The Boss and the True King Play Together

Or actually: the Boss plays with the True King.

Elvis gets a lot of love.  He even carries the moniker of “The King.”  But the True King of Rock and Roll, the man that actually made it all possible, especially British invasion Rock with its heavy Blues influence that led, directly, to Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, even Punk, was Chuck Berry.  I’m sure you are aware that Berry passed away yesterday at his home in Missouri.

While he did receive accolades, he never really got the ones that were due him.  Maybe (probably) it was because he was Black.  But he was also a multi-conviction criminal.  He was a sex criminal, including raping a 14-year-old girl.  Maybe that kept him from getting the artistic recognition that was due him.  Can we honor his art while recognizing that he was, at best, a very troubled person?  I don’t know.  I have a hard time separating the art from the artist; something as personal as art is of the individual, a part of them manifest for us, the audience, to experience.

But I do know that much of the music that I listen to simply wouldn’t exist without Berry.

Here is a video of the Berry and Springsteen playing together in 1995 at a concert at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  Enjoy it.  Think about the mess of his legacy tomorrow.

Be First to Comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *