"An atomic bomb in lipstick." --Bob Dylan
Feisty, ferocious, feral. Gravel-voiced and wink-eyed cantankerous. Today marks the triumphant return of Wanda Jackson, Queen of Rockabilly and First Lady of Rock and Roll. If you've never heard the early raucous ramblings of this septuagenarian sweetheart, you'll no doubt be hearing them now thanks to Mr. Jack White who is resurrecting her career with their new collaboration, The Party Ain't Over. Produced and arranged at his Nashville studio, it's a brash n' ballsy album of good ol' R&R, and I can't stop listening to it.
As an Oklahoma teenager, Wanda Jackson became the first female to write and perform straight-up rock. She influenced one-time boyfriend Elvis Presley and went on to carve her own DIY path complete with her trademark vocal grit and handmade, fringed costumes that she vowed would bring "glamour to country music." In addition to several top 40 hits and a plethora of albums, Jackson has also toured tirelessly (and been married to her manager) for 50 years.
I've been listening to Jackson's new album for weeks now; it has changed my life. Imbued with a whisky tinged spirit--and Jack White on lead guitar--the second her raspy voice rips through the first track, "Shakin' All Over," you're taken on a retro roller coaster ride which promises to, literally, do what it says it will do: "send shivers through your knee bone." Influenced by big band, blues, and country, featuring covers of Amy Winehouse's "You Know That I'm No Good" and Dylan's "Thunder On the Mountain," it's an AMAZING album, and easily my favorite of the new year. Officially out on iTunes today, I implore you to gift it to yourself then go and check out all that came before it.
Wanda Jackson, you are a most FANTASTIC WOMAN!
