Jules Anna Jones has been a working songwriter for many years. She is known for her eclectic style and thoughtful lyrics. Jules is as comfortable with an alternative rock tune, as she is with a complex string arrangement and she doesn’t care that it makes her hard to classify. “There are so many ways to express yourself in music,” she says. “Why would you limit yourself to just one thing?”

Jules’ CD entitled VIEW, reflects many different outlooks on life. “It came together at a time when I stopped to take another look at where I am and where I thought I’d be. We see the world so much differently as we age and the things we value the most change.” VIEW is honest, straightforward, and not always entirely serious.

The song CLICHE’ won the prestigious USA Songwriting contest in 2007. The song placed first in the Alternative/Rock category and 3rd overall out of 33,700 entries. This led to a Songwriter’s Showcase at SXSW in Austin, Texas the following spring and the song later finished in the top 100 of the Billboard Worldwide Songwriting Contest.

Jules has also composed several movie scores, including Jeff Daniels’ last indie film. Many people don’t know it, but in addition to being an actor, Jeff has recorded several albums. Jules is honored that she had the opportunity to work on three of his albums and to have sung with him on the last two. “He’s a good writer, especially his comic songs. I always enjoy working with him. He encourages me and continues to inspire me.”

While working with Harvest Creative Services in 2006, Jules wrote a song called POSSIBILITIES that was recorded by Taylor Hicks a few days after he won American Idol. The song was used by Ford for one of their largest ever television campaigns. She adds, “Getting a glimpse inside the American Idol machine was quite an experience.”

Jules has kept busy writing music for various compilation CDs and is currently working on several new projects. She says, “I love spending hours alone working in my home studio. One result of this is my new continuous album, THE REPLAY PROJECT, to which I will keep adding new songs over the next year or so. THE REPLAY PROJECT is her take on classic rock tunes, mostly from the 70′s. “There is so much great music out there. I thought it would be fun to put my own twist on these tunes.” The first Replay songs will appear on Jules’ website in May 2012. Later this year, she will release a new EP of original songs called OTHER AVENUES.

www.julesannajones.com
www.facebook.com/julesannajonesmusic

By John Davenport

Vivienne Tanya Stephens, better known by her stage name Tanya Stephens, is one of Jamaica’s most influential reggae artists. She emerged in the late 1990s. Stephens is best known for her hit “Yuh Nuh Ready Fi Dis Yet” — the single was later featured on the Reggae Gold album and “It’s a Pity”, which gained her significant international recognition.

Stephens was born in Kingston, Jamaica and grew up in St Mary and St Ann, attending Zion Hill and Ocho Rios primary schools and St Mary High. Her album ‘Rebelution’ was released in August 2006, and the first single “These Streets” was a number one hit in the Caribbean staying on Tempo’s Chart at number one for more than four weeks.

Tanya’s early material was lyrically typical of dancehall and drew comparisons with Lady Saw, along with whom she was proclaimed “the top female artistes in Jamaica” in 1998 by the Washington Post, but later developed beyond what she called “the same old four topics” to ‘reality’ themes. Her latest album ‘Infallible’ was released in 2010.

—————————————————————————————————————————————————–

Q. When did you first realize that you had a talent for music?

A. I never ‘realized’… just moved seamlessly from poem and story writing to songwriting to singing and kept doing it I guess.

Q. Did you receive any formal musical training or are you self taught?

A. I had no formal training, just picked up info arbitrarily along the way. Of course observing others in the industry was of immense help. My total comes as a result of a lot of calculations based on my experiences with other artistes and musicians. I think I learnt more of what not to do!

Q. When I listen to your music, I hear many styles that I feel are eloquently mixed with Reggae like Soul, American Blues, and Latin. Tell us about your influences and your approach to your writing.

A. I listen to a wide variety of sounds, and the music I make ultimately reflects that. Everything is inspiration when I’m writing, and my loyalty is first to the integrity of the song. All else comes after.

Q. Are most of your songs based on real life experiences?

A. All the songs are reality, whether they are my experiences or the experiences of others in my immediate surrounding. Every perspective is mine, even opposing ones. I honestly believe I have an obligation to my development to examine every issue from every angle.

Q. What kind of feedback (if any) do you receive when you take on social issues like homophobia, infidelity, and drugs?

A. The conversation has taken many turns, but all encouraging and it’s really good that we are talking. There are many groups working to effect social change, and my voice has been welcomed as an addition to what’s already taking place.

Q. Are you currently working on a new album? If so, what is the expected release?

A. My upcoming album ‘Guilty’ is slated for release in 2012. The exact date has not been set yet.

Q. Any plans for a tour in the US?

A. Touring plans are being put in place for 2013. This includes the U.S.

www.youtube.com/user/TanyaStephensMusic1
www.twitter.com/Tanya_Stephens

Mix some mesmerizing, bluesy guitar licks, ala Robin Trower with awesome harmonies, pour in a sizzling portion of Heart’s Ann Wilson-influenced vocals, and add an inspirational dose of ballsy blues rock in the vein of Bonnie Raitt and you’ll get a smoking, hot serving of ‘Retro Rock’ , that is the essence of Garrett, formerly known as Snakes-n-Angels.

They are a veteran rock group from eastern North Carolina. 2008 is the first ‘official’ year of Garrett!!

They have 2 strong, dynamic vocalists, which gives the listener a variety of styles to listen to. Their music combines an edgy modern rock sound with a flair for the bluesy style as well as their own unique flavor from the South.

Nannette Garrett goes up in the stratosphere with her dynamic, powerful lead vocals, while keeping the low end rumbling with her bass guitar. Her biggest influence is from the Wilson sisters of Heart for songwriting and especially from Ann Wilson on inspiring her singing style since the age of 12. She still loves listening to Heart, Journey, Whitesnake, Styx, Rush, KISS, and many great 70′s rock groups.

William Garrett provides bluesy and soulful, lead guitar work as well as a 2nd set of strong, powerful rock vocals. His biggest guitar influence is Robin Trower for his wonderful bluesy guitar work. He has several rock band influences, including many 70′s groups like Rush, KISS, Journey, Styx, Scorpions, UFO, Pat Travers, and too many more to list.

In their career, Snakes-n-Angels played in venues all over the southeast US as well as DC, NYC, and Los Angeles. From the Hard Rock Cafe’ in Atlanta to Otto’s Shrunken Head in NYC and many, many bars and clubs in their home state of NC. Their 2000 debut CD, ‘Scenes From a 100 Acre Wood’, was played on over 165 college radio stations in 2000 and 2001.

Their 2002 release, ‘Back 2 The Weasel Ranch’ was played on over 62 college stations and is still on several internet radio broadcasts. Over the last 8 years, they have appeared on many compilation CDs in different states and won various internet music awards for favorite songs and vocals. William Garrett released his solo debut in late 2004. You can hear all of his songs on www.cdbaby.com/all/hoot.

In 2005, Nannette and William recorded a tribute song, ‘A Cry For Love’, (dedicated to the Hurricane Katrina survivors) at Diesel Productions, a recording studio in Durham, North Carolina. They were accompanied on drums by Kim Ramsey and boards by Terri Dellinger. Recording a song for the people of New Orleans was the brainstorming idea of Mrs. Dellinger and her music students. A Williamston native and Raleigh music teacher, she had earlier recorded a CD with her students for Tsunami victims. They raised over $5,000 from the sales of that CD.

Her husband, Benny Dellinger, guitarist of Nantucket, recorded, engineered, and produced both of the recordings. He recorded 1,200 of her music students singing the chorus of Garrett’s new song as well as Josh Groban’s ‘You Raise Me Up’.

Garrett held a concert on Tuesday, October 25th, 2005 at the Durant Road Elementary School in Raleigh. Performing boards was Mrs. Dellinger and on drums was David Clark of Washington. Over 250 people were in attendance and they sold all of the CDs there that night. About 100 students ranging in ages from 5-11, grades K-5, were there to sing ‘A Cry For Love’ with the band and also sign language and sing ‘You Raise Me Up’. Garrett performed Love’s Hard To Find, Girl Like You and 2 Ships from their latest CDs. The school’s art teacher, Karen Byers, designed and painted the art for the CD cover. The original piece was auctioned after the concert for $125.

‘A Cry For Love’ was the No. 17 song for Jan. 2008 at the Outlaw’s online radio station. It was in the company of Aerosmith, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Van Zant, Molly Hatchet, and others.

All of their CDs are available on CDBaby.com as well as on many, many digital sites including I-Tunes, Rhapsody, Amazon.com, BestBuy.com, Napster, Weedtracks, etc…

They are currently working on writing new songs for a CD to record later this year.

www.garrettband.com
www.facebook.com/officialGARRETT
www.twitter.com/garrettband

 By John Davenport

Upon hearing the unique and refreshing sound of Nicki Bluhm, it becomes immediately clear why she is in the midst of a breakout year. Nicki has filled a void in music with her brand of vintage-tinged rocking country soul — music that’s like an enchanting friend you’ve known for a short while but feels like you’ve known forever.

Nicki’s story began at a New Year’s Eve party when she sang an impromptu blues song that caught the attention of musician/producer Tim Bluhm (The Mother Hips). With Tim’s encouragement Nicki began to write songs and perform in public, and soon was earning fans of her own. They went on to record Nicki’s debut album, Toby’s Song (2008), which appeared on Jambase’s top ten albums of the year. Nicki and Tim were married shortly after and formed her band with childhood friend and guitar player, Deren Ney. The band continued to grow with the addition of Steve Adams on bass (ALO), Dave Mulligan on rhythm guitar and drummer Mike Curry. Nicki has since shared the stage with Chris Robinson, Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Steve Kimock, Jackie Greene, Pegi Young, Josh Ritter, and many others.

