Johnny B. Goode

"Johnny B. Goode" is a 1958 rock and roll song written and originally performed by Chuck Berry. The song was a major hit among both black and white audiences peaking at #2 on Billboard magazine's Hot R&B Sides chart and #8 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The song is one of Berry's most famous recordings, has been covered by many artists, and has received several honors and accolades. It is also considered to be one of the most recognizable songs in music history. The song is ranked as number seven on Rolling Stone's list of "the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time"

Composition and recording

Written by Berry in 1955, the song is about a poor country boy who plays a guitar "just like ringing a bell," and who might one day have his "name in lights." Berry has acknowledged that the song is partly autobiographical, and originally had "colored boy" in the lyrics, but he changed it to "country boy" to ensure radio play. As well as suggesting that the guitar player is good, the title hints at autobiographic elements because Berry was born at 2520 Goode Avenue in St. Louis. The song was initially inspired by Berry's piano player, Johnnie Johnson, though developed into a song mainly about Berry himself. Though Johnnie Johnson played on many other Chuck Berry songs, it was Lafayette Leake who played piano on this song.

Johnny B. Goode (album)

Johnny B. Goode is a posthumous live album by Jimi Hendrix released in June 1986. This release was the "mini LP" soundtrack to the VHS and laserdisc that were released at the same time. The album contains three songs from Hendrix's performance at the 1970 Atlanta International Pop Festival on July 4, 1970 and two songs from his performance at Berkeley Community Theatre on May 30, 1970. This release contains an edited version of Voodoo Child (Slight Return) from the Atlanta International Pop Festival.

Critical reception

In The Village Voice, Robert Christgau gave Johnny B. Goode an "A–" and called it "vivid testimony to the uses of digital mastering for archival music", finding the sound particularly "powerful" on side one. He highlighted the "intense" rendition of "All Along the Watchtower" and "Johnny B. Goode", writing that Hendrix's performance of the latter song is "the definitive version of the definitive guitar anthem". Paul Evans gave it three-and-a-half stars in The Rolling Stone Album Guide (1992).

AC/DC

AC/DC are an Australian hard rock band, formed in November 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young, who continued as members until Malcolm's illness and departure in 2014. Commonly referred to as a hard rock or blues rock band, they are also considered pioneers of heavy metal and are sometimes classified as such, though they have always dubbed their music as simply "rock and roll".

AC/DC underwent several line-up changes before releasing their first album, High Voltage, on 17 February 1975; Malcolm and Angus were the only original members left in the band. Membership subsequently stabilised until bassist Mark Evans was replaced by Cliff Williams in 1977 for the album Powerage. Within months of recording the album Highway to Hell, lead singer and co-songwriter Bon Scott died on 19 February 1980 after a night of heavy alcohol consumption. The group considered disbanding, but buoyed by support from Scott's parents, decided to continue and set about finding a new vocalist. Ex-Geordie singer Brian Johnson was auditioned and selected to replace Scott. Later that year, the band released the new album, Back in Black, which was made as a tribute to Bon Scott. The album launched them to new heights of success and became their all-time best-seller.

AC/DC (disambiguation)

AC/DC is an Australian hard rock band.

AC/DC may also refer to:

See also

AC/DC (pinball)

AC/DC is a pinball machine manufactured by Stern Pinball based on the Australian band of the same name. Designed by Steve Ritchie, it was released on March 1, 2012.

Description

The machine was confirmed in January 2012 with the release of a teaser video showcasing the game, along with the twelve songs involved in its soundtrack. Each song is the subject of a mode, from which players can work towards a multi-ball for additional points.

It features a swinging bell involved in the Hells Bells mode and a lower playfield in the Premium/LE editions.

References

External links