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19/05/2004 Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis on tour: music for grown-ups?
Chuck Berry is one of the most important musicians of the twentieth century. His catalogue of beautifully-honed two minute pop operas capture perfectly the teen landscape of pre-1960s America. If you don't know Chuck Berry's catalogue, you don't know popular music. Jerry Lee Lewis, a country singer who caught the spirit of rock and roll and then pushed back its boundaries with his wild man stage act, is another seminal figure, whose importance is also often overlooked. The two - by now ageing - pioneers have teamed up for a British tour. Essential must-see gig, then? Well, not quite. Their 1950s recordings are hugely enjoyable, key documents in the history of popular music. But, as far as I'm aware, neither Berry nor Lewis has created much of note since his heyday. So the prospect of paying to see two veteran troubadors replicating material they released half a century ago is not inherently attractive: I'd much rather stay home and listen to their hits albums. Like many gigs aimed at Baby Boomers with too much money, the Berry/Lewis tour is an exercise in nostalgia. These concerts just ain't music for grown-ups. The same criticism can be levelled at the shows of most musicians from the successor generation - Fleetwood Mac, Eagles, Lulu, Manfred Mann, the Who - they all trade in nostalgia. Only a handful of gigs by ageing poprockers - notably Dylan, Neil Young, and to a lesser extent, the Stones - meet my criteria as music for grown-ups. The difference? Well, performers like Dylan are still creating significant new work. And their ever-changing shows qualify as performance art. They don't simply provide the opportunity for Olde Fartes to wallow in nostalgia for their lost youth.
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for Grown-Ups Ltd. 2005
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