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loog droog
I know it's the first point of reference for a younger generation who never heard of him before, but for many of us older fans the gag in Back To The Future was not only just dumb, it was an insult to Chuck Berry.

I hated it then, and I still do now.

I loved it!

[www.youtube.com]
Carol (Live at Madison Square Garden, New York / 1969)

This is surely not one of the all time greatest, but it is me playing Johnny B Goode, so I post it here to pay my humble tribute to The Man.

video: [www.youtube.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2017-03-22 21:32 by Happy24.

Memphis by the Faces!! Essential version !

Tom

I'm thinking the Elvis version of Promised Land alternate is the one with the Columbus Stockade Blues opening. I really like that version, although I hate the live versions of Promised land that he did in early 74.

However, moving to Chuck covers, here's some of my favourites:

Johnnie Allen: Promised Land.
Paul McCartney: Brown Eyed Handsome Man
David Bowie: Almost Grown
Waylon Jennings: Brown Eyed Handsome Man
The Kinks: Beautiful Delilah
The Rolling Stones: Let It Rock, 1971 and 1978
Elvis Presley: Johnny Be Goode 1972 Elvis On Tour Version
Elvis Presley: Too Much Monkey Business
JerrY Lee Lewis: Sweet Little Sixteen, 1962 version

Johnnie Allan - Promised land

video: [www.youtube.com]

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Happy24
This is surely not one of the all time greatest, but it is me playing Johnny B Goode, so I post it here to pay my humble tribute to The Man.

video: [www.youtube.com]

why that's just great!! GOOD JOB! really loved it; keep on rockin' that geetar!

[www.youtube.com]




If you close your eyes it's like there are 3 guitarist on the podium..............

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2017-03-23 00:01 by NICOS.

Surfin' USA!

video: [youtu.be]

Here's a rarely-heard version of Let it Rock by the Jerry Garcia Band.

Do not dismiss it. It features crazy-good piano by the great Nicky Hopkins.

If you are a fan of Nicky this is a Must Listen. In fact, the whole two-part CD is a Must Listen

CD 2 also features a version of Let's Spend the Night Together.

[www.youtube.com]

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NICOS
[www.youtube.com]




If you close your eyes it's like there are 3 guitarist on the podium..............

Thanks Nico - that's the version from the '73 Hendrix movie I referred to earlier and seeing at a theater when I was younger.
Indeed there seems to be an army of guitars playing, but watching the virtuoso playing it all so effortlessly alone center stage makes it even more intense.
*Performed at Berkeley Community Center, Berkeley, California (May 30, 1970).

And while there's dozens of great Johnny Winter versions playing Johnny B. Goode, this is the one I grew up listening to:

Johnny Winter And - Johnny B. Goode




But when all is said and done, none can top the original by Chuck Berry.

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Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2017-03-23 03:12 by Hairball.

[www.youtube.com]
my fave





hats off to pianist Danny Jordan; this is the only time I've ever heard his work and it's pretty magnificent here.

This is far and away my favorite Chuck Berry of all time. It's short too so you can play it right over again and really get your head on straight. In it's way it's the most impactful direct and on the edge of expolosion version I've ever heard. Only two states away from Missouri, way up there in Michigan they were right in it's direct path and this is music from the heartland U.S.A. in it's distinct way, as much as that Liverpool beat influenced so many good bands first coming over here; or whatever was 'hip' in London or NY absorbed it's own general stylistic expectations in it's own varied ways.

For me this is the pure intent and almost savage in it's perfection. here the ugly American finally rules for two minutes. he just touched down from an international flight and he's excited to be out of someone elses cultures and customs; he knows what fuels him; what's imortant, what, in it's pop american way, is essential:
Rock and roll, whatever else it is, is an American phenemonon at first with these few masters from the fifties still so ever definitionally influential.

