She met and married businessman Wendell
Goodman who took over from her father as
her manager. Their ‘soul mate’ union would
last 55 years.
Back in the pre-Beatles era, on the
Grammy-nominated The Two Sides Of
Wanda Jackson, the singer covered Carl
Perkins’ Honey Don’t. In the rest of the
60s, she returned to her country roots –
complete with renewed attitude. Beginning
with The Box It Came In, 20 of her next 22
singles secured chart placement. Her second
Grammy nom came for 1971’s A Woman
Lives For Love, which she performed live at
the award show in Hollywood.
Another international break came in
1965 – this time in Germany for Electrola
Records, for which Wanda sang in German
and enjoyed a second No.1, Santa Domingo.
Recording nearly 20 German language
songs, her rockabilly voice proved a natural
fi t for its guttural tone. In addition, she
went on to record in Dutch and Japanese.
German label Bear Family has preserved
Wanda’s legacy in recent times, bringing out
Right Or Wrong, a CD boxset of Decca and
Capitol recordings, followed in 1998 with
compilation material through to ’72.THE 80S FOUND Wanda gospel-
oriented, in line with her return to faith.
However, approaching age 50, the hits
dried up. Suddenly in ’84, a call from
Scandinavia again changed things. Tab
Records label owner Harry Holmes invited
Wanda over to visit, record an album and
guest on the rockabilly revival circuit.
Rockabilly Fever (released in ’86 in the
United States as Rock’n’Roll Away Your
Blues) featured her takes on Oh Boy!, Rave
On and Breathless. The experience refreshed
her whole career. “Discovering my new
fanbase in Europe was one of the great joys
of my life,” she said.“DISCOVERING MY NEW
FANBASE IN EUROPE WAS ONE OF THE
GREAT JOYS OF MY LIFE”
Wanda JacksonEmbraced by a new generation, Wanda
was having a ball. Championed by Rosie
Flores, the pair duetted on Rosie’s 1995
album Rockabilly Filly. In 2003 – now a
grandmother in her 60s – Jackson recorded
Heart Trouble, her fi rst real rockabilly album
in decades. Artists from James Intveld
and Lee Rocker to The Cramps and Elvis
Costello asked to be involved. In 2005,
it was Costello that pushed for Wanda’s
entry into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.
Mystifyingly, as with her ongoing exclusion
from the Country Hall, Wanda was not
inducted until 2009.
Aged 73, Wanda enjoyed an unexpected
late-life blast with producer Jack White.
Together they stormed the charts with her
incendiary 40th studio album, The Party
Ain’t Over. The project was a “challenge”
she said, but it turned out as one of her
favourites. A more stripped-down album,
Unfi nished Business, is her last to date. At
80-plus, she’s still in the mood for new
adventures. What’s next from Wanda?
Watch this space... Meanwhile, more insights
into Wanda’s world comes from Scott B.
Bomar, co-author of her 2017 autobiography
Every Night Is Saturday Night...The live rock’n’roll world
will miss Wanda Jackson DavidRe
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