Her sophomore album, Driftwood (2011), shows an impressive expansion of Nicki’s natural talent and is well into its second pressing. The sounds range from the AM magic of Linda Ronstadt to the charming duets of Johnny and June Cash to smokey Memphis soul. Since Driftwood’s release, Nicki has become the “It Girl” of the San Francisco music scene — performing with her band, “The Gramblers”; as a duo with her husband Tim; and as a guest artist with an array of revered performers. Her warm, strong voice and striking presence have undeniable appeal, confirmed by her sensational performances and rousing reception from music lovers at every show. .

—————————————————————————————————————————————————–

JOHN:  There is not a lot of information out there on you.

NICKI: No, there’s not much.

JOHN: Are you originally from the San Francisco area?

NICKI: Yes I am. I am from the east area, which is just across the bay bridge.

JOHN: With your wide vocal range and impeccable timing, have you ever had any formal training?

NICKI: Oh no, I haven’t. I just started singing professionally a couple of years ago, if you can even call it that. That’s what I do now as my main career, but no, no professional training.

JOHN: So it’s all just natural?

NICKI: Yep, that’s right.

JOHN: That is amazing! I noticed with your timing, you are dead on with everything that you’ve done!

NICKI: Well thank you very much! That is a nice complement.

JOHN: In your bio, it mentions your childhood friend Deren Ney. Have you two ever performed together in the past?

NICKI: Yeah, we’ve known each other for a long time. We were in grade school together. When I first started playing music I was a solo act and I found myself in some pretty rowdy bars. I realized that I wanted someone else to accompany me. I knew Deren was a very good guitar player and I asked him to play with me. We then formed a duo. Later we added my husband Tim Bluhm, Steve Adams, Dave Mulligan, and Mike Curry to the band. It was all a pretty organic progression.

JOHN: So how long have you been performing and when did you decide to become a musician?

NICKI: We started playing as a band in 2008, but it wasn’t really until our second album in 2011 that I got more serious about doing it full time. We put out our record “Driftwood” in February 2011. Response to the record was really positive and it ignited a fire in me to go forward with this. We started going on the road more in support of that record.

JOHN: It is a good record. The album “Driftwood” has a heavy country feel to it. Are there any plans in the future to have a little more rock and soulful feel to your music?

NICKI: Yes, county is very underlying presence in our music. We definitely have a lot of rock influences too.

JOHN: When I listened to the song “I Wanna Be Your Mama”, I felt like I was driving through the Tennessee hills.

NICKI: Awe cool!

JOHN: When I listen to your tone, I hear a little bit of Bonnie Raitt, Patsy Cline, and Linda Ronstadt. But, I also hear some Sammy Hagar in your tone. Has anybody ever said that to you?

NICKI: No, that’s the first! I’ll have to check more of him out.

JOHN: The “van sessions” are pretty damn cool, how did you guys come up with that?

NICKI: Well, you know we do a lot of driving and we are in a van literally. Then, one day our bass player brought along his ukulele and started signing a song. One of the band members wasn’t with us so we decided to put it on YouTube and send it to him. Our fans started watching and it was a great way to connect with home. We did about seventeen of them, but for whatever reason, this Hall & Oates one caught everyone’s attention.

JOHN: I think it was the kudzu that caught on.

NICKI: Yeah, you think so!

JOHN: Do you guys use any of that in your live performances?

NICKI: Sometimes we do, it depends. Usually if we’re touring, we will do the van session that we did that day because it’s fresh and it’s fun. It’s a nice little release from the regular stuff.

JOHN: Last but not least, what is in the near future for Nicki Bluhm and the Gramblers?

NICKI: The future for now is staying out on the road. We have a pretty busy schedule set for the spring and summer coming up.

JOHN: Is there anything else you would like to add or any advice you would like to give to young ladies starting out in music?

NICKI: If you want something, you just have to be brave and go for it. It’s scary, but if you’re doing what you love to do, it’s a good way to live life.

JOHN: Well thank you Ms. Bluhm!

NICKI: Thank you guys, good talking to you!

Tour dates can be found at www.nickibluhm.com

Abir Lillman (born 22 June 1972): Is a Swedish singer, musician and composer in the Swedish Gothrock band Madness of the Night.

In 2001 Abir Lillman and Daniel Lillman had started a band with the name Erotic Chant. “Between Pleasure and Pain” album was released under the band’s name. The song “Dance Goth Mix” has been played in few nightclubs, radio stations and was number one on Alternative section on Mp3.com.

Erotic Chant continued under another name The Anabelle then it was cancelled. In November 2011 Abir Lillman started a solo project alone with some songs, then in January 2012 Madness of the Night band was created Abir Lillman vocalist, composer, lyrics and Daniel Lillman Music and Production.

Early Life:

Abir Lillman was born and raised in Beirut, Lebanon. It was a military like upbringing home. She had a very tough childhood, teenage and adulthood in a very reserved Arabic culture. Being a Goth rocker, atheist and feminist she was not accepted in the society, the country or by her family.

Abir Lillman started creating music at age 22. Her first song was “Rape Stories Part One” which is a true story. Written In my Soul and Savage. They were all recorded in a low budget studio. The mobbing and harassment lead her to meet a Swedish man who helped Abir to move out of Lebanon and start new in Sweden. It was a love relationship and musical based one since both Abir and Daniel are artists.

In 2012 Abir Lillman composed and wrote “Oppression” which is a song against oppression in the name of religion and cultural ideologies. It was a song to spread to other women to break the chains of fear “I’m not scared anymore, I’m not afraid anymore, society of oppression” is a sung again and again. The song speaks about depressed women in a world full of oppression.

“In my Terror Room” is another post punk feministic song that is composed and written by Abir Lillman. It’s about the agony of being called a whore, stupid and bad names by an Arabic male dominated society. “In My Terror Room” is about the hole that a woman has to go through in this society and that she has to swallow the pain again and again. The screaming in her voice, rage is what Abir wanted the listener to hear.

“She is the Demon” is also another feministic song: Abir tries to kill in her dream every man that abused her. The song’s beginning is about a girl who never had a happy life. She is walking on pain. Then she becomes the Demon and kills every man that tormented her one by one.

“Theatre of Life” album is an album of chapters in life. A little girl’s dream – will she commit suicide or sing the story of her life of every terror room. Is it the reality or the Madness she has lived? Madness of the Night’s “Theatre of Life” album is expected all to be released in the summer.

Website:
www.madnessofthenight.com

Facebook
www.facebook.com/abirlillman

For nearly four decades Ann and Nancy Wilson have been making music as Heart. They’ve sold over 35 million albums, played to millions of fans worldwide, and in 2011 were nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. But despite that supersized career, their songs are ultimately intimate, small conversations between Ann and Nancy and their audience.

There have been hundreds of those conversations, hundreds of those songs, over thirteen albums. And over the decades there have even been several “best-of,” or “greatest hits” albums issued. This set, however, represents the first time Ann and Nancy have curated a collection of their work, and it is the only time they’ve opened up their vaults for demos and rarities never heard by the public.

The songs that follow, some familiar and some new, continue the long conversation between Ann and Nancy and their fans. To annotate and explain how these songs were first crafted, and what they mean, it seemed Ann and Nancy could tell the story best. Here is their guided tour through the Heart vaults in their own words.

 — Charles R. Cross

CD 1

1. Through Eyes And Glass (by Ann Wilson & The Daybreaks)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music (ASCAP)

Recorded January 9, 1969 at Audio Recording, Inc., Seattle, WA

Released as Topaz 45 #1312

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: This track was our first original recorded song. It came out on the Topaz label in 1968, and only sold a handful of copies, but it was the start of our career. We recorded this in a tiny studio in downtown Seattle under the Monorail. It may as well have been Abbey Road, because we’d never been in any recording studio before. The session came about because we were helping my friend Chris Blaine with a country band. That band only had a few songs, and there was a little time left in the day they’d booked, so we cut three covers, and snuck in this original song of our own.

NANCY WILSON: When the record came out, they left my name off the songwriting credit. They also misspelled the name of the band. But it was our welcome to the music business!

2. Magic Man (demo)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson)

Sony/ATV Tunes LLC (ASCAP)

Recorded 1975 at Can-Base Studios, Vancouver, BC

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

NANCY WILSON: This demo is the concept, the story, and the melody of “Magic Man,” but before the “rock” had been kicked into it. It is like a folk song in its infancy. Folk music was a side the band always had, even in those early club days. Ann sounds like she’s about ten-years-old on this version.

ANN WILSON: This was with Howard Leese at the controls, at Can-Base Studios in Vancouver, British Columbia, before Mike Flicker had been brought in to produce us. Howard was a staff producer in those days, and it wasn’t until a year later that Howard joined the band. This was a very rough demo we did so we could get approved to do a “real” demo for Mushroom Records, which was a tiny label in Canada in that day. This is my singing without anyone coaching me in any way; I sang it like a girl in a choir would sing it. The song’s lyrics, though, were straight out of my life — I had written them just a week before. The feelings I was expressing were happening at that moment. When I listen to this now, I can hear a young girl who is nervous, but also one who is deadly serious about what the song is about. This may be one of the most unselfconscious things we ever recorded.

3. How Deep It Goes (demo)

(A. Wilson)

Sony/ATV Tunes LLC (ASCAP)

Recorded 1975 at Can-Base Studios, Vancouver, BC

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: This is the first song I wrote for Dreamboat Annie. I wrote it, like “Magic Man,” about my boyfriend Michael Fisher. That day Michael had gone out to do more endless errands involving our equipment.  While he was gone, I felt lonely, and wrote this to show him how I felt about our relationship. I played it for him on guitar when he came back. This version here is our later studio demo, but it is still very raw, and new. Nancy and our guitar player Roger Fisher added much to this song, and their interplay made it work. Like all of our early recordings, this is organic, with real instruments, and no bullshit.

