A question of boundaries lays at the heart of music censorship, but artists have always pushed back, fighting for the freedom to express themselves.
The versatile hitmaker has always represented the best virtues of American pop music.
The best guitar solos – from driving riffs to technical displays of mastery – make a song complete and more often than not, transcend the track entirely.
Recorded at Chess Studios, this EP paid homage to their blues roots and established their sound.
'It's OK' was another summer anthem and another hit from the band's revitalising 1976 album.
Explore how the Newport Jazz Festival survived riots, rock, and revolution to birth some of jazz’s greatest live albums.
The first hit by the rock 'n' roll originator resides proudly in both the Grammy and Rock and Roll Halls of Fame.
For Chuck's first recording session, he tried to hide his identity from his disapproving and highly religious father.
Though a groundbreaking songwriter, when the idiosyncratic Chuck Berry took on the blues, he did it his own way – as an intriguing 1983 compilation proves.
Listen to some of the well-known and more obscure entries on Billboard's first-ever Hot 100, for the week of August 4, 1958.
The group followed 'Surfin' Safari' with the first song Brian Wilson ever wrote.
The song wasn't a chart entry for Chuck, but would win notoriety when the up-and-coming Rolling Stones chose to cover it as their first single in 1963.
Three lucky audiences on Eric Clapton's 1974 tour saw him joined on stage by half of The Who.
From fleeting, backstage hangs to longtime creative partnerships, the best musical friendships come in all forms.
Great songs are a compelling soundtrack to our inner worlds, and any list of key singles will be personal rather than definitive, but the 45 45s in our playlist still inspire and...
