Jan Howard

1929–1945: Childhood and teenage years Lula Grace Johnson was born in West Plains, Missouri, the daughter of Linnie and Rolla Johnson. She was the eighth of 11 children, including two siblings who died before the age of two. Her mother was a nurse's assistant who took take care of elderly people at the family house. Her father was a brick mason who received employment assistance from the Works Progress Administration during the Great Depression. The family moved frequently in her childhood in order for her father to sustain employment. They lived in various midwest communities including Kansas City, Birch Tree, and Oklahoma City. The family briefly returned to West Plains when Lula was eight. Upon her return, she was raped by a family friend. Smith moved Lula and her children into local military housing and got a job in the "tea room" of the Morehouse Fashion Department Store. Lula then gave birth to the couple's child in 1954 who died shortly after birth due to complications from a cerebral hemorrhage. Smith was then transferred to Warrensburg, Missouri where the couple rented a three bedroom home in a suburban community. In Missouri, Lula became pregnant again but miscarried the child. Shortly after the miscarriage, Smith was transferred to the Panama Canal Zone and informed Lula he would send for her once he was settled. After not nearing from Smith, she received a letter in the mail informing her than Smith's first wife had never actually filed for divorce. Smith then reunited with his wife and his marriage to Lula was annulled in 1955. Lula decided to make a new start in Gardena, California in 1955. After pawning Smith's wedding ring for $25, Lula and her two children took a bus out to California. She then worked a series of low-wage jobs (including a cocktail waitress in a men's club), writing in her book, "I must have had 30 jobs in days." Despite not being able to "type or take shorthand", Lula obtained a secretarial position. Her friend was dating country artist Wynn Stewart who introduced Lula to his friend and aspiring songwriter Harlan Howard. The couple then married 30 days after their meeting in 1957. ==Singing career==

1958–1963: Early success Lula would often sing to herself while attending to domestic duties but was too shy to sing in front of other people. Alone in her kitchen one day, Lula was singing when she was heard by her husband who impressed by her singing skills. "I didn't know you could sing," he told her. He then convinced Lula to record a demonstration record of his newly-composed song "Mommy for a Day". The demo was later heard by Kitty Wells who recorded it and her version made the US country charts in 1958. Howard then brought his wife to Bakersfield, California to record more demo records of his songs. Among them was "Pick Me Up on Your Way Down", a song heard by Charlie Walker whose version also became a US country radio success. Howard also believed that his wife could have her own country music recording career. With his encouragement, Lula and Wynn Stewart recorded a demo of the song "Yankee Go Home". Howard then brought it to Joe Johnson of Challenge Records (who Stewart was recording for). Howard told Johnson he could take the song if he signed his wife too. She then officially signed with the Challenge label. '', 1960 Jan and Wynn Stewart's duet of "Yankee Go Home" was released as a single by Challenge in 1959 and was followed by a second duet single in 1960 titled "Wrong Company". The latter reached the top 30 on the US Billboard country songs chart. Her recent success prompted Joe Johnson to release a solo single by called "The One You Slip Around With" (penned by Harlan Howard and Fuzzy Owen). The song rose into the US country top 15 in 1960. Its success brought Jan the "Most Promising Country Female" award from both Billboard and Jukebox Operators magazines. Jan and Stewart then embarked on a three-day tour in Lubbock, Texas and an appearance on the Town Hall Party California television program. With Harlan's songwriting career gaining momentum, the Howard's received royalty checks on a regular basis. The income financed the Howard's move to Nashville, Tennessee in 1960. Jan was still battling shyness despite having a recording career. She had trouble following a backing band and stage fright caused her to often lose pitch. She also received anonymous phone calls from people who mocked her performance abilities. Jan's fear of her peers resulted in her leaving performances right after doing her slot. This was often the case with her initial Grand Ole Opry performances. After watching Patsy Cline perform on the Opry, Jan was confronted by Cline who thought she was conceited for not communicating with her. After she pushed back, Cline laughed at the incident and the pair became close friends. Jan would record the demo for Cline's "I Fall to Pieces". Although the song was promised to Jan by her husband (who co-wrote it with Hank Cochran), it was given to Cline in belief that it would sell more copies than