Two of Jerry Lee's hits from 1957 - Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On and Great Balls of Fire - propelled Lewis to world wide fame. Sadly, it was his marriage to his 13 year old cousin at age 22 that nearly put an end to his musical career. In comparison, today a 22 year old male singer could marry his 13 year old male cousin (or brother) and it would be seen as a career enhancement......yes, times have changed that much.
Not only have the times changed, but Jerry Lee Lewis has changed a bit, as well. Once seen as rock n' roll's first "wild man", years later, when he recorded the Rolling Stones' song, Sweet Virginia, with Keith Richards, Lewis self-censored himself by changing the line "gotta scrape the shit right off you shoes" to "gotta scrape that shine right off your shoes".
To celebrate the Killer's 81st birthday today, I'm posting 2 videos from 1957 when Lewis appeared on the Steve Allen Show.
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