Chuck Berry (1926-2017) & Shows # 659 & # 660

Chuck Berry, a pioneer in rock music, passed away in March at the age of 90. He has been called the “Father of Rock n’ Roll” and is responsible for helping to lay the foundation for rock music. What set Chuck Berry’s music apart from others at the time was his ability to go into deep thought and mix his lyrical style with his musical ability and prowess. Mixing elements of country, western and blues, his music would often speed along with as the lyrics rested atop of the music, giving the listener a different point of view. When his first single “Maybellene” was released on Chess Records in 1955, it was a very different time. There was separation amongst black and white audiences and pop music was filled with standards that were covered by multiple artists. Not only did Berry inject his lyrics with more feeling and poetic elements than the standards that came before him, he also helped to shift gears in how rock music was made by writing his own songs. He was a musician, songwriter and performer. This combined with many other musicians from that time period, Little Richard, Bo Diddley, Muddy Waters, Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley, among others, helped to define what music could be.

Many of his songs were ripe with social commentary, but they were presented in a subtle way. For example, in “Memphis, Tennessee” Berry sings of a separated couple as he tries to reach his 6-year-old daughter via telephone. While this is a love song, it is a different type and it wasn’t the generic love song you would expect to hear at the time. “Johnny B Goode”, while now seen as a standard cover, was semi-autobiographical and deals with race, but not as the main focus of the song. Like many songs that seem simple in their musical dynamics, lyrically this song is also complex. Many of his songs deal with having a good time, cars, dancing, school, love, but are executed in a way that they rise above the music. This is part of what puts Chuck Berry in a different category from others at the time.

While Berry’s music was very influential and innovative, he himself was not without complexity. Berry had run-ins with the law. He went to prison several times. A lot of the situations he went through raised questions and were not without controversy. However, when it came to music, it was something that Chuck Berry understood. He pulled from his influences, Nat King Cole’s vocal style, T Bone Walker, Muddy Waters, Carl Hogan, Ray Charles, Charlie Christian and mixed it with elements of country western, jazz and blues for one universal thing. These things when combined with a song, whether it was “Johnny B Goode” or “Maybellene”, “Promised Land” or any other of his early numbers, we called it rock and roll. His music integrated American audiences, young and old and in popular culture. Called “The Eternal Teenager”, Berry performed his music with a youthful exuberance. It can even be heard in his voice on the single “Big Boys,” from his now final album, Chuck. Like the cars brought up in many of his songs, Chuck Berry often switched gears in song and in his career with a fiery intensity. He was also a showman with a wild rock and roll show, from his relentless, driving guitar solos to his signature duck walk. Berry also never had a dedicated backing band following 1955-1956. He would usually pick a band from local musicians in town prior to the show and this would make up his backing band for that particular show. From the opening moments of his first 1955 single “Maybellene”, to the countless live shows that he played throughout his career, Chuck Berry duck walked right into America’s hearts.

Show 660 (Chuck Berry Tribute Show):

1. Chuck Berry - Reelin' And Rockin' (Alternate Version)
2. Chuck Berry - Rock And Roll Music (Demo)
3. Chuck Berry - I Want To Be Your Driver
4. The Rolling Stones - Come On
5. The Rolling Stones - Around And Around
6. The Courtneys - Silver Velvet
7. The Courtneys - Minnesota
8. Skye Wallace - Stronghold
9. Dean Drouillard - Mid Sea Flood
10. Bo Diddley - Fireball
11. Of The Pack - Feel The Same
12. Century Palm - Inner Vision
13. AC/DC - School Days
14. The Kinks - Beautiful Delilah
15. The Sonics - Roll Over Beethoven
16. Chuck Berry - Sweet Little Rock n' Roller (Take 11A)
17. Chuck Berry - Viva Viva Rock n' Roll
18. Chuck Berry - 21 Blues
19. The Famines - Zero Sum
20. TV FREAKS - Don't Read The News
21. Sam Coffey & The Iron Lungs - Talk 2 Her
22. Dany Laj & The Looks - Sweet Pretender
23. The Matinee - Figure It Out
24. The Rolling Stones - Carol
25. The MC5 - Back in the USA
26. Chuck Berry - Big Boys
27. Chuck Berry - Wee Wee Hours


To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for March 25.

