quote:

---

parmeda wrote:
For Mr. Hess: I went back to the archives...you were wondering what ever happened to Wanda. Seems like she's still a spit-fire...
I'm sorry I missed this, I didn't know she was in town and I would have loved to catch this.
*************************************************

WANDA JACKSON RELIVES GLORY DAYS WITH SAUCY SET
Chicago SunTimes
September 25, 2004

BY BOBBY REED

Any concert by an early pioneer of rock 'n' roll involves a time warp. The performer wants to take the audience into the past, back through the decades to an artistic heyday. The crowd happily joins this fantastic journey, but fans must reconcile dreamy notions of yesterday with the cold reality of today. Such was the case during Wanda Jackson's concert Thursday night at Martyrs'.

Jackson headlined a five-act bill as part of Estrojam, a weeklong festival that aims to get more women involved in the creative and technical aspects of the arts. Dubbed "The Queen of Rockabilly,'' Jackson was an appropriate booking for the fest because her fiery singles in the '50s blazed a trail for all the female rockers who followed.

During her prime, Jackson's voice was a compelling instrument that combined girlish allure with formidable whoops and growls. Her form-fitting, shoulder-baring dresses made her a symbol of sensuality, and she famously dated and toured with Elvis Presley.

Jackson turns 67 next month, and while age may have narrowed her vocal range, it has not stopped her from being saucy onstage. Thursday evening she flirted with her backing musicians and made a vaguely sexual comment about the shape of her guitar.

During a ragged but right version of "It'll Be Me," Jackson playfully ran an index finger across her lower lip after singing these lines: "If you see a new face on the totem pole/And if you find a lump of sugar in your sugar bowl/Baby, it'll be me and I'll be lookin' for you."

Jackson was backed by a group of local musicians with whom she'd never worked before, which led to some shaky moments. In her opening number, "Rockabilly Fever," Jackson twice told the band to slow the tempo. The next song, "Rock Your Baby," was the victim of a false start because Jackson realized that she was not singing in the same key the band was playing in.

The group consisted of Jimmy Sutton (acoustic bass), Joel Paterson (electric guitar) and Jim Barclay (drums) -- who are all members of the Four Charms -- as well as pianist Scott Ligon and vocalists Kelly Hogan and Nora O'Connor.

This cast of Chicago roots-music all-stars was reverential toward Jackson onstage, and most of these musicians appear on a forthcoming tribute disc, "Hard-Headed Woman: A Celebration of Wanda Jackson," which will be released by Bloodshot Records on Oct. 26.

Jackson and company hit their stride midway through the set, with a riveting take on "Funnel of Love" that featured some sci-fi sound effects courtesy of Paterson's guitar. An explosive version of "Riot in Cell Block #9" was executed with the furious precision of a combo that had been playing and singing together for years.

Jackson's impressive vocals on "Right or Wrong," a self-penned ballad from 1961, demonstrated that she can still convincingly emote in dramatic fashion. Jackson peppered her performance with anecdotes from her 50 years as a recording artist, including a story of how the young Presley had once given her his ring, which she placed on a necklace and wore around her neck.

The show drew a diverse crowd of Gen Y feminist rockers, tattooed alt-country devotees, hip hepcats in vintage clothing and even a few senior citizens. They all came for the tricky time warp.

A rollicking version of "Hot Dog! That Made Him Mad" was a potent reminder of Jackson's glory years, but her pun about putting on "a fresh patch" (presumably an estrogen-replacement-therapy patch) was a reminder that this singer is the same age as some of her fans' grandparents.

Bobby Reed is a local free-lance writer who covers country music for the Sun-Times.

---