For a band that has struggled to be relevant for the past two decades, Heart sure played with plenty of confidence last night at Blossom. Perhaps the band’s recent (overdue) induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum had something to do with it. Ann Wilson and her guitar slinging sister Nancy Wilson started their 90-minute set with the hard-rocking “Barracuda” and then ratcheted up the energy as they delivered hits such as “What About Love” and “Magic Man.” A by-the-numbers power ballad, “What About Love” benefited from Ann Wilson’s strong vocal performance; she sang it with such fervor, it really came to life. The set featured its share of duds — the acoustic “Dog & Butterfly” suffered from a perky keyboard riff that turned it into something saccharine, and “These Dreams” sounded outdated, even though the duo introduced it as a song that had survived the ‘80s. But the Wilsons and their solid four-piece band ended strong with an inspired rendition of “Crazy on You” that Ann Wilson sang just as powerfully as she did when she recorded it some 35 years ago. In fact, throughout the performance, her voice sounded just as vigorous as it did on the studio albums from the ’70s.
This article appears in Jul 17-23, 2013.
DONT know what show u were at….but Ann and Nancy ROCKED blossom last night…along with bonham…no duds to be found
agreeable summation of the evening except the beginning of the encore did not just “start off slow” it was a beautiful, well executed rendition of ‘battle of evermore’ probably one of my favorite moments of the night.
I’m guessing the reviewer doesn’t know “Battle of Evermore” or he would know that Heart’s version is widely regarded as one of the best covers ever (From the Singles soundtrack in ’92). The song is not typical Zeppelin hard rock, but it’s a classic nonetheless. I’m also guessing the reviewer doesn’t know Heart’s connection to Zeppelin or any history of the band if he’s so baffled that they played the Zeppelin covers while touring with Bonham. Finally, it seems as if the reviewer doesn’t know who Jason Bonham is based on the last paragraph.
I would tend to agree about Dog and Butterfly (not fond of the new keyboard part) and These Dreams (not fond of the song, period).
Just a suggestion for the reviewer: I’d do research before writing future reviews such as this one so you’ll appear to have more knowledge of rock music, especially Led Zeppelin.
As for Jason Bonham – does this reviewer think he has to wait for all the members Led Zeppelin to pass before using their songs and paying tribute to his late Dad? The original band is no longer together and touring (unlike the Stones).
And Jason appears to be in the good graces of the remaining members of Led Zeppelin, after all he has played with them on several occasions as recently as 2007. Last year he was part of the Kennedy Center Honors tribute for the band and Robert Pant was noticeably moved by the tribute by Heart and Jason. So if the remaining members don’t mind, why should you?
BTW, the next time you review and concert, be a little more considerate of those behind you in the front row. You were directly in front of us taking photos and blocking our view. In the future I would suggest you keep your head down or kneel. The rest of paid good money for our tickets to see the concert, not the back of your head.