To put it mildly, Berry was key to rock & roll. “Starting with his first hit, 1955’s ‘Maybellene,’ Berry penned a collection of songs that, in both groove and teen-life mindset, became essential parts of the rock canon: ‘Roll Over, Beethoven,’ ‘Rock & Roll Music,’ and especially ‘Johnny B. Goode’ were witty, zesty odes to the then-new art form — songs so key to the music that they had to be mastered by every fledgling guitarist or band who followed Berry.”