He earned the nickname "The Killer" — not for his music or wild life, but because that's what he called everybody else when he couldn't remember their names. So that's what they called him.

his 1964 album Live At The Star-Club Hamburg, recorded by the Dutch label Philips as part of a series of live recordings from the German venue, and about which Rolling Stone Magazine later raved, "It's not an album, it's a crime scene ... with no survivors but The Killer."

She told WHYY's Fresh Air in 1989 that her husband was a walking contradiction — a wild man on stage, boozing and womanizing, who wouldn't allow a drop of alcohol in his own home.

Lewis made it through a just a few tour dates before succumbing to the press and public's censure, and retreated back to the U.S. That doesn't mean that he was ever publicly regretful. His marriage to Myra lasted a decade

I just loved the blues. It was the real thing. I kinda always figured I was the real thing too."