The song was inspired in part by Johnnie Johnson, the boogie-woogie piano master who collaborated on many Berry hits, but the story could have easily been Berry's, Presley's or countless others'.

Feb. 25—FAIRMONT — If it hadn't been for the movie, "Hail ! Hail ! Rock 'n' Roll, " Johnnie Johnson likely would have ended his days unheralded in St. Louis, a part-time bus driver who could play a ...

Chuck Berry, rock 'n' roll's founding guitar hero and storyteller who defined the music's joy and rebellion in such classics as "Johnny B. Goode," ''Sweet Little Sixteen" and "Roll Over Beethoven," ...