About this CD
- Recording: 2002-2006, Memphis, TN and elsewhere
- Release date: September 26, 2006
- Label: Artist First
- Catalog number: 20001
- Produced and arranged by Steve Bing and Jimmy Rip
- Engineered and mixed by Jimmy Rip
- Musicians: Kenny Lovelace, Jimmy Rip (guitar), Hutch Hutchinson (bass), Jim Keltner (drums)
Pros
- Producer Jimmy Rip and Jerry Lee have assembled a collection of songs that cover the Killer's talents like a blanket, yet they're fun, not reverential.
- Jerry Lee himself hasn't sounded this fresh and dedicated to the mission in a long, long time.
- The production's tasteful, the backing band a colletion of old pros.
- The vast majority of these duets make musical sense, and more importantly, are well-matched to the Killer.
Cons
- There are moments when Last Man Standing sounds like the Killer is merely doing a favor for some young(er) bucks.
My review
Jerry Lee Lewis, for all intents and purposes, invented the rock and roll comeback, if only by refusing to go away: after the scandal of his marriage to Myra Gale Brown, The Killer simply hung on. And this latest "duets" album actually began life way back in 2002. So don't call it trendy.But is it any good? It's as good as Jerry Lee's been on record since the early Seventies; if his live appearances can be somewhat scattershot in quality, the extra time and care taken to make Last Man Standing -- supposedly a reference to his stature as last remaining Sun Records alumnus -- results in one powerful and also consistent listening experience. You could easily take the 25(!) guest appearances out and still have one hell of a Killer album, although it's nice to see everyone from three-fourths of the Rolling Stones to Toby Keith genuflecting at the feet of the master. In fact, the only flaws here occur when Jerry Lee props up a craggy Rod Stewart (on his own "What Made Milwaukee Famous") and tries to give more southern-rock cred to Kid Rock (who just won't shut up on "Honky Tonk Women"). The rest of these songs are Lewis's, even though he didn't write them. Which makes this a perfectly realized Jerry Lee Lewis record.
