"Let It Rock" | ||||
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Single by Chuck Berry | ||||
from the album Rockin' at the Hops | ||||
B-side | "Too Pooped to Pop" [1] | |||
Released | 1960 | |||
Recorded | July 1959 [2] | |||
Genre | Rock and roll | |||
Length | 2:28 | |||
Label | Chess | |||
Songwriter(s) | Chuck Berry [3] | |||
Producer(s) | Leonard Chess, Phil Chess | |||
Chuck Berry singles chronology | ||||
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"Let It Rock" is a song written and recorded by rock and roll pioneer Chuck Berry. Chess Records released it as single, which reached number 64 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1960. [4] Chess later added it to Berry's album Rockin' at the Hops (1960). [2] In 1963, Pye Records released it as a single in the UK, where it reached number six. [5]
"Let It Rock" was recorded by Berry on guitar and vocal, with long-time backing musicians Johnnie Johnson on piano, Willie Dixon on double bass, and Fred Below on drums. [2]
In a song review for AllMusic, critic Matthew Greenwald called it a "rock & roll masterpiece ... Utilizing the same geographic images as 'Roll Over Beethoven' and 'Johnny B Goode,' (among others), Chuck Berry creates an atmosphere that is definitive rock & roll poetry". [6]
A live version of "Let It Rock" was recorded by the Rolling Stones during a performance in Leeds, England, in 1971. Described by critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine as "cooking" and "fiery", the recording was included as the B-side of "Brown Sugar" in the UK in 1971 and later on the compilations Rarities 1971–2003 (2005) and The Singles 1971–2006 (2011). [7] [8] A later performance of "Let It Rock" opens the concert video The Rolling Stones: Some Girls Live in Texas '78 (2011).
In December 1975, a live version of "Let It Rock" was recorded by Australian band Skyhooks during a performance in Melbourne. Released as a single with live versions of "Revolution" and "Saturday Night" as the B-side, the song peaked at number 26 in Australia. [9]
"Johnny B. Goode" is a song by American musician Chuck Berry, written and sung by Berry in 1958. Released as a single in 1958, it peaked at number two on the Hot R&B Sides chart and number eight on its pre-Hot 100 chart. The song remains a staple of early and later rock music.
"Promised Land" is a song lyric written by Chuck Berry to the melody of "Wabash Cannonball", an American folk song. The song was first recorded in this version by Berry in 1964 for his album St. Louis to Liverpool. Released in December 1964, it was Berry's fourth single issued following his prison term for a Mann Act conviction. The record peaked at #41 in the Billboard charts on January 16, 1965.
"Rock and Roll Music" is a song by American musician and songwriter Chuck Berry, written and recorded by Berry in May 1957. It has been widely covered and is one of Berry's most popular and enduring compositions.
"Roll Over Beethoven" is a 1956 song written by Chuck Berry, originally released on Chess Records, with "Drifting Heart" as the B-side. The lyrics of the song mention rock and roll and the desire for rhythm and blues to be as respected as classical music. The song has been covered by many other artists, including the Beatles and the Electric Light Orchestra. Rolling Stone magazine ranked it number 97 on its list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
"Maybellene" is a rock and roll song by American artist Chuck Berry, adapted in part from the Western swing fiddle tune "Ida Red". Released in 1955, Berry’s song tells the story of a hot rod race and a broken romance, the lyrics describing a man driving a V8 Ford and chasing his unfaithful girlfriend in her Cadillac Coupe DeVille. It was released in July 1955 as a single by Chess Records, of Chicago, Illinois. Berry's first hit, "Maybellene" is considered a pioneering rock and roll song. Rolling Stone magazine wrote of it, "Rock & roll guitar starts here." The record was an early instance of the complete rock and roll package: youthful subject matter; a small, guitar-driven combo; clear diction; and an atmosphere of unrelenting excitement.
"Miss You" is a song by the English rock band the Rolling Stones, released on Rolling Stones Records in May 1978. It was released as the first single one month in advance of their album Some Girls. "Miss You" was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.
