Chuck Berry

Chess Records

Charles Edward Anderson Berry was born on October 18, 1926 in St. Louis, Missouri, and died on March 18, 2017 near Wentzville, Missouri, aged 90. He was active from 1953 and is called the Father of Rock and Roll. His labels were Chess, Mercury, Atco and Dualtone, and his early singles were recorded at Chess Studio in Chicago with Leonard and Phil Chess producing.

Chuck Berry Is on Top (July 1959, Chess LP 1435), his third studio album, collected the late-1950s singles, recorded from May 21, 1955 to 1959 in Chicago and running 30:25, with all songs by Berry. Players across its sessions included Johnnie Johnson and Lafayette Leake on piano, Willie Dixon and George Smith on bass, Fred Below, Ebbie Hardy and Jaspar Thomas on drums, Jerome Green on maracas and the Moonglows on backing vocals.