Jan's version would. Because the Howard family owed the IRS $20,000 in back taxes Jan began touring and booking agent Hubert Long organized her tour dates. She then started appearing on package shows alongside June Carter, Skeeter Davis, George Jones, Buck Owens, and Faron Young. Without her approval, Jan's Challenge recording contract was bought by Capitol Records. Discovering that $5000 would be paid out of her royalties, she went before a court judge who sided with her. However, after having an argument with her husband about the contract, she ultimately "agreed to drop" the legal battle. According to Jan, her first Capitol sessions with an unnamed producer were "a disaster". Frustrated, she contacted Ken Nelson who agreed to produce her in Los Angeles. The Capitol marketing division steered Jan's music towards the pop market, which resulted in her recording several pop covers. From the sessions, Howard's debut studio album was released in 1962 called Sweet and Sentimental. She recorded for Capitol through 1963 yet only had one US country charting single: a cover of "I Wish I Was a Single Girl Again". became identified as a signature song in Jan's career and later served as the title track to her US country top ten LP Jan Howard Sings Evil on Your Mind. '', August 1968 The success of "Evil on Your Mind" led to an increased demand in Jan's bookings. In 1966, she played a package tour that ended at California's Hollywood Bowl and another in Detroit, Michigan that attracted roughly 24,000 people. Decca also continued recording Jan. She became increasingly identified with songs portraying women in assertive roles and occasionally featured lyrics by her husband. Examples of such songs included her next single, "Bad Seed", which reached the US country songs top ten. Other recordings with similar assertive themes included the 1967 US top country 40 songs "Any Old Way You Do" (penned by Howard) and "Roll Over and Play Dead". Both appeared on her fourth LP, This Is Jan Howard Country, which became a top ten-charting LP on the US country survey. The duo's debut album of the same name reached number six on the country albums chart in 1968. Now a successful musical collaboration, Howard joined Anderson's roadshow and also became part of his syndicated television program called The Bill Anderson Show. Because it was mostly filmed in Windsor, Ontario, Jan traveled by commercial airlines to film tapings. Working with Anderson provided Jan with a steady source of income following her divorce from Harlan Howard in the late 1960s. In 1968, Jan had three more top 40 US country solo singles including the number 16 "Count Your Blessings, Woman" and the number 15 "My Son". Despite Jan's reluctance, her middle son (Carter), Bill Anderson and Owen Bradley all encouraged her to record it. After the song became commercially-successful, Jan received over 5,000 letters from soldiers and their families. "They said they felt like it was for them," she commented. The song was later nominated for Best Female Country Vocal Performance at the Grammy Awards. The singles were also issued on corresponding duet LP's that made the US country top 25: ''If It's All the Same to You (1970) and Bill and Jan (Or Jan and Bill)'' (1972). Howard resumed her recording career and signed with GRT Records in 1974. She was a neighbor of Nashville producer, Larry Butler, who recorded her next studio album titled Sincerely, Jan Howard. Its lead single, "Seein' Is Believin'", made the top 100 of the US country chart in 1975. She signed with Con Brio Records in 1977 and had her final three charting country songs: "I'll Hold You in My Heart (Till I Can Hold You in My Arms)", "Better Off Alone" and "To Love a Rolling Stone". She also toured as part of Tammy Wynette's roadshow in the late 1970s as both a background and lead vocalist. Howard was then approached by Pete Drake to be part of a veteran's era album project called Stars of the Grand Ole Opry. Her studio album was released by the First Generation label in 1981 featuring new songs and re-recordings of her most popular tunes. Her next studio album was released in 1983 on AVI Records in 1983 called Tainted Love. The title track was a cover of the Soft Cell pop single. Billboard found Howard did a "creditable job" on the song and called the album "a series of moving performances". In 1985, Howard was part of a joint venture between MCA and Dot Records, which included several other veteran artists. From the venture, a self-titled studio album was released in 1985. Produced by Billy Strange, it was Howard's last studio release. In the 1990s, Howard slowed down her singing career. Howard spoke of her career slow down and her continued passion for singing in her autobiography: "I love to sing and hope that, for a long time to come, God will give me the opportunity to do so. And when he tells me to quit, I hope I have the sense to follow His advice." She mainly did performances as part of the Grand Ole Opry cast along with occasional shows. In the 2000s, Howard was