Your Free Sheet Music Giveaway for April 2023
‘Great Balls of Fire’ by Jerry Lee Lewis
Written by Otis Blackwell and Earl Salmon Burroughs (under the stage name Jack Hammer), ‘Great Balls of Fire’ was recorded by American rock and roll musician Jerry Lee Lewis and released on November 11, 1957. It is Jerry Lee Lewis’s most popular and highest-selling single, selling over one million copies in the first ten days of its release in the United States.
The song is about a man falling in love with another, their exciting interactions (“You kissed me baby, woo, it feels good”), and the man feeling nervous but excited about the event (“I chew my nails and I twiddle my thumbs. I’m really nervous but it sure is fun”). The term ‘great balls of fire’ is a southern expression, one used to exclaim delight or surprise, and is thus used in the song to describe feelings of love and lust.
Download your free copy of the sheet music for ‘Great Balls of Fire’ performed by Jerry Lee Lewis today. Usually sold for $12.95, you can get it for free through all of April 2023.
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Here are Some Fun Facts About ‘Great Balls of Fire’ by Jerry Lee Lewis:
• The original 1957 Jerry Lee Lewis recording of the song was ranked the 96th greatest song ever by Rolling Stone.
• In the 1986 film Top Gun, the character LTJG Nick “Goose” (played by actor Anthony Edwards) plays the song in a bar. The song is then played again by the son of LTJG Nick “Goose” (played by actor Miles Teller) in the sequel Top Gun: Maverick.
• Despite the fruitful collaboration with session musicians, Sidney Stokes (bass) and Larry Lin (drums), on the original 1957 recording of the song, Jerry Lee Lewis claimed that he never played with them ever again.
• Initially, Jerry Lee Lewis was hesitant to record ‘Great Balls of Fire’ due to his religious upbringing, but he was eventually convinced to by Sun Records owner Sam Phillips. Jerry Lee quickly grew to love the song, injecting a high level of energy and enthusiasm into his performance.
