"Great Balls of Fire" is a 1957 popular song recorded by American

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

musician

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis made ...

Sun Records Sun Records is an American independent record label founded by producer Sam Phillips in Memphis, Tennessee in February 1952. Sun was the first label to record Elvis Presley, Charlie Rich, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny C ...

and featured in the 1957 movie '' Jamboree''. It was written by

Otis Blackwell Otis Blackwell (February 16, 1931 – May 6, 2002) was an American songwriter whose work influenced rock and roll. His compositions include "Fever" (recorded by Little Willie John), "Great Balls of Fire" and " Breathless" (recorded by Jerry Le ...

and Jack Hammer. The Jerry Lee Lewis 1957 recording was ranked as the 96th greatest song ever by ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

''. The song is in

AABA form The 32-bar form, also known as the AABA song form, American popular song form and the ballad form, is a song structure commonly found in Tin Pan Alley songs and other American popular music, especially in the first half of the 20th century. A ...

. The song sold one million copies in its first 10 days of release in the United States making it one of the best-selling singles in the United States at that time.

Song information

The song is best known for Jerry Lee Lewis's original recording, which was recorded in the

Sun Studio Sun Studio is a recording studio opened by rock-and-roll pioneer Sam Phillips at 706 Union Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee, on January 3, 1950. It was originally called Memphis Recording Service, sharing the same building with the Sun Records label ...

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

, on October 8, 1957, using three personnel: Lewis (piano/vocals), Sidney Stokes (bass), and a session drummer, Larry Linn, instead of the usual Sun backups

Jimmy Van Eaton James Mack Van Eaton (born December 23, 1937), known as Jimmy Van Eaton or J. M. Van Eaton, is an American rock and roll drummer, singer and record producer, best known for his recordings as the drummer in sessions with Jerry Lee Lewis and others ...

(drums) and

Roland Janes Roland E. Janes (August 20, 1933 – October 18, 2013) was an American rockabilly guitarist and record producer, who was active at Sun Records between 1956 and 1963. Biography He was born in Brookings, Clay County, Arkansas, the second youngest in ...

(guitar). Lewis was quoted in the book ''JLL: His Own Story'' by Rick Bragg, (pg 133), as saying "I knew Sidney Stokes but I didn't know him that well either, and I don't know what happened to them people. That's the last time I ever seen 'em. That's strange isn't it?" It was released as a

45rpm single In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separat ...

on Sun 281 in November 1957. It reached No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' pop charts, No. 3 on the R&B charts, and No. 1 on the country charts. It also reached No. 1 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, and appeared on the New Zealand Singles Chart and the Dutch Top 40. The song was featured in a performance by Jerry Lee Lewis and his band in the 1957 Warner Brothers rock and roll film ''Jamboree'', which also featured

Carl Perkins Carl Lee Perkins (April 9, 1932 – January 19, 1998)#nytimesobit, Pareles. was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. A rockabilly great and pioneer of rock and roll, he began his recording career at the Sun Studio, in Memphis, Tennes ...

Fats Domino Antoine Dominique Domino Jr. (February 26, 1928 – October 24, 2017), known as Fats Domino, was an American pianist, singer and songwriter. One of the pioneers of rock and roll music, Domino sold more than 65 million records. Born in New O ...

Buddy Knox Buddy Wayne Knox (July 20, 1933 – February 14, 1999) was an American singer and songwriter, best known for his 1957 rock hit song, "Party Doll". Biography Knox was born in the tiny farming community of Happy, Texas, United States, and learn ...

, and

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting ''American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 198 ...

. The recording was released in the UK on London Records. The tune opens up side 2 of Lewis's 1964 album ''

Live at the Star Club, Hamburg ''Live at the Star Club'' is a 1964 live album by rock and roll pianist and singer Jerry Lee Lewis, accompanied by the Nashville Teens. The album was recorded at the Star-Club in Hamburg, West Germany on April 5, 1964. It is regarded by many mu ...

''.

Chart performance

Legacy

* The song was performed by

Levi Kreis Levi Kreis (born November 4, 1981) is an American actor and singer from Oliver Springs, Tennessee. In 2010, he won a Tony Award for playing Jerry Lee Lewis in '' Million Dollar Quartet''. Career Music Kreis's debut album, ''One of the Ones'', ...

in the 2010 musical ''

Million Dollar Quartet "Million Dollar Quartet" is a recording of an impromptu jam session involving Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash made on December 4, 1956, at the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. An article about the session ...

'', portraying Jerry Lee Lewis. * The title of the 1989

biopic A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudra ...

, '' Great Balls of Fire!'' about Lewis, played by

Dennis Quaid Dennis William Quaid (born April 9, 1954) is an American actor known for a wide variety of dramatic and comedic roles. First gaining widespread attention in the late 1970s, some of his notable credits include ''Breaking Away'' (1979), '' The ...

, is derived from the song title. * In 2017,

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

held a professional wrestling event titled ''

Great Balls of Fire "Great Balls of Fire" is a 1957 popular song recorded by American rock and roll musician Jerry Lee Lewis on Sun Records and featured in the 1957 movie '' Jamboree''. It was written by Otis Blackwell and Jack Hammer. The Jerry Lee Lewis 1957 rec ...

'', referencing the song.

Jerry Lawler Jerry O'Neil Lawler (born November 29, 1949), better known as Jerry "The King" Lawler, is an American color commentator and professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, although he has not performed as a full-time commentator since Apr ...

's personal attorney, who also represents Jerry Lee Lewis, informed him that the singer had actually

trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others ...

ed the phrase, prompting Lawler to inform them of this. He stated that he "put him in touch with the WWE people, gave him a name. Apparently he called them and got everything worked out. Not only are they using the name, they are using Jerry Lee's song, which is awesome." *

Ric Flair Richard Morgan Fliehr (born February 25, 1949), known professionally as Ric Flair, is an American professional wrestler. Regarded by multiple peers and journalists as the greatest professional wrestler of all time, Flair has had a career spanni ...

revealed he started using his iconic "Wooo!" catchphrase in 1974 after he heard Jerry Lee Lewis sing the lyric, “Goodness gracious, great balls of fire, woo!”

''Top Gun'' franchise

In the 1986 film ''

Top Gun ''Top Gun'' is a 1986 American action drama film directed by Tony Scott, produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, with distribution by Paramount Pictures. The screenplay was written by Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr., and was inspired by an a ...

'', LTJG Nick "Goose" Bradshaw (portrayed by Anthony Edwards) plays the song in a bar with his family and Pete "Maverick" Mitchell (

Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Gol ...

). The song is available on the ''Top Gun'' soundtrack special edition released in 1999. The song is performed again in the sequel, the 2022 film '' Top Gun: Maverick'' by Goose's son LT Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw (portrayed by

Miles Teller Miles Teller (born February 20, 1987) is an American actor. He played a jazz drummer in '' Whiplash'' and a supporting pilot in '' Top Gun: Maverick''. Teller made his feature film debut in 2010 and gained recognition for his starring role in ...

). Teller's performance is included on that film's soundtrack '' Top Gun: Maverick (Music from the Motion Picture)'', on which it is labeled as a live performance.

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

later released the extended scene of Teller's performance as Rooster on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

on June 16, 2022.

References

External links

* {{authority control 1957 songs 1957 singles Jerry Lee Lewis songs Sun Records singles Songs written by Otis Blackwell The Newbeats songs Gary Lewis & the Playboys songs New Grass Revival songs Electric Light Orchestra songs Dolly Parton songs Fleetwood Mac songs The Flamingos songs Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients UK Singles Chart number-one singles The Crickets songs