Hellfire: The Jerry Lee Lewis Story (Paperback)

~ (Author), Greil Marcus (Foreword) "It was three o'clock in the morning, and the master bedroom of Graceland was still..." (more)
Key Phrases: final wild son, country charts, little cemetery, Jerry Lee, Jimmy Lee, Lee Calhoun (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The life of Jerry Lee Lewis is one of the most dramatic and tormented in rock 'n' roll history. "Hellfire" remains one of the most remarkable biographies ever written on Lewis . . . "nothing else comes close. . . . Sooner or later, "Hellfire" will be recognized as an American classic" (Greil Marcus).

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Grove Press (April 22, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802135668
• ISBN-13: 978-0802135667
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #31,522 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tour-de-force prose fires up an already wild life story., July 10, 1999

By	T. Maddison "Tim Maddison" (London) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This was the book that established Nick Tosches as the absolute benchmark writer on American popular culture.The story is gripping in its bare bones, but what really enthralls is Tosches' flamboyant, baroque prose that both parodies and celebrates the wild energy of the southern religious fervour that was Lewis's deepest inspiration and source of greatest torment. The whole thing may be too rich for some tastes, and in lesser hands would likely have emerged as overripe and trite, but Tosches' awe at the man and love for the music is obvious. Like all of the author's work, it is also extremely funny. "Dino" and "Country" are also highly recommended.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tosches does not ignore the mysterious deaths of the 2 wives, January 30, 2002

By	Ravi Saxena (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews

An "amen" to any words of praise that have already been spoken about this amazing book. What I would like to point out is that the reason the deaths of wife #3, Jaren Pate, and wife #4, Shawn Stevens, are not covered in the book is that they took place 3 or 4 years after the publication of Hellfire. However, Tosches does discuss both deaths in Country: The Twisted Roots of Rock n Roll, and quite chillingly at that. ("Your sister's dead", Jerry Lee said to Denise Stevens the day after Shawn's bruised and bloodied corpse was discovered, "and she was a bad girl"). Come now, you don't think Tosches could keep silent about the Killer's Killings, do you?

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Concentarted on the tawrdy, May 10, 1999

By A Customer

I thought the book HELLFIRE was very well written and agree with other readers' comments that it was in presented in the style of a great novel. However, Mr. Tosches concentrated on the negative aspects of Jerry Lee Lewis' great career. . .i.e. the drinking and drug abuse. . .without noting the fact that he overcame these flaws. The book does not mention his 13 year marriage to his wife, Keffi, which has produced two children (one born and one adopted), or his induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995 (one of the first inductees). I think the book would have been of greater value if it took us to the present time. I saw the Killer in concert in March while visiting Memphis and thought he was still at the top of his craft. Instead of concentrating solely on the tawdry aspects of Jerry Lee's life, I would've appreciated more credit for the fact that he fought his demons and overcame them.