You and your lover are sure to be swinging all year round with North Battleford, SK’s Jackie K’s new doo-wop single “When You Almost Didn’t Love Me,” out now.
An ode to both the beauty and the perils of young love, the sunshine pop tune feels right out of the best nostalgic Canadian beach movie you’ve never seen. Upbeat, groovy, and almost Shakespearean in the plight of its star-crossed protagonists, the song speaks to hopeless romantics and Hallmark-holiday dismisses both– Jackie is quick to affirm that the course of true love never did run smooth.
“Not every relationship starts out peaches and cream,” she says. “‘When You Almost Didn’t Love Me’ is about finally making the decision to commit to a relationship. This one is personal. We’ve been married twenty years. Four kids.”
“When You Almost Didn’t Love Me” is the first single being released from Jackie’s upcoming album She’s A Story, dropping this March 8 on International Women’s Day. The album spotlights the spirit of women living through a variety of trials and triumphs, featuring songs about situations familiar yet not always celebrated, all performed with Jackie K’s trademark Canadiana sound.
“Women’s lives have changed so dramatically in the last hundred years, but expectations have not always kept up,” Jackie observes. “Women are still not considered equal to men in so many ways. Then if you add getting older, being a person of colour, or a single mother, it is even more difficult. As I age, I see more and more the inequities that exist, and how frustrating it is. I wanted to try and share some of the stories that I know. My own, family stories, people from my community, and some just for fun.”
The album features the illustrious stylings of Randy Woods on guitar, Kyle Krysa on drums, Jackie’s husband Tom on bass, and their son Connor Newton on the sax. Jackie’s on piano and trumpet along with her lead vocals.
When she isn’t writing or performing, Jackie teaches band and guitar to high school students at North Battleford Comprehensive High School in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and a Bachelor of Arts in Visual Art, and is a member of SaskMusic, SOCAN, AFM#553, BMI, SAC, and the Americana Music Association.
