For those of you who want to see how we do it here in St. Louis, be advised that Chuck is taking all of us to NY/NJ this weekend...looking forward to playing the Big Apple and Jersey...

so, the Smithereens are not backing Chuck Berry in NJ? What a rip.

Thank You, St Louis Band !!! For making the Trip to NYC, It was a Rare Treat !!! I caught CB II playing last year and Jimmy Marsala was with Chuck at the Westbury Show in June, but 5/6th of the St. Louis Band, together at B.B. King's was a Very Special Event.

When I saw a Strat on the stage when we came in I knew that CB II would be in the House, and sure enough he took the stage with Jimmy Marsala before Chuck made his entrance, but I think it was their second number when Ingrid took the stage and play the Harp with the Band. I have been hearing about Ingrid for years, and heard how good she was, but nothing can do justice to this Lady, other than seeing her peform Live. She has such a Great Voice, she would put any of today's Female Singers away if she had a recording out. Seeing Ingrid blow the harp on "Roll On" was fantastic, Chuck even stretched it out to give her more time to improvise.

CB II is always the Consumate Professional. He plays along with the band and is there to back his Dad up, adding his own style to complement the rest of the band. It is quite obvious that when Chuck Berry is playing with those he feels comfortable with, he is happy and the performance is all the more better. I have heard him play for the last 30 years or so, in venues all over the Country and Europe. But after last nights show with most of the St Louis Band(only missing the keyboard player I believe). I know the trip to St Louis would be well worth it, if only for the opportunity to see Chuck Berry perform with members of his Family once again.

There were some special guests in attendence also. I believe a guy named John Perry took the stage and blew harp on one song. I don't know him, and couldn't find him online, But Ingird brought him up onstage, and the band seemed to know him, as well as playing a Mean Harmonica, he was very good. Steve Jorden who was the drummer in "Hail, Hail, Rock and Roll" was in the audience. He had such a great story to tell on the extra footage of "HHRR" , although he didn't get to play, as the Drummer was from the St. Louis Band(I think??).

B.B. King's has consistantly brought the best talent to the Heart of NYC. It has a Vegas Lounge style for the main room. The food is always good, serving a wide range of Steaks, Seafood and BBQ. B.B.'s NYC sits down on 42nd street in Times Square. If anyone at the show took photos let me know.

...no, the St. Louis piano player WAS there in full effect...or else it was my evil twin...we had a blast, and tore up Cranford NJ the next day...

The song Kurty is referring to as "Roll On" must be "Let It Rock", one of Chuck's most popular songs, usually the highlight of the set and according to old Chuck Ingrid's favourite song!

Sorry Bob, I wasn't sure if that was you or not. I thought I saw Darrel Davis walk up onstage before the show, and thought he would be on Keyboard that night, until we saw you. Great Shows !!! We took the train home on Friday night, but Sunday Afternoon I fired up My Peterbuilt and took a loaded trailer over to Jersey with me so I could drop it in PA. the next morning. My 9yo Daughter who was with me at B.B.'s rode shotgun over the GW Bridge and on to Cranford for the show. We were able to park the rig pretty close to the event and hung out until you all took the stage. The Free Show in N.J. was just as good or better than B.B.'s and everyone we spoke to Loved to have the chance to see "The Berry Family Legacy Tour" roll though New Jersey.
In response to the other poster the song that Ingrid rocked on was definatly "Roll On". I know the song well and have been playing it for over 30 years. I'm sure any of Chuck Berry's Children could play well along with him on just about any song he has written. She contributed much to both shows and from what I hear, at Blueberry Hill frequently. St Louis will surely be a stop-over on a Trip to the Rockies this winter.

What are the lyrics to the song "Roll On" like? I have never heard Chuck Berry do that song live before!

