Song:Great Balls Of Fire
Album:The Definitive Collection
Like a lot of the legends of early Rock 'n' Roll, Jerry Lee Lewis grew up in church and was somewhat conflicted about his place in the music industry. He truly believed that he was singing "the devil's music". He was born Sept. 29, 1935 in Ferriday. LA. His parents motgaged the farm to buy a piano for Lewis and cousins Mickey Gilley and Jimmy Swaggart to learn to play. His mom sent him to a Christian school to play gospel music. But Lewis was already attracted to secular music and was in hot water frequently. In Nov. 1956, he went to Memphis to audition for Sun Records. Sam Phillips was away but producer Jack Clement signed Lewis and he started recording. Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On and Great Balls of Fire both topped the charts in 1957. Add Lewis' on stage antics like tossing the piano stool across the stage and Lewis was a sensation. Legendary songwriter Otis Blackwell wrote Great Balls Of Fire. Lewis wouldn't record the song at first because he thought singing about fire was blasphemous. But it all came to a screeching halt when Lewis married his third cousin Myra Gale Brown in May 1958. The scandal killed his career. He was still under contract to Sun but they refused to record him. When his contract ended in 1963, Lewis signed with Smash Records and transitioned into a successful country artist. This Hip-O comp has Sun and Smash recordings. Jerry Lee Lewis is in the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame and continues to perform today. Here's Jerry Lee Lewis performing Great Balls Of Fire on American Bandstand 1957.
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