From:   "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Wed Mar 27, 2002  1:18 am
Subject:  Born To Be With You : Janis Martin
 
JANIS MARTIN (By Shaun Mather)

Born 27 March 1940, Southerlin, Virginia

Dubbed by RCA as "The Female Elvis Presley", Janis Martin stands alongside
Wanda Jackson as the only real contender for the title. She was raised in a
musical family and was performing from a young age. At 11 she was a regular
on the WDVA Barndance in Virginia where she got to work with Ernest Tubb and
the Carter Family. She signed for RCA around the same time as Elvis and as
with the King she split her recording sessions between Nashville and New
York. Wherever the venue, the results were the same, full blooded
rockabilly like Bang Bang, Let's Elope Baby, My Boy Elvis and Drugstore Rock
'n' Roll. Despite being voted Most Promising Female Vocalist by Billboard
in 1956, real success proved elusive and in '58 she became a mother and was
dropped by the label. She has remained pretty much out of the business but
has been a frequent visitor to Europe where the European fans treat her like
a hero. I saw her at Hemsby in May 2001 and she was brilliant, giving a
highly charged show with real enthusiasm.

Recommended listening:
The Female Elvis: Complete Recordings 1955-60 - Bear Family
Here I Am - Hydra