“If I had it all to do over, I’d do the same thing again. I think I would, because if I didn’t, I’d miss out on something great. I’ve had some great times. I wouldn’t want to miss out on great.”
–Jerry Lee Lewis (more via Esquire.)
An obviously complicated guy; the world beat him up, he lifted himself above it, then he knocked himself down. Did he have a few more, or a few dozen, masterpieces in him? Did he set his career on fire in spite of himself? You can’t pick and choose. The same belligerence that led to the drinking and divorces and dust-ups is the same spark that created “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On.”
Sui generis, an American original with chops and charisma and a fucking head of hair to kill for. He was The Killer. The reason these rare iconoclasts are legendary is because so few would (or could) do the things they did, the way they did them. Geniuses live their lives so we don’t have to—and we couldn’t even if we wanted to.
