Of all the early breakthrough rock & roll artists, none is more important to the development of the music than Chuck Berry. He is its greatest songwriter, the main shaper of its instrumental voice, one of its greatest guitarists, and one of its greatest performers. Quite simply, without him there would be no Beatles, Rolling Stones, Beach Boys, Bob Dylan, nor a myriad others. There would be no standard “Chuck Berry guitar intro,” the instrument’s clarion call to get the joint rockin’ in any setting. The clippety-clop rhythms of rockabilly would not have been mainstreamed into the now standard 4/4 rock & roll beat. There would be no obsessive wordplay by modern-day tunesmiths; in fact, the whole history (and artistic level) of rock & roll songwriting would have been much poorer without him. Like Brian Wilson said, he wrote “all of the great songs and came up with all the rock & roll beats.” Those who do not claim him as a seminal influence or profess a liking for his music and showmanship show their ignorance of rock’s development as well as his place as the music’s first great creator. Elvis may have fueled rock & roll’s imagery, but Chuck Berry was its heartbeat and original mindset. He was born Charles Edward Anderson Berry to a large family in St. Louis. A bright pupil, Berry developed a love for poetry and hard blues early on, winning a high school talent contest with a guitar-and-vocal rendition of Jay McShann’s big band number, “Confessin’ the Blues.” With some …

Everyone knows Sun Studio and Stax Records, but we start our week in Memphis at Ardent Studios, home base for Big Star and where many famous albums were recorded.

Every night at the FedEx Memphis World Hub people, machines and technology come together in a remarkable way. 2.2 million packages are scanned, sorted, weighed, and routed to guarantee they’ll arrive at their final destination on time, intact – guaranteed.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Classic country song by Pam Tillis off the ‘Put Yourself in My Place’ album.

MEMPHIS LEADS THE SERIE 3-2 NBA Playoffs 2011: Memphis Grizzlies Vs San Antonio Spurs Game 5 Highlights Gary Neal Buzzer Beater
Video Rating: 4 / 5

The only band that could make Booker T & The MG’s sweat. “And now we need a pound of fat back drums…” King Curtis was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 6, 2000.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Aerial video shows the extent of devastation of flooding in Memphis, Tennessee. (May 5)
Video Rating: 5 / 5

More footage at the Wicked Kustomz show. This dude was cool as hell. Had a great sounding Street Stock A setup. Gave me an awesome demo playin some Hanna Montana but I screwed up and wasn’t recording. I ended up with an 9 min video of me smiling then of my pocket cause I hit record when I though I was hitting stop. OO well still got some bass action.
Video Rating: 5 / 5

MEMPHIS LEADS THE SERIE 2-1 NBA Playoffs 2011: OKC Thunder Vs Memphis Grizzlies Game 3 Highlights (1-2)
Video Rating: 4 / 5

itunes.apple.com
Video Rating: 4 / 5

2011 Memphis, Official music video www.memphisband.cz LYRICS My name is around As being the one Who’s ending the race What I’m hiding The fear in my eyes No question to ask But… something goes down What I’m facing It’s hard to explain Why it’s so deep When you’re looking at me When I’m sleeping With so many tears My pillow is soaked Nobody’s guarding me here [Chorus:] What I have now All beautiful dreams When I close the door Angels are real What I have now It’s likely to be… you Awakening light Folded in mist But something so clear All I could be It’s hard to tell now My wishes came true Why the game has no rules When I go down There’s a reason to smile The bright side of life One day I’ll go up [Chorus:] What I have now All beautiful dreams When I close the door Angels are real What I have now It’s likely to be What I’m losing here Is becoming me
Video Rating: 4 / 5

These Memphis Grizzlies just keep making NBA history — and believers. Zach Randolph had 31 points and 11 rebounds and the Grizzlies advanced to their first Western Conference semifinals and made NBA history in knocking off the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs 99-91 on Friday night. Memphis had been the franchise best known for empty seats and the unenviable NBA mark for playoff futility at 0-12 after being swept in its first three appearances. This time, a third straight sellout crowd cheered every basket with a couple of signs begging the Grizzlies to “Finish Them” in a town desperately needing a hero. The Grizzlies needed 10 seasons in Memphis, but they have become just that as only the second No. 8 seed to upset a No. 1 seed since the NBA expanded the opening series to a best-of-seven. Now Memphis coach Lionel Hollins sees a great opportunity for the Grizzlies to do something really special. “Not a lot of people knew about us coming in, but we certainly have made some noise and turned some heads and got some attention that probably wouldn’t have been given to us if we’d lost this series,” Hollins said. “We’d just be another eight seed losing to the No. 1 seed.” They will open the second round in Oklahoma City on Sunday. Marc Gasol had 12 points and 13 rebounds for Memphis. Tony Allen added 11 points, and rookie Greivis Vasquez had 11 off the bench playing 24 minutes with Mike Conley in foul trouble most of the game. Tony Parker led San Antonio with 23 points, Manu …

This footage shot May 8, 2011 in Memphis, TN near Riverside Drive and Beale. Some segments shot near Riverside Drive and Union. Shot by Randy Lawson, randy@camerafire.com River measurement source was rivergauges.com 6:00AM May 8, 2011 River level was 48.75 feet, flood stage is 34 feet. River level is 14.75 feet above flood stage. River level breaks the 1937 record of 48.7 feet. (5-15-11 Note: Local news reported the reading from this gauge was an anomaly. Later readings were from a temporary gauge)
Video Rating: 5 / 5

A police officer and another person died from their injuries after being shot Sunday night in a Memphis hotel. Police say Officer Timothy Warren was responding to a domestic dispute. (July 4)

Police officers went door to door Friday urging Memphis residents to leave nearly 1000 homes expected to be inundated by a near-record flood of the Mississippi River and its tributaries. (May 6)