Hellfire: The Jerry Lee Lewis Story

'The greatest rock 'n' roll biography ever written' - Rolling Stone

'You're lookin' at a livin' legend.' He said, and then fell silent for a moment. 'Y'know, that really worries me. I always thought a legend was somethin' dead.'

The tormented life of Jerry Lee Lewis is the most fabled in rock 'n' roll history. Demon-shadowed and God-fearing, his relentless, all-consuming pursuit of self-destruction clouded both his life and his music. Born in deep south Louisiana and raised on the Old Testament, 'The Killer' was continually torn between a harsh Pentecostal God and the worship of alcohol, drugs, and rock 'n' roll.

Nick Tosches's electrifying account chronicles the monumental highs and lows of the ever-indomitable and perpetually wild Jerry Lee. He rose to dizzying heights as a rock 'n' roll icon, only to lose it time and time again to his inner demons. Searing, mythic, and gloriously written, Hellfire is an evocative, audacious journey into the very soul of rock 'n' roll itself.

'The finest book ever written about a rock 'n' roll performer' - Greil Marcus

'The best rock-and-roll biography ever written' - Newsday

'Probably the best, certainly the most readable, account of a rock performer's life' - Guardian

'A work of art' - The Boston Globe