After School Session
Studio album by
Chuck Berry
ReleasedMay 1957[1]
RecordedMay 21, 1955 – January 21, 1957, Chicago, Illinois[2]
StudioUniversal Recording Corp. (Chicago)[3]
GenreRock and roll
Length33:16
LabelChess
ProducerLeonard Chess, Phil Chess[2]
Chuck Berry chronology
After School Session
(1957)		 One Dozen Berrys
(1958)
Singles from After School Session
  1. "No Money Down"
    Released: December 1955[1]
  2. "Too Much Monkey Business"
    Released: September 1956[1]
  3. "School Days"
    Released: March 1957[1]

After School Session is the debut studio album by rock and roll artist Chuck Berry, released in May 1957 by Chess Records. With the exception of two tracks, "Roly Poly" and "Berry Pickin'", all selections had been previously released on 45 rpm singles. It is the second long-playing album released by the Chess label.[4]

Recording sessions

The songs on After School Session were taken from Berry's first five sessions for Leonard and Phil Chess, which took place at Universal Recording Corporation in Chicago. "Wee Wee Hours" was the first to be recorded, on May 21, 1955. "Together (We'll Always Be)" was recorded in September 1955. At the next session, on December 20, 1955, Berry recorded "Roly Poly" (also known as "Rolli Polli"), "No Money Down", "Berry Pickin'", and "Down Bound Train". The third session was on April 16, 1956, when he recorded "Too Much Monkey Business", "Brown Eyed Handsome Man", and "Drifting Heart". "Havana Moon" was recorded on October 29, 1956. The last session took place on January 21, 1957, when he recorded "School Days" and "Deep Feeling".[2]

Release

The album was released in May 1957 on Chess Records, catalogue LP 1426. It is the second long-playing album released by the label.[4]

Singles

The first song on the original version of After School Session to be released was "Wee Wee Hours", the B-side of "Maybellene", issued in July 1955.[1] It peaked at number 10 on Billboard magazine's R&B Singles chart.[5] The next song to be released was "Together We Will Always Be", the B-side of "Thirty Days", in September 1955. The next two songs released were "No Money Down" backed with "Down Bound Train", in December 1955,[1] the former peaking at number 8 on the R&B Singles chart.[5] In May 1956, "Drifting Heart" was released as the B-side of "Roll Over Beethoven". Berry's next single, "Too Much Monkey Business" backed with "Brown Eyed Handsome Man", was released in September 1956;[1] these songs reached number 4 and number 5 on the R&B Singles chart, respectively.[5] "Havana Moon", the B-side of "You Can't Catch Me", was released in November 1956. The last single from the album to be released was "School Day (Ring Ring Goes the Bell)" backed with "Deep Feeling", in March 1957,[1] with the former reaching number 1 on the R&B Singles chart and number 3 on the Hot 100.[5]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Chuck Berry

Side One
No.TitleLength
1."School Days"2:43
2."Deep Feeling"2:21
3."Too Much Monkey Business"2:56
4."Wee Wee Hours"3:05
5."Roly Poly (aka Rolli Polli)"2:51
6."No Money Down"2:59
Side Two
No.TitleLength
7."Brown Eyed Handsome Man"2:19
8."Berry Pickin'"2:33
9."Together (We Will Always Be)"2:39
10."Havana Moon"3:09
11."Downbound Train"2:51
12."Drifting Heart"2:50
Total length:33:16
Bonus tracks (2004 release)
No.TitleLength
1."You Can't Catch Me"2:44
2."Thirty Days (To Come Back Home)"2:25
3."Maybellene"2:19
Total length:40:44

Personnel

Musicians

Technical

Release history

Region Date Label Format Catalog
United States May 1957 Chess Records LP LP-1426
United States August 27, 1966 Chess Records Stereo-Pak 21-383A
United States 1990 Chess Records CD CHD-9284
United States May 9, 1995 MCA Special Products CD MCAD-20873
United States March 23, 2004 Geffen Records/Chess Records Cassette B0001685
CD B0001685-02

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Rudolph, Dietmar. "A Collector's Guide to the Music of Chuck Berry: The Chess Era (1955–1966)". Retrieved 2009-09-03.
  2. 1 2 3 After School Session (CD liner notes). Chuck Berry. United States: Geffen Records/Chess Records. 2004. pp. 10–15. B0001685-02.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  3. ↑ "The Chuck Berry Database Details For Recording Session: 19. 4. 1956". A Collector's Guide to the Music of Chuck Berry. Dietmar Rudolph. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Chess Album Discography, Part 1". Bsnpubs.com.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Chuck Berry: Billboard Singles". AllMusic. Retrieved January 8, 2011.
  6. ↑ "After School Session - Chuck Berry | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
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