Rock & Roll fans mourned the death of Amy Winehouse last month – but, as soulful and as talented as she was – now, we mourn the passing of a real Rock & Roll icon: Jerry Leiber. He was 78 years old. (Jerry’s the guy on the left of Elvis, above.)
Lyricist Jerry Leiber and his partner, pianist Mike Stoller, wrote some of the best songs in the rock ’n’ roll canon, including “Hound Dog,” “Yakety Yak,” “Stand By Me” and “On Broadway.”
Leiber and Stoller teamed up in 1950, when Jerry was a student at Fairfax High in Los Angeles and Mr. Stoller was a freshman at Los Angeles City College.
In 1952, Leiber and Stoller wrote “Hound Dog” for the blues singer Big Mama Thornton – and it became a big hit for Elvis in 1956.
Leiber and Stoller followed up with some pretty damn good songs. Lots of them. Absolute classics.
It’s silly, really. These guys wrote “Jailhouse Rock”
“Loving You”
“Treat Me Nice”
“King Creole”
“Charlie Brown”
“Young Blood” (with Doc Pomus)
“Poison Ivy”
“Love Potion No. 9”
…and “Smokey Joe’s Café,” among many others.
R.I.P. Jerry Leiber.
You helped create my world.
Paul's Voyage of Discovery & Etc. 