Show 659 (Chuck Berry, T.Rex & The Velvet Underground):

1. Chuck Berry - Bio
2. Chuck Berry - Around And Around
3. Chuck Berry - Back In Memphis
4. The Routes - Thousand Forgotten Dreams
5. King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Sleep Drifter
6. Cawama - Come Around
7. Specifics - 13
8. B.A. Johnston - I Need Donair Sauce
9. Cheap Trick - He's A Whore
10. Blank Square - Empty Head
11. Meatbodies - Scavenger
12. Tim Darcy - Tall Glass of Water
13. Temples - Certainly
14. Mick Futures - Mini Mag
15. T. Rex - Dandy In The Underworld
16. T. Rex - Teen Riot Structure
17. T. Rex - Celebrate Summer
18. The Velvet Underground - Femme Fatale (Alternate Version)
19. The Velvet Underground - I'm Waiting For The Man (Live - The Complete Matrix Tapes 1969)
20. The Feelies - Flag Days
21. Whoop-Szo - Another Show
22. Leonard Cohen - Leaving The Table
23. The Sadies - There Are No Words


To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for March 18.

Chuck Berry Maybellene & Show # 546

When Chuck Berry released his first single Maybellene on Chess Records in July of 1955, North America (and the rest of the world for that matter) was a very different place. Colour TV was still a relatively new thing and not many people owned one. The culture was also a very different place, there was no such thing as a Compact Disc, computers were large over-sized contraptions, the internet was not even in existence yet, America was dominated by fast car counterculture and it was in a state of transition.

After playing in local bands in St. Louis, Missouri most notably the Johnnie Johnson Trio, Chuck Berry had a chance meeting with one of his musical influences when he took a trip to Chicago. Chuck met Muddy Waters who in turn suggested he go see Leonard Chess. After recording a demo tape, the song “Ida May” was seen as potential commercial hit at the time. The song was loosely based on the song “Ida Red” which was one of the many songs Berry had played prior to this and was best known at the time for being recorded by Bob Willis & His Texas Playboys in 1938. This song had roots in country as well as featuring Berry’s R&B dynamics. This was something that set Chuck Berry apart from others in those early days in the mid fifties, he mixed elements of country and western music with blues that appealed to audiences. The song’s lyrics were adjusted and its title was changed to “Maybellene”. Its title was rumoured to have come from either a discarded mascara box laying on the floor of Chess studios or from a cartoon cow that Berry remembered from a third grade reader. Regardless, “Maybellene” became a sensation being played across radio stations in the US and jukeboxes alike. It also charted on the rhythm & blues and pop charts of the day. Maybellene sold one million copies by the end of 1955.

The B-side of this single “Wee Wee Hours” was a blues track that showcased a slower blues groove with smooth vocals provided by Chuck Berry and piano work by Johnnie Johnson. It should also be noted that although this bluesier track was released on this single for Chess Records who were known for their blues recordings, Leonard Chess was more interested in the fast paced A-side “Maybellene”. The single tapped into the popular culture at the time as it moved along with a locomotive rhythm doused in country and western and blues influences. The lyrics told the story of a young man chasing his unfaithful girlfriend around in his V8 Ford. This song helped to lay the foundation of rock n’ roll music, Berry is one of the pioneers in this sound. Just as new technology was on the rise and would soon be featured in every living room in America, Chuck Berry helped to start and establish the wild beat of rock n’ roll music that would influence music for decades of the future generations to come.



Saturday Night Play List:

1. Chuck Berry - Reelin' And Rockin' (Alternate Version) (Five Classic Albums Plus Bonus Singles And Rare Tracks - 2012)
2. Chuck Berry - Thirty Days (To Come Back Home) (Thirty Days/Together - 1955)
3. Otis Redding - Satisfaction (Otis Blue - 1965)
3. T-Bone Walker - You’re My Best Poker Hand (Midnight Blues - 2014)
4. Robert Petway - Catfish Blues (Catfish Blues/Ride 'Em On Down - 1941)
5. Robert Johnson - Me And The Devil Blues (King Of The Delta Blues Singers - 1961)
6. Muddy Waters - Big Leg Woman (Folk Singer - 1965)
7. Andre Williams - I Still Love You (Jailhouse Blues/I Still Love You - 1958)
8. Joe Weaver & His Blue Note Orchestra - Cool As A Cucumber (Going Back To Chicago/Cool As A Cucumber - 1956)
9. Joe Tex - You Said A Bad Word (I Gotcha - 1972)
10. D'Angelo And His Vanguard - 1000 Deaths (Black Messiah - 2014)
11. Prince - Partyup (Dirty Mind - 1980)
12. Tricky - Black Steel (Maxinquaye - 1995)
13. Clancy Eccles - Bangarang Crash (Bangarang Crash/Deacon Don - 1968)
14. Charlie Parker - K.C. Blues (The Essential Charlie Parker - 1992)
15. Matana Roberts - Was The Sacred Day (Coin Coin Chapter Two:  Mississippi Moonchile - 2013)
16. Jelly Roll Morton - Winin' Boy Blues (Winin' Boy Blues/Honky Tonk Music - 1938)
17. The Marvelettes - Locking Up My Heart (Locking Up My Heart/Forever - 1963)
18. The Gories - Charm Bag (House Rockin' - 1989)
19. Death - You’re A Prisoner (... For The Whole World To See - 2009)
20. Staff Benda Bilili - Je T'aime (Tres Tres Fort - 2009)
21. Chuck Berry - Viva Viva Rock and Roll (San Francisco Dues - 1971)
22. Chuck Berry - Johnny B. Goode (Alternate Take 2 & 3) (Johnny B. Goode:  His Complete Chess Recordings - 2008)
23. Chuck Berry - I Wanna Be Your Driver (Chuck Berry In London - 1965)

