Chuck berry biography timeline
•
Chuck Berry
(1926-2017)
Who Was Chuck Berry?
Considered bygd many as the "father of rock 'n' roll," Chuck Berry had early exposure to music at school and church. As a teen, he was sent to prison for three years for armed robbery. He began producing hits in the 1950s, including 1958's "Johnny B. Goode," and had his first No. 1 hit in 1972 with "My Ding-a-Ling." With his clever lyrics and distinctive sounds, Berry became one of the most influential figures in the history of rock music.
Early Life in St. Louis
Chuck Berry was born Charles Edward Anderson Berry on October 18, 1926, in St. Louis, Missouri. His parents, Martha and Henry Berry, were the grandchildren of enslaved people, and are among the many African Americans who migrated from the rural South to St. Louis in search of employment during the World War I era. Martha was one of the few Black women of her generation to gain a college education, and Henry was an industrious carpenter as well
•
Chuck Berry
American musician (1926–2017)
For other uses, see Chuck Berry (disambiguation).
Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the "Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into the major elements that made rock and roll distinctive with songs such as "Maybellene" (1955), "Roll Over Beethoven" (1956), "Rock and Roll Music" (1957), and "Johnny B. Goode" (1958).[1] Writing lyrics that focused on teen life and consumerism, and developing a music style that included guitar solos and showmanship, Berry was a major influence on subsequent rock music.[2]
Born into a middle-class black family in St. Louis, Berry had an interest in music from an early age and gave his first public performance at Sumner High School. While still a high school student, he was convicted of armed robbery and was sent to a reformatory, where h
•
Chuck Berry
Certainly the single most important black artist in rock and roll, Chuck Berry is arguably the most important figure, regardless of race, in rock history. The archetypal rock and roller, Chuck Berry melded blues, country, and a witty, defiant teen outlook into songs that influenced vitally every rock musician in his wake.
Chuck Berry's music influences |
|
|
|
Berry achieved a number of firsts:
The first guitarist/singer to reach charts.
The first rock and roller to write words that were relevant and entertaining to his young white audience with out alienating his core black audience.
First songwriter/performer in 1955.
He achieved all of this with a driving rock and roll rhythm that was, if not brand new certainly unique enough to be instantly recognizable. For those reasons he more than any other artist, is responsible for the direction of popular music.
When performing h