Hail! Hail! Chuck Berry

Townhall.com ^ | April 30, 2017 | Bruce Bialosky

[.45 Long Colt]

I think that bathroom thing cost him millions to settle. He went to prison (late 50’s or early 60’s) for taking a 14-year-old across state lines for prostitution. I don’t doubt his talent, but he was vile.

[MNDude]

“seizure of Berry’s porn collection, however, led to a scandalous 1993 report in the since-defunct Spy magazine that went way beyond the earlier scandals — revealing a penchant for sexual fetishes involving bodily excretions and a predilection for spying on women in bathrooms.

The magazine described a homemade video in which Berry and “an attractive blond white woman” both relieved themselves during a New Year’s Eve romp in the bathroom of a hotel suite in Lake Tahoe, Nev.

The report also detailed how Berry allegedly installed hidden cameras in the women’s restroom at the Southern Air restaurant in Wentzville after he bought it in 1987. One camera “was evidently behind the toilet seat,” according to Spy, while others captured “aerial views of the toilets’ contents during the seconds after the women stood but before they flushed”

So in other words... it wasn’t the women he was interested in seeing...it was their POOP! Serious? Why?????

[Pravious]

... and the things you guys are mentioning isn’t even the thing I was thinking about.
Google it. It’s too disgusting to relate here.

As for Chuck being the “king of rock and roll”... nonsense. He was a great songwriter and a mediocre performer (at best). Many people could (and did) take his numbers and perform them better than he did. On the other hand, people rarely covered Elvis numbers because they KNEW they couldn’t compete with his performances.

[Pravious]

“...... and the things you guys are mentioning isn’t even the thing I was thinking about.”

Clarification - you posted just before I did. The “Spy” magazine report is what I was thinking about.

[Southern Magnolia]

Chuck was good, but I prefer Bo Diddley.

[Fiji Hill]

Chuck Berry's worst recording was his biggest hit. Here's the original version, which I like a lot better:

Toy Bell--The Bees (1954)

And that demands an answer!

The Real Thing--The Spiders (1954)

[Fiji Hill]

My favorite version of a rock classic:

Roll Over Beethoven--The Four Chaps (1956)

[Fiji Hill]

One of my favorite Chuck Berry tunes

Wee, Wee Hours (1955)

[Mr Ramsbotham]

I’m hardly a prude - but the man was vile.

Personally, I think rock-and-roll music is vile. But that's just me.

[Jolla]

No thanks on his life story, I want to hear great rock and roll, not read about and judge people.

[Road Warrior ‘04]

Went to a concert at Disney World back in the mid 80's starring Chuck Berry, Frankie Avalon, The Association, Mama's & Papa's with Spanky McFarlane doing Cass Elliot's part, Four Tops & Sha Na Na playing at different "worlds" of the park. Walked out on Chuck Berry's gig, not because I disliked his music, I loved it! But, because the sound in the venue was so poor, very tinny and echoing, I couldn't take it for long.

To this day, I feel bad about walking out.

[Pravious]

No thanks on his life story, I want to hear great rock and roll, not read about and judge people.

—

We differ, then. To me, if people behave like dirtbags, they deserve to be “judged” and have consumers express their displeasure by not buying their products.

[Blurb2350]

Yes, yes, we’re all deeply flawed. But Berry’s particular . . . proclivities were especially nasty.

[Neoliberalnot]

Is there any legal documentation to this claim? Chuck was charged and found guilty. See the difference?

[Fiji Hill]

Billy Ford, who teamed up with Lillie Bryant to make some hits as Billy & Lillie, recounts the musical war between the rock and rollers versus the music establishment.

The Monster--Billy Ford & the Thunderbirds (1958)

[John Milner]

He was a musical genius.
And his skill with lyrics gets overlooked because - he invented R&R guitar.

Promised Land is my favorite.
So many especially in the 60’s kind of get back-burnered. Come On, You Never Can Tell, etc.

[jch10]

The “white establishment” didn’t “fight back.” There was room for all good performers back then. If there hadn’t been, they would have never allowed foreign entertainers in.

[jch10]

I agree. Elvis was great but Chuck was king. Elvis grew in stature after his Army stint.

[SamAdams76]

Maybe so. But Jerry Lee Lewis had a similar career arc.

Both men had a repertoire of classics that were covered by hundreds, maybe thousands, of bands since.

George Thorogood made a career of covering Chuck Berry and was primarily responsible for introducing me to the originals. Than you have "Pulp Fiction" movie in which the very best moment was that dancing to "Never Can Tell" in that upscale hamburger joint.

My favorite Chuck Berry movie moment however was in "Back to the Future" when Chuck Berry's cousin excitedly phoned Chuck about "that new sound you've been looking for."

[sargon]

The “white establishment” didn’t “fight back.” There was room for all good performers back then. If there hadn’t been, they would have never allowed foreign entertainers in.

Exactly. I noticed the same line. This is a perfect example of the gratuitous race-baiting that Leftist writers insert into their articles. In some cases it might even be subconscious, but most of the time it's just deliberate divisiveness...