Rock and Roll Music (song)

The sessions for "Rock and Roll Music" took place in May 1957 in Chicago. The session was produced by Leonard Chess and Phil Chess. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Berry's version number 128 on its list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". The song is also included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's list of the "500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll". == The Beatles version ==

The Beatles performed the song in many of their early Hamburg shows, and also played it on the BBC program Pop Go the Beatles. In late 1964, with limited time to record a new album before embarking on a UK tour, in addition to original material, they recorded several covers of their rock and rhythm & blues favorites to fill out their next LP release Beatles for Sale, which was due out in December in time for Christmas. John Lennon provided the vocal, employing more dynamics in contrast to Berry's original, even-toned rendition. In the U.S., it was released on the LP ''Beatles '65''. The song was played during the group's final tour in 1966, and the performance from their show of June 30 at the Nippon Budokan was included in 1996's Anthology 2and was also performed during the Get Back/Let It Be Sessions in January 1969. It also served as the title song to the Beatles' 1976 compilation album ''Rock 'n' Roll Music''. Credits for the piano vary. The original Beatles for Sale liner notes, by Derek Taylor, state that "George Martin joins John and Paul on one piano", implying an overdub by all three that was added after the basic take. In the 1988 book The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions, Mark Lewisohn described the recording as a single take with no overdubs, with "all The Beatles on their familiar instruments" and Martin on piano. On the other hand, Geoff Emerick recalls that the song was recorded with McCartney on piano and George Harrison on bass. In some countries, "Rock and Roll Music" was released as a single, with "I'm a Loser" as the B-side, in early 1965. It topped the charts in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Australia. The single peaked at number two in Germany and the Netherlands, and number three in Belgium. Personnel • John Lennon – vocals, rhythm guitar, piano • Paul McCartney – bass guitar, piano • George Harrison – lead guitar • Ringo Starr – drums • George Martin – piano Charts == The Beach Boys version ==

The Beach Boys' version includes the use of backing vocals which repeat the phrase "Rock, roll, rockin' and rollin’.” There is a difference between the LP version and the single version in that the single version has more synthesizer. Their version reached No. 5 on the US chart and No. 11 in Canada during the summer of 1976. Personnel Personnel per 2000 liner notes. ;The Beach Boys • Al Jardine – backing vocals • Mike Love – backing vocals, lead vocals • Brian Wilson – backing vocals, arranger, piano, Moog bass, ARP synthesizer • Carl Wilson – backing vocals • Dennis Wilson – backing vocals, drums ;Additional musicians and production staff Album cover, art direction and logo was done by Dean Torrence and Jim Evans. Charts Weekly charts Year-end charts == Mental As Anything version ==

Australian band Mental As Anything covered the song Rock and Roll Music. It was released as the first single from the band's seventh studio album Cyclone Raymond. The song was released in November 1988 and charted at number 5 on the Kent Music Report and it stayed on the chart for 22 weeks. Track listings Charts == References ==