Wanda Jackson
Third Man and Nonesuch Records announce the release of the new album from Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Wanda Jackson. The Party Ain’t Over, produced by her friend Jack White, will be out on January 24.
With a remarkable career that began in 1955, Jackson, credited with being the first woman to ever record a rock and roll song - “Let’s Have a Party” in 1958 - was convinced by her friend Elvis Presley to cross over from country to rock and rockabilly music. Now known around the globe as “The Queen Of Rock” and “The First Lady of Rockabilly,” Jackson was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2010 Americana Music Awards in Nashville in September. The award, in the category of Performance, was presented to her by Jack White.
That these two musical luminaries would find one another is hardly surprising. Jackson is an icon to everyone who knows and loves the roots of rock and roll. White, some 30+ years her junior, is one of music’s most enigmatic visionaries. The two teamed up last year to record a 45rpm single for White’s Third Man Records. The vinyl and iTunes release, a cover of Amy Winehouse’s “You Know I’m No Good” b/w “Shakin All Over” was a big success and the pair hatched a plan to record a full-length album.
The Party Ain’t Over was recorded in Nashville at White’s studio, where he brought together a formidable band, including himself, Jack Lawrence (The Dead Weather/Raconteurs), Carl Broemel (My Morning Jacket), Patrick Keeler (Raconteurs), Ashley Monroe, Jackson Smith, and Karen Elson, to name a few, and hand picked the songs - 11 tracks dating in origin from the early 1900s to 2007. The result: a retro modern collection of music that showcases Wanda, now in her seventh decade and sounding as wickedly charismatic as ever.
From the album opener, the classic Johnny Kidd and the Pirates hit “Shakin All Over,” to the final track from Jimmie Rodgers’ notable blues series, “Blue Yodle #6,” Wanda’s soulful, ripping voice barrels through from song to song, moving effortlessly from rockabilly, rock and roll, country and gospel - leaving a vibrant, distinctive stamp on a release that embraces the past just as much as it embraces the future.