His biggest hits are some of the finest to emerge from the 1950s. “Great Balls Of Fire,” “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On,” “Breathless,” and “High School Confidential” are essential to understanding the early evolution of rock music. The energy and underlying sexual tension have remained an essential part of rock’s make-up. Add his pumping piano and showmanship to the mix and you have some of the best high octane rock of its era.
As with any compilation album, there will always be controversy as to what was included and what was left out. Once you get past his essential hits, there are any number of songs that could have been included. The material chosen tended to be somewhat haphazard, which worked well as it gave a taste of the many sides of his early career. There are rock covers (“Sweet Little Sixteen” and “Good Golly Miss Molly”), country covers (“Crazy Arms” and “You Win Again”), and the somewhat obscure (“Drinkin’ Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee” and “Lewis Boogie”).
Jerry Lee Lewis has always considered himself the greatest musician in rock history. Many of these tracks show that he was very close to being right.
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