Ann And Nancy Wilson Are Still “Kicking & Dreaming!”
It’s seems that Valentine’s Day week is the perfect time to talk “Heart!”
Yes, I am a huge Heart fan – partly because they are from my hometown of Seattle, and mostly because they are the greatest sister rock ‘n’ roll act of all time!
Celebrating “Heart” For Valentine’s Week!
Ann and Nancy Wilson are music Icons, and this is a celebration of their music and their lives!
Heart have released more than a dozen albums, selling more than 40 million records worldwide.
This “Wednesday Bookmobile” rocks out to Ann and Nancy’s riveting memoir!
Kicking & Dreaming!
I love the book’s tagline:
Two sisters. Two voices. One Heart.
It’s all here.
The mystery of “Magic Man.” The wicked riff of “Barracuda.” The sadness and beauty of “Alone.” The raw energy of “Crazy On You.” These songs, and so many more, are part of the fabric of American music.
Heart.
Ann and Nancy Wilson.
The only sisters in rock who write their own music and play their own instruments.
Oh, and they could ROCK!
They’ve been at it for decades, and their music is timeless.
The book tells their fascinating story of music, and of a bond between sisters that persevered…it’s a terrific book!
In “Kicking and Dreaming”, they recount a journey that took them from a gypsy-like life as the children of a globe-trotting Marine to the frozen back roads of Vancouver, where they got their start as a band, and all of the great inside stories of that journey through rock -n- roll!
Crazy On You!
This is the one that blew the door off rock music in the 70’s and announced their arrival.
Here they are performing their first big smash hit on Midnight Special in 1977:
Their personal story is riveting. Ann struggled with a childhood stutter, body image, and alcoholism; Nancy suffered the pain of fertility issues and a failed marriage.
You may not know, but Nancy was married to film maker Cameron Crowe, who directed “Jerry Maguire” and the best movie EVER about music, “Almost Famous.” He also wrote the non-fiction book “Fast Times At Ridgemont High” after going undercover at a California high school for a year…
Barracuda!
This is the song that made them superstars….as full of pure rock adrenelin as anything Led Zeppelin did, but channeled through the power of two strong woman….this live performance is from the “Ellen” show, when Heart shows up to play the song live after Ellen tries to play the Guitar Hero version…
Mistral Wind Live!
Here is one of my favorite Heart songs: the classic rock anthem “Mistral Wind”, performed by Heart in 2002 in their home town of Seattle – with an energetic guitar by Nancy Wilson, and the best female vocals in rock by Ann:
Heart Performs “Stairway To Heaven” For Led Zeppelin!
This is one of their latest triumphs: Ann and Nancy Wilson, along with Jason Bonham – son of the late Drummer John Bonham, perform “Stairway to Heaven” for Led Zeppelin!
Also in attendance were President Obama and his wife Michelle!
Wait until you see this incredible performance – with a gospal choir and more! This took place on Dec. 2, 2012 at the Kennedy Center Honors event…enjoy!
The reaction of the members of Led Zeppelin is incredible…what a performance!
In addition to their memoir, Heart also released a great compilation – I own most of their music anyway, but I was drawn to the extensive amount of live and demo material in this….
Strange Euphoria!
Here is a writeup on what makes this collection unique:
“Strange Euphoria” is a 3-CD, 1-DVD set that expands across Heart’s entire recorded legacy, including hits, album sides, live performances, demos and rarities. And rounding out the Wilsons’ legacy are solo selections and a pair by the Lovemongers.”
All together, twenty of the CDs’ fifty-one tracks are previously unreleased, and the DVD serves up a fifty-five minute live performance recorded in 1976 at Washington State University’s television station, KWSU.
The box set covers songs from all thirteen Heart studio albums in a mix of studio, live and demo versions.
Heart’s music is iconic – which is why Kelly Clarkson covers one of their most famous songs on her talk show recently:
Kelly and her band Y’All rock out to one of Ann and Nancy’s most iconic hits!
Check out Kelly’s terrific #Kellyoke performance of “Barracuda!”
As for the Kelly Clarkson Show, Kelly sings a new #Kellyoke song to lead off every single show, so keep watching!
Keep up with everything new on the show here:
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/KellyClarksonTV
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/KellyClarksonShow/
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I love music, and always interested in the stories about how the music was made – read this story…and listen to some classic Heart at the same time!
Categories: 70's Music, Art, Books / Media, Classic Rock, kelly clarkson, Led Zeppelin, Music, Pop Culture, Talent/Celebrities, TV Show
johnrieber 
Wow! They rock in a world that was male dominated. I love Stairway to Heaven.
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Two iconic empowered women in a world with far too few of them!
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Indeed!
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Great tribute, John. Those girls are amazing performers.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Pete, they are from my hometown, and they have served in a tough business…oh, and they have great songs! Thanks for sharing!
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Fantastic story about two incredible musicians. If you’ve never watched the Behind the Music segment about the Wilson sisters, it’s a must-watch. I love that you included the video of Mistral Wind. I watch that at least once a month. The tribute to Led Zeppelin is one of the most incredible performances I’ve ever seen. All those bowler hats! I love to see the politicians getting their groove on.
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Pete, agree with all of your comments…the bowler hats are such a great “capper” to the performance, and the reaction of Led Zeppelin is so touching…”Mistral Wind” seems to be their “Stairway” homage while still completely unique and original as well…thanks for commenting!
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Wow, lots of info I never knew about theme when j think of them I think of a powerful
Musical force that can’t be stopped! Loved their playing for Led Zeppelin!
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Yes, they are two very empowered omen who blazed a trail…and that live version is incredible isn’t it?
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yes!
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I met Ann and Nancy in 1978 in Sacramento. I owned a jewelry store then, and a friend of mine was a concert producer. Pyramid Productions. For his big stars he would have me make a solid gold pendant of his logo, a cut out pyramid and engrave their names on it. It was fun, good money, and I got to meet some big names, my favorite was Elvin Bishop. I’ve often wondered if any of them actually wore them.
I did see Kelly sing Barracuda, gave me chills, very Heart. I record and watch The Kelly Clarkson Show now, gee I wonder why???
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HA! That’s great that you met them – I love that she make Seattle proud!
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A remarkable band, John. Barracuda is the song I know the best; it was incredibly popular when I was in high school. This book sounds very interesting.
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They’ve had a great life…they are two strong, empowered women in a tough business, so I really admire them…and of course,they are from my hometown of Seattle! Thanks for reading and commenting!
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I just watched it again and my eyes are leaking. Watching the faces of Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones is so moving.
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Darlene, thanks for the comment…their reactions are so emotional…Jimmy Page so happy and Plant welling up!
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I love these two, great sound and fabulous performers. I could watch the Starway to Heaven video over and over. Thanks!
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Thank you for reading and commenting!
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There were so many things in this post that I didn’t know! I really like their Stairway to Heaven cover.
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Looks like an excellent read, John. And I see that Harper Audio has Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson narrating the audiobook. Will be putting this on the stack. Thanks for the heads up. 🙂
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They had a great perspective as two women in a male-dominated world at the time they broke through…it’s a great read and I can imagine a great listen with them telling the story…and the video I included of their live performance of “Stairway To Heaven” in front of Led Zeppelin is really incredible! Thanks for the comment!
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