Everyone wants a love “like Johnny and June,” but I want a marriage like Alan and Denise. I’m not downing the wedding of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash, but I have always admired the nuptials of Alan Jackson and his wife, Denise. Most girls fantasize about this idea of a grand wedding and then living happily ever after with the man of their dreams, but I’m not most girls. I like to consider myself a realist! Now don’t get me wrong, I can’t wait to marry my husband, but I also know that it isn’t going to be a bed of roses everyday after that, but that doesn’t mean, despite the ups and downs, that a marriage can’t end up being all one had hoped for. The Jackson’s embody that perfectly.
Once Upon a Time…
The local Dairy Queen, where all small town love stories start! It’s true in this case anyway. Their relationship began in 1976 when Alan threw a penny at his future wife during a group hangout one night, which ultimately led to him following her home. (Kind of creepy if you asked me, but if she liked it, I love it!)
After finally working up the nerve to ask her to marry him, the high school sweethearts were wed on December 15, 1979. Three daughters and a country music career followed shortly after. It’s true, the saying, “Behind every successful man is a woman.” It was Denise who jump started Alan’s profession by approaching country star Glen Campbell while working as a flight attendant and told him about her husband, who was looking to become a country singer. Campbell eventually helped Alan get a record deal with Arista Records.
For the love of Fame!
As Jackson began to rise in the country music realm as a crowd favorite, his home life popularity was plummeting to dangerous altitudes. The couple eventually split in February 1998, upon Denise learning of an affair that Alan engaged in during their marriage. The 49-year-old Grammy Winner was quoted saying, “We were just kids when we started out. We didn’t ever have the chance to fall in love as adults and to learn who you are before making a commitment. I think we lost some of that original feeling. I did anyway.” Even though stepping out on your wife isn’t commendable, I do admire his transparency and honesty with his fans. It just goes to show that no one is perfect, not even the celebrities we hold to high esteem. And in true Alan Jackson form, he recorded a song named “I wish I could back up,” that showed his regret and remorse for his actions.
BUT GOD…
After just four months of separation the two decided to work through their issues and rekindle their romance. Denise credits a lot of their success to her deep-rooted faith, as she worked through the forgiveness process with her husband, stating, “God took our mess and made something wonderful out of it. It took us going through that to finally have the kind of relationship we both always wanted.” The couple renewed their vows on their 20th wedding anniversary, and continues to keep one another at the top of their priority list. This year they will be celebrating 37 years of marriage.
#MarriageGoals
I admire this couple so much, because they just show that one truly can have it all: fame, faith, and family. It may not always be honeymoons and sunny days, but marriage is a wonderful experience that requires work and time. Despite the ups and downs of life if two people truly love one another and are committed to the vows you take, you can actually have the love and marriage that so many country songs portray. So, yes even though there were trying times, please give me a marriage like Alan and Denise.
“Remember When” is, in my opinion, Alan’s ultimate love song to his wife as he looks back on his life with her. He describes their love from their first time together, through raising their children, and describes how they will “remember when” as they continue to grow old together. My heart literally melts when they slow dance in the video and he sings directly to her in that moment. You’ve can’t help but to fall in love with them as a couple!
I really enjoyed this post because Alan Jackson is one of my all time favorite artists. I love how even messed up relationships can be fixed and end up as praise worthy marriages. I was not aware of their split so this post was very interesting to me. Also, Remember When is one of my favorite songs because he is so genuine with his lyrics, you feel like you actually know them personally. And it is so true that behind every succesful man is a woman because who else would be their number one fan. She probably encouraged him the whole way, and there’s something to say about his level of fame and their happy marriage.
I really enjoyed reading this article. I am a huge hopeless romantic so I really love reading stories such as these about Country music singers and their crazy love stories. I had no idea about all this background information with Alan Jackson. It’s true, sometimes even power couples such as Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert can’t make their love work due to some aspects of their life in the spotlight. I am glad it worked out for these two, especially because she basically got him his career in the first place. I have never watched the music video, but always loved the song. Now that song has such a deeper meaning in my eyes with the real examples he used of his journey with his wife and kids. I credit Denise and Alan for working out their issues and making their love work. That was an awesome story!
This post was incredible and before reading I had no idea what their relationship was about! I am a huge fan of Alan Jackson and have been ever since I was a little girl, jamming out to “Chatahoochie” in the truck with my Papaw. I totally agree with you about wanting a relationship that isn’t all peachy and perfect all the time. Relationships are tough, there are ups and downs, but thats how you remember how much you love each other! They are indeed an excellent example of what a relationship should be like and I’m so happy to hear that even though they separated, they are back together and worked things out after all. That love story is so great! Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for this post, Brittney. Your mention of Alan Jackson’s “I Wish I Could Back Up” reminds me of the ingredient that makes most music successful: personal experience, relatable, genuine personal experience. I think this song (and many others of course) just go to show that the most moving songs will continue to be the ones written right from the heart in the midst of the most emotionally turbulent times – times when writing a song just might be the best (and healthiest way) to deal with things. I also am so happy to hear about how they worked things out and got together again after the separation, and I have no doubt that Denise’s deep-rooted faith played a big part in that healing process.
First of all, I loved your references to songs. “Kind of creepy if you asked me, but if she liked it, I love it!” “I Like it, I Love It” is one of my favorite Tim McGraw songs and “Livin’ on Love” is also a favorite of mine. I also agree with you when you said that “Remember When” is fantastic. I think we would get along when it comes to music preferences. As a whole, this was a great blog post, though I do not agree with you on wanting the Jacksons’ marriage. They seem like great people, but that just doesn’t seem ideal to me.
I really loved reading this post. I didn’t know much of Alan Jackson’s story before reading this, but I was really fascinated while reading your description of his entire life, from his career to his home and family life. You did a great job of writing a post that keeps readers interested! I completely agree with you when you say you respect him for being so open and honest when it came to his actions that tore apart his relationship, and it just goes to show that being entirely honest in a relationship will (almost) always be enough to pull through if it’s meant to be.
Who doesn’t love reading about love? And you did a great job portraying it. I think it’s very interesting that you almost “forgive” him for having an affair. Which by all means is understandable! Especially with your explanation. That’s awesome that you did so much research and have learned so much about their specific relationship, after all which is a huge portion of why he writes what he writes. He’s a very emotional writer and song singer, and I think you hit the nail on the head whilst describing the relationship of the two. I can tell in this post that you really do admire their relationship, and that’s what every reader hopes to see…a real connection. Kudos to you, great read.