4. Crazy On You (demo)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – R. Fisher)

Sony/ATV Tunes LLC (ASCAP)

Recorded 1975 at Can-Base Studios, Vancouver, BC

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: I presented these lyrics to Mike Flicker, and he liked them, and so we cut this demo. Nancy’s guitar on this track is what I think really set her on the planet as a guitarist of record. Her acoustic is the signature of “Crazy On You” to me.

NANCY WILSON: This is what I’d call aggressive acoustic playing and that, together with Roger’s electric riffing, was a big part of our sound. When you add in Ann’s voice, that’s the troika of what I think was early Heart.

5. Dreamboat Annie (Fantasy Child) + Dreamboat Annie Reprise (edit)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson)

Sony/ATV Tunes LLC (ASCAP)

Recorded and mixed August 1975 at Can-Base Studios, Vancouver, BC

Produced by Mike Flicker

From the album Dreamboat Annie (Mushroom MRS-5005)

(P) 1976 Capitol Records, LLC. All rights reserved.

Courtesy of Capitol Records, LLC, under license from EMI Music Marketing

ANN WILSON: We wrote this when we were back visiting our parents in Bellevue, Washington. It started off as a Beach Boys-type song, but also was influenced by Harry Nilsson, and the Moody Blues, who were favorites of ours, too. We did three different versions of this track for the album: one had a banjo feel; another was orchestral; and there was a slow and easy one. We split the various takes up on the released album, but this version here combines them together for the first time.

6. Love Alive

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – R. Fisher)

Strange Euphoria Music / Universal Music – MGB Songs / Know Music (ASCAP)

Recorded and mixed 1977 at Kaye-Smith Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Mike Flicker

From the album Little Queen (Portrait JR 34799)

(P) 1977 Sony Music Entertainment

NANCY WILSON: This was an ongoing jam that Roger and I came up with as we were, literally, playing guitar walking through fields. We’d play guitar together everywhere, all the time, and sometimes it was just for our joy. Sometimes, like this, actual songs would come out of those walks. This has a particularly strong gypsy element, both in the music, and in the fact that with constant touring we were living the life of gypsies as well. We were also big fans of Led Zeppelin’s “The Battle Of Evermore,” which we covered during early Heart shows, and later in the Lovemongers. That ancient haunting was a sound we were always searching for.

7. Sylvan Song

(N. Wilson – R. Fisher)

Know Music / Universal Music – MGB Songs (ASCAP)

Recorded and mixed 1977 at Kaye-Smith Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Mike Flicker

From the album Little Queen (Portrait JR 34799)

(P) 1977 Sony Music Entertainment

NANCY WILSON: This track always struck me as flower child, hippie, authentic, and pure. Those were our intentions at the time. We recorded some of these sound effects at the Pike Place Market in the center of Seattle, and you can hear dogs barking in the background. Like much of the material from this era, we were greatly affected by the caravan nature of our touring lives, constantly travelling, and setting up temporary homes, only to move on as soon as we’d settled in.

ANN WILSON: The coins you can hear hitting the cup were recorded on a soundstage next to Kaye Smith Studios in Seattle, which later became Studio X. We experimented with many different denominations of coins for hours. Some of our sessions were difficult, but this one was nothing but joyful and fun.

8. Dream Of The Archer

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – R. Fisher)

Know Music / Strange Euphoria Music / Universal Music – MGB Songs (ASCAP)

Recorded and mixed 1977 at Kaye-Smith Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Mike Flicker

From the album Little Queen (Portrait JR 34799)

(P) 1977 Sony Music Entertainment

ANN WILSON: “Dream Of The Archer” is our own little tale of yore. Back then, everyone was reading Zen And The Art Of Archery, and we crafted the song to sound magical…otherworldly, somehow spiritual in that ’70s rockgypsy way. It was a great place for mandolins and lots of soaring backup harmonies. You wouldn’t hear a song like this now. But then, you wouldn’t have heard another song like this then.

9. White Lightning And Wine (live at the Aquarius)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson)

Sony/ATV Tunes LLC (ASCAP)

Recorded June 1, 1976 at the Aquarius Tavern, Seattle, WA

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: This was one of the cornerstones of our live set during this era, as it was a funky song that worked great in a club. The lyrics, though, addressed what we felt was rock’s frequent inhumanity. But when we played this live, any meaning we intended was lost to most audiences, who simply danced. It was ironic, but I’m not sure our crowd understood how ironic it was…that it was really a rant.

10. Barracuda (live)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – R. Fisher – M. Derosier)

Strange Euphoria Music / Universal Music – MGB Songs / Know Music / Of the Roses Music

(ASCAP)

Recorded July 15, 1977 at Universal Amphitheatre, Los Angeles, CA

Broadcast October 1, 1978 on the BBC’s “London Wavelength Concert Hour”

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

NANCY WILSON: This song is just a great, galloping steed. You can hear the energy in it, live particularly. When we play it in concert, it’s always more self-propelling, as if the energy is about to break loose. The recorded version we first cut for the LP had energy as well, but live it has always been off the charts.

ANN WILSON: This version of “Barracuda” was recorded live in 1977 at the Universal Amphitheatre in LA. At that time the Amphitheatre was still open to the sky, and the music from the stage would bounce all around the North Hollywood hills. Bob Hope was known for calling down from his house about the noise. He must have been gnashing his teeth the night this was recorded. This version was broadcast in England in 1978 on “London Wavelength Concert Hour.”

11. Little Queen

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – R. Fisher – S. Fossen – H. Leese – M. Derosier)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music / Elbow Lips Music / Of the Roses Music / Universal Music – MGB Songs (ASCAP) / Primal Energy Music / Songs of Universal Inc. (BMI)

Recorded and mixed 1977 at Kaye-Smith Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Mike Flicker

From the album Little Queen (Portrait JR 34799)

(P) 1977 Sony Music Entertainment

NANCY WILSON: There has always been a duality to Heart, but it was never stronger than in the early years. “Little Queen” straddles our duality more than any of our songs. The middle part of the song gets very aching, and melancholy, and then it makes a stylistic shift, and becomes kind of raunchy. Then it slips back to a banshee thing. We wrote this in a democratic fashion, and everyone in the band put ideas together. There is a playfulness to the bass and drums. It was art by committee at work.

ANN WILSON: The rhythm section — of bass player Steve Fossen, and drummer Michael Derosier — really shine on this. It shows Derosier’s character, and his versatility. He was great at playing Led Zeppelin, but he was also versatile, as “Little Queen” shows.

12. Kick It Out

(A. Wilson)

Strange Euphoria Music (ASCAP)

Recorded and mixed 1977 at Kaye-Smith Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Mike Flicker

From the album Little Queen (Portrait JR 34799)

(P) 1977 Sony Music Entertainment

ANN WILSON: “Kick It Out” is a pretty straight-ahead rock song, in the classic sense, simple like “Johnny B. Goode.”

NANCY WILSON: Ann came up with this song on her own. Usually, when she wrote songs, they were romantic, but “Kick It Out” is all sass. After she wrote this, she played it for the band, but kept saying it was too simple, and that we shouldn’t record it. But the band kept at her. She kept calling the song “The Rooster’s Hindquarters,” because it was this song that she didn’t think was worth anything. We almost didn’t do it, since Ann won’t be coerced into doing anything she doesn’t want. But the song had an effect on her as well. She finally gave in to her own song, just as we all had.

13. Here Song (demo)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson)

Sony/ATV Tunes LLC (ASCAP)

Recorded 1976 at Can-Base Studios, Vancouver, BC

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

NANCY WILSON: The first time Ann played this song for me it floored me. It was at our parents’ house at Christmas — she had either written all, or part of it, that morning. It was an instant favorite, and seemed to come into the world completely formed. It was like a dewdrop, a perfect little song. I just added some extra guitar when we recorded it later. On this demo, Ann is playing guitar too. It’s a lesser-known fact that Ann plays guitar well, and this demo demonstrates that.

14. Heartless (demo)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson)

Sony/ATV Tunes LLC (ASCAP)

Recorded 1976 at Kaye-Smith Studios, Vancouver, BC

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

NANCY WILSON: Once we started touring, we struggled to find extended time to take off to write. So we began taking a reel-to-reel with us when we did soundchecks, and we worked on new songs. Mike Flicker recorded this demo at a soundcheck one day. You can really hear Elton John’s influence on Ann’s singing on this song. We were both totally gone for Elton in that era. She’s almost flirting with an Elton accent as she sings this.

15. Dog & Butterfly (acoustic demo)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – S. Ennis)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1978 at Sea West Studios, Seattle, WA

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: This was written at a house that I had on Lake Washington, near Seattle. It was a spring day. I looked out the window, and saw my English sheepdog Moffa chasing a butterfly. It was one of those beautiful, spring Seattle days, when the sun is just out, and winter is over.

NANCY WILSON: We originally recorded this on a little cassette recorder I had that you had to keep pressing “play” over and over to get to operate. Ann, Sue Ennis, and myself were all just sitting there in Ann’s writing room. Sue is our best friend from when we were teenagers.

ANN WILSON: That was the first time Sue, Nancy, and I had collaborated as songwriters. I had the body of the words, the title, and as a threesome we fleshed and honed it out. It was a big turning point for us as songwriters. Here was our best friend Sue, an academic, someone who had shared all the ups and downs of our lives for a dozen turbulent years, and who worshipped John and Paul, Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell, and Bernie Taupin as we did. She was the perfect songwriting partner for us at the same time.

16. Straight On

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – S. Ennis)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1978 at Sea West Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Mike Flicker, Heart and Michael Fisher

From the album Dog & Butterfly (Portrait FR 35555)

(P) 1978 Sony Music Entertainment

ANN WILSON: By this time were going down to visit Sue often in the Bay Area, where she was going to UC Berkeley. We’d take a suite at the Mark Hopkins Hotel, and hole up for the weekend and write. With this, we were trying to get a funky “Heard It Through the Grapevine”-type beat going, heavy on tom. This was one song where the concept, the lyrics, and the groove all came together simultaneously. We went in with nothing, and we came out with this.

