| Chuck Berry, singer, musician, and composer, is considered among the most influential figures in the development of rock and roll music. He was discovered in Chicago in 1955 when he sat in on a recording session with the legendary blues singer, Muddy Waters. Waters introduced Berry to Chess Records magnate Leonard Chess, who offered Berry a contract. Berry's first recording, "Maybelline, " was an instant hit, and the single's flip side, "Wee Wee Hours, " also fared well on the music charts. Berry subsequently enjoyed only moderate commercial success until "Roll Over Beethoven" rose to number twenty-nine on the top hundred chart. Despite the unimpressive sales of his records, Berry was establishing a following of devotees who identified with his songs, many of which are credited with influencing the youth counter-culture of the fifties and sixties. "Roll Over Beethoven, " for example, mocked high culture, while "Too Much Monkey Business" dealt with the pressures and problems of education, labor, and the military, whereas "Brown-Eyed Handsome Man" portrayed the plight of the black man in the fifties. Berry's stage presence has brought him nearly as much fame as his tunes. His trademark is the "duck walk, " a squatty, knees-bent walk that he uses to move about the stage. In a Rolling Stone interview Berry revealed that the duck walk was introduced in 1956 at New York's Paramount Theatre. "I had to outfit my trio, . . . and I always remember the suits cost me $66, $22 apiece. They were rayon, but looked like seersucker by the time we got there. I actually did the duck walk to hide the wrinkles in the suit—I got an ovation, so I figured I pleased the audience, so I did it again, and again." Berry's career knew one of its better years in 1958, when "Sweet Little Sixteen, " "Johnny B. Goode, " "Reelin' and Rockin', " "Around and Around, " "Beautiful Delilah, " and several other songs made the top 100 chart in the United States. His popularity also brought him parts in four films: "Rock, Rock, Rock, " "Mr. Rock and Roll, " "Go Johnny Go, " and " `Jazz on a Summer's Day." But his success waned in the following years—in 1959 and 1960 he recorded fewer tunes that made the "Hot Hundred" charts, and his image was damaged when he was arrested under the Mann Act for taking a fourteen-year-old girl across state lines for immoral purposes. A bitter two-year trial ensued, and Berry, found guilty, was sentenced to a two-year term in the Indiana State Penitentiary. Upon his release from prison, Berry found the music industry dominated by British groups. Primarily the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. Berry began touring Great Britain, where his musical style and expertise on the guitar influenced many British acts; both the Beatles and Stones recorded songs previously done by Berry. Many American musicians also recorded Berry's compositions; Elvis Presley, the Beach Boys, Buddy Holly, and Bob Dylan were among the artists who were inspired by Berry's music and made his songs hits. Although Berry had few hits of his own during this time, in 1972 his risque "My Ding-A-Ling" reached the number two spot in the United States. To date Berry has never equaled the success of "My Ding-A-Ling, " but his popularity as a performer has not diminished. He does many concerts for universities and appears frequently in nostalgic concerts with some of his contemporaries, including Chubby Checker and Bo Diddley |