Jerry Lee Lewis was born on September 29, 1935, Ferriday, Louisiana, U.S. who died on October 28, 2022, DeSoto county, Mississippi, American singer and pianist whose virtuosity, ecstatic performances, and colourful personality made him a legendary rock music pioneer.Born into poverty, Lewis began playing the piano at age nine at the home of an aunt. His father, a carpenter and bootlegger, saw his passion and talent and mortgaged their house to buy a piano. Lewis emulated the playing styles of a local preacher and black musicians, whom he surreptitiously observed during their appearances at local clubs, and was soon performing at school assemblies, talent shows, and tent revivals, as well as on the radio.
Nicknamed “the Killer,” Lewis established himself as a major rockabilly star on Sun records with “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On,” “Great Balls of Fire,” and “Breathless,” all Top Ten hits in 1957 and 1958. His rhythmically assured and versatile “pumping” piano style (the left hand maintaining a driving boogie pattern while the right added flashy ornamentation) was influenced by church music and country musicians such as Moon Mullican, who played western swing and honky-tonk.
A highly skilled instrumentalist and vocalist, Lewis wrote few songs. His was the art of the stylist, the interpreter able to put a personal stamp on a vast and repertoire diverse man of tremendous contradictions, he was tormented by conflicts between the hedonism of rock and roll and his strict religious upbringing. His blond hair falling in his face, he exhibited seemingly boundless energy and a menacing sexuality while carrying out various stage antics: standing on the piano, playing it with arms and feet, kicking over the stool, even lighting the instrument on fire.
The subject of biographies, documentaries, and a major Hollywood film, Lewis’s life was punctuated by erratic behaviour, alcohol and drug problems, bouts of ill health, tax debts, wild escapades, and six marriages. His talent, persistence, longevity, and huge legacy of recordings, however, guarantee his place among rock music’s royalty. Lewis was inducted into the Rock and roll Hall of fame in 1986.