Of course I thrilled and rolled and rocked to Mick's teeth bearing, funky slow rolling incredible funky and grovving versions in '69; and sure Carol from their first LP is sometimes I like just as much as this one; which is it's own miracle somehow...so this takes nothing from my love of watching ft. worth 78 open up and letting it rock...or anything...but i stand by these boys doing this version; In a way it might have been apex or near apex of their whole entire thing; which was a uniquely importnant and propoulsive=, tho often obsscured, part of rock and roll hisotryl. Theplayers went on to various things; marriagnes, jails, deaths, poverty, resurrections....bare recoveries and lecture circuits whatever....
for a moment in time they stood fierce as anyone who ever strapped on a guitar. with one mission; to drive themselves and you crazy; and they would like almos put their lives on the line to do that agian and again. Weird band. Anyway; if you don't find this fresh and direct and just alittle big essential, perhaps you'd swant someting a tad more soulful; for me this is a bullet to the heart and I want to get shot clean every day.

Oh well, oh well, I feel so good today,
We touched ground on an international runway
Jet propelled back home, from over the seas to the U. S. A.

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 U. S. A.

Looking hard for a drive-in, searching for a corner café
Where hamburgers sizzle on an open grill night and day

Yeah, and a juke-box jumping with records like in the U.S.A.

Well, I'm so glad I'm livin' in the U.S.A.
Yes. I'm so glad I'm livin' in the U.S.A.
Anything you want, we got right here in the U.S.A.


I also like Linda's studio version; it's kind of tame but awful neat and sharp; not so much the hail hail live version w Chuck; they changed keys on her at the last minute; she was gracious but pissed; she went off in her limo and didnt return for the evening show.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2017-03-23 15:17 by hopkins.

I think only the Stones did good Elvis covers. Matter of fact this was kind of a Chuck Berry curse: that every idiot felt like they had to contribute a Berry cover to this world.
Besides Stones only Elvis with his top band was good. On the "Live in Veags 68" album they do a KILLER version of "Johnnie B Good"

PS someone mentioned MC5 - true.

"C'est la vie", by Bob Seger

They had a hi-fi phono, boy, did they let it blast
Seven hundred little records,
all rock, rhythm and jazz
But when the sun went down,
the rapid tempo of the music fell
"C'est la vie", say the old folks,
it goes to show you never can tell

I am just posting this to comment, after reading Toru A's post, that once again I marvel at how a fantastic lyric writer Chuck Berry was. So simple, so elegant, so witty, and so exactly right.

Wow, never knew that was a Berry song. Only version I know is by Emmylou Harris.

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Toru A
"C'est la vie", by Bob Seger

They had a hi-fi phono, boy, did they let it blast
Seven hundred little records,
all rock, rhythm and jazz
But when the sun went down,
the rapid tempo of the music fell
"C'est la vie", say the old folks,
it goes to show you never can tell

A very good cover

"No Anchovies, Please"

This chick is kinda... hot.

[www.youtube.com]

Ten Years After, Sweet Little Sixteen
Rolling Stones, Little Queenie
Beatles, Rock And Roll Music
George Thorogood, Memphis
Mojo Blues Band, Roll Over Beethoven
Rolling Stones, Around And Around
Animals, Let It Rock

Rock n Roll Music -- The Beatles !!!!!!!! One of Lennons all time great vocals !

I've always thought George Thorogood's best Berry cover was 'It Wasn't Me' because it's one of Chuck's rarer numbers.

video: [www.youtube.com]

I have to say Ditto on Lennon's Lead Vocal on R n R Music, that's probably the first time I heard it on the 1976 Beatle re-issue album of the same name, always been one of my favorite early cover tracks with Lennon on lead, he does it Great Justice...

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bob r
Rock n Roll Music -- The Beatles !!!!!!!! One of Lennons all time great vocals !

