Jerry Lee Lewis: Last Man Standing Live

Jerry Lee Lewis is an American rock 'n' roll and country music icon - a singer, songwriter, and pianist who's been amazing his audiences with his piano pyrotechnics for half a century. Lewis has never stopped touring, and he still delivers explosive concerts that are unpredictable, exciting, and personal. Following the critically acclaimed release of Last Man Standing in the fall of 2006, Lewis gathered with friends and family to perform at a series of private shows in New York and Los Angeles that were filmed for this DVD. Rock 'n' roll, soul, and country music legends gathered from the world 'round to show their admiration for one of the great original song stylists of all time. Last Man Standing Live is an intimate and unprecedented event in music history. Don't miss it!

It's called Last Man Standing, an apt-enough description when you consider that so many of his peers, like Sun Records mentor Sam Phillips and "Million Dollar Quartet" partners Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, and Carl Perkins, are six feet under. But Jerry Lee Lewis doesn't spend a lot of time on his feet during any portion of this two-hour show, the visual complement to his 2006 CD Last Man Standing: The Duets. Truth is, at 71, the Ferriday (Louisiana) Fireball is fairly rickety; sitting almost immobile at the keyboard, he's a far cry from the rock & roll firebrand who'd leap to his feet, kick away his piano stool, and wail, his golden locks flying. So this meeting between Lewis and about a dozen singing partners, ranging from fellow veterans (Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Merle Haggard) to relative youngsters (Chris Isaak, Norah Jones, Kid Rock), would have been more exciting had it happened, say, 10 years ago. It's still pretty cool. Lewis' piano chops are strong; his singing, while obviously weaker than in his heyday, ain't half bad either; he's got a great band, including guitarists Nils Lofgren and Rolling Stone Ron Wood and drummer Jim Keltner; and both he and his guests (not to mention the studio audience) are having a hellacious good time. Of course, he's still playing "Great Balls of Fire" and "Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On," the two rock & roll classics that bookend this 28-song set. But most of the repertoire emphasizes Lewis' country roots: there are Hank Williams chestnuts ("Your Cheatin' Heart" with Jones, "Jambalaya" with Nelson, "You Win Again" with Don Henley), genre classics ("Will the Circle Be Unbroken," with Kristofferson and John Fogerty), country blues ("Hadacol Boogie," with Buddy Guy), country-flavored rock ("Little Queenie" and "Honky Tonk Women" with Rock)... even a country fried version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," with Isaak. It's all a bit tame, but Last Man Standing (which includes some vintage Lewis performance clips, interviews, and a few brief bonus features) is nonetheless a worthy celebration of a national treasure. --Sam Graham