Rarities 1971–2003 is a compilation album by The Rolling Stones that was released in 2005 worldwide by Virgin Records – as well as by the coffee-chain Starbucks in North America – and features a selection of rare and obscure material recorded between 1971 and 2003. The album peaked at No. 76 on the Billboard chart.
Anthology is a two-disc compilation album by American rock and roll musician Chuck Berry released on July 27, 2000, by Chess Records. It duplicates in its entirety the previous anthology The Great Twenty-Eight ranked at No. 21 on the Rolling Stone 500 greatest all time albums list, as well as the entirety of the later Definitive Collection issued in 2006 as part of the Universal series. The album was later reissued and packaged in 2005 as part of the Universal Records Gold series, and simply retitled Gold. It charted at No. 110 in the UK Albums Chart.
St. Louis to Liverpool is the seventh and tenth overall studio album by American musician Chuck Berry. Released in 1964 by Chess Records. It peaked at number 124 on the US Billboard album chart, the first of Berry's studio albums to appear on the chart. Music critic Dave Marsh called St. Louis to Liverpool "one of the greatest rock & roll records ever made".
"School Days" is a rock-and-roll song written and recorded by Chuck Berry and released by Chess Records as a single in March 1957 and on the LP After School Session two months later. It is one of his best-known songs and is often considered a rock-and-roll anthem.
Chuck Berry's Golden Decade is a compilation of music by Chuck Berry, released in three volumes in 1967, 1973, and 1974. Covering the decade from 1955 to 1964, each volume consists of a two-LP set of 24 songs recorded by Berry. The first volume reached number 72 on Billboard's Pop Albums chart. The second volume peaked at number 110. The third volume, which included only two hit singles among its tracks, did not chart.
"Brown Eyed Handsome Man" is a rock and roll song written and recorded by Chuck Berry, originally released by Chess Records in September 1956 as the B-side of "Too Much Monkey Business." It was also included on Berry's 1957 debut album, After School Session. The song title was also used as the title of a biography of Berry.
"Lonely Teardrops" is a song written by Berry Gordy Jr., Gwen Gordy and Roquel "Billy" Davis, first recorded and released as a single in 1958 by R&B singer Jackie Wilson, on the Brunswick label. The single was commercially successful, reaching the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100, and number-one on the R&B chart. It is ranked as the 57th biggest U.S. hit of 1959.
"Carol" is a song written and recorded by Chuck Berry, first released by Chess Records in 1958, with "Hey Pedro" as the B-side. The single reached number 18 on Billboard's Hot 100 and number 9 on the magazine's R&B chart. In 1959, it was included on his first compilation album, Chuck Berry Is on Top.
"Wee Wee Hours" is a song written and recorded by Chuck Berry in 1955. Originally released as the B-side of his first single, "Maybellene", it went on to become a hit, reaching number 10 in the Billboard R&B chart.
"Little Queenie" is a song written and recorded by Chuck Berry. Released in March 1959 as a double A-side single with "Almost Grown", it was included on Chuck Berry Is on Top (1959), Berry's first compilation album. He performed the song in the movies Go, Johnny Go! (1959) and Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll (1987). One year earlier, Berry had released "Run Rudolph Run", a Christmas song with the same melody.
"Kid" is a song written by Chrissie Hynde that was released on the Pretenders 1979 debut album Pretenders. Hynde wrote the song about a fictional boy discovering that his mother is a prostitute. The song's melodicism was attributed by guitarist James Honeyman-Scott to Hynde's growing interest in pop music. Honeyman-Scott wrote the song's solo, which he had designed over a couple of days.
"Walk Away" is a song written by Joe Walsh and recorded by American hard rock band The James Gang, being featured as the first single from the group's studio album Thirds (1971). The song peaked at No. 51 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Reelin' and Rockin'" is a song written and recorded by Chuck Berry. It was originally recorded in 1957 and released as the B-side of "Sweet Little Sixteen".
"Tonight's the Night" is a song written by Neil Young that was first released on his 1975 album Tonight's the Night. Two versions of the song bookended the album, with one version as the first song, and the other as the last. "Tonight's the Night" has also appeared on some of Young's live and compilation albums.