Chuck Berry

Chuck Berry (1926–2017) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter from St. Louis, Missouri, widely regarded as one of the founding architects of rock and roll. Blending blues, country and rhythm and blues into a fast, guitar-driven sound, he turned the electric guitar into the genre's central instrument and set the template that countless rock bands would follow.

Berry's breakthrough came in 1955 when Muddy Waters pointed him toward Chess Records in Chicago, where he cut his first hit, «Maybellene». He followed it with a run of songs that became rock and roll standards, including «Roll Over Beethoven», «Johnny B. Goode», «Route 66», «Memphis, Tennessee» and «You Never Can Tell», prized for their witty, teenage-eye-view lyrics and instantly recognizable guitar riffs and solos.

His showmanship, including the famous duck walk, and his songwriting influenced the British Invasion bands of the 1960s, among them the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, who covered his material and cited him as a primary inspiration. Chuck Berry remains a foundational figure whose guitar style and storytelling songwriting shaped the vocabulary of rock music for generations after him.