Reflecting on Chuck Berry’s Legacy

The world said goodbye to one of the greatest guitarists to ever live on March 18—Chuck Berry. While there is no denying that Berry changed the course of music forever, there are also some darker sides of Berry’s personal history which are tough to ignore.

In 1944, before he established himself as a musician, Berry headed out west to California with a couple of friends. On this trip, the high school graduates proceeded to rob several shops in Missouri and Berry subsequently did time in reform school in Jefferson City, Missouri. He was held for three years.

Berry ran into much more serious trouble years after releasing all-time classics such as “Roll Over Beethoven” and “Johnny B. Goode”. In 1961, Berry was sent to jail after being convicted of bringing a 14 year old girl across state lines.

In 1990, evidence surfaced of Berry filming women in the act of undressing, followed by a class action lawsuit from the women.

These disgusting sides of his personality are sometimes difficult to separate from Berry as a musician. People may wonder if they should feel some degree of guilt for enjoying the music of Berry. Certainly, it may be harder for some more than others to separate his convictions from his great music. When considering the life of Berry, it would be wrong to ignore all of the great things that he did for the music industry. By using the electric guitar like no other before him, Berry was able to be a Rock n’ Roll pioneer. His style of music is one that was mimicked and interpreted for decades. Bands like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Electric Light Orchestra and Cream all followed the lead of Berry and his ability to rock. Berry was recognized for his achievements in music when he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s inaugural 1986 class.

While many people tend to question the lifestyle of musicians, Berry’s negligence of basic decency stands out in comparison to a rock star’s typical alcohol and drug abuse. His sexual abuse is one that had brutal, everlasting effects on his victims and their families. If we are going to separate the musician from the man in this case, then we have to be careful to celebrate only the music, and not the man.

For instance, in 2000, Berry was honored at the White House by the Kennedy Center Honors, which annually awards major contributors to the arts in our country. In another instance, Berry was presented with the St. Louis Arts Awards’ Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013. To that, I wonder exactly how someone who is a repeat offender of sexual abuse, including abuse of a child, could possibly be seen as worthy of a lifetime achievement award or even be considered to be honored at the White House.

I wonder if Berry would have received these honors had the victims or their families been given a say. When remembering and honoring the musician, we owe it to ourselves to never allow someone’s crimes and their victims be forgotten, simply because they are talented.