I don't have the lyrics to Chuck Berry's "Roll On" at hand right now, (am in the process of moving to another state), but it isn't one of his most well known songs. It is about Railroad Workers and a Runaway Train. There is a line about "Rolling those Bones"(throwing dice) in a "Teepee set up on the tracks" and the workers having to get out of the way of the train. He recorded it sometime in the late 50's and it has always been one of those songs that Musicians know and like to play. When I was in Munich, I played it during a show at a Beer Hall. The most unique version of the song that I have heard was done by Johnny Cash playing live at "The Carter Family Fold". He was the only Artist that was ever allowed to "Plug- In" at that acoustic Venue in Hiltons, VA. His Guitarist Bob Wooton knew the song and someone gave Johnny Cash the Lyrics and they just Improvised (they were doing a set of classic Railroad songs). Only in recent years have I heard Chuck Berry adding it to his sets. His "Greatest Hits" are fantastic !! But it is when he pulls out these rare gems that he has written that he shines best. His back catalog of songs is Huge and so many have not been heard live or in Many Years. It seems that Chuck Berry does his best to rotate songs in performance as he seldom (or never) plays the exact same songs in different shows.

This sounds indeed like "Let It Rock":


LET IT ROCK

In The Heat Of The Day Down In Mobile Alabama
Working on the railroad with the steel driving hammer
Gotta make some money to buy some brand new shoes
Tryin' to find somebody to take away these blues
"She don't love me" hear them singing in the sun
Payday's coming and my work is all done

Later in the evening when the sun is sinking low
All day I been waiting for the whistle to blow
Sitting in a teepee built right on the tracks
Rolling them bones until the foreman comes back
Pick up you belongings boys and scatter about
We've got an off-schedule train comin' two miles about

Everybody's scrambling, running around
Picking up their money, tearing the teepee down
Foreman wants to panic, 'bout to go insane
Trying to get the workers out the way of the train
Engineer blows the whistle loud and long
Can't stop the train, gotta let it roll on

Thank's Kurt for all good writing. Fantastic to have these reports. About the song I will say "Roll On" = "Let It Rock". The last verse in the song is something like that:

Everybody's scrambling, running around
Picking up their money, tearing the teepee down
Foreman wants to panic, 'bout to go insane
Trying to get the workers out the way of the train
Engineer blows the whistle loud and long
Can't stop the train, gotta let it roll on

Sometimes the song is listed on records as "Rockin' on the Railroad". But the original title is "Let It Rock".

Johan

Sorry, Wolfgang! I don't see you wrote your message. You been so fast!

Let It Rock!

Johan

Hey, You Guys from Europe are so sharp and on top of things, Us Yanks have a hard time catching up. I likely picked up the "Roll On" title from the last line of the song. It is a Good thing the Musicians that I play with know what I am talking about. Who Knows how many other song Titles I have screwed up. But, Hey, I'm more of a "Folkie" than anything else. I served with Pete Seeger aboard his Ship: "Clearwater" on the Mighty Hudson River, before I was out of Middle School. Pete Seeger was (and still is) "Our Skipper" and Leader. He is what people call a Purist and if we began to play Rock and Roll or the Blues aboard his ship, He would Promise to "Drop us off at the Next Crossroads". He seems like a Nice Guy most of the time, but get in the way of his Musical Heritage and watch out. I never saw anyone get kicked off the "Clearwater" for playing the Blues, and after the story of the 1965 Newport Folk Festival where Pete Seeger grabbed and Axe and was going to cut the Cable to the stage when Bob Dylan and the Band went "Electric", We would tempt fate over and over, but Mr Seeger was such a Generous and Kind Soul, Everyone of us was treated with Respect and Kindness by Everyone. It was on these voyages aboard "Clearwater" that I began to perform in Public with Pete Seeger and other Crew members. Thanks Pete and to the entire St Louis Band for making the trip to NYC/NJ , everyone who attended the shows experienced a Great Show(s)

I can't tell you how much of a treat it was to see Chuck and the band on Saturday. My ears are still ringing because I had to be so close to the stage to see him and the band, but its worth it!!! It was an honor to be there. I will treasure it forever. Come back to NJ soon.

...we had a major time in Cranford. The sound was killer onstage and off. An absolutely top-notch stage and sound crew...Posters are great too, plus I got to meet one of my favorite bands, The Smithereens!!!

Bob