(Read more Musicians who died in 2022)
Pioneer, architect, and legendary singer-songwriter of rock ‘n roll Jerry Lee Lewis, has confirmed to have passed away at age 87 in his Mississippi home, south of Memphis, his representative Zach Farnum said in a release.
A debunked report had come out two days prior, but the passing was confirmed earlier this morning. Lewis was the unpredictable last survivor of the genre’s first generation of groundbreaking performers and the last living of The Rock and Rock Hall of Fame’s first inducted class (finally also inducted in The Country Hall of Fame this year as well).
Born in 1935 in rural Louisiana as the son of one-time bootlegger Elmo Lewis (and the cousin of TV evangelist Jimmy Swaggart and country star Mickey Gilley), Lewis’ piano skills were self-taught after switching from guitar and at fourteen, he made his debut performing at the opening of a car dealership. In 1956, he signed with Sam Phillips’s Memphis label Sun Records and was soon nicknamed “The Killer”, but his life would be as tumultuous as his wild and rambunctious performances.
His 1957 smash “Whole Lot of Shakin’ Going On,” would reach #3 on the Billboard charts, and was followed by “Great Balls of Fire,” peaking at #2, cut in one take, but controversies would soon derail his ascent to further stardom. In his early 20’s, he had married Myra Gale Brown, his 13-year-old (or younger) cousin, the third of his seven wives (and while still married to his previous wife).
Lewis, a three-time Grammy Award winner, managed to re-invent himself as a Country performer with a run of lesser hits in the 1960’s after being blacklisted by rock radio, but drug / alcohol abuse, legal disputes, financial troubles, and physical illness would continue to be obstacles. Two longtime Grand Ole Opry rules – no swearing and no non-country songs – were ignored when Lewis played the historic venue in 1973, causing even more controversy within his new genre.
Lewis” fourth wife, Jaren Elizabeth Gunn Pate, drowned in a swimming pool in 1982 while suing him for divorce and fifth wife, Shawn Stephens, 23 years younger, would die in a 1983 apparent drug overdose. Less than a year later, Lewis would marry 21-year-old Kerrie McCarver… who too, would file for divorce in 1986.
A son, Steve Allen Lewis, drowned in a swimming pool in 1962 at age three, and another son Jerry Lee Jr. died in a 1973 traffic accident at age nineteen. Lewis had two daughters, Phoebe and Lori Leigh, and is also survived by his wife Judith.
His legacy lives on in his songs as well as the 1989 film biopic “Great Balls of Fire,” starring Dennis Quaid, which chronicled his early rise and Ethan Coen’s documentary “Trouble in Mind”, was released earlier this year. Additionally, the 2010 Broadway musical “Million Dollar Quartet,” was inspired by a famed recording session that featured Lewis, Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash.
| John C ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com |
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