Bill, I have a better Jerry Lee story. In 1961 I was playing a place in Lexington that hosted traveling groups...Jerry Lee, The McCoys, B.J. Thomas, etc....people on the way up or on the way down. Most played Saturday in Chicago and the following Friday in Atlanta. Lexington was the low budget stop-off. The group got a bed, food, LOTS of booze and committed to having the name player and a performance which was a loose association of house guys and band members.

At 15, I tried to hold things together on these Wednesday night "free for alls".

I was the only sober person. I taught players their parts and played whatever was left....bass, guitar, B-3, piano; even sometimes mandolin, banjo, etc.).

Lewis set the house piano on fire, using a can of lighter fluid. The piano was old, and easily extinguished with a large rag...in fact, I think the whole thing was planned.


What wasn't planned was a lady who was slid between her partners legs and part of fashionable dance. She howled like a banshee! She was on a part of the floor where she picked up massive slivers...I'm talking about 1/4"x 10" pieces of flooring in her ASS!! The EMT's were called and she was hauled away to the hospital.

Move forward about 20 years. I was at a really unique Italian restaurant in a Cave that had gone uncovered for many years. this place was HOT! The snooty little wife of the owner was, you guessed it.....SPLINTER GIRL!

She passed away from Alzheimer's a while ago. But every time I hear Jerry Lewis' name I laugh my ass off.

Russ (OUCH) Lay