NANCY WILSON: That was the real start of the mighty three — Ann, Sue, and I — as songwriters. We were experimenting with songs that had a groove. We weren’t taking ourselves as seriously as we had. We were trying to find fun in both the beat, and the song creation.

17. Nada One

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – S. Ennis)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1978 at Sea West Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Mike Flicker, Heart and Michael Fisher

From the album Dog & Butterfly (Portrait FR 35555)

(P) 1978 Sony Music Entertainment

NANCY WILSON: The three of us continued to go on songwriting retreats to various places. One of those places was Ocean Shores, Washington, where a friend of our parents had a rustic cabin with no hot water, and plastic on the windows. We wrote this song with a wood fire burning in the background. We recorded the demo on a little battery-operated cassette recorder that wasn’t working well. You had to keep your finger on the play button for playback, because it was partially broken. Sue’s family owned this Hammond “Piper Auto Cord” keyboard system we nicknamed the “Fun Machine.” It also had started breaking, and it made these trippy sounds when it did. It was a machine in distress, too.

ANN WILSON: We had driven there in a new Cadillac Michael Fisher and I had just bought. When we went to leave after that writing weekend, all the batteries in the fancy car were dead, and we had to call for a tow. My new car was yet another machine in distress.

CD 2

1. Bebe le Strange

(A. Wilson – S. Ennis – N. Wilson – R. Fisher)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music / Universal Music – MGB Songs / Sheer Music (ASCAP)

Recorded and mixed 1979-1980 at Kaye-Smith Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Mike Flicker, Connie and Howie

From the album Bebe le Strange (Epic FE 36371)

(P) 1980 Sony Music Entertainment

ANN WILSON: This was another song that came out of our Bay Area writing sessions with Sue. We had picked her up in Berkeley, and we were driving to the Mark Hopkins. We saw a sign for a bar called “Jacques Le Strange,” and that inspired the title. Letters from our fans inspired the lyrics. There were so many letters that had the same sentiment, and we boiled them into this one song.

NANCY WILSON: The lyrics became about a character, and we gave her a moniker. So many of the letters said, “Thanks for the courage.” It’s what they call “empowerment” today. It was very cool to have that acknowledged by our fans. And it was even nicer that it seemed that the fans understood us.

2. Silver Wheels II

(N. Wilson)

Know Music (ASCAP)

Recorded and mixed 1979-1980 at Kaye-Smith Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Mike Flicker, Connie and Howie

From the album Bebe le Strange (Epic FE 36371)

(P) 1980 Sony Music Entertainment

NANCY WILSON: I was trying to learn more classical-style guitar, but I had no time. I only ended up taking two lessons. This song was a result of me chasing the classic mode that I wanted Heart to have, and my two classical lessons. I wanted us to be the most versatile rock band in the history of rock. But this song was not what you’d expect. It’s the unexpected, which is the reason that the best of Heart worked so well. On the album, this song is an intro to “Break,” but here it is by itself.

3. Even It Up

(A. Wilson – S. Ennis – N. Wilson)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music / Sheer Music (ASCAP)

Recorded and mixed 1979-1980 at Kaye-Smith Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Mike Flicker, Connie and Howie

From the album Bebe le Strange (Epic FE 36371)

(P) 1980 Sony Music Entertainment

NANCY WILSON: “Even It Up” was a jam that was going to be another acoustic intro piece I’d written for another song. I was trying to make this sort of riff one of my signatures. At the time, this was my latest idea for an instrumental. I was playing it for Ann and Sue, and they started playing along. It wasn’t what I expected. Ann was playing bass, Sue guitar, and I had a drum machine that we called “Ringo.” Ringo was yet another machine in distress – he had only one beat that really rocked, and this was it. We started playing, and we kept playing, and we could not stop. We did that groove all day, the rest of the night, and the next day.

ANN WILSON: Then, we needed a song for the groove. The lyrics weren’t even in a notebook, yet. It was written on the spot. I don’t think we sat outside and said, “Let’s write a feminist anthem.” But the song came from a place of deep dissatisfaction.

4. Sweet Darlin’

(A. Wilson)

Strange Euphoria Music (ASCAP)

Recorded and mixed 1979-1980 at Kaye-Smith Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Mike Flicker, Connie and Howie

From the album Bebe le Strange (Epic FE 36371)

(P) 1980 Sony Music Entertainment

NANCY WILSON: This is one of a handful of perfect Ann Wilson songs. It came from that Ann Wilson place, a place that is nowhere else but inside Ann. There is a simplicity this song has that just lives. It has the most universal conversation.

ANN WILSON: The song was about moving on. We were moving on as a band, and I was moving on in my relationship. This song was one piano and a voice. It was subtle, and it never was a great big production. It was a simple love song, but it was also bittersweet.

5. City’s Burning

(A. Wilson – S. Ennis – N. Wilson)

Strange Euphoria Music / Sheer Music / Know Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1981 at Studio 55, Los Angeles, CA

Mixed at Record Plant, NYC

Produced by Connie and Howie

From the album Private Audition (Epic FE 38049)

(P) 1982 Sony Music Entertainment

ANN WILSON: We were trying to get the band to really fire up on this song. We wanted a sound that was jagged and tight, at the same time. And there was a lot of chaos in the different verses of this song, with people reacting to bad news. The main inspiration was the truly horrific news of the death of John Lennon. With that as a backdrop, you had one couple fighting, a guy screaming, and a woman crying. The result was a lot of people freaking out. And we wanted the band to sound like an emotional freak-out.

6. Angels

(A. Wilson – S. Ennis)

Strange Euphoria Music / Sheer Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1981 at Studio 55, Los Angeles, CA

Mixed at Record Plant, NYC

Produced by Connie and Howie

From the album Private Audition (Epic FE 38049)

(P) 1982 Sony Music Entertainment

NANCY WILSON: You can’t underestimate the sadness we felt about the loss of John, and this was another song about that.

ANN WILSON: John was an artist, a peacenik, a world changer, and a love monger. He didn’t even get a chance to leave in a dignified way. It was so hard to understand. We were working on this album in New York, and we had walked in Central Park, and done a pilgrimage to the Dakota. But even before that, his death felt like a personal loss. We mixed this song in a studio in New York City where John had worked. And when you walked in you saw a picture of John right there, so you felt him loud and clear.

7. Love Mistake

(N. Wilson)

Know Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1983 at Goodnight L.A., Van Nuys, CA

Produced and arranged by Keith Olsen

From the album Passionworks (Epic QE 38800)

(P) 1983 Sony Music Entertainment

NANCY WILSON: I wrote this song about my dear old friend Kelly Curtis, who later became Pearl Jam’s manager. We were all staying in New York, and Kelly had just gone through his first big heartbreak. The song was a total message of support to somebody going through massive heartbreak. He was happy, and sad, to hear it because it brought it all back. I think the song helped him to work through some of that, and to know that he had a friend who got it, and got him, and was standing by him.

8. Lucky Day (demo)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – L. Dalbello)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music / DalBello Toonz Inc. (CAPAC/ASCAP)

Recorded at Bad Animals, Seattle, WA, date unknown

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

NANCY WILSON: This was a song we wrote with Lisa Dalbello. We thought she was insanely talented, and we spent a weekend together with her at my farmhouse writing songs. She had a rough of the track, and together we came up with this. This demo was recorded in my basement, and it’s never been released before.

ANN WILSON: Lisa’s voice was a really good blend with Nancy and I. It was almost like a sister blend. It’s one of the only times you can hear Nancy and I singing together with another woman, other than our sister Lynn, on an album track.

9. Never (live) (with John Paul Jones)

(H. Knight – G. Bloch – Connie)

Mike Chapman Publishing Enterprises / Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music (ASCAP)

Rehearsal, recorded August 1994 at The Backstage, Seattle, WA

Mixed by Thom Cadley

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Capitol Records, LLC. All rights reserved.

Courtesy of Capitol Records, LLC, under license from EMI Music Marketing

ANN WILSON: We recorded this live at the Backstage in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood. John Paul Jones came out to work with us, and he was our musical director. He wrote string charts for this whole thing. He plays mandolin on this. He was a prince among men. He always made us feel like he was just one of us. It was the era when the idea of being unplugged was just formulating. We’d already taken it so far into bombast that we wanted to go the other way, and that’s what we were doing here.

NANCY WILSON: This is the best version of “Never.” It’s kind of unplugged, but not completely. Only in this version, with John Paul Jones, did the song get the rootsy vibe that stands up to time. We were breathing the fresh air of the acoustic thing, and it felt like we were breathing for the first time in a while.

10. These Dreams

(B. Taupin – M. Page)

Little Mole Music / Universal Music – Z Tunes LLC (ASCAP)

Recorded January-April 1985 at the Record Plant, LA and the Plant Studios, Sausalito, CA

Produced and engineered by Ron Nevison

From the album Heart (Capitol ST-12410)

(P) 1985 Capitol Records, LLC. All rights reserved.

Courtesy of Capitol Records, LLC, under license from EMI Music Marketing

NANCY WILSON: Most fans know this was our first Number One hit. But most don’t know how hard I had to fight to be able to do the song in the first place. I had to argue inside the band, because there was no framework that said this song was a Heart song, and I had to fight outside the band to get the song. When Bernie Taupin and Martin Page originally wrote “These Dreams” it was presented to Stevie Nicks. She wasn’t considering outside material at the time, so she passed. I fought to get us to record it, and for me to sing it. It wasn’t right for Ann’s voice.

ANN WILSON: It was one of those things that happen just occasionally where a voice and a song really marry. I heard that song, and I thought it’s so cool, and I tried to sing a verse or two, but it didn’t work for me. It was really Nancy’s song. The authentic sentiment is exactly the kind of song she might have written herself.

11. Nobody Home

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – S. Ennis)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music (ASCAP)

Recorded January-April 1985 at the Record Plant, LA and the Plant Studios, Sausalito, CA

Produced and engineered by Ron Nevison

From the album Heart (Capitol ST-12410)

(P) 1985 Capitol Records, LLC. All rights reserved.

Courtesy of Capitol Records, LLC, under license from EMI Music Marketing

NANCY WILSON: This was another perfect Ann song. It has a family ethic that is much more universal than just rock ’n’ roll. It’s another friend song, like a lot in our catalog. It’s about when you are looking out for somebody you love, and you see they are going too far out of bounds. Then you say, “I’m here now. I’m here for you.”

ANN WILSON: We wrote a lot of songs for the self-titled Heart album, but this was one of the few of ours that made it on that LP. We were lucky to slip any of our songs through that pinhole that our label, producer, and manager put up at that time of what “Heart” was in the 1980s.

NANCY WILSON: No matter how much you might love a song when you sing it, when you write a song, it’s you speaking. It’s not you fitting yourself into something else. This is Ann speaking, as well as singing.

12. Alone

(T. Kelly – B. Steinberg)

Sony/ATV Tunes LLC (ASCAP)

Recorded 1986 at A&M Studios, Los Angeles, CA

Produced and engineered by Ron Nevison

From the album Bad Animals (Capitol CDP 546676)

(P) 1987 Capitol Records, LLC. All rights reserved.

Courtesy of Capitol Records, LLC, under license from EMI Music Marketing

ANN WILSON: Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly wrote “Alone,” and they also wrote “True Colors,” “Like a Virgin,” and many other great songs. They had a way of writing soulful stuff that was no bullshit. On “Alone” it all came together. It’s a song where the voice and the song shake hands. Maybe that’s why everybody tries to do it on competition shows, because they want to try to make it their own. There are a lot of physical challenges in the song. It’s a standard of what a singer can hold herself to, like a high jumper.

NANCY WILSON: Nobody does it like Ann. In concert, we call this song the “touchdown.” No matter where we are, in any circumstance, if we are in a field of mud, that song just flattens people. Ann kills it, and then the crowd sings it to us. When that happens, the road crew all throw up their hands on the side of the stage like a ref indicating a touchdown. If we didn’t have the audience by that point in the show, we have them then.

13. Wait For An Answer

(L. Dalbello)

DalBello Toonz Inc. (CAPAC/ASCAP)

Recorded 1986 at One On One, North Hollywood, CA; Power Station, NY; Rumbo Recorders, Canoga Park, CA; and Can Am, Tarzana, CA

Produced and engineered by Ron Nevison

From the album Bad Animals (Capitol CDP 546676)

(P) 1987 Capitol Records, LLC. All rights reserved.

Courtesy of Capitol Records, LLC, under license from EMI Music Marketing

ANN WILSON: As a singer, you have to internalize a song. By the end of this song, I was just letting it out. The song goes through five keys. It’s a sophisticated song.

NANCY WILSON: Lisa Dalbello had already released her own version, so this might be the first time we put a song on an album that had already come out by another artist. I never knew why Lisa’s version didn’t catch fire because it was great as well. The song is a clinic on how it feels to be unanswered in a relationship. It’s such a perfectly drawn out emotional song, and it reminds me of a song that could have been written by Peter Gabriel.

14. Unconditional Love (demo)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – S. Ennis)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music / Sheer Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1986 at home, Seattle, WA

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

NANCY WILSON: This is a really good demo. It’s another farm demo recorded in the rumpus room. It was Ann, Sue, and myself, with a drum machine, some notebooks, and guitars. We were again channeling our funkier groove, and also tipping our hats to the girl groups of the Motown era. That’s a side of us that many don’t know, that we were huge fans of the Chiffons, Ann Peebles, Aretha, and all the great singers of the earlier R&B era. Listening to that stuff for us was like going to church.

15. High Romance (demo)

(N. Wilson – S. Ennis – A. Wilson)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music / Sheer Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1986 at home, Seattle, WA

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

NANCY WILSON: This is another one of our basement tapes, recorded in the rumpus room. It’s Ann, Sue, and I playing all the parts. We were trying to do a few girl group ideas. This one was more of a slow dance, inspired by songs like “Tell It Like It Is.” We loved all the stuff that came before the Beatles nearly as much as we loved the Beatles.

ANN WILSON: We originally started working on this song in the backyard of my house in Seattle. Then the song moved to Nancy’s house. It became a two-house song.

16. Under The Sky (demo)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – S. Ennis)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music / Sheer Music (ASCAP)

Recorded March 27, 1989 at Bad Animals, Seattle, WA

Previously unreleased

(P) 1990 Capitol Records, LLC. All rights reserved.

Courtesy of Capitol Records, LLC, under license from EMI Music Marketing

ANN WILSON: This was written at the beach, at a time when we felt much more refreshed as songwriters. We were starting to shift away from the big hair eighties, and we were feeling a lot better about being creative and writing ourselves. This was us busting out of the chains that were around us.

NANCY WILSON: You can hear that we are relaxed. This was written on a beautiful summer day that stretched into a beach fire on a summer night. We were comfortable and inspired, and this song was a real celebration of a creative return. We had a pent-up desire, and it was a hard-won return, through frustration, to get back to that place.

17. Desire Walks On (“Beach demo” version)

(N. Wilson – S. Ennis – A. Wilson)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music / Sheer Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1993, Seaside, OR

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

NANCY WILSON: This was one of those mad scientist kind of songs, that was put together small, and then got big. We managed to squeeze a big rock song onto a very small format in that demo. Often when you are writing a song, you fall in love with an energy that happens when you write it, and that happened here. And this demo has more of that energy than any other version we did. It might lack sound fidelity, but it had the energy. This has always been our favorite version of this song.

ANN WILSON: The lyrics talk about desire being an unstoppable force. But we were also inspired by the passion of the enchanted mop in “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” in Fantasia. We were writing about magic!

CD 3

1. Kiss (by The Lovemongers)

(A. Wilson – S. Ennis – N. Wilson)

Strange Euphoria Music / Beatle Boots Music / Sheer Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1997 at Synergy Studio, Redmond, WA, and Mighty Mite, Los Angeles, CA

Produced by The Lovemongers

From the Lovemongers album Whirlygig (Will 048)

(P) 1997 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON “Kiss” was originally written for the movie French Kiss starring Meg Ryan and Kevin Klein. It was intended to orchestrate the romantic love scene on a hilltop winery in the south of France…and that idea sparked our imaginations naturally. A simple heartbeat, Nancy’s guitars translucent like watercolors, an intimate, passionate vocal breathing words of Love. Perfect!
The movie guys chose to go with Jazz standards.

2. Sand (by The Lovemongers)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – S. Ennis – F. Cox)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music / Sheer Music / Spodie Music (ASCAP)

Recorded September 18, 1997 at The Backstage, Seattle, WA

Produced by The Lovemongers

From the Lovemongers album Whirlygig (Will 048)

(P) 1997 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: This is a song that is timeless, in a way, about a friend of ours who had passed away. We did it first with the Lovemongers, and then later we put it on Red Velvet Car. It’s a song that could have been written any year of the band’s history, and you can’t pin it down to any decade. It’s another family song. Our parents would have loved this song, maybe as much as anything in our catalog.

3. Everything (live) (by Nancy Wilson)

(N. Wilson)

Beatle Boots Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1999 at McCabe’s Guitar Shop, Santa Monica, CA

Produced by Brian Foraker

From the Nancy Wilson album Live At McCabe’s Guitar Shop (Epic EK 69837)

(P) 1999 Sony Music Entertainment

NANCY WILSON: Ann was off doing another tour while I was in Los Angeles working on movie stuff, and starting a family. But I did occasionally escape to the beach to write, and at one point I took my three dogs as part of an annual sabbatical. This sound came out of that trip, just my dogs and me. This was the first song I wrote by myself in a decade without collaborating with anyone. Later, I did a live gig at McCabe’s Guitar Shop in Santa Monica, and it was recorded for an album there.

4. She Still Believes (live)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – S. Ennis)

Skivvey-Shirt Song Service / Beatle Boots Music / Sheer Music (ASCAP)

Recorded August 18, 1999, Ann & Nancy Live Tour, Saratoga Mountain Winery, CA

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: Nancy and I eventually toured again together, and we called it the “Ann and Nancy” tour, and this is from that tour, which had a lot of duets. We were getting into some good songwriting. We’d had a breath, and we were starting to reach out to each other as songwriters again. We wrote this about a close sister friend who was constantly having romantic problems. She was a muse for us in a way, and this is about her.

NANCY WILSON: You could see her continuing to go down this road, and it looked similar every time. You knew it wouldn’t turn out well. We were saying, “Don’t do it again to yourself. It’s a pattern.” She liked the song, but I’m not sure the advice was taken!

5. Any Woman’s Blues (demo) (with the Seattle Blues Revue Horns)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – S. Ennis)

Strange Euphoria Music / Know Music / Sheer Music (ASCAP)

Recorded at Bad Animals, Seattle, WA, date unknown

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: We did a few demos of this song. This is the second demo, which was even better than the first demo. We wanted it to be a Heart song, but it never quite worked for that. It was funky. We were paying homage to the R&B that we loved. It’s chasing the soulful muse, chasing Bessie Smith. When we put the blues and R&B through our filter, it became something else again.

