[bobyoung53]

Very strange! At dinner this evening we were talking about how he was still around! What a weird coincidence.

R.I.P. Chuck.

I said the same thing to someone a few days ago.

 

[bobyoung53]

CB was certainly one of the originals. At his best, the story-telling, economical lyrics combined with his guitar and the Chess sidemen (as noted above, Willie Dixon on some, and Johnny Johnson on most, without whom those records would have swung nearly as hard) made magic.

If you haven't seen it, the "Hail, Hail, Rock & Roll" movie with the band and show Keith Richards put together is 'must-see TV'. Here's my favorite CB tune, not as well known, but the all-alone-at-4-in-the-morning melancholy of 'The Wee Wee Hours' (though 'Almost Grown' is a close second), with Eric fronting the band in the movie performance (with JJ cutting loose as well):



At the front of the vid, Eric talks about Chuck's playing, and he'd always admired that promo pic of Chuck in a suit with an ES290, so naturally, that's what he shows up for the gig with !

You guys are forgetting the drummer Fred Below, who swung a lot of those blues records (and Chuck) along with Willie Diixon.

Fred Below - Wikipedia

Johnny B. Goode Introduction

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John Lennon once said, "If you were going to give rock n' roll another name, you might call it 'Chuck Berry.'" Well, if you were going to give Chuck Berry another name, you might call him "Johnny B Goode."
About the Song
Artist Chuck Berry Musician(s) Chuck Berry (vocals, guitar), Lafayette Leake (piano), Willie Dixon (bass), Fred Below (drums)
Album "Johnny B. Goode" (single)
Year 1958
Label Chess Records
Writer(s) Chuck Berry
Producer(s) Little "Bongo" Kraus

 

[TyBo]

Chuck Berry was absolutely one of the greats, at the bedrock (so to speak) of all of rock and roll. The line from Chuck to Jimi Hendrix is pretty direct, as this clip illustrates - guitar as phallic symbol? Check. Quintessential guitar licks that every guitarist since has copped? Check. THE guitar riff and prototypical rock and roll character, in Johnny B. Goode? Check. Dozens of the most covered rock and roll songs ever? Check. The blueprint for much of the British Invasion? Check. (The Beatles and the Stones made Berry's songs a large part of their early repertoire). Not to mention all the American bands influenced by him ("Surfin' USA", anyone? Or the riff in "Fun Fun Fun"?) The Beach Boys obviously had their ears tuned in to Chuck.

After his early explosion on the scene, Berry didn't do a whole lot more ... but what an explosion it was! No wonder the white folks were scared of rock and roll!



Roll Over Beethoven, tell Tchaikovsky the news! Chuck is comin' to join you!

 

[bassdude51]

In the sense of rock n roll guitarist...............he was THE KING of Rock n Roll.

IMHO............Johnny Be Goode is the ALL TIME GREATEST ROCK N ROLL SONG EVER!

Adios Chuck Berry! You made Rock n Roll what it is.

 

[Papazita]

I can think of at least one act I'll need to do today in memorial.

Chuck Berry likes to do that.
Rip Chuck.

 

[jnewmark]

Chuck was an inspiration to me to become a musician. As a kid, I didn't want to be Elvis, I wanted to be Chuck Berry. RIP, a slice of me has died.

 

[bucephylus]

Huge. The Godfather. RIP

 

[FatStringer52]

I was fortunate enough to see Chuck in July 1973 at a summer weekend rock concert in Frankfurt, Germany. No-shows for that event were Paul McCartney and Wings, Black Sabbath and Canned Heat. Chuck was one of the performers who responded on short notice and flew over to fill some of the void. The band Fumble, a European Shanana, backed Chuck for that show. The first time Chuck met these guys (Fumble) was back stage right before they performed. Chuck's influence on rock'n'roll is evident by the fact that so many artist, as in this case and the ones mentioned above, were familiar enough with his music to join him and put on a full blown show.

"For all the minuses, there was the plus of the unscheduled appearance of rock pioneer Chuck Berry. A ripe 47, Berry took the crowd back to the '50s with 'Oh Mabeline' and 'Roll Over Beethoven,' songs he wrote and performed before many in the audience were born." --Stars and Stripes, July 1973