Classic Rock
AC/DC’s Angus Young names Chuck Berry as his Rock god
AC/DC guitarist and leader Angus Young chose on BBC’s “The Rock Show With Johnnie Walker” during the “Rock God” segment (Transcribed by Blabbermouth) the late legendary American guitarist and singer Chuck Berry as his Rock god and explained why Berry was a big inspiration.
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AC/DC’s Angus Young explains why Chuck Berry is his Rock god
“Chuck Berry was probably one of the great guitar people for rock and roll. He combined a lot of elements — he combined blues, a bit of jazz and his own unique style. He melded all these kind of different genres of music, but he seemed to bring it together and bring it out and it [came] out in that rock and roll style — so plain and simple, but it was so effective.
“I saw him live once when I was younger. I just loved his stage presence and how he performed. He was one of those people, when he got on a stage, he owned it.”
Chuck Berry
With songs such as “Maybellene” (1955), “Roll Over Beethoven” (1956), “Rock and Roll Music” (1957) and “Johnny B. Goode” (1958), Berry refined and developed rhythm and blues on key elements that made rock and roll different.
Writing lyrics focused on teenage life and consumerism, and developing a musical style that included guitar solos and performance, Berry became a major influence on subsequent rock music.
He was born in a middle-class African-American family in St. Louis, Missouri. Berry had an interest in music from an early age and gave his first public performance at Sumner High School. While still a high school student he was convicted of armed robbery and was sent to a reformatory, where he was held from 1944 to 1947.
