Uploaded October 2023 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
When the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame opened in 1986, Chuck Berry was the first inductee. That’s all that needs to be said, really, but we have some more if you want. There are, of course, the standard accolades: one of the best guitarists of all time, one of the best musicians of all time, one of the founders of rock & roll etc. etc. But Chuck Berry can boast one unique honor that no other rocker can - his rock music will be the only one heard by aliens.
Back in 1977, when NASA launched the Voyager 1 and 2 space probes into deep space, they included two copies of a golden record that contained a collection of sights and sounds of life on Earth. Therefore, if thousands, even millions of years from now, an intelligent alien species would find the probes, the golden record would act as a sort of time capsule. Among other things, the record includes a diverse 90-minute selection of music, carefully picked by a committee led by Carl Sagan to showcase the best that human culture had to offer. Only one rock & roll song made the cut - Chuck Berry’s iconic “Johnny B. Goode.”
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Further Reading:
rockhall.com/inductees/classes/1986
chuckberry.com/biography
voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/golden-record/whats-on-the-record
voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/golden-record/whats-on-the-record/music
biography.com/musicians/chuck-berry
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/26/mode/2up?view=theater
biography.com/musicians/chuck-berry
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/n25/mode/2up?view=theater
chuckberry.com/biography#:~:text=GUITAR%20LESSONS&text=His%20friend%2C%20Ira%20Harris%2C%20showed,ballads%20to%20calypso%20to%20country
chuckberry.com/biography
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/30/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/30/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/32/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/58/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/32/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/76/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/88/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/92/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/34/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/98/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/42/mode/2up?view=theater
web.archive.org/web/20061228111435/http:/www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6595863/maybellene
web.archive.org/web/20061228111435/http:/www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6595863/maybellene
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/48/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/48/mode/2up?view=theater
nytimes.com/2003/02/23/us/sweet-tunes-fast-beats-and-a-hard-edge.html
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/200/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/102/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/102/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/100/mode/2up?view=theater
nytimes.com/2003/02/23/us/sweet-tunes-fast-beats-and-a-hard-edge.html
biography.com/musicians/chuck-berry
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/136/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/136/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/iconsofrockencyc0000schi/page/68/mode/2up?q=ding&view=theater
theguardian.com/books/2012/oct/26/ban-this-filth-ben-thompson-review
mtv.com/news/tgldt8/chuck-berry-complicated-truth
When the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame opened in 1986, Chuck Berry was the first inductee. That’s all that needs to be said, really, but we have some more if you want. There are, of course, the standard accolades: one of the best guitarists of all time, one of the best musicians of all time, one of the founders of rock & roll etc. etc. But Chuck Berry can boast one unique honor that no other rocker can - his rock music will be the only one heard by aliens.
Back in 1977, when NASA launched the Voyager 1 and 2 space probes into deep space, they included two copies of a golden record that contained a collection of sights and sounds of life on Earth. Therefore, if thousands, even millions of years from now, an intelligent alien species would find the probes, the golden record would act as a sort of time capsule. Among other things, the record includes a diverse 90-minute selection of music, carefully picked by a committee led by Carl Sagan to showcase the best that human culture had to offer. Only one rock & roll song made the cut - Chuck Berry’s iconic “Johnny B. Goode.”
→ Subscribe for new videos at least twice a week!
youtube.com/c/biographics?sub_confirmation=1
Love content? Check out our other YouTube Channels:
Geographics: youtube.com/channel/UCHKRfxkMTqiiv4pF99qGKIw
TopTenz: youtube.com/user/toptenznet
Check out Karl's Channels: Fact Fiend: youtube.com/@FactFiend Wiki Weekends: youtube.com/@wikiweekends Untitled Side Channel: youtube.com/@untitledsidechannel
Further Reading:
rockhall.com/inductees/classes/1986
chuckberry.com/biography
voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/golden-record/whats-on-the-record
voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/golden-record/whats-on-the-record/music
biography.com/musicians/chuck-berry
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/26/mode/2up?view=theater
biography.com/musicians/chuck-berry
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/n25/mode/2up?view=theater
chuckberry.com/biography#:~:text=GUITAR%20LESSONS&text=His%20friend%2C%20Ira%20Harris%2C%20showed,ballads%20to%20calypso%20to%20country
chuckberry.com/biography
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/30/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/30/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/32/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/58/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/32/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/76/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/88/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/92/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/34/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/98/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/42/mode/2up?view=theater
web.archive.org/web/20061228111435/http:/www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6595863/maybellene
web.archive.org/web/20061228111435/http:/www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6595863/maybellene
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/48/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/48/mode/2up?view=theater
nytimes.com/2003/02/23/us/sweet-tunes-fast-beats-and-a-hard-edge.html
archive.org/details/chuckberryautobi00berr/page/200/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/102/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/102/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/100/mode/2up?view=theater
nytimes.com/2003/02/23/us/sweet-tunes-fast-beats-and-a-hard-edge.html
biography.com/musicians/chuck-berry
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/136/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/chuckberrybiogra0000coll/page/136/mode/2up?view=theater
archive.org/details/iconsofrockencyc0000schi/page/68/mode/2up?q=ding&view=theater
theguardian.com/books/2012/oct/26/ban-this-filth-ben-thompson-review
mtv.com/news/tgldt8/chuck-berry-complicated-truth
