The Last Remaining True King of Rock and Roll

[sneakypete]

Buddy Holly died decades ago,and Chuck Berry died yesterday. That leaves only one surviving King of Rock and Roll,the Killer himself,Jerry Lee Lewis!

Imagine this. This is the era of crew cuts,Pat Boone,and Lawrence Welk. Suddenly this monster Alpha Male with a haircut you would normally see on a girl show up and absolutely blow the freaking roof off of everywhere he appeared that had a roof.  Not so much playing the piano,as beating the hell out of it,and even playing it with his feet.

I can't find my favorite Killer video on youtube right now. It was him playing at some county fair in the upper mid-west maybe 5 years go. People just kinda wandering around like they do at county fairs,walking right past a sign that says "Jerry Lee Lewis Appearing!" Obviously most of them have no idea who the hell Jerry Lee Lewis is,but it's free,so they wander over and sit down when the time comes for him to come on stage. He sits down at the piano and tells people "My name is Jerry Lee Lewis. Try to hold on to what you got.",and breaks into "Great Balls of Fire". The audience reaction is hilarious.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkkoCiGQ4vo

And there was a killler "made for tv" movie about him that came out a few years ago that you can probably find if you look for it.

[TomSea]

@sneakypete

You always deal in absolutes, at least with music, now, Jerry Lee Lewis is the last of the Kings.

I think their influence falls far short of Chuck Berry; but I still would call Fats Domino and Little Richard kings of rock and roll in that. But it's no important point.

With Chuck, just like the Beatles and Rolling Stones, I know the songs so well; they don't really affect me that much now.

But I never listened to Gene Vincent, now I do; and his stuff sounds very refreshing.

But this is about Chuck Berry and I have his golden decade albums.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQQCPrwKzdo

Then, the queen might be... Connie Francis but the rockabilly queen Wanda Jackson is still making music.

Tribute shows are about, there is one out that is a tribute to Buddy Holly and Connie Francis.

Chuck Berry wrote his own music, that's great, even though some of his songs sound very similar such as Johnny B. Goode and Let it rock. I guess some of Jerry Lee's is but I think he also did a lot of covers since the 1950s.

[truth_seeker]

I remember walking from home, to my grandparents place about 1.5 miles. Along the way was a cool Chevy with the script pinstriped name "Chantilly Lace."

I was too young to connect the name, with the death of Big Bopper, but I really liked the car--about 1956 Chevy 2-door coupe, black with white pinstripes.

It had to be near the time of his death, along with Buddy Holly and Richie Valens.

My interests were more towards baseball, model cars, church. Rock and folk music, and pretty girls came real soon thereafter.

[TomSea]

Big Bopper wrote the famous song "White Lightnin'" and I'll bet few people know that, it became a mega-hit for George Jones after the Big Bopper's passing.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jml3gbT8gME

I read a book on Holly, JP Richardson, the Big Bopper and Richie Valens and on that last tour. Very interesting.

[TomSea]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVIttmFAzek

Pat Boone had a hit with "Long Tall Sally"; so make of that what one wants. I think some people say that white singers sang some of these songs because the African Americans weren't as accepted, something like that.

[truth_seeker]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVIttmFAzek

Pat Boone had a hit with "Long Tall Sally"; so make of that what one wants. I think some people say that white singers sang some of these songs because the African Americans weren't as accepted, something like that.

Obviously the music was great. Boone and Presley introduced "race" music to white audiences, and that was part of the early rock history.

But years before blues/rock was emerging like this T-Bone Walker recording in 1947


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GsRzqbRvus

[sneakypete]

@sneakypete

You always deal in absolutes, at least with music, now, Jerry Lee Lewis is the last of the Kings.

@TomSea

Music appreciation is all based on OPINIONS. Feel free to have your own.

[TomSea]

Obviously the music was great. Boone and Presley introduced "race" music to white audiences, and that was part of the early rock history.

But years before blues/rock was emerging like this T-Bone Walker recording in 1947


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GsRzqbRvus

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Dni4u1fHng

And Charlie Christian who Berry said influenced him; as I think I said in one of the other threads, there was a fair amount of '40s music that was starting to sound like Rock.  Christian is even before T-Bone.

I can't remember the guys name now, but I have heard some band from back then that indeed had a lot of electric guitar.

[TomSea]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnC0e1hM9Ng


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcrdUnnexEY

Cliff Gallup was some guitarist for Gene Vincent, played on the original. They had another fine guitarist too that came after Cliff, I forget his name.