So who was Wanda Jackson trying to be? A 'Hard Headed Woman' or ' Silver Threads And Golden Needles'? Yes, she could go both ways. She had talent. She had the looks. But never a memorable song like 'Stand By Your Man' as you mention. At most, A "filler" on my album.
I agree that "Funnel of Love" stands above any track on that album, but I think you're a bit unfair to "Slippin' And Slidin'" - it's a good cover, and I'd go as far as to say I like it better than Little Richard's version - surprisingly, Wanda, even in her transitioning-to-country state, manages to put more growl into it. "Sticks And Stones" also stands out, and I kind of like Wanda's version of "Who Shot Sam" (though to be fair, the main problem of this song is that it's almost a note-for-note copy of "White Lighting").
But the point I agree about completely is that world did not need Wanda-the-country-singer. Country songs on that album are so boring I can't bring myself to sit through any of them. If she could only wait a little bit, until it was OK for women in country to be more aggressive... I mean, Wanda would probably KILL "Fist City". Loretta Lynn is good on that song, but she just lacks the growl.
It might just be the effect of context. On some compilation, next to 'Hard Headed Woman' and the like, 'Slppin' And Slidin' might probably sound just as great, but here, when it's clear the overall level of rock'n'roll energy goes down a notch, it gets dragged down by its surroundings.
So who was Wanda Jackson trying to be? A 'Hard Headed Woman' or ' Silver Threads And Golden Needles'? Yes, she could go both ways. She had talent. She had the looks. But never a memorable song like 'Stand By Your Man' as you mention. At most, A "filler" on my album.
I agree that "Funnel of Love" stands above any track on that album, but I think you're a bit unfair to "Slippin' And Slidin'" - it's a good cover, and I'd go as far as to say I like it better than Little Richard's version - surprisingly, Wanda, even in her transitioning-to-country state, manages to put more growl into it. "Sticks And Stones" also stands out, and I kind of like Wanda's version of "Who Shot Sam" (though to be fair, the main problem of this song is that it's almost a note-for-note copy of "White Lighting").
But the point I agree about completely is that world did not need Wanda-the-country-singer. Country songs on that album are so boring I can't bring myself to sit through any of them. If she could only wait a little bit, until it was OK for women in country to be more aggressive... I mean, Wanda would probably KILL "Fist City". Loretta Lynn is good on that song, but she just lacks the growl.
It might just be the effect of context. On some compilation, next to 'Hard Headed Woman' and the like, 'Slppin' And Slidin' might probably sound just as great, but here, when it's clear the overall level of rock'n'roll energy goes down a notch, it gets dragged down by its surroundings.
That might be - I originally heard both on compilations.