In Honor Of The Late Rocker Chuck Berry Who Helped Make It All Possible-Last Man Standing', Indeed- Jerry Lee Lewis
DVD REVIEW
Jerry Lee or Elvis? What is your choice? Here is mine.
Last Man Standing, Jerry Lee Lewis in Concert, New York, 2006
Elvis, Chuck Berry, Carl Perkins, Bo Diddley. Yes those are the men who created Rock ‘n’ Roll, as we know it. However in that list do not forget one Jerry Lee Lewis. Fate dealt him an uneven hand due to the foibles of his personal life (the subject of a movie, “Great Balls of Fire”, with Dennis Quaid) but his form of rockabilly/boogie woogie piano-driven music and madman presentation must be placed in the mix of influences that drove the best of early rock.
If for no other reason that that he is one of the few ‘still standing' from that generation it was nice to see what “The Killer” could do in his 71st year in concert in New York City in 2006 with a host of guests some old, some young. Clearly off these performances he has lost a couple of steps. Hell the kind of energy that Jerry Lee produced in the 1950's definitely had a short shelf life. There are some nice clips from that period interspersed with the concert, by the way. Think about that opening scene in the movie “High School Confidential” of 1958 where he is playing like a madman on the back of a flatbed truck as he heads toward the local high school. Whoa.
Despite the lost of energy Jerry Lee can still give out on some tunes like in the old days. Take his duo with R&B master Solomon Burke on “Who Will the Next Fool Be”. How about Tom Jones on “Green, Green Grass of Home”. Or Norah Jones on Hank Williams’ “Your Cheating Heart”. Or Jerry on Chuck Berry's "Roll Over, Beethoven”. Or his classic “ Crazy Arms”. And on and on. In fact the covers of his old material and some Hank Williams material highlight this concert. If you have a couple of hours better take advantage of it. Then you will know what it was like when men (and women) played rock 'n' roll for keeps.
DVD REVIEW
Jerry Lee or Elvis? What is your choice? Here is mine.
Last Man Standing, Jerry Lee Lewis in Concert, New York, 2006
Elvis, Chuck Berry, Carl Perkins, Bo Diddley. Yes those are the men who created Rock ‘n’ Roll, as we know it. However in that list do not forget one Jerry Lee Lewis. Fate dealt him an uneven hand due to the foibles of his personal life (the subject of a movie, “Great Balls of Fire”, with Dennis Quaid) but his form of rockabilly/boogie woogie piano-driven music and madman presentation must be placed in the mix of influences that drove the best of early rock.
If for no other reason that that he is one of the few ‘still standing' from that generation it was nice to see what “The Killer” could do in his 71st year in concert in New York City in 2006 with a host of guests some old, some young. Clearly off these performances he has lost a couple of steps. Hell the kind of energy that Jerry Lee produced in the 1950's definitely had a short shelf life. There are some nice clips from that period interspersed with the concert, by the way. Think about that opening scene in the movie “High School Confidential” of 1958 where he is playing like a madman on the back of a flatbed truck as he heads toward the local high school. Whoa.
Despite the lost of energy Jerry Lee can still give out on some tunes like in the old days. Take his duo with R&B master Solomon Burke on “Who Will the Next Fool Be”. How about Tom Jones on “Green, Green Grass of Home”. Or Norah Jones on Hank Williams’ “Your Cheating Heart”. Or Jerry on Chuck Berry's "Roll Over, Beethoven”. Or his classic “ Crazy Arms”. And on and on. In fact the covers of his old material and some Hank Williams material highlight this concert. If you have a couple of hours better take advantage of it. Then you will know what it was like when men (and women) played rock 'n' roll for keeps.
No comments:
Post a Comment