Mary Lucia: Hail! Hail! Rock and Roll!
by Mary Lucia
March 21, 2017
There isn't much I can add to the written legacy of Chuck Berry and what he meant to rock and roll. He was a pioneer and he was an inventor. He was a black man in a white world. He was cocky and could be a crank. A fearsome band leader and business negotiator. He was also an outlaw and a perv.
Berry was a savvy businessman who invested wisely and wasn't afraid to stand up for his rights as an artist, two traits which marked the rest of his career. He crafted quite the singular image of a traveling musician who drives his own Cadillac to gigs carrying some clothes, his guitar, and a piece, terrifying promoters by demanding cash upfront before a note was played, and using pick-up bands and someone else's amp.
Mixing R&B, gospel and country is the foundation of rock and roll, but what Mr. Berry added was a signature guitar riff that usually started each tune. It's a riff so identifiable that you know in the first two seconds it's a Chuck Berry creation. You might take another few seconds to recognize exactly which song. The man virtually invented a template for rock and roll.
Berry's onstage showmanship and his sly, lusty lyrics established a style nearly every British invasion band would credit as a major influence. However, young lads, you going to rip Chuck off? Pay the man! We're looking at you, Beach Boys.
In addition to both The Beatles and The Stones covering Chuck's catalog in their early recordings, Keith Richards has openly admitted to lifting just about every lick from listening to Chuck Berry. It's hard for me to separate my thoughts of Chuck and Keith; they go hand in hand in my mind. Like Smith and Wesson.
Upon Chuck's passing, I wanted to hear Keith's statement before anyone else's. His was simply, "One of my big lights has gone out."
In Chuck Berry's 1986 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Keith fidgets and mumbles his way through one of the most awkward presentations of an award I've ever seen. Looking back on it, I wonder if Chuck demanded a paper bag filled with cash before appearing onstage and accepting. Lord, I hope so.
For all the esteem and admission of respect Keith Richards has shown Chuck Berry, I can't help but get the feeling Chuck might not have really liked Keith all that much. Certainly in Taylor Hackford's Chuck Berry: Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll, a biographical documentary-slash-concert film, Keith and Chuck go head to head, and for once, Richards seems to have met his match, getting a bit schooled by his musical mentor. Keith dares to touch Chuck's guitar. Chuck clocks Keith. Years later, Richards would describe the punch as "one of Chuck's biggest hits."
The two embodiments and hearts of rock and roll going at it over tuning and the volume of their amps. The scenes of them squaring off are admittedly the most watchable of the whole film.
With Berry's passing, every rock kid with a bad attitude and a drive for success owes this rebel force a debt of gratitude.
It was announced on Chuck Berry's 90th birthday that a forthcoming new album was on its way. This statement from Dualtone Records is on the Chuck Berry website:
"While our hearts are very heavy at this time, we know that Chuck had no greater wish than to see this album released to the world, and we know of no better way to celebrate and remember his 90 years of life than through his music."
Resources
Chuck Berry - official site
Chuck Berry: Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll - (IMDB)
