Sad news today
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Sad news today
Mmmh. I can think of no one in rock music - and certainly nobody as rich - with more chips on his shoulders, but then nobody has ever said he was a nice man (secretly filming women in toilets?).
Interestingly the "classic songs" that the media are now referencing were not hits at the time (eg Johnny B, Goode, Maybellene, Roll Over Beethoven) because he really wasn't that popular in the UK -or even later in the USA where his going to prison wasn't endearing. Even Sweet Little Sixteen struggled in the UK to get to... no. 16! His later fame owes a lot to the Rolling Stones and the Beachboys
Having said that, only this week, on a long car journey thinking "at 90 how much longer can he last?" I played through around 50 of his classic tracks (well around 5 classic tracks that he then rewrote over and over...) and I do still vividly recall seeing him live over 50 years ago.
And of course Bob Dylan copied the tune from Too Much Monkey Business for his Subterranean Homesick Blues and the guitar figure in I Don't Believe You is taken from Berry's Worried Life Blues; but Bob always knew to borrow from the best.
Was the toilet incident Chuck, I thought Little Richard. Still he was no angel - somewhere there is a photo of him with his arms round two young nubiles and they are all naked.Impressive schlong.
Great songs though - I saw him live at Gloucester Leisure Centre in 1975 or 6 and boy did he dance.
My air guitar version of Johnny B Goode might become more famous now ............:o