To download this weeks program, visit CJAM's schedule page for Revolution Rock and download the file for February 7. Or subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.

Coming Up On Revolution Rock in February 2015!

February is theme month once again for Revolution Rock. I will be doing a different themed program for each of the four weeks in February 2015. Each program will air on a Saturday from 7-9 PM and can be streamed/listened to online via www.cjam.ca or on the FM dial at 99.1 FM in the Windsor/Detroit area.

Here is the scheduled line up:

Rock & Roll Music: Revolution Rock Celebrates Black History Month
February 7th, 2015
7-9 PM
CJAM 99.1 FM (www.cjam.ca)

As with every February, Revolution Rock celebrates Black History Month. This year the program will delve into genres that are not always played on the program such as jazz, reggae, funk, blues, R&B, as well as a mix of some garage and everything in between. Join Dave Konstantino and co-host Adam Peltier for this program that will also feature a focus on the music of Chuck Berry. Being a pioneer of rock music, the program will showcase a selection of Chuck Berry recordings from 1957-1979.

Toronto Then and Now
February 14th, 2015
7-9 PM
CJAM 99.1 FM (www.cjam.ca)

Toronto’s Actual Water has been releasing music of differing genres since 2008. Revolution Rock will feature a selection of recordings from this band’s catalog which spans the genres of noise pop, post punk, post-rock, paisley garage jangle pop and most recently the band's foray into power pop on their album Call 4 Fun. In addition to music from Actual Water, the show will also showcase music from Toronto, Ontario’s past and present with garage rock and punk as a main focus.

Unravelling The Basement Tapes
February 21st, 2015
7-9 PM
CJAM 99.1 FM (www.cjam.ca)

In 1967, Bob Dylan and a group of musicians that would eventually be known as The Band began recording what would be known as The Basement Tapes. The sessions, which ran from approximately May - October of 1967 occurred after Dylan had withdrawn himself from his Woodstock home and following his motorcycle accident in July 1966. Recorded in a house known as Big Pink, songs from these sessions would be bootlegged for decades. Join Dave Konstantino and co-host Adam Peltier as they dig deep into the recently released Bootleg Series volume 11, which compiles a plethora of previously unreleased and greatly sought after recordings from the legendary Basement Tapes Sessions that Bob Dylan recorded with The Band in 1967.

Surfbeat: Revolution Surf (The 9th Edition)
February 28th, 2015
7-9 PM
CJAM 99.1 FM (www.cjam.ca)

The February 28th edition of Revolution Rock continues its tradition featuring a program composed entirely of surf music. This year’s program will feature another guest segment from Derk Brigante of The Surfphony Of Derstruction 2000 as we feature selections of sleazy surf tracks. The 9th edition of Revolution Surf will also feature a focus on the album Surfbeat by LA’s The Challengers. Recorded in a whirlwind 3 ½ hour session, Surfbeat was originally released in January of 1963. This album is notable for its historical importance of helping to bring surf music from the west coast into the mainstream subconscious. It is known as the best-selling instrumental surf album of all time.

Chuck Berry, Trains, Drivers & Show # 474

Ever since releasing his 1955 hit single “Maybeline” for Chess Records, Chuck Berry has gone on to be a highly influential Rock and Roll musician and songwriter.   Berry originally from St. Louis, Missouri would play Blues music with local musicians in St. Louis as a source of extra income.   This was where Berry developed his early style, he also would mix Country songs in with R&B songs all the while never being afraid to show off his talents.   In 1955, Chuck Berry moved to Chicago and contacted Leonard Chess upon a suggestion from Muddy Waters.   In May of 1955, Chuck Berry recorded “Maybeline” which was based off an early fiddle song “Ida Red”.   It went on to sell one million copies unexpectedly.