6. Strange Euphoria

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – S. Ennis)

Know Music / Sheer Music / Strange Euphoria Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1980 at Kaye-Smith Studios, Seattle, WA

Produced by Heart

From the album Greatest Hits/Live (Epic EG 36888)

(P) 1980 Sony Music Entertainment

NANCY WILSON: “Strange Euphoria” is a comedy collage, and a title we’ve always liked. We even used the name for our music publishing company, and now this box set. We cut the song “Strange Euphoria” in the studio between other songs, and this was our chance to blow off some steam. We had run up against so much sexual pigeonholing. This song is us being exactly all of who we are — way outside where girls are expected to go.
ANN WILSON: There was a little smoke in the air at the “Strange Euphoria” session. Very loose and uninhibited, like a disco down the rabbit hole.

7. Boppy’s Back (demo)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson)

Skivvey-Shirt Song Service / Beatle Boots Music (ASCAP)

Recorded 1993, Seaside, OR

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: Sue had written us a suburban rock opera for Christmas, as kind of a gag, and we countered that with a project of our own called “Our New Direction.” It was sarcastic. It was our own little in-joke to respond to the outside pressure that was always telling us we had to come up with “the next big ’80s thing” for Heart. This was a folk song, with a reference to my dog Boppy. It’s about Boppy standing on my lap inside a limo, looking out at the world going by outside, as she always did on tour.

NANCY WILSON: Our joke, between us, was that “Our New Direction” was “no direction.” It was like a Christopher Guest movie, like A Mighty Wind, but a few years before anyone might have gotten how straight that joke was being played.

8. Friend Meets Friend (by The Lovemongers)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – S. Ennis)

Know Music / Sheer Music / Strange Euphoria Music (ASCAP)

Recorded September, 1997 at The Backstage, Seattle, WA

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: This was another “Connie” song written at Nancy’s farmhouse, sitting at her kitchen table. Our music has always been about celebrating connection, and friendship, within our family, our band, and our songwriting partnership with Sue, and others. Many of our songs address that concept, but this song was our way of explicitly calling out the magic of those relationships.

NANCY WILSON: We all loved the line “Remember Roy and Ray,” but thought no one would know who we were talking about. So we were happy to find the rhyme “What’d I Say” to clarify it was Ray Charles (and Roy Orbison, of course). You can also hear the Joni Mitchell influence in the second verse, with the reference to the “Last Time I Saw Richard.”

9. Love Or Madness (Live)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson)

Know Music / Strange Euphoria Music (ASCAP)

Recorded August 18, 1999, Ann & Nancy Live Tour, Saratoga Mountain Winery, CA

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: This song is a live version from the duet tour that was just Nance and I. It’s important to listen to the harmonica, because that’s Nancy’s amazing playing. We also had a lot of old blues influences as well, one of our many personas, that people don’t know about. If you listen closely, you can imagine a ten-year-old Nancy Wilson listening to albums by John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers. She heard that album before she’d even become a teenager, but it stuck with her.

10. Skin To Skin

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson)

Know Music / Strange Euphoria Music (ASCAP)

Produced by Daniel Mendez

Recorded at Synergia Studio, Redmond, WA, date unknown

Previously unreleased

(P) 2012 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: We had a lot of fun with this song. It’s got a dance beat, but still rocking. It’s only got one chord, and we had a hard time selling it to anyone who wanted stereotyped “Heart” songs. But our perception of Heart, and how wide Heart is and can be, never has matched what others perceive. We grew up in the era of the Beatles’ White Album, and that was as wide as we thought all rock albums could be. Our spectrum of Heart is always evolving, and widening. Our spectrum can encompass “Magic Man,” and “Barracuda,” and “Alone,” but also “Boppy’s Back,” and “Hey You.” And sometimes, as with this box set, Heart returns to places we began from, even as we move forward.

11. Fallen Ones

(N. Wilson – A. Wilson – C. Bartock)

EMI Virgin Music, Inc. / Know Music / Lanstock Publishing / Strange Euphoria Music / Universal Music Corporation (ASCAP)

Recorded 2004 at Whoville, Seattle; The Back Yard, Los Angeles; Ice Station Zebra, Seattle; and Vaughn Verdi’s house, Los Angeles

Produced by Nancy Wilson and Craig Bartock

From the album Jupiter’s Darling (Sovereign Artists 1953-2)

(P) 2004 Heart General Partnership

ANN WILSON: This is about anybody who goes to bat for anything and loses. It’s really beautiful Nancy Wilson poetry. Whenever we really believe in a song, it is always worth keeping. And this song is one of them.

NANCY WILSON: We’re military brats, and this song is our salute to the ones that didn’t make it back. It wasn’t specifically about the Iraq War, but when we played it during that era live, people were very emotional, because I think it’s been forgotten how many people died, or were wounded, in that conflict.

12. Enough

(C. Bartock – A. Wilson)

EMI Virgin Music Inc. / Lanstock Publishing / Strange Euphoria Music / Universal Music Corporation (ASCAP)

Recorded 2004 at Whoville, Seattle; The Back Yard, Los Angeles; Ice Station Zebra, Seattle; and Vaughn Verdi’s house, Los Angeles

Produced by Nancy Wilson and Craig Bartock

From the album Jupiter’s Darling (Sovereign Artists 1953-2)

(P) 2004 Heart General Partnership

NANCY WILSON: This song was on Jupiter’s Darling. The song is an Ann Wilson and Craig Bartock composition. Craig, our current guitar player, had the beautiful music and the melodies, and Ann found the words.

ANN WILSON: This is a killer heartbreak song.  Someone who has put out a hand, opened up their heart and been shut down.  Classic aching ballad.

13. Lost Angel

(N. Wilson)

Know Music / Universal Music Corporation (ASCAP)

Recorded 2006 at the Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, from VH1 Classic’s “Decades Of Rock Live” (aired March 10, 2006)

Executive Producer: Barry Summers; Producer: Tisha Fein and Terry Lickona; Supervising Producer: Barry Ehrman.

© 2006 World Productions, LLC: Used By Permission. All Rights Reserved

NANCY WILSON: I wrote this song when we went into Iraq. I wanted to address the angels of mercy that float around war, and how sometimes even those angels get buffeted into conflict, whether they be personal conflicts, or real battles. I wanted to write a song that had almost a “Stairway To Heaven” vibe to it as a tribute to the angelic part of our better natures.

ANN WILSON: We once played this song live introducing it as a “kind of prayer,” and that confused some of our fans. “Lost Angel” is not a “prayer” in any religious sense, but in the way that it pleads for an antidote to the poison of violence and hatred. It asks for some cool water to pour on the fire of sadness in this world. I guess we’ll always be unashamed to pray for that, no matter what decade we’re writing in. “Lost Angel” was our wish that any person of any mindset, religious or otherwise, can hold in the center of themselves.

14. Little Problems, Little Lies (by Ann Wilson)

(B. Mink – A. Wilson)

Strange Euphoria Music (ASCAP) / Zavion Enterprises (ASCAP)

Recorded 2007, Seattle, WA

Produced by Ben Mink

From the Ann Wilson album Hope And Glory (Zoe 01143-1085-2)

℗ 2007 Ann Wilson & Zoe Records, a Rounder Records Company

Courtesy of New Rounder LLC

ANN WILSON: Our current producer Ben Mink and I wrote this song together. I really wanted to write a song in the first person of a soldier in Iraq. It took me a long time to figure out what voice to do it in. I decided to write in the voice of this young scared American person, in an SUV that gets blown up. This was the first time I’d ever written with Ben Mink. It was a nice collaboration, and that relationship has yielded a lot of great fruit as we’ve continued to work with him.

15. Queen City

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – C. Bartock – B. Mink)

Craig Bartock Music / Know Music / Strange Euphoria Music / Zavion Enterprises Inc. (ASCAP)

Recorded 2010 at Octopus’ Garden, Los Angeles, CA

Produced by Ben Mink

From the album Red Velvet Car (Legacy 73800)

(P) 2010 Heart General Partnership

NANCY WILSON: This is a song I started when I was writing material for Jupiter’s Darling. It was a song about how I missed Seattle, how I missed my hometown. Seattle used be to called the Queen City, a name that goes deep in the city’s history. When you miss Seattle, it’s like missing somebody big in your life. It’s not a frivolous place; that’s how Seattle is. We didn’t use the song on that album. Later, we brought the song up again, and Ann and Ben Mink helped finished it with me. It helped set a tone for the rest of the Red Velvet Car album. There was a lot of travel on that record, but also a lot of longing for home, and for childhood.

16. Hey You

(N. Wilson – B. Mink)

Know Music / Zavion Enterprises Inc. (ASCAP)

Recorded 2010 at Octopus’ Garden, Los Angeles, CA

Produced by Ben Mink

From the album Red Velvet Car (Legacy 73800)

(P) 2010 Heart General Partnership

NANCY WILSON: This was a song I’d been working on for many years. I’d made a lot of different versions of it along the way, but it was never finished. I brought it up again with Ben Mink, and working with him allowed me to find a way to finish the song. I found the encouragement in my relationship with Ben to complete it. And the song is a joy to play; it always gets people to tap their toes, and hum along.

ANN WILSON: It was a fine moment when Nancy and I and Ben Mink got together in the same room to work on Heart. It was one of those partnerships that we’ve been able to touch a few times in our career. With producers, it started first with Mike Flicker on Dreamboat Annie. Later, we had a different, but also productive relationship with Ron Nevison who produced the Heart album. But with Ben Mink, and Red Velvet Car, it was like being reunited with your artistic self. It was very satisfying to find that union again.

17. Avalon (Reprise)

(A. Wilson – N. Wilson – K. Grindstaff)

Kittus Corporation / Know Music / Strange Euphoria Music / WB Music Corporation (ASCAP)

Produced by John Purdell and Duane Baron

From the album Desire Walks On (Capitol CDP 0777 7 99627

(P) 1993 Capitol Records, LLC. All rights reserved.

