Search - Chuck Berry :: His Best 2 (Chess 50th Anniversary Collection)

The incredibly fun music of a rock & roll pioneer, Chuck Ber

Dave | United States | 11/08/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This "His Best, Volume 2" CD is an excellent introduction to the rock 'n' roll legend/ pioneer Chuck Berry. With these 2 "His Best" volumes, you get all the tracks from "The Great Twenty-Eight", plus, you get some extra gems. The first two songs, "Sweet Little Rock 'N' Roller" & the flawless "Little Queenie" (it's incredibly crafty & extremely well executed) get things rockin' real fast--this is definitive Chuck Berry. Although Chuck never really evolved/ changed his style at all, this disc actually beats the first volume. "Let It Rock" is obviously rehashed "Johnny B. Goode", yet it's even better, & Chuck's little guitar thingy really sounds like a train whistle, fitting his witty train lyrics. "Bye Bye Johnny", a lyrical sequel to "Johnny B. Goode" really has a great beat that just puts a picture of the train he sings of in your head. This also contains the must-have, kickin' car song "I Want To Be Your Driver" which is somehow included here (as it was on "The Great Twenty-Eight, though it's in stereo here instead of mono), but not on the still strong "The Chess Box". There's plenty of other great tracks here too like "I'm Talking About You", "Confessin' the Blues" (an excellent example of his bluesier side opposed to his rockier side), "No Particular Place To Go" (with a triumphant song-ending guitar solo), the obsessive "Nadine", the high-flying "Promised Land", & the devastatingly well-crafted drug bust tale "Tulane". There are also 2 fun live songs at the end (including the notorious huge 1972 hit "My-Ding-A-Ling", mercifully included in its single edit opposed to the full-length album version). Granted, with the use of standard rock 'n' roll/ blues progressions on track after track, this stuff does start to sound mighty similiar real quick, but keep in mind the era it was recorded (the first 6 tracks were all recorded in the 1950s) & how hugely influential Chuck was. And in all seriousness, this really is great music--Chuck had a great voice & his guitar playing & lyrics deliver loads of fun. On the downside, "Come On" is rather weak & forced (& is additionally marred by Martha Berry's vocals--she sleepwalked through/ didn't give a damn about her performance), & "Jaguar and Thunderbird" appears in superior form as "County Line" on the "Rock 'N Roll Rarities" CD. But overall the track listing hits the spot in a big way--almost every track is great, & even a track like the jokey "Too Pooped To Pop" is fun. I'd definitely recommend this as a first purchase--it's a dynamite best-of CD."

Chuck Berry - after the peak

Dave | 09/28/1998

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This CD covers Chuck Berry's recordings from mid-1958 up through the early 70's. About half the cuts are classic Berry rockers of the late 50's and early 60's. They are great rock and roll numbers, but did not do well on the charts. There are mid-60's releases from when Chuck made a US comeback, e.g. Nadine and No Particular Place to Go. The rest is filler - 2 bluesy cuts from early 60's LP's, 2 off-color live recordings from England, and a couple of other obscurities. If you are going to buy only one Chuck Berry CD, get Vol 1 instead of this volume."