Daddy and I pulled into the KTOC radio station parking lot in Cape Girardeau, Missouri on a hot July afternoon in 1955. When a traveling artist was scheduled to play a show in those days, they''d make sure to arrive in town a few hours early to appear on the local airwaves. Radio stations weren''t bound by a particular format then, so you had to time your arrival to coincide with when the country programming was on. The idea was to have the DJ play your record, ask you a few questions, and give you a chance to invite the listeners to that night''s show. There was another reason why those radio appearances were so important. It''s no secret that many of the legends of country music used to like to have a good time. And often that good time was accompanied by a few drinks. As a result, some of them - Hank Williams was one of the first - earned a reputation for being, shall we say, less than one hundred percent dependable when it came to showing up for a scheduled performance.

Heck, George Jones even came to be known as "No Show Jones" back in his younger and wilder days. So going on the radio not only gave us artists a chance to promote our live shows, it also gave advance ticketholders the assurance that we had, indeed, arrived in town and would be appearing that night as advertised. My show in Cape Girardeau was to be a package show, meaning several artists were on the bill. One of them was a young singer who was rapidly gaining a strong regional following throughout the South. I had been told that he would also be joining me for the interview. As you know from my response to dueting with Billy Gray, I''ve always kind of enjoyed having the spotlight to myself. But this guy was headlining the show, so even though I''d never heard of him or his records, I decided not to let it bother me. Daddy and I arrived at KTOC first.

We headed inside and were greeted by a friendly young woman at the front desk. Just as I was introducing myself the door opened behind me. I turned around to a bright blast of summer sunshine streaming around a silhouette in the doorway. The door closed behind him and it took a moment for my eyes to adjust. When they did the first thing I noticed was that this guy was pretty cute. He flashed a shy smile. "Hi there," he kind of half mumbled, "I''m Elvis Presley." He moved toward me with his hand extended.

I wish I could say the heavens opened and I heard angels singing, but it wasn''t anything quite that dramatic. Still, I have to admit; it did seem as if a presence had entered the room. Of course I recognized right away that Elvis was handsome, but I was actually a little taken aback by his outfit. He was wearing black slacks and a black shirt with a yellow sport coat. I''d never seen a yellow sport coat in my life! In 1955 that just wasn''t the kind of clothing a typical man would wear. But I guess he wasn''t a typical man. He also had curly hair that day, which I later found out was because he''d gotten a perm. I thought that was pretty funny, but there was no question that this guy was magnetic.

I took his hand. "I''m Wanda Jackson," I smiled back. "I''ll be playing on the show tonight." Our eyes met for a few seconds. Elvis suddenly broke his gaze and glanced at the floor. He seemed almost fidgety as he replied, "Oh, yes ma''am. I''ve heard your records and I know we''ll have a good time tonight. You''ve got a very nice voice and I look forward to working with you.

" My smile widened. Suddenly Daddy was standing right next to me. "I''m Tom," he announced as he held out his hand toward Elvis. "I''m Wanda''s father. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Jackson," Elvis replied. "It''s a real pleasure. You''ve sure got a talented daughter here.

" Suddenly, Daddy was smiling, too. Over the years I''ve been asked about Elvis Presley more than any other topic you could imagine. If I''m honest I have to confess there have been moments in my career when I''ve gotten a little tired of the Elvis questions from well-meaning interviewers. I certainly understand why people are fascinated by the King of Rock and Roll, and I know why they want to hear about him. It''s not an understatement to say that Elvis changed the world. But there have been times I''ve wanted to scream, "There''s a lot more to Wanda Jackson than my experiences with Elvis Presley!" With time, however, I''ve come to embrace my history with Elvis. Not only did he change the world, but he changed my world. It was Elvis who believed that I could sing rock and roll before I believed it myself.

It was Elvis who took the time to help me understand the new musical revolution that was exploding all around us. And it was Elvis who, for a short time in the mid-1950s, won my heart as I was just beginning to understand what it really meant to fully embrace my femininity and express myself as a young woman. Today I very much enjoy talking about Elvis and reflecting on the warm memories that had such an influence on my life and career. When I first met Elvis I was seventeen years old and had just graduated from Capitol Hill High School a few weeks earlier. As you know, graduation couldn''t come soon enough for me. It was hard to devote myself to my studies when I was putting records on the charts and playing at the legendary Grand Ole Opry. Even if it hadn''t exactly been an ideal experience, it was still a big deal. I earned $1,126.

56 that month alone from record royalties, publishing income, and a handful of live shows with Hank. That was some serious money for a seventeen year old girl in 1955. We''re talking about what would be the equivalent of more than $10,000 by today''s standards. I knew the only thing I was interested in was being a singer, and I bring up those accomplishments only to make the point that I seemed to be finding success doing just that. I didn''t see much reason to be in school, considering that my career was already well underway. I never stopped begging Daddy to let me just drop out and hit the road for an extended tour, but he wasn''t having it. He said, "You graduate first." That was so important to him.

My dad''s father was a sharecropper and their family was almost literally dirt poor. Mother''s people had a farm, where they raised pigs, grew gardens and pretty well provided for themselves. Daddy finally earned his high school diploma at the age of 21 after having to regularly take time off school so he could work picking cotton to contribute to the basic survival of his household. With that kind of background you can bet he wasn''t about to let his only child throw away an opportunity for an education. But that didn''t stop me from asking, begging, pleading, whining, pouting, and stomping my feet. I wanted out. I can remember several of my girlfriends crying on graduation day because they felt like the best years of their lives were over. I loved my friends, so I hugged them tight and did my best to console them.

Inside, however, I was bursting with joy. I was finally free to make music without any other responsibilities to hold me back. Sure, I would miss seeing Beverly and the girls every day, but so many adventures were calling me, and I couldn''t wait to get started.