"The Killer" was born to a poor family, much as the rest of the amazing group that Sam Phillips discovered in the mid-50's and recorded on his Sun label. Lewis was well known as a crazy, wild-haired piano player who helped shape music for all time with his raucous "Great Balls of Fire!" but he was plagued by bad press, largely focused on his young third wife (who was only 13 at the time - not at all unusual in the south, but a great scandal outside of the hills), and his career in rock was badly damaged and he nearly completely disappeared from the charts into the 60's, with only a cover of Ray Charles' "What'd I Say" charting for him. While his recording career suffered, he battled alcohol and drugs, as well as the loss of two of his sons (one car accident, one drowning). However, he went on to become a very popular country artist (although he never again achieved the heights of popularity he had prior to 1958) and continues recording to this day, with such hits as "What Made Milwaukee Famous (Has Made a Loser Out of Me)," "One Has My Name (The Other Has My Heart)" and "Middle Age Crazy."