Courtesy of Capitol Records, LLC, under license from EMI Music Marketing

ANN WILSON: “Back To Avalon” features Nancy’s acoustic doing that thing she does…that no one else does. At a time when she was being told by industry people that “acoustic guitars were not IN,” she responded by taking it up a notch as you can hear in this song. It’s a song about escaping from imprisonment and flying free…one of our most perennial themes. This song has no decade.

STRANGE EUPHORIA, THE FIRST DEFINITIVE CAREER-SPANNING RETROSPECTIVE OF HEART, CURATED BY ANN WILSON AND NANCY WILSON

Historic 3CD/1DVD Box Set Available Everywhere Tuesday, June 5

Click Here – For Track By Track Detail With Comments From Ann & Nancy

* * * * *

Epic Records and Legacy Recordings proudly announce the release of Strange Euphoria, the first definitive career-spanning, multi-label boxed set retrospective chronicling the seminal American rock band Heart, personally curated by Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson.

A carefully-considered anthology of biggest hits and best-loved songs set alongside deep catalog treasures, rarities, demos and live performances, Strange Euphoria, three compact discs and one DVD in a deluxe box, will be available everywhere Tuesday, June 5.

“In all the years we have been making music we have seen trends come and go,” said Ann Wilson.   “We have always felt that to try and chase the latest ‘it’ sound is pointless, and we have tried to remain true to ourselves as songwriters and musicians.  Sometimes we have had amazing success and heard ourselves on the radio…other times not so much, but the music is always playing in our house.  In this box we have included many things that until now have never seen the light of day.  Also here are our favorite deep tracks and live moments that really speak to who we are on the stage and the connection between us and the people who show up to rock.  Enjoy this collection.  It has many facets just like we do, but the spirit running through it is all Heart.”

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 1970s with hits like “Crazy on You,” “Magic Man,” “Barracuda,” ‘Straight On,” “Even It Up,” “Kick It Out,” and many more.  Not only did the Wilson sisters lead the band, they wrote the songs and played the instruments, making them the first women in rock to do so.  Heart continued topping the charts through the ’80s and into the ’90s with huge hits like “These Dreams,” “Alone,” “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 35 million records, had 21 top 40 hits, sold out arenas worldwide, and profoundly influenced the sound and direction of American rock music while inspiring women (and guys too!) around the world to rock out in bands of their own.

Heart were 2008 recipients of VH1 Rock Honors, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Northwest Grammy Foundation,  and received ASCAP’s award for Excellence in Songwriting in 2009. 

In August 2010, Red Velvet Car, the first new studio album in six years from Heart, entered the Billboard 200 best-selling album charts at #10, becoming the seventh Top 10 album of the group’s career.  The group’s first album for Legacy Recordings, Red Velvet Car marked the return of the group to the Sony Music Entertainment family, reaching #1 in sales on Amazon.com in September.

What’s made Heart endure across four decades and 13 studio albums, from Dreamboat Annie (1976) through Red Velvet Car (2010), is simply the quality of the music and the Wilsons’ ability to connect to the emotions and experiences of their audience.  Strange Euphoria represents the first time Ann and Nancy have personally curated a collection of their work and is the only time they’ve opened up their vaults for demos and rarities never heard by the public. The set includes song-by-song annotations, anecdotes, and commentary by the Wilson sisters.

Heart – Strange Euphoria – track listing

CD 1

1. Through Eyes And Glass (by Ann Wilson & The Daybreaks)

2. Magic Man (demo)*

3. How Deep It Goes (demo)*

4. Crazy On You (demo)*

5. Dreamboat Annie (Fantasy Child) + Dreamboat Annie Reprise (edit)*

6. Love Alive

7. Sylvan Song

8. Dream Of The Archer

9. White Lightning And Wine (live at the Aquarius)*

10. Barracuda (live from BBC Radio Concert)*

11. Little Queen

12. Kick It Out

13. Here Song (demo)*

14. Heartless (demo)*

15. Dog & Butterfly (acoustic demo)*

16. Straight On

17. Nada One

CD 2

1. Bebe le Strange

2. Silver Wheels II

3. Even It Up

4. Sweet Darlin’

5. City’s Burning

6. Angels

7. Love Mistake

8. Lucky Day (demo)*

9. Never (live, with John Paul Jones)*

10. These Dreams

11. Nobody Home

12. Alone

13. Wait For An Answer

14. Unconditional Love (demo)*

15. High Romance (demo)*

16. Under The Sky (demo)*

17. Desire Walks On (“Beach demo” version)*

CD 3

1. Kiss (by The Lovemongers)

2. Sand (live) (by The Lovemongers)

3. Everything (live) (by Nancy Wilson)

4. She Still Believes (live)*

5. Any Woman’s Blues (demo) (with the Seattle Blues Revue Horns)*

6. Strange Euphoria

7. Boppy’s Back (demo)*

8. Friend Meets Friend (live)  (by The Lovemongers)*

9. Love Or Madness (live) *

10. Skin To Skin*

11. Fallen Ones

12. Enough

13. Lost Angel (live)

14. Little Problems, Little Lies (by Ann Wilson)

15. Queen City

16. Hey You

17. Avalon (Reprise)

* previously unreleased

DVD

KWSU “The Second Ending – featuring Heart” program

circa February-March 1976

1. Pre Show

2. Heartless

3. White Lightning & Wine

4. Dreamboat Annie

5. Silver Wheels

6. Crazy On You

7. Sing Child

8. Soul Of The Sea

9. Devil Delight

10. Magic Man

* * * * *

Visit:

http://www.heart-music.com/

http://www.facebook.com/heart

http://www.twitter.com/officialheart

http://www.youtube.com/thebandheart

For further information contact:

Chip Schutzman/Miles High Productions

chip@mileshighproductions.com/323-806-0400

Members:
Robin Lynn Winkelmann
Kimberly Paschke
Melanie England
Raylene Coe
Paula Voytko Taylor
Julie Hall

Blend infectious melodies, tight harmonies, raw energy and an in your face modern funk rock style with lyrics that echo the human condition, and you emerge with a sound that is uniquely diverse. You emerge with the sound of the all original band known as WEEP. WEEP is composed of 6 individuals visualizing and building a dream through music. Robin Lynn Winkelmann, Kim Paschke, Melanie England, … Paula Voykto Taylor and Julie Hall and Raylene Coe.

Together they bring the music to life, taking the listener on a journey of true emotions. A journey that will evoke thought, feelings and positive vibrations and Love! WEEP’s Own Journey Began in Minneapolis, Minnesota in The Year 1994 , when Robin And Kim, who had been working together musically for several years prior, joined forces with former bassist Kristine “Krinkle” Gretillat. The journey continued when the three decided to pull up roots, and move to Ithaca, NY, where they recorded and released their first CD, “Soul Crying” ; Aptly named for three individuals attempting to let the world know how they felt about life from the depths of their souls.

Following the release of their CD, they toured endlessly in New York State and NYC. WEEP released their second CD, “Moment in Time” in the year 2000. After the departure of Kristine, Robin and Kim relocated to their current home in Central Florida, where they have been playing and writing music, selling cd’s with a steady presence on internet radio stations world wide WEEP is currently in the process of recording their third CD, with Melanie England a creative like minded talented singer songwriter and keyboardist also accomplished drummer of many genres of Music Paula Voykto Taylor. Also joining the group is Julie Hall a like minded, talented guitarist, singer, songwriter. Raylene Coe is also a like minded, singer, guitarist and songwriter.

A remix version of “Let it Go” from there first cd soul crying has been released. Followed by “Stand up For Peace” and “Just Be Love”. WEEP won a place in the Hard Rock Rising Global battle of the bands at the Orlando Hard Rock LIVE Universal Studios…WEEP is currently in the studio working on their 3rd full length cd and will be performing live in your town or city soon!

Look for upcoming shows as well as live streaming concerts.

Love and Peace!

http://www.weeprock.com
http://www.facebook.com/weeprock
http://www.myspace.com/weeprock
https://twitter.com/#!/weeprockgirls

Enjoy!!

Betty Davenport

By John Davenport

Who the F$%# is Linda Chorney?

Linda Chorney was born before the war. She started singing as a fetus. She received a standing ovation in the delivery room and has been singing ever since. As of the year 2011, she has released 6 CD’s, and 3 cassettes, and has won a total of 0 Grammy’s. She has performed on all seven continents, but only one planet. Her goal is to get 1 Grammy and sing on 2 planets. Linda has been nominated for BEST AMERICANA ALBUM “EMOTIONAL JUKEBOX” for the 54th GRAMMY AWARDS…but still holding at 0 Grammy’s and the same goal.

Highlights in her career thus far have been breaking the Top 40 Adult Contemporary Charts, and singing for Nelson Mandela, in front of a crowd of 250,000 humans. And of course playing in Sports bars where no one is listening. She likes to refer to herself as “she” when she is writing stuff like this. Linda is about to complete two autobiographical books and release them. As her songs are mini-stories of her life, she decided to write the experiences behind the songs filled with her adventures around the world, and her dysfunctional relationships. Sounds quite self-absorbed, wouldn’t you say? Just because it happened to you, doesn’t make it interesting, but sometimes, putting it to music does.

LINDA CHORNEY….UPDATE!

Linda has been invited to sing the “National Anthem” at Fenway before the Red Sox/Yankees game on April 21st!!! This was one of her THINGS TO DO IN LIFE checkboxes printed on her album!

—————————————————————————————————————————————————–

JOHN: First of all, how long have you been a singer/songwriter?

LINDA: A good one? (laughs) I started playing the guitar when I was about ten. I wrote some pretty bad songs when I was a little kid and then I started writing seriously when I was about twenty. So about thirty one years.
 
JOHN: Tell us about your web campaign the led to your Grammy nomination.

