“BERRY B. GOODE”

Recently, we saw the passing of rock’n’roll legend Chuck Berry, and although past his prime, the man did what he did almost right up until his death. This month. we look at the bold – yet subtle – genius of this late and great guitar hero!

In my opinion, The greatest geniuses don’t generally create a completely new thing, but help evolve or push the boundaries of something pre-existing. With this in mind, there are a plethora of great blues and jazz players prior to Chuck Berry that used similar ideas, but it’s the subtle pauses, slides and overall intensity of Chuck’s playing that makes his style very much… Well, his style. Let’s look at this in more detail. All exercises recorded at 120 BPM.

EXERCISE 1

It’s no secret here that I’m drawing some of Chuck Berry’s ideas from the jewel in his guitar playing crown: “Johnny B. Goode”. A good listen to his works will show that his ideas are pretty consistent, and a good study of these licks will provide a great insight into his playing. Take this exercise here – double stops, as we call them, were invented before Chuck Berry, but take note of the slides on every third double stop (two note grouped licks) in Bar 2. Here is the first point I would point out when hailing this guitar legend. Those slides accentuate a completely different pulse over the typical ‘four on the floor’ feel of rock’n’roll. Listen carefully to the example provided to capture this, or simply pay attention to the slide markings in the tab.

EXERCISE 2

In this exercise, you’ll see the way Berry effortlessly shifts from bends to almost jazz-like lines. These notes form a Bb mixolydian. Take special note of the hammer on from the sixth fret on the third string to the seventh fret, marking the shift between a minor sound and a major sound. That right there is the key to making your mixolyidian scale sound like rock’n’roll by using the outside note and hammering into that seventh fret. You’ll notice an accidental or flat symbol in the notation – take this as a hint!

EXERCISE 3

This lick looks remarkably like a G minor pentatonic lick, because in actual fact, it is! Here, we see a Bb major pentatonic lick that coincides with a more typical application as a minor pentatonic lick when considered from the point of G. Don’t get it? Okay, learn yourself a good ol’ G minor pentatonic and you’ll notice it has the same notes as are in this lick. Or simpler still, check out a Bb major pentatonic.

EXERCISE 4

These aggressive bends and double stops are so Chuck Berry, they could have been called Chuck Berries! The genius here – aside from the expression – is also in the timing of the notes. He had a way of playing clever rhythms that were way ahead of his time, which were essentially odd timings that resolved over an even number of bars. Use the example tracks to get the timing right.

EXERCISE 5

Again, we use the mixolydian based idea, but the cool thing here is the rake leading into the second beat. These notes are essentially the tip of a Bb major chord. You’ll need to dig the pick into the strings, roll your fingers though the three notes one at time and drag or ‘rake’ the pick across the strings. It’s really difficult, and I recommend slowing it right down and getting the timing when you press the strings as you roll across to match the pick strike.

EXERCISE 6

Double stop licks here with the hammer on requires a bit of finger mashing. Tricky stuff. I barre my first finger on the six, hammer my second finger on the seven and my third finger plays the eighth fret before I roll it straight down on the double stop following. As with all exercises, hearing the lick will help you a lot, so check out the tracks.

SUMMARY

The coolest thing about Chuck Berry is that he was fun. He sounded fun, his lyrics were fun, and the guitar work is fun. Music is meant to be entertaining, to tell a story, and generally just transform the moment into something else – in that regard, Chuck Berry is one legend that deserves all the kudos he received. A life well lived and well received. Hopefully he is resting peacefully under a tree by the railroad track, strumming to the rhythm that the driver made… Well, you get the picture!