KEY POINTS:
Herald rating: * * * *
It was almost half a century ago that 23-year-old Jerry Lee Lewis' British tour was cancelled amid controversy when the media revealed that the 13-year-old travelling with him was not just his cousin but his wife. His third wife.
And that was just the start of turbulent life for this legendary country-styled rock'n'roller whose piano-thrashing mix of boogie-woogie, country, R&B and gospel was almost as notorious as his serial marriages, drinking and pistol-waving.
That he is still here today is a surprise, and that this unrepentantly rocking and soulfully deep country album should be so consistently impressive is little short of a miracle.
For these 21 tracks he duets with the likes of Mick Jagger (on the Stones' sloppy country Evening Gown), John Fogerty (on a flat-tack version of Creedence's Travelin' Band), Jimmy Page (a boogie-woogie thrash through Led Zep's Rock and Roll), Little Richard (the Beatles' I Saw Her Standing There) and others.
Among the highlights are those of his own vintage making light of their advanced years: with Willie Nelson on Couple More Years and George Jones on Don't Be Ashamed of Your Age.
Elsewhere, Lewis digs into the blues (Trouble in Mind with Eric Clapton, Hadacohl Boogie with Buddy Guy) and makes an odd but affecting digression into Irish balladry on What Makes The Irish Heart Beat with Don Henley.
Of course with this many diverse guests there are duff tracks: Ol Glory with Toby Keith will be a matter of taste depending on how high your American patriot flag flies; Ringo on Sweet Little Sixteen proves again singing isn't his first talent; and I'll fast forward through Kid Rock's trashy Honky Tonk Woman, too.
But the overwhelming sense is that 71-year old Jerry Lee - 50 years on from his classic breakthrough hits Whole Lotta Shakin Goin On and Great Balls of Fire - is as vital as ever. That too is little short of a miracle.
Label: Shock
Verdict: Literally the last man standing of his Sun Studio peers - Elvis, Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins - delivers life-affirming rock'n'roll and country.
