Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis, aka The Killer, was born in 1935, in Ferriday, LA, where he began playing piano in his youth with his cousins, Mickey Gilley and Jimmy Swaggart. He grew up listening to broadcasts of the Louisiana Hayride and Grand Ole Opry on the radio and singing and playing gospel at church. He also regularly sneaked into Haney's Big House, a local Black juke joint on the Chitlin' Circuit featuring performers like B.B. King, Roy Milton, Bobby Bland, Ray Charles and others, all of whom influenced his own later style. Jerry Lee made his first public appearance in 1949, at the grand opening of a Ford Dealership in Ferriday, playing piano and singing "Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee" and also landed a radio show in Natchez. In 1951, he cut his first demo in New Orleans. That same year, he was expelled from the Assembly of God Southwestern Bible Institute in Waxahatchie, TX, for his boogie-woogie rendition of "Mt God is Real" during a church assembly, noting years later when asked if he was still playing for the devil that churches were now playing the same kind of music: The difference is I know I am playing for the devil and they don't."
In 1956, his father took him to Memphis, where he recorded demo tapes at Sun Records, thus launching his career under Sun Records owner Sam Phillips with his rendition of Ray Price's "Crazy Arms". Lewis began touring with Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins, developing his famous standing piano style. His hit that year, "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On", was originally banned from broadcast by BMI for being too scandalous, but soared to the number-one position on both the country and R&B charts. The success of Lewis's other 1950s hits like "Great Balls of Fire", "Breathless" and "High School Confidential" made Lee a superstar. Because of his turbulent personal life, Lee's career suffered a setback for about 12 years that ended in 1963 with a number-two country hit, "Another Place", and a number-one country hit, "To Make Love Sweeter for You", followed by more hits through the 1970s, including, "Would You Take another Chance on Me", "Chantilly Lace", and a remake of Kris Kristofferson's "Me and Bobby McGehee" and many others.
In 1986 Lee was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine named him number 24 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. His contributions to music have been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame and in 2008, he was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame as well as the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. The Killer has had a dozen gold records in both rock and country, and has won several Grammy awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award.