Johnny B. Goode

Song facts

From Wikipedia:

“Johnny B. Goode” is a 1958 rock-and-roll song written and first recorded by Chuck Berry. The song was a major hit among both black and white audiences, peaking at number 2 on Billboard magazine’s Hot R&B Sides chart and number 8 on its Hot 100 chart.

The song is one of Berry’s most famous. It has been covered by many artists and has received several honors and accolades. It is also considered 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 “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 that the original lyrics referred to Johnny as a “colored boy“, 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 Johnnie Johnson, the regular piano player in Berry’s band, but developed into a song mainly about Berry himself. Johnson played on many other recordings by Berry, but Lafayette Leake played the piano on this song.

The opening guitar riff of “Johnny B. Goode” is essentially a note-for-note copy of the opening single-note solo on Louis Jordan’s “Ain’t That Just Like a Woman” (1946), played by guitarist Carl Hogan. Neither the guitar intro nor the solo are played at once. Berry played the introductory parts together with the rhythm guitar and later overdubbed the solo runs.

Berry has written three more songs involving the character Johnny B. Goode, “Bye Bye Johnny“, “Go Go Go“, and “Johnny B. Blues“; and titled an album, and the nearly 19 min instrumental title track from it, as “Concerto in B. Goode“. […]

The Beatles’ version

The Beatles recorded their version of the song on 7 January 1964 at the Playhouse Theatre in London for the BBC radio show Saturday Club. Chuck Berry was a favorite among the Beatles. They had previously and subsequently recorded versions of other songs by Berry, including “Roll Over Beethoven“, released on the album With the Beatles in 1963, and “Rock and Roll Music“, released on Beatles for Sale in 1964, and several others that subsequently were released on Live at the BBC. […]

Wings played “Johnny B. Goode” during a rehearsal session in 1980, one of the latest sessions before the end of the group.

Last updated on December 1, 2016

Lyrics