Interestingly, the album opens
with the song that Chuck Berry did not write, “St. Louis Blues,” an older song
that was composed by William C. Handy. This is a song that Chuck Berry included
on his 1965 LP Chuck Berry In London.
Here Chuck Berry’s grandson Charlie Berry III joins Mike Zito on guitar, which
is cool, a great way to start this disc. That’s followed by a lively and
delicious rendition of “Rock And Roll Music” that features Joanna Connor on
guitar. She has a new album coming out herself, and Mike Zito is a guest on
that release. Man, “Rock And Roll Music” is a whole lot of fun, and I’m having
a good time revisiting it. We then get “Johnny B. Goode,” one of Chuck Berry’s
most famous songs, one the Grateful Dead used to cover fairly often. On this
version, Walter Trout joins on guitar, delivering some spirited playing,
particularly during that instrumental section. Things are seriously rocking at
this point.
Chuck Berry is known for being
a pioneer of rock and roll, but he also gave us some fantastic blues tunes. “Wee
Wee Hours” is one of those blues tracks, and here Joe Bonamassa joins Mike Zito
for a powerful rendition driven by their guitars. These guys seriously jam on
this one, and it’s great. That’s followed by the always-fun “Memphis, Tennessee”
(here titled “Memphis”) with Anders Osborne. I still remember the first time I
heard this song when I was a kid, and being surprised by the song’s final
lines. It’s one of Chuck Berry’s best, and this version is really good. We get
another tune from Chuck Berry In London,
“I Want To Be Your Driver,” featuring Ryan Perry. And then Robben Ford joins
Mike Zito for “You Never Can Tell,” a song that is sometimes listed as “C’est
La Vie,” a tune that regained popularity after it was featured in the film Pulp Fiction (who doesn’t love that
dance scene?). This track is certainly one of the highlights of this release.
In addition to some wonderful work on guitar, it features some delicious stuff
on keys.
Eric Gales joins Mike Zito for
a dynamic rendition of “Back In The USA.” These days you don’t hear a lot of
folks saying “I’m so glad I’m living in
the USA,” but this song will take you back to the days when it made some
sense to say that. That’s followed by “No Particular Place To Go,” one of my
favorite Chuck Berry songs. This rendition features Jeremiah Johnson on guitar,
and is a lot of fun. Also fun is this version of “Too Much Monkey Business,”
which features Luther Dickinson. It is another of the disc’s highlights, and is
one to get you dancing and bopping, wherever you may be. I dig the playful
vocal delivery. Things then slow down just a bit for a cool version of “Havana
Moon,” with Sonny Landreth on guitar.
“Promised Land” is another song
that I saw the Grateful Dead perform several times. This is a great, solid rock
and roll tune, and this version moves along at a perfect clip. Tinsley Ellis
joins Mike Zito for this one, and they both are clearly having a good time with
it, and I’d be shocked if anyone listening didn’t also have a good time. That’s
followed by “Down Bound Train,” one of Chuck Berry’s coolest songs. Alex
Skolnick joins Mike Zito on this bluesy version. Then Richard Fortus joins Zito
for “Maybellene,” which was Chuck Berry’s first single and another of his best.
This version rocks and features plenty of good stuff on guitar. That’s followed
by another great rock and roll song, “School Days,” featuring Ally Venable. I’m
not sure I’ve ever heard this one performed as a duet before, but it totally
works. “Drop the coin right into the
slot/You gotta hear something that’s really hot/With the one you love, you’re
making romance/All day long, you’re wanting to dance/Feeling the music from
head to toe/Round and round and round we go.”
Both Kirk Fletcher and Josh
Smith join Mike Zito for a good rendition of “Brown Eyed Handsome Man.” Then
Tommy Castro performs on a groovin’ version of “Reelin’ And Rockin’.” That’s
followed by “Let It Rock,” featuring Jimmy Vivino. And, hell yeah, this version
certainly does rock. Albert Castiglia plays on “Thirty Days,” another of Chuck
Berry’s best songs. This track is a hell of a lot of fun, another of the disc’s
highlights. They really let loose here. The album concludes with Chuck Berry’s
silliest and most suggestive song, “My Ding-A-Ling,” this rendition featuring
Kid Andersen. What an interesting choice to wrap things up. I love it. “Once I was swimmin' across Turtle Creek/Man,
them snappers all around my feet/Sure was hard swimmin' across that thing/With
both of my hands holding my ding-a-ling-a-ling.”
CD Track List
- St. Louis Blues
- Rock And Roll Music
- Johnny B. Goode
- Wee Wee Hours
- Memphis
- I Want To Be Your driver
- You Never Can Tell
- Back In The USA
- No Particular Place To Go
- Too Much Monkey Business
- Havana Moon
- Promised Land
- Down Bound Train
- Maybellene
- School Days
- Brown Eyed Handsome Man
- Reelin’ And Rockin’
- Let It Rock
- Thirty Days
- My Ding-A-Ling
Rock ‘n’ Roll: A Tribute To Chuck Berry was released on November 1,
2019 on Ruf Records.
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