My 100 Essential Albums number 11, The Great 28 by Chuck Berry

How could Chuckles not be in my 100 essential albums? This is a greatest hits album released in 1982. I normally do not like greatest hits albums. To me there is something wonderful about hearing a track in its intended place, in context. Besides there are usually some duff tracks on a greatest hits compilation. Not so with this one. I am not the only one who thinks that this is an essential album so did the people who put together Rolling Stones’ 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. They had this marvelous collection of Chuck Berry tunes at 21. The only compilation that ranked higher was Presley’s “The Sun Sessions”

The album covers Chuckles’ first 11 years with Chess records and so does not include My Ding-a-ling (which is a mercy). As you can see from the track listing this is a wonderful album and really does deserve to be in anyone’s list of essential albums.

1. “Maybellene”

2. “Thirty Days”

3. “You Can’t Catch Me”

4. “Too Much Monkey Business”

5. “Brown Eyed Handsome Man”

6. “Roll Over Beethoven”

7. “Havana Moon”
8. “School Days”

9. “Rock and Roll Music”

10. “Oh Baby Doll”
11. “Reelin’ and Rockin'”
12. “Sweet Little Sixteen”

13. “Johnny B. Goode”

14. “Around and Around”

15. “Carol”

16. “Beautiful Delilah”
17. “Memphis”

18. “Sweet Little Rock and Roller”
19. “Little Queenie”

20. “Almost Grown”

21. “Back in the U.S.A.”

22. “Let It Rock”

23. “Bye Bye Johnny”
24. “I’m Talking About You”

25. “Come On”

26. “Nadine (Is It You?)”

27. “No Particular Place to Go”

28. “I Want to Be Your Driver” (from Chuck Berry in London)