There’s a whole lot goin’ on in Jerry Lee Lewis’ Chicago show

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Jerry Lee Lewis performs Saturday at the Congress Theater in his first Chicago gig since 1998. | SCOTT Stewart~Sun-Times

Updated: January 6, 2012 8:14AM

The world is full of mean old rivers, and none is as fierce as Jerry Lee Lewis.

He is a product of America’s muddy water. Lewis was born in Ferriday, La., a steamy glance across the Mississippi River from Natchez. He came of age in Memphis along the Mississippi, and his boogie-woogie piano beat recalls the most suspect bars of New Orleans.

Lewis, now 76, delivered a fierce show Saturday night before a full house at the Congress Theatre.

Fans weren’t sure what to expect.

Lewis had canceled a summer date at the Congress due to poor health. He moves slow, and when he first appeared on stage Saturday dressed in black with loud white loafers, he looked like a mall walker. The last time a cornerstone member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame — Chuck Berry — appeared at the Congress on Jan. 1, he could not make it through the show.

And Lewis has not played a Chicago gig since 1998 at the House of Blues.

Backed by his longtime Memphis Beats quartet, Lewis clicked on a snappy but intense hourlong set. For most of the night the Beats’ two guitarists and bassist hovered around the Killer at the piano while standing the shape of a crescent moon.

“Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” was the evening’s final number, and electric bassist B.B. Cunningham (a member of the Hombres, who had the 1967 garage band hit “Let It All Hang Out”) continually pushed Lewis. The Killer took delight in the challenge, which lifted the song to another level with cresting rhythmic strides and gnarly vocals.

Lewis was so satisfied he smiled and kicked over his piano stool — a trademark that he rarely does anymore — and walked off stage to a standing ovation.

Like barges and bordellos, the rhythm piano was a product of the river. Late Memphis producer Jim Dickinson often told me how the sticky, mystical air around the Delta is what gave birth to rock ‘n’ roll in Memphis. And on Saturday, there was Lewis, the last living member of the popular “Million Dollar Quartet” (Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley and Carl Perkins), still going against the current.

The show began with Roy Orbison’s “Move on Down the Line” set in swamp-rock rhythms and raced through “Drinkin’ Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee” and a blues-tinged version of Hank Williams’ “You Win Again.” It was at this juncture Lewis stopped and demanded his microphone be turned up, and yes, from my spot in the balcony, the mix was heavy on bass and piano. Lewis then picked up momentum which he never lost. He took on a steady, soulful version of “Before the Night Is Over,” his duet with B.B. King on his 2006 “Last Man Standing” record, kicking a bothersome monitor for punctuation.

Most amazing was his crisp cover of Charlie Rich’s “Don’t Put No Headstone on My Grave,” which Lewis began as a confessional ballad. Then with the snap of a finger the band locked into uptempo rebellion before Lewis brought it back down a notch. If this was Lewis’ final appearance in Chicago, this will be the moment I never forget.

There was no time for idle chatter. Lewis jumped into “Rockin’ My Life Away” and “Trouble in Mind.” He pounded the piano and pleaded for mercy in Mickey Newbury’s “She Even Woke Me to Say Goodbye,” fusing deep blues with rockabilly to sell the lyric: “Just like the dawn/my heart is breaking.” Lewis later paid tribute to Chuck Berry in ripsnorting versions of “Roll Over Beethoven” and “Sweet Little Sixteen.” Lewis hit the stage at 9 p.m., way past the 6:30 p.m. door time, and it’s likely someone turned 17 during the long wait.

Lewis, of course, included his signature “Great Balls of Fire,” and although he’s probably covered it 5,000 times since its 1957 release, there was a spark of feisty renewal in Saturday night’s version near the end of the set.

There are some things you must do in life:

Go to your church.

Look both ways.

And see Jerry Lee Lewis.

Goodness gracious. Saturday night the Killer delivered on his promise.