LADIES FIRST: "Fujiyama Mama" - Annisteen Allen > Wanda Jackson > Pearl Harbor

LADIES FIRST presents another classic song that 'she did first'.


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We all love "Fujiyama Mama" made famous by Wanda Jackson, but the actual first version of the song was belted out by fierce Annisteen Allen a few years before...

ANNISTEEN ALLEN -"Fujiyama Mama" (1955)



Rockabilly hellion Wanda Jackson put her own brand on the song, with some storied back-up from legendary guitarist Joe Maphis.

WANDA JACKSON -"Fujiyama Mama" (1957)



The song has some fantastic lyrics, but veers into questionable taste with its references to Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Perversely, the song was a massive hit for Wanda in Japan! Perhaps it was the equation of Japan and the fury of Rock'n'Roll that made it such a winner there.

Pearl Harbor And The Explosions were no strangers to upending conventions and skewering stereotypes in the San Francisco punk scene. Here's Pearl flipping the song full circle in Japan, backed by THE CLASH during the years she was married to bassist Paul Simenon.

PEARL HARBOR + The Clash -"Fujiyama Mama" (1982)




"I drank a quart of Saki, smoked dynamite,
I chase it with tobacky and then shoot out the light!"


© Tym Stevens

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See Also:

• WOMEN OF ROCK: The 1950s, with 2 Music Players!


• LADIES FIRST: "When the Levee Breaks!" - Memphis Minnie > Led Zeppelin

• LADIES FIRST: "Hound Dog" - Big Mama Thornton > Elvis > Jimi Hendrix

• LADIES FIRST: "See See Rider" - Ma Rainey > Janis Joplin > Mitch Ryder


• The Real History of Rock and Soul!: The Music Player Checklist

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