Praise for the band Heart

[Cluricaun]

Heart isn’t the female Zep, but they’re tied with Billy Squire for writing the best Zep tune that Zep never wrote. (Barracuda for Heart and Lonley is The Night for Squire).

And better than Bikini Kill? You’re crazy, but that may be because I’ve had a crush on Kathleen Hanna ever since the Sonic Youth video for Bull in the Heather.

[fessie]

@Khadaji

All this time I thought they were singing “All I want to do is make *gloves *with you.” Wow, now it makes more sense.

It was “All I wanna do is eat barbecue” at our house.

Love vintage Heart, though. Absolutely.

I saw them in 1981. John Cougar opened. His performance was much better than theirs, Anne kept going to the side of the stage where someone would put something in her mouth. Throat spray? Drugs? No idea, but she was not having her best night. She always looks sad in photographs, too, never genuinely happy.

[outlierrn]

I was a willow last night in a dream,
I bent down over a clear running stream;
I sang you the song that I heard up above,
and you kept me alive with your sweet flowing love.
hmmm, yes please

[3waygeek]

@Argent Towers

Heart is like the female Led Zeppelin.

Dave Navarro has said that Heart is “Led Zeppelin with hot chicks”; so at least one rocker agrees with you.

[stanger]

I was lucky enough to see the Wilson sisters perform in a smaller venue a few years ago, with no accompanyment - just Ann Wilsons voice and Nancy providing the guitar. It remains my favorite concert ever.

Though Ann had a microphone, with her voice and the acoustics of the theatre, she didn’t really need any amplification to reach the back row. Whether she was singing soft or belting it out, you could feel the power in her voice.

And to watch Nancy Wilson play guitar and rock and move on stage was worth the admission price many times over.

[Jonathan_Chance]

@gaffa

It was their band only in the sense that they were in it. It would not exist except for Kim Fowley. The Wikipedia article in takes issue with the idea that Fowley created the band, but I was a regular reader of Creem, Trouser Press, Crawdaddy and Circus at the time and they definitely were the product of a producer, every bit as much as Bow Wow Wow was created by Malcolm McLaren. Later they learned to play, and like the Monkees, write songs. If Fowley had not put them together, maybe Jett and Ford might have had careers, maybe not.

Heart was always a band, though they did get put through the record company bullshit mill, especially over Ann’s fluctuating weight. Saw her a few years back with Alan Parson, Todd Rundgren, John Entwhistle, and David Pack doing a Beatles Tribute called “A Walk Down Abbey Road” and she was awesome.

Now, I don’t want to put down Heart, because they were a pretty good band.

But Joan Jett, even now, would rip their hearts out and eat then. I speak as a man who saw both of them (Joan and Heart) back in the heyday 80s). She may have gotten a break with the Runaways but it’s not like it lasted long.

After being written off with the implosion of the Runaways she made her own damn luck.

And there’s NEVER been a better riot grrl than Joan. Just never.

[Surbey]

I absolutely love Heart. They’re cover of Immigrant Song from Led Zeppelin is wonderful.

[Astroboy14]

@El_Kabong

Way back in the late '70s, I was personally thanked by Nancy Wilson for buying a ticket to one of their concerts. She happened to be sitting in the ticket office when I walked up and laid my money down. “Thanks”, she said.

What, you were maybe expecting something a little more interesting?

That’s nothin’! I mooned them in their limo once…

ETA: I wasn’t in the limo, they were!

[Green_Bean]

@gaffa

It was their band only in the sense that they were in it. It would not exist except for Kim Fowley. The Wikipedia article in takes issue with the idea that Fowley created the band, but I was a regular reader of Creem, Trouser Press, Crawdaddy and Circus at the time and they definitely were the product of a producer, every bit as much as Bow Wow Wow was created by Malcolm McLaren. Later they learned to play, and like the Monkees, write songs. If Fowley had not put them together, maybe Jett and Ford might have had careers, maybe not.

With all due respect, so what?

Are you nitpicking my grammar (as in calling it “their” band when I should have called it “the first band that they were in”) or are you arguing that the origin of the band somehow means that they couldn’t have been the most ass-kicking all-female band ever?

'Cause, dude…Joan Jett.

And everything that Jonathan Chance said.

Heart was a great band and all. But most badass? Nope.

[CateAyo]

@Euthanasiast

Well, technically they aren’t a girl rock band and never were. The singer and one of the guitarists are female. It’s essentially their band, but during the years no better than half of the band were female.

Having said that, Nancy Wilson is a fantastic guitar player and songwriter. She is indeed legendary.

I agree. Heart is/was fantastic. Anne’s voice was incredible but, for me, Nancy’s guitar work made the sound. Just amazing.

[WordMan]

@Euthanasiast

…Nancy Wilson is a fantastic guitar player and songwriter. She is indeed legendary.

Strongly agree - she is really talented and a great, great rhythm guitar player - a truly underappreciated role within a rock band (speaking as one!).

I don’t think of Heart as a girl Led Zeppelin - I think of them as Heart. IMHO, they, along with Chrissie Hynde were rockers before they were a specific gender. The fact that they were hawt (could I have a bigger crush on either Nancy or Chrissie? I think not ) was bonus, but not central to their appeal.

Joan Jett absolutely falls into this category, too - just a bit later, and without the same songwriting craftsmanship, which I give a lot of weight. When Joan is on, no grrls (oy) rock harder, but her material is weaker overall…IMHO

[Ximenean]

I thought Heart were just that cheesy poodle-haired soft rock band from the 80s, but I saw this Old Grey Whistle Test repeat from 1976 (it’s an old British music show). They were quite different back then, eh? They really went up in my estimation.

[GargoyleWB]

I saw them live in the early '90s as “The Lovemongers” as the opener for a Clinton/Gore campaign stump speech. It was…surreal. They were all into acoustic/folksy stuff then, that wasn’t what they were best at.

hums Barracuda riff
Bumdada bumdada bumdada bumdada wah wah wahhhhhh WAHAHHAHAHHHHHH…

[woodstockbirdybird]

Heart better than Sleater-Kinney or Bikini Kill? Not in my world. If either of those bands ever did anything as flat-out horrible as the corporate rock of “These Dreams” or “Never”, I must have been in a coma. If we’re talking “women rock groups” here, I’d say even The Go-Go’s were better. Beauty and the Beat has more good songs on it than Heart’s entire catalogue. Way better rhythm section, too.