Watch Chuck Berry - Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll For Free

Thanks for the memories!

Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

I didn't see this movie until 2012, but I must admit the distance of seeing a 1987 movie about Chuck Berry that shows many of the music stars at that time probably made me appreciate it more.The film is a bit uneven at times. Eric Clapton's, "Wee Wee Hours" ballad slowed the whole movie down. And having Julian Lennon sing the lead, on "Johnny B. Goode" - arguably the greatest rock'n roll song ever made - may have made sense in 1987, but looks silly now.However, there are some really great, worthwhile scenes in the movie. Linda Ronstadt absolutely KILLS her version of "Back in the U.S.A." which made me remember why everyone used to like her so much. It was certainly poignant to see the recently deceased Etta James belt out her version of "Rock'n Roll Music," another highlight. And while I'm not at all a fan of Bruce Springsteen, his reminisces of Chuck Berry were both funny and insightful.If you're a fan of rock'n roll, you really have to see this film.

Chuck Berry: Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll (1987) *** 1/2 (out of 4)Excellent documentary covering two concerts from 1986, which were put together to celebrate Chuck Berry's 60th birthday. Hackford's film not only gives us clips from both concerts but we get to see early rehearsals as well as get interview clips with the usually very reluctant Berry. Fans of the music legend are certainly going to get a kick out of this film for several reasons. One is that we get to hear Berry talk about himself and pretty openly except when the director makes the mistake of asking about his wife. Berry certainly doesn't let any deep secrets out of the bag but we get to tour his garage with a large number of Cadillacs as well as hear why he refuses to go around with any posse or entourage. One of the best segments in the film has Berry driving himself to a concert venue, walking through the streets like a normal person and just arriving minutes before he's set to go on stage. This sequence also has a brief bit at the airport where Berry, again by himself, just has his guitar and a small bag. One of the best stories comes from Bruce Springsteen who was opening a concert for Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis and soon found himself backing Berry up during his set. Another great thing about this film is that it doesn't shy away from the fact that Berry is a very hard person to work with and The Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards finds this out as he gets quite a chewing from Berry because he isn't playing one of the songs good enough. Seeing these two legends go after one another was great fun and Richard was very respectful of the man but one wonders what he was really thinking. We also get to hear a funny story about Berry punching Richards back in the 70s and another one where Lewis says he got beat up by Berry after suggesting that he was the king of rock. Etta James, Bobby Keys, Julian Lennon, Linda Ronstadt, Richards and Eric Clapton are some of the names who appear during the concert footage. All of the big numbers are here and sound terrific, although one questions by Lennon was doing the majority of the singing on Johnny B. Goode. Fans of rock will certainly want to check this thing out as it contains a little bit of everything.

To hear Bruce Springsteen say he first heard Chuck Berry via the music of the Stones makes me feel ancient. I was thirteen when I first heard Chuck Berry on a car radio in 1955 jamming out "Maybelline," the first true rock song I had ever heard. This was before the King, Elvis, signed with RCA and popularized the rock 'n' roll sound for us all.In celebration of his sixtieth birthday, Chuck, with the help of friends, rocks out with many of his creations. The Berry rifts are still fast and furious but there is now an air of cynicism that was absent at the creation. Those unfamiliar with the early Berry sound should check out the original recordings to hear Chuck wail out his affirmation of youth and beauty. "Sweet Little Sixteen" was written and performed by Chuck Berry when he was thirty two years old; yet the rocker captures the innocence and lust of being young and carefree. Chuck continued through his music to invent many of the terms and lingo of the youth culture taking shape at the time. The only other recording artist of the day to even come close to Chuck Berry's lyrics of teen angst and a vocabulary to accompany it was Carl Perkins.Chuck Berry was a seminal artist in the early history of rock 'n' roll. His approach was revolutionary, not just rebellious. Listen to the words of "Roll Over Beethoven." Chuck is stating emphatically that the new movement in American music is not merely a fad as critics would have it but a complete overhaul in musical standards: "...and tell Tschaikowsky the news." One of the highlights of "Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll" is seeing and hearing the three pioneers of early rock exchanging barbs and ideas with each other. Bo Diddley, Little Richard, and Chuck Berry discuss the white cover versions of black songs so prevalent in the record industry of the 1950's. Bo Diddley tries to keep an open mind about it all, for example, saying that Dick Clark couldn't showcase a mixed dance crowd on his "American Bandstand" because the producers wouldn't permit it. Little Richard interjects humor into the proceedings when he talks about white-shoes Pat Boone crooning "Tutti Frutti," making the salacious lyrics, "Awopbopaloobopalopbamboom," sound like light opera. Little Richard comments with a smile that he got over Pat Boone bowdlerizing "Tutti Frutti" only to have him expropriate "Long Tall Sally" ducking back in the alley. Chuck Berry, on the other hand, is militant and angry about the theft of property by the white record producers from black artists.Chuck Berry has good reason to be so adamant in his denunciation of the racial overtones that existed in the record business of the 50's, for he suffered not just monetary loss as a result; his private life suffered too. Chuck wouldn't talk about his run-ins with the law for director Taylor Hackford, saying that he would discuss it in its proper context but not across an office desk. Chuck made a fantastic comeback in 1964 following a prison term resulting from a setup engineered by the government. Since Chuck refuses to comment on it, we may never know for sure exactly what happened.One of Chuck's songs that stands out today is "Too Much Monkey Business." When Chuck recorded this in 1956, it represented, to my knowledge, the first rock 'n' roll protest song, several years before Bob Dylan would turn the rock world around with his protest-oriented music. Only one other protest rock song of any significance came out during the early days of rock 'n' roll. That was the Coasters' "What About Us?" not nearly as good as "Too Much Monkey Business." There are better rock concert films around, the quintessence being "The Last Waltz," but this is the only place where rock fans can get a glimpse of the legendary Chuck Berry in all his glory accompanied by some of the best musicians in the business. It's easy to understand why NASA put "Johnny B. Goode" on the Voyager Golden Record as the best example of American Rock 'n' Roll.

This is an excellent music documentary about Chuck Berry and people who is inspired by him and his way to play the guitar. Its mix of live conserts, interviews and the scene when Chuck is teaching Keith Richard the riff for "Oh Carol" is probably the best i have seen. This is a "must see" film for anyone who likes music.