Today’s program featured some rarer and for the most part, lesser known Berry songs.  The first song “Downbound Train” was the b-side of the song “No Money Down”, which was originally released in 1955.   The song was said to be influenced by Chuck Berry’s extreme religious upbringing, but some have also said that it could have been based on an older song with a similar theme.   However, Chuck Berry’s version tells the story of the redemption and the warnings of alcohol abuse.   In the song a man passes out drunk at a bar and has a dream about riding a train, which is driven by the devil.  The man in the story wakes up renouncing the drink.  The song features a strong message in an almost folk-like format lyrically.

“I Want To Be Your Driver” was another song featured on today’s program.   This song is a more upbeat song than “Downbound Train” and this song features a more upbeat R&B Rock sound. This song was recorded in 1965 and was not released as a single.   Lyrically the song plays into the late 50’s/early 60’s subculture, featuring lyrics about automobiles amongst ancy guitar riffs.   The song can be found along with many other tracks on Chuck Berry’s 1965 release Chuck Berry In London, which is an often overlooked album of Berry’s that contains many hidden gems.

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For the next few week’s I will be filling in for the time slot prior to mine from 9 AM – 10:30 AM on CJAM 99.1 FM.  Each of these shows will focus on Roots Rock oriented genres.  This week the first hour and a half of music was devoted to the Country and Blues music genres. The program featured selections from Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash, Sonny Boy Williamson, Indian Wars, Cuff The Duke and a rare and unreleased Country track from the 80s Garage band The Prehistoric Cavestrokers.  The second half of the show was my usual mix of music you would find on Revolution Rock, playing several artists including music by The Beatles, Young Rival and new music from Crocodiles and Papermaps.

Part One:
Revolution Rock (Country and Blues Edition):

1. Cuff the Duke - Long Road (Sidelines of the City - 2007)
2. Hank Williams - A Mansion On The Hill (40 Greatest Hits - 1978)
3. Bob Dylan - House Carpenter (Bootleg Series Vol. 10: Another Self Portrait - 2013)
4. David Lynch - The Ballad of Hollis Brown (The Big Dream - 2013)
5. Neko Case - Local Girl (The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You - 2013)
6. Andre Williams & The Sadies - I Can Tell (Night & Day - 2012)
7. Sam Coffey and The Iron Lungs - Nashville (Sam Coffey and The Iron Lungs - 2011)
8. Prehistoric Cave Strokers - Jed's Rap (Unreleased Recording)
9. Chuck Berry - Downbound Train (After School Session - 1957)
10. Chuck Berry - I Want To Be Your Driver (The Great Twenty-Eight - 1982)
11. Muddy Waters - Tiger In Your Tank (At Newport 1960 - 1960)
12. Sonny Boy Williamson - Alice Mae Blues (Country Blues Obscurities - 2009)
13. Little Sam Davis - Goin' To New Orleans (Country Blues Obscurities - 2009)
14. Robert Johnson - Me and the Devil Blues (King of the Delta Blues Singers - 1961)
15. The White Stripes - It's My Fault For Being Famous (Conquest Single - 2007)
16. Neil Young - Mellow My Mind (Tonight's The Night - 1975)
17. Cowboy Junkies - Working on a Building (The Trinity Sessions - 1988)
18. Deer Tick - Houston, TX (Born On Flag Day - 2009)
19. The Locusts Have No King - Last Ride (THe Locusts Have No King - 2007)
20. Indian Wars - Missippi (Songs From The North - 2012)
21. Johnny Cash - Bottom Of A Mountain (Bootleg Series Vol. II - From Memphis To Hollywood - 2011)
22. Bob Dylan - This Evening, So Soon (Bootleg Series Vol. 10: Another Self Portrait - 2013)

Download part one (Revolution Rock - Country & Blues Edition) here: 

Part Two:
Revolution Rock:

1. TV Freaks – Pusher
2. Jacuzzi Boys – Hotline
3. The Night People – We Got It
4. The Canadian Rogues – You Better Stop
5. The Premiers – Farmer John
6. The Magic Mushrooms – It’s-A-Happening
7. Ty Segall – The Keepers
8. Pokey Lafarge – Pack It Up
9. Curbside Sofa – Be My Girl
10. Holograms – Meditations
11. Crocodiles – Cockroach
12. Orphan Choir – Broken Upright Piano
13. Contradance – Black Preppies
14. Brazilian Money – Filthy Dreams
15. The Mark Inside – Dead Heart
16. The Mark Inside – Balloons
17. Papermaps – The Hedonist
18. The Beatles – Devil In Her Heart
19. The Beatles – Not A Second Time
20. Young Rival – Lost
21. Undertones – I Know A Girl
22. The Embarassment – Sound of Wasps
23. Link Wray – Dance Party Pt.1
24. Deerhunter - Back To The Middle

Download part two (Revolution Rock) here.

Subscribe to Revolution Rock as a Podcast.