Chuck Berry - Back in the U.S.A.

Of all the early breakthrough rock & roll artists, none is more important to the development of the music than Chuck Berry. He is its greatest songwriter, the main shaper of its instrumental voice, one of its greatest guitarists, and one of its greatest performers. Quite simply, without him there would be no Beatles, Rolling Stones, Beach Boys, Bob Dylan, nor a myriad others. There would be no standard "Chuck Berry guitar intro," the instrument's clarion call to get the joint rockin' in any setting. The clippety-clop rhythms of rockabilly would not have been mainstreamed into the now standard 4/4 rock & roll beat. There would be no obsessive wordplay by modern-day tunesmiths; in fact, the whole history (and artistic level) of rock & roll songwriting would have been much poorer without him. Like Brian Wilson said, he wrote "all of the great songs and came up with all the rock & roll beats." Those who do not claim him as a seminal influence or profess a liking for his music and showmanship show their ignorance of rock's development as well as his place as the music's first great creator. Elvis may have fueled rock & roll's imagery, but Chuck Berry was its heartbeat and original mindset.
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Oh well, oh well, I feel so good today,
We touched ground on an international runway
Jet propelled back home, from over seas to the USA

New-York, Los Angeles, oh, how I yearned for you
Detroit, Chicago, Chattanooga, Baton Rouge
Let alone just to be at my home back in ol?St-Lou.

Did I miss the skyscrapers, did I miss the long freeway?
From the coast of California to the shores of Delaware Bay
You can bet your life I did, till?I got back to the USA

Looking hard for a drive-in, searching for a corner caf?
Where hamburgers sizzle on an open grill night and day
Yeah, and a jukebox jumping the records like in the USA

Well, I'm so glad I'm livin in the USA.
Yes. I'm so glad I'm livin in the USA.
Anything you want, we got it right here in the USA

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[MikeRFIN]

Back in the USSR!

[BlablablaGio]

@MikeRFIN the beatles ! and chuck berry.. and elvis presley, led zeppelin, little richard, beach boys,rolling stones, the kinks.. all great music

[BigJH37]

My version of the national anthem. It's ALL about the freedom to eat bloody, juicy hamburgers...and fries...and choc shakes...and...GOD BLESS AMERICA! - now I'm hungry.

[gretuccia46]

un mitoooooooooooooooooooooo

[RockNEHouseNHipHop]

@zeppelinb1 Hell, for the impact those people brought to forming other genres, Chuck Berry influenced Slayer!

[denisjl100]

@grimmpoxer doesn't he though. only reason he didn't tour with chuck is because chuck didn't want to pay for a backup band. part of his contract was that the guy who hired him had to supply a band. that's why sometimes his shows sucked because he and the band couldn't get in synch.

[TheNekoman123]

I will have to say one thing the beatles did influence british rock and roll but they certinly were influenced by chuck berry and it is sad how so many songs were stolen from african american musicians and how much music was stolen from people

[zeppelinb1]

@timeticker326 Keith Richards said that most of the stones songs were "revved up chuck berry riffs", and John Lennon was quoted as saying; "If you wanted to call rock n' roll something else, you might call it chuck berry"...so its ignorant to say that he didnt influence the stones, beatles, hendrix. shit even bands like cream and the mighty zeppelin

[grimmpoxer]

@denisjl100 Johnny Johnson kicks arse.

[timeticker326]

@yongwoongshin Yeah i guess i was exaggerating when i said that the beach boys had just 'a lil' influence from Chuck berry. they (as well as most surf) did have a lot coming from chuck berry now that i think of it. But what i was getting at is that Beatles, Hendrix, and Bob Dylan had their own unique styles uninfluenced by chuck berry or anyone else for that matter. Just listen once more to hendrix's cover of JBG and day tripper. they sound like hendrix, not chuck or beat

[yongwoongshin]

@timeticker326 Beatles' early music was basically early American rock 'n' roll; they covered Roll Over Beethoven. Beach Boys got sued for ripping off Chuck Berry's song Sweet Little Sixteen (with Surfin' USA). Hendrix covered Johnny B. Goode, so you can bet he was influenced by Chuck.

[timeticker326]

I wanna point out 3 misconceptions:

1.) Chuck Berry did not invent rock and roll. He was influenced by T-Bone Walker and used many licks from him.

2.) People he influenced? Beatles (not really) R.S. (not really) Bob Dylan (Def not) Beach Boys (a lil' maybe) Hendrix (listened, but never incorporated style)

3.) why u hatin when someone mentions a famous beatle song with nearly the same title? and then say that beatles suck. Well, nearly all the artists that chuck 'influenced' are beatle influenced