Nicknamed “The Father of Rock and Roll” throughout his career, Chuck Berry laid the blueprint for translating 12-bar blues into a more energetic and electric version, inspiring artists like Little Richard and Elvis Presley. Berry was effectively the change agent that transformed the face of popular American music at the time and ushered in the era of rock and roll. In short, he’s one of the most influential rock artists of all-time. The 1959 album Chuck Berry Is On Top is effectively a greatest hits record for Berry’s 50’s releases, compiling a bevy of his chart-topping singles that were released earlier in the decade.
The same elements of “hot” vocal recording that I loved so much about Here’s Little Richard can be found in Berry’s tracks. “Roll Over Beethoven” is a great example of this sound, underscoring the unchained wildness that these front men possessed. As mentioned earlier this year:
[The] vocals are distorted and grainy at certain moments, especially when he increases his volume to emphasize a word he’s delivering. In modern parlance this is called “clipping”, which basically means the microphone he’s using has been overdriven and is attempting to deliver an output beyond its maximum capability. In simpler terms, he is singing “too loud”.
If you ask a producer in 2023 how they feel about this they’ll quickly say this is an undesirable effect. And they’re not wrong. But on this album, it’s f***ing awesome. That sound adds so much character to the record, and is a hallmark of many early rhythm and blues records as well as the Motown recordings from the 60’s.
– Little Richard, Here’s Little Richard (1957)
In addition to the vintage production elements, there’s no more iconic classic rock and roll guitar riff than the opener to “Johnny B. Goode” with all its delicious double-stop staccato bursts, and no more iconic classic rock and roll vocal line than when Berry belts out “Go go go Johnny go!”. You can almost taste the strawberry milkshakes, see the polka dot dresses, and feel the rollerskates under your feet as soon as the song comes on.
Standout Songs: “Maybellene”, “Johnny B. Goode”, “Almost Grown”
Matthew. 