Jackson was still in high school when country singer Hank Thompson heard her sing on an Oklahoma City radio show and asked her to record with his band in 1954. She dated Elvis Presley, who encouraged her to step away from the country-tinged gospel she had been performing since childhood and try her hand at rock and roll. She developed her own distinctive voice and performed in a variety of styles, from folksy traditional tunes to country twang and high yodels to throaty, suggestive ballads. She was a prolific singer of songs with wry lyrics such as "Fujiyama Mama," which contained many references to the World War II bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki; ironically, it became a #1 hit in Japan. Her biggest hit was 1959's "Let's Have a Party."
Jackson achieved great and continuing success throughout Europe, Asia, and Australia, but has never found the same level of fame in her native United States. She toured with rock and roll pioneers such as Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Buddy Holly. She has been nominated for two Grammys, and has been awarded the Oklahoma Native Daughter Award. She has been inducted into the Oklahoma Country Music Hall of Fame, the Rockabilly Hall of Fame, the International Hall of Fame, the International Gospel Music Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame, and the German Country Music Hall of Fame, and in 2009 was finally inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an Early Influence.
A born-again Christian, Jackson and her husband/manager Wendell Goodman abandoned rock and roll in 1971 and spent the next 25 years performing gospel in churches.
In 1996, Jackson was invited by alt-country singer Rosie Flores to duet with her on an upcoming album. The two were so pleased with the results that Jackson joined Flores on a handful of promotional club dates which were soon extended into a five-week North American tour. Jackson, plesantly surprised to discover that she and her songs were known by a generation of rockabilly fans her grandchildren's age, soon assembled her own band and returned to clubs and festivals, where she continues to perform.
In recent years Jackson has recorded with such artists as The Cramps, Lee Rocker, Dave Alvin, and Elvis Costello. 2006 saw the release of a new Jackson album, I Remember Elvis.
In 2009, it was announced that Jackson would start work on new recordings with Jack White. The resulting album, The Party Ain't Over, was released on January 25, 2011. It included a cover of the Bob Dylan rockabilly song, "Thunder on the Mountain" and the Amy Winehouse song "You Know I'm No Good". On January 20, 2011, she performed with Jack White on The Late Show With David Letterman and again on January 25, 2011, on Conan.
Baby
Wanda Jackson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't let the moonlight shine across the lonely hill
Dry all the raindrops and hold back the sun my world has ended my baby's gone
Sometimes I wake up in the night and realize you're gone
And then I toss upon my bed and wait for day to come
I try to tell my lonely heart it must go on alone
But it cries the world has ended my baby's gone
Dry all the raindrops and hold back the sun my world has ended my baby's gone
The song "Baby" by Wanda Jackson is a heart-wrenching ballad about the pain of losing a loved one. The lyrics in the song conjure a sense of wanting to have the power to stop time, make the wind stand still, halt the moonlight, and dry all the raindrops, anything to hold back the pain of the loss. The lines "My world has ended, my baby's gone" capture the essence of the singer's grief and the depth of her despair.
As the song progresses, the singer talks about waking up at night, feeling lost and alone, waiting for daybreak to come, wishing someone would tell her that everything will be okay. She tries to convince herself that life must go on, but her heart cries out in agony, unable to process the pain of losing her baby.
The song is a poignant reminder of the power of love and loss, and how it can cause untold pain and heartbreak. Through her lyrics, Wanda Jackson lays bare her soul and touches the hearts of anyone who has experienced the anguish of losing someone they love.
Line by Line Meaning
Hold back the rushing minutes make the wind lie still
I want time to stand still so I don't have to face the reality of my baby leaving
Don't let the moonlight shine across the lonely hill
I don't want to see the beauty in the night because it reminds me of my baby being gone
Dry all the raindrops and hold back the sun my world has ended my baby's gone
Everything around me is useless and meaningless because my baby is no longer here
Sometimes I wake up in the night and realize you're gone
I feel a sudden realization of being without you when I wake up in the middle of the night.
And then I toss upon my bed and wait for day to come
I lay in bed alone and wait for the night to pass because it's painful to be awake without you
I try to tell my lonely heart it must go on alone
I try to convince myself that I must find a way to move forward without you
But it cries the world has ended my baby's gone
But my heart refuses to accept it, and everything seems wrong without you.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: HAZEL MARIE HOUSER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jean-Bernard LALANNE
Such a fantastic artist.
glenn h Friedman
so good , so real.. thank you
Luzinete Rodrigues
Wow' this is good' like It 🌹✨.
Odette BESSON
GREAT 👍 fantastic 👏 👌 I dance 💃 Thank you so much 💗 For sharing ❤ I love 💘 ❤ from France 🇫🇷 😀 ❤