If there is a Mount Rushmore of Rock and Roll for the 1950’s, Chuck Berry is a very solid candidate to be carved into it. He was one of the first inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the master of some of Rock’s early riffs. Amazingly, despite the iconic stature of his hits, not one of them went to number one….that is until 1972 when he decided to sing about his penis.
We wish we were kidding, but when Chuck Berry dispensed with the kick ass driving guitar and not so subtly asked people to come over and play with his Ding-a-Ling, did he reach the Billboard stratosphere. We know we are getting on our high horse here, but this is a legend who should never be slumming with this kind of excrement. Honestly, music buying public, how could this be the only one of Chuck Berry’s songs to reach number one over some of the great tunes he put out? Many stations refused to play the song due to its suggestive nature, but they could have easily just said they refused to play it because it was crap. As of this writing, Chuck Berry is still alive, and yes still performing “My Ding-a-Ling”. Of course, his Ding-a-Ling hangs a lot lower than it used to.