Chuck Berry - After School Session (1957)

"Maybellene" by Chuck Berry


In 1955, Muddy Waters steered a young Chuck Berry in the direction of Chess Records (his own label at the time). At the time, he wasn't a solo musician, but a member of a band. A band he wasn't a member of when it started. Originally a jazz and blues number, the Johnnie Johnson Trio recruited Berry on guitar after its saxophone player suffered a stroke and could no longer play. With the new instrument lineup, the repertoire morphed from jazz and blues to blues and country with a strong underlying note of contemporary R&B. Johnson (piano) didn't have the bombastic personality and showmanship that Chuck Berry did which inevitably led to Berry usurping the leadership role and the band name (now the Chuck Berry Trio). According to Johnson, he felt there was a greater chance of success with Berry as frontman. The new formula that blended rhythm and blues with country is the winning formula that most rock historians consider as one of the advents of Rock and Roll. The sound would meet the masses when Chuck Berry and his backing band (notice the change) recorded a country classic "Ida Red" but with completely revamped, youthful lyrics, an appropriate name change ("Maybellene"), and a clever re-arrangement by Berry and Johnson.

Chuck Berry's early life took a very strange road. He performed often in his youth but was sentenced to three years in jail after stealing a car while armed with a "non-functioning pistol". After he was released in 1947 at 21, he married, had a child, and took on a series of odd jobs to supply for his new family. He started playing odd gigs in the evenings as a means of making money. He was not the best guitarist, but he had a powerful style that he adapted from blues legend T-Bone Walker. He made up for the rest with his showmanship, his charisma, and his brilliant conversational lyrics. He never played anything too complicated, but that didn't matter because the opted for simplicity was what helped define rock 'n' roll in Berry's mind.

"Maybellene" met unexpected success as it sold over one million copies and peaked at #5 on the charts. More singles followed (all performing well on the R&B charts) and the next hit came in 1956 with the release of "Roll Over Beethoven" (#29 on the charts). This next hit helped propel Berry into a rising star. He not only sold out venues to both black and white audiences but his performances could also be seen on the silver screen. Disc Jockey Alan Freed's film Rock! Rock! Rock! featured Berry performing his single "You Can't Catch Me". In 1957, Chess Records released Berry's first LP After School Session. It did not chart and for good reason. The track list was made up primarily of Berry's soft B-Sides and lesser singles. What was more notable was what wasn't on the record. His three most successful singles were left off because they were recently used on the Rock! Rock! Rock! soundtrack. Still, Chuck Berry was at the forefront of the burgeoning Rock and Roll movement. "Hail! Hail! Rock and Roll!"

Here is the discography surrounding Chuck Berry's debut album:

Maybellene (1955 single)
Thirty Days (1955 single)
No Money Down (1955 single)
Roll Over Beethoven (1956 single)
Too Much Monkey Business (1956 single)
You Can't Catch Me (1956 single)

Rock, Rock, Rock! (1956 soundtrack songs)
School Days (1957 single)
After School Session (1957 EP)
After School Session

"Roll Over Beethoven" by Chuck Berry


If you have any ideas for where the tour should go next, please give a shout. I'm open to whatever as long as the artists are historically related in some way and go in an artist's chronological order.

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