inducted into the Missouri Country Music Hall of Fame and released a boxed set of her recorded material. She has since appeared on albums by other artists. In 2007, she recorded a duet with Bill Anderson and Vince Gill for Anderson's studio release, ''Whisperin' Bluegrass''. In 2017, Howard and Jessi Colter appeared on Jeannie Seely's studio album Written in Song, singing on the track "We're Still Hangin' in There, Ain't We Jessi". In 2019, she celebrated her 90th birthday at the Opry, making her the show's oldest living member. Style and legacy Howard's musical style was rooted in the country and Nashville Sound genres. Robert K. Oermann commented on Howard's "brassy" singing style and noted that her Decca recordings were "downright gutsy", "sassy" and "self-assured." Oermann also spoke on Howard's legacy as an artist: "Jan opened the door for many more Nashville Sound stylists. Marion Worth, Margie Bowes, Connie Smith, Jeannie Seely and Connie Hall climbed the charts." Howard is also remembered for her commercial success. Sandra Brennan of Allmusic called her "one of the hottest female vocalists of the 1960s." In 2005, Howard's single, "Evil on Your Mind", was listed as one of country music's "500 greatest singles" in the book Heartaches by the Number. ==Writing career and other professions==

1966–1983: Songwriting In addition to singing, Howard wrote songs for herself and others. One of her first released compositions was "Crying for Love", which appeared on her 1966 studio album Jan Howard Sings Evil on Your Mind. Howard's songs continued to appear on her studio albums over time. Self-penned songs appeared on the studio albums For God and Country, Love Is Like a Spinning Wheel, Sincerely, Jan Howard and Stars of the Grand Ole Opry. These compositions were also awarded BMI Songwriters Awards. In 1980, she collaborated with Tammy Wynette in writing the track "Only the Names Have Been Changed". The song appeared on Wynette's studio album Only Lonely Sometimes. Her last writing credit is on the track, "My Friend", a song that appeared on Howard's 1983 studio album Tainted Love. Publishers Weekly gave their review of the release in August 1987. Reviewers of the book praised Howard's personal stories, but disliked the editing style of the book. Also in the late 1980s, Howard explained that she was working on her first fiction short story and a novel. In a 2015 interview, Howard explained that she still writes a "little bit of everything" including songs, poems and short stories. Howard also said she had started three fiction novels that had yet to be completed. "I need to put those together, I need to go through them. And I found things in there that I forgot I wrote and I said 'oh, this is pretty good' or 'this is bad'. So right now I'm gonna put those all together and put them in a leather-bound book," Howard said. Howard also wrote out her recipes that she used. She featured directions for her recipes on her official website, which were updated on a monthly basis. On her recipe page, website administrators stated, "Each month on this page we’ll be adding a favorite recipe or two provided by Jan…so keep checking back." , late 1970s Other professions and efforts In the late 1970s, Howard obtained her real estate license for a local company in Hendersonville, Tennessee, called Lakeside Realtors. As a realtor, she sold several homes including one to local Nashville musician Jimmy Capps. Howard remained a real estate agent for only a short period of time. On her website, she commented that after a while, people would bring "sacks of tapes" for her to listen to rather than be potential clients. "My license is in retirement and will stay there, but I still pay my dues," Howard wrote on her fan page. In 2002, she appeared with Faye Dunaway in the film Changing Hearts. Other performers were featured in the cast including Rita Coolidge and Jeannie Seely. After her son was killed in the Vietnam War, Howard worked to support veterans returning from war, including with various organizations in support of the American military veterans. She worked previously with the Veterans Administration, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the Vietnam Veteran organizations. Howard contributed to a campaign that helped raise funds for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, which was finished in 1982. From Howard's efforts, she received the "Gold Medal of Merit Award" from the Veterans of Foreign Wars. "I never want to be in the forefront of anything like this, but it’s worth it to bring attention to those who gave so much. If it wasn’t for them, we wouldn’t have the life we enjoy as Americans," Howard commented in 2011. Since 1982, Howard was involved in veteran-related activities at Middle Tennessee State University, where her son was a former student. In 2017, she made an appearance at the university's veterans' memorial service. She was presented with a "Gold Star Brick" from the school for her work with veterans. ==Personal life==