LINDA: I really didn’t do anything differently then anyone else did. I just asked people to listen to my album. That’s what everybody does on Grammy365. A lot of people listened and enough of them liked it to put me in the top five. So I was pretty flattered.

JOHN: That is amazing!

LINDA: Yeah, it’s miraculous is the word I would say! (laughs)
 
JOHN: Tell us about your experience at the Grammys and how it has changed your career.

LINDA: It was a blast, first of all. The highlight was posing on the red carpet with Gregg Allman. The first band I ever saw in concert was The Allman Brothers Band. If I had won, part of the speech would be thanking Gregg for playing “Whipping Post” when I screamed it out at my first show. But I didn’t get that opportunity. It was just really cool being there. I never got to meet any of the other nominees in my category. In fact, I think only Emmylou Harris showed up. I didn’t realize she was even there. So I’m bummed that I did not get a chance to meet her.

JOHN: Did you get to meet anyone else that influenced you?

LINDA: Yes, all the guys in The Allman Brothers Band were there. I knew a couple of them already. They were honored for Lifetime Achievement Award. Also, I got to be on the red carpet with Chick Corea and Stanley Clarke. So that’s some pretty amazing talent to be surrounded by. They won and I was happy for them. I would say the best part was meeting the people on Grammy365 whom I had a speaking relationship with over the web during the nomination process. Now I was actually meeting them in person. They were everything I expected them to be. Our words over the internet were definitely totally indicative of who the person was. You know the way they speak. I would say the part of my campaign that was successful was that I was myself when I spoke to them. Not only did they hear my singing voice but they also heard my speaking voice. I think that helped. I am a writing a book on the whole experience and I am almost done with it. It should be available within the next month.

JOHN: Wow, that’s pretty quick.

LINDA: Well, I like to do it while it’s fresh in my head. I am 51, so I forget stuff quickly if I don’t write it down. (laughs) It’s been quite an experience. Not what I expected it to be at all. I thought it was going to be a celebration because I was nominated against all odds. It was based solely on my music and not having a big label or a publicist to help me get nominated. What I didn’t expect was to get bashed and bullied.
 
JOHN: What is your reaction to some in the press saying that you were “gaming the system”

LINDA: That was ridiculous and ironic! Ironic because it’s the major labels that already have blocks of votes that they have under their belt. I didn’t know a soul except my saxophone player. If anything was legitimate, it was my nomination because it was based only on listening to my music. It made me laugh actually but now I’m getting a little annoyed by all the bashers and naysayers.  It’s ridiculous because I even have trouble putting an attachment on an email…I definitely not a computer genius.

JOHN: Have you ever had any formal training and if so, tell us about it.

LINDA: I took voice lessons in Boston but mostly I’m self taught on how to play music. I was lucky enough to be gifted with a good ear.

JOHN: Yes, while listening to your music I noticed that your theory is pretty good.

LINDA: Oh thank you! I was weaned on everything from classical to classic rock. I listened to classical music from my parents, everything from Bach to the Beatles. So my ears were trained with that kind of production. I like that kind of production. There was a producer in the New York area that once told me that my production was stuck in the sixties and seventies. I said I don’t mind being stuck there. I don’t think any music has surpassed that era in my opinion.
 
JOHN: Your music has a lot to do about relationships and politics, can you tell us what inspires your writing.

LINDA: Relationships and politics! (laughs) Actually my newer album is really less about relationships and more about how screwed up the world is. The older you get the less you think about sex and the more you think about everything else. That’s what happened to me. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not because I would rather thinking about sex and not thinking about the rest of the world. (laughs)
 
JOHN: Do you produce your own recordings or are you working with a producer?

LINDA: I produced all of my albums, all six of them.

JOHN: Wow, that’s amazing! That’s true talent right there.

LINDA: Awe, you’re making me blush!

LINDA: Well getting back to the story, I don’t know if you know how I had the album made or not. This is what I thought was going to come out. I played in ski resorts, because you can make a decent living there. And I played mostly original music in a venue that would normally play Buffet and cover songs. I had so much material that I could play three hours of my own music everyday. One day in Aspen I was playing and this guy came up to me and said “Oh my God, anybody who can keep a bunch of drunk skiers occupied and entertained with their original music has got something special.” He then bought all my CD’s.  He said, “I know how the struggles of musicians, because I was one, too, professionally… but I wasn’t that good. I want to send you something.”  I was a little skeptical, but gave him a P.O. Box.  A week later a wireless mic and guitar pick up showed up with a nice note.  The man is just a really good person.

Fast forward eight years later, this guy named the Rock Doc and his wife become my friends. When you hear what was given to me you are going to think there was some hanky panky involved but there wasn’t at all. Anyway, two years ago, Rock comes up to me and says, “Linda, I want you to be able to make the album you’ve never been able to make before. I’m going to give you a big ass budget and I don’t want anything in return except that I be part of the creative process.” He just wanted to do it for me. He was a successful doctor and knows how tough it is in the music business. He heard my other albums and thought if I only had a bigger budget I could make them that much better. John is extremely generous with many charities, but I hit the jackpot!

JOHN: Awesome!

LINDA: He gave me a $50,000 budget to start out but it went a little higher than that. He paid for the entire album. He wrote the checks. The album was not meant to go in the Grammys. That was not our intention. I didn’t even know about Grammy365 when we recorded it. To be honest with you, I never heard of the Americana Association. We were just making an album. We weren’t saying, ok we have to make an Americana album and do this with or that with it. We were just making good music. I thought what an amazing deed this guy did. The passion he had for music and for my music. To be so kind and generous and to give me that kind of money not wanting a thing in return? He didn’t even want to recoup the $50,000 on my first sales. It wasn’t like, ok I get my money back and then you get the rest. It was a gift, period.

So he gives me this gift and the album gets done. Then my husband, Scott, buys me a membership to the Grammys. He said this album is so good that he wanted to put it in the Grammys. That’s what happened. Then the album ended up getting nominated.

Jonathan, the Rock Doc, was beside himself. I thought it was like a Cinderella, feel good story and a lot of the Indies were just cheering me on. People in my age group, in their forties and fifties, said I had given them hope that they can pursue their dreams and that it’s not too late for their career. These were not just musicians either; these were all kinds of people. It was so rewarding, but then all of a sudden it took a turn. I was getting harassed and bullied…I even got death threats. I literally did and I’m not kidding. Anyway, what I thought was going to be a Cinderella story turned out to be that a few people wanted to poop in my glass slipper.

JOHN: Well, it still is a Cinderella story and the story is not over yet.

LINDA: No, and I’m living in a big mansion now! (laughs) Just kidding. This is the first time in my life that I have taken a loss in the music business. It has cost me more money to be a Grammy nominee. I usually make a profit and it’s a little frustrating because I don’t have a label behind me to help out.
 
JOHN: In the song “Tea Bag Party People”, is that a sitar or a banjo I hear.

LINDA: It’s a banjo at the beginning, a real banjo and a twelve string. It was Jeff Pevar, who is an amazing player and gifted multi-instrumentalist. Every instrument that you hear on that is for real, including the symphony.
 
JOHN: Talk to us about your breakup workout.

LINDA: (Laughs) My breakup workout! That was how many years ago?? That’s when I was still writing about relationships mainly and I was still horny. (laughs) I had broken up with this guy. Basically he chose alcohol over me. On my sixth album, Chornograpey, there are a lot of songs about relationships. The workout is my encouragement for women if they have a breakup or heartbreak. Rather than sitting around and eating Häagen-Dazs or maybe drinking and feeling sorry for yourself, put that energy into getting your body into shape instead. That’s a win win situation.

Actually there was a girl from NC that changed my life. Her name is Tracy. She saw me perform in Colorado and came up to me and said “Oh my God you’re singing my life story.” We started chatting and became friends. Two months later I was back in NY and she calls me up. I ask her what’s the matter?  She says her boyfriend broke up with her and went back to his ex-girlfriend. I said, “I got a song for you”. So I sent her my song “You Suck” which is a funny angry breakup song. It’s one where you get to scream at the top of your lungs. She called me back and said “I’m cured and I laughed my butt off.” I asked her when she was coming to NY again. She was a flight attendant for Continental.

So she comes up to NY the next week, and we go out for a few drinks. She tells me she has a companion pass to give to one person but she has no boyfriend. The pass allows the user to fly on standby anywhere in the world for the entire year and all for a very small amount of money. Even business class if it is available!  She says your music changed my life and helped me through my breakup so I want to give this to you.  She wanted to give it to me!!!

I thought she was joking. Anyway, fast forward seven years in a row she gave me this pass. I put everything I owned in a storage unit and traveled. A lot of the people said when I got nominated that we don’t know who she is, we never heard of her, and we don’t know where she comes from. Well, I’ve been all over the world for the past seven years.  And yes, all seven continents. There was one website out there that posted a comment mocking my bio. It was something to the effect of “Oh, yeah sure, she has sung in Antarctica, right.”  Well, that is right!  And penguins make great audiences too!!

I took the scenic route to the Grammys. So that’s what I did. My music lead me to this incredible woman that gave me that pass. It was because of the breakup song. (laughs) So to make a short story incredibly long to your question.

JOHN: That’s alright; it’s a very interesting story.

LINDA: Yes, I am very fortunate to have these things happen to me. I think a seven year pass around the world is better than any record deal. I got the chance to sing all over the world and that was pretty awesome.

JOHN: Awesome indeed! Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to us. It was very interesting.

LINDA: It was a pleasure.

www.lindachorney.com
www.facebook.com/LindaChorneyMusic
www.twitter.com/#!/LindaChorney

NOTE FROM LINDA: If any Coolgrrrls subscribers order my “EMOTIONAL JUKEBOX” within 2 weeks of the release of this interview, I will throw in a second CD of one of my other releases. And I will sign them. Mention Coolgrrrls when placing order.