He passed away at his DeSoto County, Mississippi, home from natural causes.
credit-google image
Lewis's enthusiastic performances on songs like Great Balls of Fire contributed to rock'n'roll becoming the 1950s' de facto American pop music.
credit-google image
The son of a struggling farming family who had to take out a mortgage on their house to purchase Lewis his first piano, he was born in Louisiana in 1935.
credit-google image
At the opening of a car dealership, he gave his debut performance when he was just 14 years old.
credit-google image
Despite the controversy, he managed to make the transition from rock and roll to country music as the scene died down and earned a number of songs on the US country charts, including his rendition of the classic Chantilly Lace.