yeah he tore the head off of it in the studio. That was Beatles 65.I guess this might have been Beatles For Sale in the UK?
In the states it was the fifth Beatles album not including The Early Beatles.
It has 7 really great originals. A Carl Perkins cut for Ringo and another one for George. (on the same side!)
The only other cover was Mr. Moonlight with all 3 of them taking shared lead harmony vocals (written by Roy Lee Johnson)
and Chuck's Rock and Roll Music with John tearing up a lead vocal every bit as good as his triumphant turn at the Isley's Twist & Shout.
imo this cut off this album at exactly this time did more, or at least the same amount of actual grass roots promo for Chuck Berry music to an entire generation that hadn't heard of him or his music.
They had first done it on the BBC in '64.
The Stones has released Carol with England's Newest Hitmakers about six months ahead of this Beatle cover. Tho a few months before that The Beatles had kicked off the "2nd album" (as it was known in the states) with George singing Roll Over Beethoven, side one cut one. This is mostly a John album vocally and it rules for that imo. I think Paul gets one lead vocal and the rest are harmonies.
In any case, white kids, and all kids, who were a little too young for Berry's bit run of hits in the fifties were getting it socked right to them pretty hard and meaningfully, right from the very beginning of even the pre-invasion. So all hail to our UK talents and idols.

according to wiki: (sometimes accurate):

"Sources have varied in crediting the piano on the track. The original Beatles for Sale liner notes, by Derek Taylor, said that "George Martin joins John and Paul on one piano", implying an overdub by all three that was added after the basic take.[10] In the 1988 book The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions, Mark Lewisohn described the recording as a single take with no overdubs, with "all The Beatles on their familiar instruments" and Martin on piano.[11] The tape engineer for the session, Geoff Emerick, provided yet another account in his 2006 book; he recalled that McCartney played piano while Harrison covered on bass and that the only overdub was for double-tracking Lennon's vocal.[12]"

In any case, I guess you have to factor in the vocal overdub, which I hadn't really considered, a lot of their stuff was overdubbed, for the increased intensity, to be absolutely fair, but pound for pound this is a truly great cover; it showcases the very best of John rocking it out with a number he had done a million times in clubs all over Liverpool, Hamburg and UK proper as a bar band coming up. It's a really glorious take imo.

In any case when it came out I listened to it over and over and was always gassed that the pinao stayed completely out of it altogether as he built it verse by verse and then came crashing in on that last verse and it was like heaven; a real release! and then into immediately more intensity. I always supposed it was just George Martin in those days, doing his best eight beats to the bar Little Richard kind of thing on top of it all, but who knows? Not that important in the long run. The vocal is tops. It's a real rockin' thing. People who say The Beatles never really rocked are kind of missing their early stuff when they were pretty fierce imo.


whoa just read BV's comment below; I thought that this had been on topic about Chuck's all time greatest covers, but if it's too extraneous or out of rules here or something I'll be happy to just delete it. ty.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2017-03-23 22:38 by hopkins.

Please keep this thread ON TOPIC. I don't have time to delete all these off topic posts but I might close the entire thread and give badwill to those wo does not respect a very basic rule - stay ON topic, or start your own thread...

Bjornulf

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hopkins
whoa just read BV's comment...I thought that this had been on topic about Chuck's all time greatest covers

Hmmm yeah don't understand - just re-read through entire thread and seems all posts are ON TOPIC?

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Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......

mr-dja thank you! I had no idea that Dion ever tackled Nadine! Like it a lot!
Takes it easy and real, real bluesy in his own relaxed style; owns it. !
Aside from his excellent chugging rhythm guitar there's not even an electric featured which is what you're always expecting with a Chuck song.
Great job. thanks for the tip. Pretty recent track! from a real good album; this absolutely vital old guy is still totally 100% on the line!! i shudda knowed! dohh.
[www.youtube.com]

But boy that Rory Gallagher version a few dear IORRers have left us with here just blew me like TOTALLY away! He made it into some kind of outrageous new orleans hard rockin' blues soul fest or something. He really did something incredibly original with it and it still totally worked as the big big groove.
That's the kind of revelatory thing I sometimes find on IORR that makes it such a kick to be a member.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2017-03-23 22:56 by hopkins.

A little fyi- Thats none other than Dick "Dark Side of The Moon" Parry blowin the wailin' sax with Rory.

My personal opinion- The Stones up the Chuck on "Little Queenie" from Ya-Yas.

Motörhead Let It Rock

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Elmo Lewis
The winner is .......

Sweet Little Rock'n'Roller by Rod Stewart with much fine guitar work from Ronnie Wood. A nod to Mac too.

was going to mention that one