Chuck Berry

Rock music; for voice and guitar, with chord symbols.

Early in his career, Chuck Berry performed a country song at a blues nightclub. He heard patrons whisper, "Who's that black hillbilly?" They laughed a few times, but soon requested more of that "hillbilly stuff." Before long, millions of people were dancing to Berry's music. He uniquely mixed blues, rockabilly, rhythm and blues, and jazz. People couldn't get enough of his pop stew. With his innovative guitar riffs and dynamic showmanship Chuck Berry produced groundbreaking songs such as "Maybellene," "Johnny B. Goode," "Rock and Roll Music," and "Roll Over, Beethoven." This hall of fame singer, songwriter, and guitarist spoke about fast cars, romance, dancing, and good times. The songs became anthems to American youth and popular culture. Berry laid the groundwork for the sound and posture of rock music. He influenced generations of musicians and was called the "Father of Rock and Roll." Book jacket.

It’s no exaggeration to say that, with songs likeRock 'n’ Roll Music, Roll Over Beethoven,andJohnny B. Goode,Chuck Berry invented rock 'n’ roll. However, his career has been overshadowed, and often stalled, by tax evasion, liaisons with an underage prostitute, and jail sentences. Now, John Collis interviews those who have worked with Berry and uncovers the truth about his life back in St. Louis. The result is a clear-eyed portrait of a musical genius who, even in his seventies, is still up on stage singingSweet Little Sixteen.

Thirty years ago, Chuck Berry starred in the seminal music documentaryChuck Berry: Hail! Hail! Rock 'N' Roll, which profiled the legend during a star-studded concert celebrating his sixtieth birthday. Now, on the heels of Berry's death, comes the complete story behind one of America's most enduring and embattled icons. Compiled as an oral history by the film's producer, Stephanie Bennett,Johnny B. Bad combines interviews from the film's participants, including its music director-- Keith Richards. These unique interviews and accounts paint a vivid and multifaceted picture of the artist. Berry was at once a witty, articulate genius, now widely considered the godfather of rock and roll; a shrewd businessman, who had no trouble endlessly renegotiating contracts and refusing to perform until additional cash was gathered up; and also a convicted criminal, who in addition to serving time inprison for transporting a minor across state lines for "immoral purposes" had also been accused of sexual assault and sued in civil court for installing cameras in the restroom of the Southern Air, a restaurant he owned in Wentzville, Missouri.

Brown Eyed Handsome Man: The Life and Hard Times of Chuck Berry draws on dozens of interviews done by the author himself and voluminous public records to paint a complete picture of this complicated figure. This biography uncovers the real Berry and provides us with a stirring, unvarnished portrait of both the man and the artist. Berry has long been one of pop music's most enigmatic personalities. Growing up in a middle-class, black neighborhood in St. Louis, his first major hit song, "Maybellene," was an adaptation of a white country song, wedded to a black-influenced beat. Thereafter came a string of brilliant songs celebrating teenage life in the '50s, including "School Day," "Johnny B. Goode," and "Sweet Little Sixteen." Berry's career rise was meteoric; but his fall came equally quickly, when his relations with an underage girl led to his conviction. It was not his first (nor his last) run in with the law. He scored his biggest hit in the early '70s with the comical (and some would say decidedly lightweight) song "My Ding-a-Ling." The following decades brought hundreds of nights of tours, with little attention from the recording industry. Bruce Pegg offers the definitive, though not always pretty, portrait of one of the greatest stars of rock and roll, a story that will appeal to all fans of American popular music.

The definitive biography of Chuck Berry, legendary performer and inventor of rock and roll Best known as the groundbreaking artist behind classics like “Johnny B. Goode,” “Maybellene,” “You Never Can Tell” and “Roll Over Beethoven,” Chuck Berry was a man of wild contradictions, whose motives and motivations were often shrouded in mystery. After all, how did a teenage delinquent come to write so many songs that transformed American culture? And, once he achieved fame and recognition, why did he put his career in danger with a lifetime’s worth of reckless personal behavior? Throughout his life, Berry refused to shed light on either the mastery or the missteps, leaving the complexity that encapsulated his life and underscored his music largely unexplored—until now. In Chuck Berry, biographer RJ Smith crafts a comprehensive portrait of one of the great American entertainers, guitarists, and lyricists of the 20th century, bringing Chuck Berry to life in vivid detail. Based on interviews, archival research, legal documents, and a deep understanding of Berry’s St. Louis (his birthplace, and the place where he died in March 2017), Smith sheds new light on a man few have ever really understood. By placing his life within the context of the American culture he made and eventually withdrew from, we understand how Berry became such a groundbreaking figure in music, erasing racial boundaries, crafting subtle political commentary, and paying a great price for his success. While celebrating his accomplishments, the book also does not shy away from troubling aspects of his public and private life, asking profound questions about how and why we separate the art from the artist. Berry declined to call himself an artist, shrugging that he was good at what he did. But the man's achievement was the rarest kind, the kind that had social and political resonance, the kind that made America want to get up and dance. At long last, Chuck Berry brings the man and the music together.

This book is the author's desire to share with Chuck's fans, some of the experiences he had on the road that his fans may want to hear about. Unless you were there, you missed some very interesting shows. This book also tries to show the loyalty and generosity Chuck had for his friends and family. The book tries to set the record straight about some of the claims that Chuck was a hard man to deal with. The book also shows the humor and quit wit that Chuck possessed. It also shows what a treasure this man was to the music industry. His music will live long after we are all gone. What a ride the 41 years has been.