Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular Music

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

JACKSON, Wanda

(b 20 October 1937, Maud OK) Country/rock'n'roll singer of late '50s-60s, still going strong in the 21st century. The family moved to Bakersfield; her father taught her guitar and piano; they returned to Oklahoma where she had her own radio show at 13; after high school she joined Hank Thompson and his Brazos Valley Boys, toured with them and with Elvis Presley '55. She signed to Decca as a country singer and had duet hit 'You Can't Have My Love' with Billy Gray (no. 8 C&W chart '54); switched to Capitol '56, left Thompson and was one of the few female rockers of the '50s: 'Let's Have A Party' made the top 40 both USA/UK '60; 'Mean Mean Man' scored in UK '61; other USA top 40s were 'Right Or Wrong', 'In The Middle Of A Heartache' '61. She was also popular in Holland, Germany and Japan, cutting versions of hits in these languages (e.g. 'Fujiyama Mama').

As the original country-flavoured rock'n'roll (rockabilly) style seemed to fade, she went back to country music and stayed there, helped by her husband Wendell Goodman and with her own tight-knit band The Party Timers; she racked up 26 country hits '61-71 in a female honky-tonk style: 'If I Cried Every Time You Hurt Me' also made pop Hot 100 '62; other country hits were 'Tears Will Be A Chaser For Your Wine', 'My Heart Gets All The Breaks', 'A Girl Don't Have To Drink To Have Fun', etc. She wrote some of her own songs, as well as '(Let's Stop) Kickin' Our Hearts Around' for Buck Owens (no. 8 '62), others. She turned to gospel music in the '70s, although still performing old hits on tours; Rock'N'Roll Your Blues Away on Varrick was recorded '84 on tour in Sweden. Four-CD set Right Or Wrong on Bear Family included all the hits plus covers of Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis, Presley etc with sidemen including Owens, Merle Travis, Roy Clark, Joe Maphis (b c.1921, d 27 June '86; well-known picker, singer, songwriter; played guitar on TV's Bonanza theme).

The Party Ain't Over in 2011 was produced by Jack White, and that year she opened for Adele in North America; Unfinished Business on Sugar Hill 2012 was her 31st studio album, produced by Justin Townes Earle. She took lessons in stagecraft from Elvis; back in the day, she told Marc Myers for the Wall Street Journal, 'Elvis never took himself seriously and just had fun on stage. He flirted with the girls...That's why when I'm up there today, I make eye contact with everyone in the first few rows. I like to have fun with them.'