One of his greatest gifts is to take a composition, even one associated with another performer, and redefine it in such a way that others’ versions of the song no longer matter. Custom-written numbers don’t show up in his mailbox as frequently as they did back when Paley wrote “It Was the Whiskey Talkin’ (Not Me),” so Jerry Lee is luxuriating in the tune. He is also savoring the knowledge that this tune will appear in what will likely be a hit film. He has suffered bad luck with films lately: his contribution to the film K-9 Cop was a dog, and his own biopic, Great Balls of Fire, portrayed him as a grotesque somewhere between Gomer Pyle and the Disney dog Goofy. So he is working, extra hard, on “It Was the Whiskey Talkin’ (Not Me).” He needs a hit. He wants a recording deal again.
via Jimmy Guterman – “Rockin’ My Life Away: Listening to Jerry Lee Lewis” (1991) « The Beat Patrol.