Marriages Howard was married four times. At the time of her first marriage to Mearle Wood, she was only 16 years old. The couple met when Howard was working at her local drugstore in West Plains, Missouri. He would frequently come by to say hello and have a soda. The two spent more time together, eventually becoming a couple and marrying. Howard later said that she did not want to marry Wood, but her mother encouraged their courtship. "I felt like I was dressing for a funeral. And in a way, I was. The funeral of my girlhood," she wrote. Her second marriage to Lowell "Smitty" Smith lasted only two years after discovering that he was a bigamist. In her third marriage to Harlan Howard, Jan's three children legally were adopted by him and took on his last name. In the mid-1960s, the couple owned a publishing company in Nashville called Wilderness Music. Together, they bought an older home, renovated it and turned it into a series of offices for the company. Jan later commented that Harlan took control of the Wilderness when they divorced. According to Harlan, the company and its music were his "brainchildren". Upset about the situation, Jan said to her divorce lawyers, "I don't want anything. Just the divorce." Following her divorce, she became closer to her divorce lawyer, Jack Norman. A licensed pilot, Norman took her on plane rides and also spent many nights at her home. The two became romantically involved while Norman was still married. Their affair carried on into the mid 1970s. In 1990, she remarried for a fourth time to Dr. Maurice Acree, Jr. Only married for a short period of time, Acree died in 2013, according to an obituary from The Tennessean. Children From her first marriage, Howard gave birth to three sons: Jimmy, Carter (Corky), and David. As a young child, Jimmy was hospitalized in critical condition with spinal meningitis. Within four weeks, he recovered from the illness. During the Vietnam War in 1968, Jimmy was drafted into the military. Once he received his draft notice, Carter volunteered for the army. "If Jimmy's going, I'm going," he said to Howard. After being sent to basic training, the military was supposed to let Jimmy come home, but they refused. Upset about the situation, Howard discussed the situation with her friend and country DJ, Ralph Emery. Through the assistance of Emery, Howard got in contact with Congressman Richard Fulton. Emery found Fulton at a restaurant at nine o'clock the same night when he contacted him. Fulton got permission from the military to send Jimmy home for 21 days. In her autobiography, Howard recounted the phone call she received from Jimmy the day he came home, "Mom! What did you do? The Secretary of the Army himself called down here! My sergeant came and got me and said, 'Howard! Go call your mother, then be prepared to work you ass off!'" Howard also recalled Jimmy's nervousness as he prepared for Vietnam. The evening before his departure, he sat at her bedside explaining his nervousness and anxieties. The next evening, he flew out at three o'clock in the morning. In October 1968, Jimmy was killed in action. Prior to this, he had been employed at the Opryland USA theme park, where he appeared as an actor in several shows, including a major role in the cast of the play I Hear America Singing. Howard then began noticing changes in his behavior, including coming home late at night and having symptoms of depression. When she would ask David, he would reply by saying that he was "just tired." She also noticed that he began associating with people who provided David with substances. She eventually had him see a psychiatrist for his personal setbacks, but only found out that he was using the time for other reasons. One morning in 1972, Howard found David in his bedroom dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. She recalled that the next several days were a "blur". Devastated by her son's suicide, she stayed in bed for days at a time. After many weeks of grieving, Howard cleaned out his room and sold his Volkswagen Beetle. "When everything was done, I took one last look around, walked out, and closed the door on the past. But it would never be locked," she wrote. In the years following David and Jimmy's deaths, Howard's middle son Carter began working with military veterans. He also owned his own business and became a real estate broker in Nashville. She is buried at Spring Hill Cemetery, in Nashville. ==Discography==

Solo studio albums • Jan Howard Sings Evil on Your Mind (1966) • Bad Seed (1966) • This Is Jan Howard Country (1967) • Count Your Blessings, Woman (1968) • Jan Howard (1969) • For God and Country (1970) • Rock Me Back to Little Rock (1970) • Love Is Like a Spinning Wheel (1972) • Sincerely, Jan Howard (1975) • Stars of the Grand Ole Opry (1981) • Tainted Love (1983) • Jan Howard (1985) Collaborative studio albums • Sweet and Sentimental (1962) • For Loving You (1968) • ''If It's All the Same to You'' (1970) • Bill and Jan (Or Jan and Bill) (1972) • Singing His Praise (1972) ==Awards and nominations==