Chuck Berry’s importance to rock music cannot possibly be overestimated.
Mick Jagger, wrote, upon hearing of Berry’s death, “He lit up our teenage years, and blew life into our dreams of being musicians and performers.
“His lyrics shone above others & threw a strange light on the American dream. Chuck you were amazing & your music is engraved inside us forever.”
Bruce Springsteen went further: “Chuck Berry was rock’s greatest practitioner, guitarist, and the greatest pure rock ‘n’ roll writer who ever lived.”
Country star Brad Paisley’s eloquent praise of Berry came, not so much in words, but in the form of a blistering version of Johnny B. Goode, played hours after the news of Chuck Berry’s death became public.
If you want to explore the significance of the godfather further read Robert Christgau’s wonderful essay in Billboard, titled “Yes, Chuck Berry Invented Rock ‘n’ Roll.”