RIP Chuck Berry

The world of popular music lost an icon, one of the largest of the last 60 years at least when Chuck Berry passed away on Saturday Night, he was 90.

If you want a full on write up about his life, as always check out the NYTimes as they nail it. We will talk more personally here at RtBE. We don't celebrate many birthdays here on the site, but we  celebrated Chuck's, John Lennon's quote says it all,

"If you tried to give rock and roll another name, you might call it 'Chuck Berry'." 

-- John Lennon

In recent years we have gotten more and more into 50's rock and roll music and Chuck is the man. While all musicians of that era are criminally under appreciated Berry (and Little Richard while we are at it) have always deserved more love. In my local watering hole on 29th St. Billymarks West we put Chuck in constant rotation as people of all ages, races and upbringing enjoy his tunes. It is odd, we don't feel like mourning much with Chuck's passing, we have more of a celebration feel as he has never really been far from our ears.

He wasn't perfect, no one is, and we never like it when someone passes away you only remember the good times; he was a complex individual. His issues with women, hidden cameras, and being an ass to play with run from criminal to jerk to creepy, but hot damn his music never gets old.

You can play "Johnny B. Goode" ten times in a row and still enjoy it when the eleventh pops up; for our money it's the best rock and roll song of all time. So rather then deal with words, lets just go with a part of Chuck that will never die, his music. Rest In Peace Mr. Berry.