On this day in 1926, Charles Edward Anderson Berry, or Chuck as he is known to the

world, was born in St. Louis. Berry was one of rock 'n' roll's first practitioners, and,

arguably, the greatest and most influential of its early superstars. Berry's intelligent,

country- and blues-influenced rock 'n' roll songs, such as

href="http://media.addict.com/atn-bin/get-music/Berry,_Chuck/Johnny_B_Goode.ram">

"Johnny B. Goode" (RealAudio excerpt) and "Little Queenie," captured the

attention of millions of teenagers. The tunes' tales of lust, rebellion and youthful pain

have inspired countless rockers.

In the '50s, Berry set the standard for raucous rock 'n' roll performances and his guitar

style blazed a trail for many of the great rock-guitarists of the '60s. He popularized the 4/4

rock 'n' roll beat and the two-note guitar lick, shaping the development of the genre for

the next four decades.

As Beach Boy Brian Wilson once said: "Berry wrote all of the great songs and came up

with all the rock 'n' roll beats."

As a youth, Berry did well in school and loved poetry and blues. Trained by his barber on

guitar, Berry played in the East St. Louis club scene. He was placed in reform school in

1944 for attempted robbery and served about three years. Berry became a beautician

and divided his time between hairdressing and gigging in a trio with drummer Ebby

Harding and pianist Johnnie Johnson (who became his collaborator for the next 30

years).

In the mid-'50s, Berry met blues-great Muddy Waters and record-company president

Leonard Chess, who sent Berry's

music/Berry,_Chuck/Maybellene.ram">"Maybelline" (RealAudio excerpt) to

famed DJ Alan Freed. After Freed received a co-writing credit, he helped "Maybelline"

become Berry's first top-10 hit. The song was the first rock record by a black man to

become popular among Southern whites. Elvis Presley, not yet a star, even covered the

song in concert. A string of successful singles followed for Berry, including 1957's "Rock

And Roll Music" and 1958's "Sweet Little Sixteen" and "Johnny B. Goode." Berry's

trademark duckwalk also made him a concert sensation, and he appeared in films such

as 1956's "Rock, Rock, Rock," 1957's "Mister Rock and Roll" and 1959's "Go Johnny Go."

Berry was in trouble with the law again in 1959. After bringing a 14-year-old prostitute

from Texas to St. Louis to check hats in his nightclub, he fired her, and she brought her

case to the police. He was convicted of violating the Mann Act and spent two years in

prison.

Berry had a few more hits in the midst of the British Invasion, including "Nadine" and "No

Particular Place to Go." He toured the U.K. extensively, but his recording became

infrequent. His only chart appearance of significance was a #1 in 1972 with the novelty

hit "My Ding-a-Ling." In 1979, Berry released a fairly well-received album, Rockit,

and performed for President Carter. But he served a prison sentence later that year for

tax evasion.

Berry was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame during its 1986 inaugural. But his

live performances were becoming sloppy, and he began to squander renewed public

appreciation. In 1988, Berry published his autobiography. That same year, the

documentary of his life and music, "Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll," was released. The film

featured footage from Berry's 60th birthday concert, with Rolling Stone Keith Richards as

musical director. Also that year, MCA Records released Chess Box, an anthology

of Berry's Chess recordings from 1955 to 1973. In 1995, Berry performed with Bruce

Springsteen at the benefit concert for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

John Lennon summed up Berry's legacy perfectly: "If you were going to give rock 'n' roll

another name, you might call it 'Chuck Berry'."

Other birthdays: Russ Giguere (the Association), 55; Gary Richrath (REO Speedwagon),

49; Keith Knudsen (Doobie Brothers), 46; Wynton Marsalis, 37; Torture (Jungle

Brothers), 24; Laura Nyro, 1947-1997.