#589 Chuck Berry - After School Session

An interesting convergence of a lot of the trends sparking to life circa 1957: the swagger and guitar chops of Elvis, the shuffling rhythms and hot/cold cool of Bo Diddley, and the rollicking fire of Little Richard, all coming together for a heck of a good set of early rock and roll songs. Things are delightfully sloppy, full of energy; alive.

There's even some interesting stylistic turns that no one else was making. This is especially true towards the end of the album, where Havanna Moon and Down Bound Train combine dark atmosphere and dissonant chords to create something far more dark and subtle than I had any reason to expect from 1957. Brilliant lost tracks, a reason all on their own to track this down. Even Together (We'll Always Be) transcends the usual ballads with warm distortion and a loungy, jazzy slant.

It's an album that contains well-balanced combinations and truly new gestures, tough to beat 4.5/5