The son of a Baptist church deacon, Chuck Berry seemed to have two natural gifts
from a young age - music and getting into trouble. While still at school he was
convicted of armed robbery and was sent to a reformatory where he started his
first vocal group. Upon his release he sang blues and country songs in various
St. Louis clubs and developed his famous showmanship, a distinctive guitar style
originally learned from T-Bone Walker and, unusually for the time, it appealed
to both black and white audiences. In 1955 Berry was signed by Chess Records and
recorded his first hit 'May...