Memphis, Tennessee (song)

"Memphis, Tennessee" is a song by rock & roll singer-songwriter Chuck Berry. It is sometimes shortened to "Memphis". In the UK, the song charted at #6 in 1963, at the same time Decca Records issued a cover version in the UK by Dave Berry and the Cruisers, who came from Sheffield, Yorkshire. Dave Berry's version also became a UK Top 20 hit single, the first of a string of British hit singles which ended with a cover of BJ Thomas' "Mama" reaching #5 in 1966. "Memphis, Tennessee" was most successfully covered by Johnny Rivers whose version of the song was a #2 US hit in 1964.

Berry later composed a sequel, "Little Marie", which appeared in 1964 as a single and on the album St. Louis to Liverpool.

Lyrics

The vocals are the dominant feature of the song. The lyrics of the song depict the speaker's conversation on the phone to the "long distance information" operator. The lyrics are deceiving and the true roles of characters unfold as the story goes on.

As the song starts, the speaker is asking to get in touch with the people who have phoned him. It is not known who they are yet, but his uncle is mentioned. In the next verse, he speaks of a girl named 'Marie'. From this point in time, she could be in any way connected to him.

In the third verse, it is revealed that the speaker was close to this girl, and says that they were pulled apart because "her mom did not agree". From here the listener is led to...
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