Short Biography
Ann Wilson and her younger sister, Nancy Wilson first showed the world that women can rock when their band Heart stormed the charts in the '70s with hits like "Crazy on You," "Magic Man," "Barracuda," ‘Straight On," "Even It Up," "Kick It Out" and so many more. They continued topping the charts through the ‘80s and into the ‘90s with huge hits like "These Dreams," "Alone," "What About Love," "If Looks Could Kill," "Never," and a string of other hits that showcased the sisters' enormous talents as both musicians and singers. Along the way, Heart sold more than 30 million records, had 21 top 40 hits, sold out arenas worldwide, and had a profound influence on rock music.
In the mid-'90s, Ann and Nancy returned to Seattle and formed The Lovemongers, with long-time collaborator Sue Ennis and performer Frank Cox. After playing a number of sold-out shows in Seattle, Lovemongers cut Led Zeppelin's "Battle of Evermore" for the triple platinum soundtrack from the movie Singles, which was one of Nancy Wilson's first musical collaborations with her husband, filmmaker (and Singles writer/director) Cameron Crowe. This was followed by their work together on Jerry Maguire, the Grammy and Oscar winning Almost Famous, Vanilla Sky, and Elizabethtown.
After nearly 20 years of working together, each of the Wilson sisters took some time off to start their families and pursue solo projects. Nancy scored films and recorded a solo project, Live from McCabes. She and Cameron became the parents of Billy and Curtis, twin sons now 6 years old. Ann, now the mother of 14-year-old Marie and 7-year-old Dustin, made her theatrical debut in "Teatro Zinzanni," followed by a stint in the NW production of "Vagina Monologues." She also toured the U.S. and Japan with an all-star ensemble company in "Abbey Road: A Tribute to the Beatles."
The sisters reunited as Heart in early 2002, touring extensively to sold-out audiences for three summers, during which time they released a critically acclaimed live concert film on DVD and CD, Heart Alive In Seattle, followed in 2004 by Jupiters Darling, the first new Heart studio album in a decade, produced by Nancy and featuring 15 original songs. Classic Rock magazine hailed Jupiters Darling as a career tour de force, calling it "the only record you need to buy this year." Television appearances on "The Today Show," "Ellen," "Conan O'Brien," "CMT Crossroads (with Wynonna Judd)", and more followed its release. In December 2005, PBS aired a two-hour SoundStage special, showcasing songs from Jupiters Darling as well as many classic Heart hits, also available on DVD (Koch).
In 2006, Heart returns to the road again, in support of their Love Songs project for Legacy Records, a compilation of Heart hits, some in new versions, and a few brand new recordings of Ann and Nancy's favorite covers including Elton John's "Love Song." 2006 will also mark the release of the first ever solo project by Ann Wilson (Rounder Records). Produced by Ben Mink (k.d. lang, BareNaked Ladies), the CD is a collection of songs of social conscience. Several guest artists will lend their performances to this landmark project, including Elton John.
In-depth Biography
Sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson are the creative spark behind Heart, a hard rock group who initially found success in the mid-'70s, only to reach greater heights after engineering a major comeback a decade later. The daughters of a Marine Corps captain, Ann (born June 19, 1950) and Nancy (born March 16, 1954) grew up in both Southern California and Taiwan before the Wilson family settled in Seattle, WA. Throughout their formative years, both were interested in folk and pop music; while Ann never took any formal music lessons as a child (she later learned to play several instruments), Nancy took up guitar and flute. After both sisters spent some time at college, they decided to try their hand as professional musicians, and while Nancy began performing as a folksinger, Ann joined the all-male vocal group Heart.
Based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Heart was actually formed in 1963 by bassist Steve Fossen and brothers Roger Fisher and Mike Fisher; initially dubbed the Army, they later became White Heart before settling on simply Heart at the beginning of the '70s. After her arrival in the group, Ann became romantically involved with guitarist Mike Fisher; when Nancy joined in 1974, she in turn began a relationship with guitarist Roger Fisher. Soon after Nancy's arrival, Mike Fisher retired from active performing to become the band's sound engineer. After gaining a following in Vancouver, Heart was approached by Shelly Siegel, the owner of the Canadian label Mushroom; augmented by keyboardist Howard Leese and drummer Michael Derosier, they recorded their debut album, Dreamboat Annie, in 1975.
After selling more than 30,000 copies north of the border, Mushroom issued the LP in the U.S., where it quickly achieved platinum status on the strength of the hit singles "Crazy on You" and "Magic Man." In 1977, Heart jumped ship to the CBS affiliate Portrait, resulting in a protracted legal battle with Siegel, who in 1978 released the unfinished LP Magazine on Mushroom shortly after the band issued its true follow-up, Little Queen, on Portrait. The single "Barracuda" was another massive hit, and like its predecessor, Little Queen sold over a million copies.
After 1978's Dog & Butterfly, both of the Wilson/Fisher romances ended and Roger Fisher left the group. In 1980, Heart issued Bebe le Strange; following a lengthy U.S. tour, both Fossen and Derosier exited and were replaced by ex-Spirit and Firefall bassist Mark Andes and former Gamma drummer Denny Carmassi. After 1982's Private Audition and 1983's Passionworks slumped, the group was largely written off by industry watchers, and moved to Capitol Records.
In 1985, however, Heart emerged with a self-titled effort that ultimately sold more than five million copies on its way to launching four Top Ten hits: "What About Love?," "Never," the chart-topping "These Dreams," and "Nothin' at All." 1987's Bad Animals continued their comeback success; "Alone" was another number one hit, and both "Who Will You Run To" and "There's the Girl" achieved considerable airplay as well. Brigade, issued in 1990, featured the number two smash "All I Want to Do Is Make Love to You," as well as the Top 25 hits "I Didn't Want to Need You" and "Stranded." In the early '90s, the Wilson sisters took a brief hiatus from Heart to form the Lovemongers, an acoustic quartet fleshed out by Sue Ennis and Frank Cox; in 1992, they issued a four-song EP that included a cover of Led Zeppelin's "The Battle of Evermore." Heart returned in 1993 with Desire Walks On, on which Andes and Carmassi were replaced with bassist Fernando Saunders and drummer Denny Fongheiser. With 1995's The Road Home, Heart enlisted onetime Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones to produce a live, acoustic set reprising hits like "Dreamboat Annie," "Crazy on You," and "Barracuda."
Heart went on hiatus by the late '90s, as the Wilson sisters concentrated on the Lovemongers, issuing a pair of albums: 1997's Whirlygig and 1998's Here Is Christmas. But Heart wasn't completely silent: they were the subject of one of the better episodes of VH1's Behind the Music; a pair of best-of sets were issued (1998's Greatest Hits covered their early classics, while their later years were spotlighted on 2000's Greatest Hits: 1985-1995); and their music continued to pop up in movie soundtracks (2000's The Virgin Suicides, among others). In 1999, Nancy released her first solo album, Live at McCabe's Guitar Shop, and a year later penned the score to her husband Cameron Crowe's hit motion picture Almost Famous, while Ann continued to play with others -- in the summer of 2001, she participated in the A Walk Down Abbey Road: A Tribute to the Beatles tour, which also featured Todd Rundgren, John Entwistle (the Who), and Alan Parsons (the Alan Parsons Project). Heart returned to active recording for Jupiters Darling, released on Sovereign Artists in 2004, and issued Dreamboat Annie Live (a live performance of tracks from the band's debut album, recorded in Los Angeles in 2007) three years later. ~ Jason Ankeny & Greg Prato, All Music Guide
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