Heart
Sisters Nancy and Ann Wilson in 2007
Background information
Also known as	The Army (1963-1969) White Heart (1969-1972) Hocus Pocus (1972-1973)
Origin	(Members from) Seattle, Washington, USA (Band based in) Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada (1973-1976)
Genres	Hard rock, folk rock
Years active	1973 (1973)–present (as Heart) 1963-present (including previous incarnations)
Labels	Mushroom, Epic, Sony BMG, Portrait, Legacy, EMI, Capitol, Shout! Factory, Sovereign, Sony Legacy
Associated acts	The Lovemongers Alias
Website	www.heart-music.com
Members
Ann Wilson Nancy Wilson Ben Smith Craig Bartock Debbie Shair Kristian Attard
Past members
See: Former members

Heart is an American rock band who first found success in Canada before later becoming a supergroup in the United States and worldwide.^[1][2][3] Over the group's four decade history, the band has had three primary lineups, with the constant members being lead singer Ann Wilson and guitarist Nancy Wilson. Heart rose to fame in the mid 1970s with music influenced by hard rock and heavy metal as well as folk music. Their popularity declined in the early 1980s, but the band enjoyed a comeback starting in 1985 and experienced even greater success with AOR hits and hard rock ballads into the 1990s.

With Jupiter's Darling (2004) and Red Velvet Car (2010), Heart made a return to their hard rock and acoustic folk roots. To date, Heart has sold over 30 million records worldwide.^[4] Heart was ranked number 57 on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock".^[5]

With Top 10 albums on the Billboard Album Chart in the 1970's, 80's, 90's, and most recently 2010 Heart is among the most commercially enduring Hard Rock bands in history.

History[link]

Origins (1963–74)[link]

Steve Fossen, Roger Fisher, Mike Fisher[link]

In 1963, bassist Steve Fossen formed The Army along with Roger Fisher on guitar, Don Wilhelm on guitar, keyboards and lead vocals, Ray Schaefer on drums.^[6] They played for several years in and around the Bothell, Washington area (northeast of Seattle). They frequently played Bothell High School, Inglemoor High School and Shorecrest High School, as well as many taverns and club venues. They frequented the club "Parker's" on Aurora Avenue in north Seattle during the 1970s when it was known as the "Aquarius Tavern". In 1969 the band went through line-up changes (Gary Ziegelman on lead vocals, Roger on guitar, Steve on bass, James Cirrello on guitar, Ron Rudge on drums, Ken Hansen on percussion,^[6] and Debi Cuidon on vocals^{[citation needed]}) and a new name, White Heart^[6] (from Tales from the White Hart, a collection of short stories by Arthur C. Clarke). For a brief time in 1970 this line-up shortened its name to Heart; however, the band went through more personnel changes. In 1971, Heart consisted of Steve Fossen, Roger Fisher, David Belzer (keys) and Jeff Johnson (drums).^[7] When Ann Wilson joined in 1972, the band was named Hocus Pocus.^{[citation needed]} Mike Fisher, Roger's brother, was set to be drafted. Nancy Wilson has stated that when he did not report for duty, his home was raided, but he slipped out a rear window, escaped to Canada and became a Vietnam War "draft dodger".^[1]

One day in 1972, Mike crossed the border to visit family and, by chance, met Ann at a Hocus Pocus show. According to Nancy, that meeting was "when she and Michael fell in love"^[1] and Ann decided to follow Mike back to Canada.^[3] Steve Fossen finished his college education before he also decided to move to Canada in late 1972,^[6][8] and Roger followed in late 1972 / early 1973, and along with Mike and Ann, the band Heart was officially formed.^[3] Nancy joined in 1974, and soon after became involved with Roger. In 1974 the Heart lineup consisted of Ann, Nancy, Roger, Steve, John Hannah (keyboards), and Brian Johnstone (drums).^{[citation needed]}

Ann and Nancy Wilson[link]

The Wilson sisters grew up in Southern California and Taiwan before their Marine Corps father retired to the Seattle suburbs. After Ann graduated from Sammamish High School in Bellevue, Washington, she joined Roger Fisher in the band Hocus Pocus where she met Roger's brother Mike in 1971, and followed him back to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Meanwhile, Nancy finished high school then went to college where she majored in art and German literature.^[1] She then played solo gigs until 1974 when she quit college and moved to Canada to join Heart.^[1][2]

Success (1975–81)[link]

Heart's residency in Canada was long enough for the group to gain recognition as "Canadian artists" by the CRTC for broadcasting purposes.^{[citation needed]} This meant that the group's early recordings qualified as "Canadian content" and therefore would receive increased attention from radio programmers.^{[citation needed]} In this period Ann Wilson told audiences that the group was from Canada,^[9] even though all the members of Heart were citizens of the United States and were never permanent Canadian residents.

After many one-night shows around their new home in Vancouver, the group recorded a demo tape with the assistance of producer Mike Flicker and session-guitarist and keyboard player, Howard Leese. Hannah and Johnstone had left by this time, and soon after Leese became a full-time member. This team recorded the debut album, Dreamboat Annie. The album was recorded at Can-Base Studios in Vancouver (later known as Mushroom Studios.) Some of the same Canadian investors which backed the studio also backed a separate company Mushroom Records, which was managed by Shelly Siegel. As with Flicker, Leese, and the other members of Heart, Siegel was an American who had moved to Vancouver to seek opportunities in the then booming Canadian music industry. Drummers Duris Maxwell, Dave Wilson, Kat Hendrikse and Michael Derosier were among those who also played on the sessions for the album. Derosier eventually joined Heart as full-time drummer.

Heart's first Mushroom Records single How Deep it Goes b/w Here Song (M-7008) received little attention when released in Canada in 1975. But the second single Magic Man was picked up for radio airplay by a station in Montreal.^[10] Airplay on other Canadian stations picked up, helped in part by the record's "Canadian content" status. The album Dreamboat Annie followed and sold an impressive 30,000 copies across Canada in its first few months. In the US, Siegel released the album first in the Seattle area on February 14, 1976 (Valentine's Day) where it quickly sold another 25,000 copies. With two hit singles, "Crazy on You" (number 35, 1976) and "Magic Man" (number 9, 1976),^[11] Dreamboat Annie eventually sold over 1 million copies.

Mike Fisher was able to freely return to the United States with the members of Heart after President Jimmy Carter granted amnesty to Vietnam War draft evaders on his first day in office, January 21, 1977. By this time Heart had broken its contract with Mushroom and signed a contract with CBS subsidiary Portrait Records. This move resulted in a prolonged legal battle with Siegel, a former CBS employee.

In 1977 Mushroom ran a full-page ad in Rolling Stone magazine showing the bare-shouldered Wilson sisters (as on the "Dreamboat Annie" album cover) with the suggestive caption, "It was only our first time!" When a reporter suggested, backstage after a live appearance, that the sisters were sex partners, the infuriated Ann returned to her hotel room and began writing the lyrics to "Barracuda" to relieve her frustration.^[12]

Mushroom released the partly completed Magazine in early 1977 just before Portrait released Little Queen. The 1977 version of Magazine was quickly withdrawn due to the legal dispute. A Seattle court forced Mushroom to recall the album so that the Heart could remix tracks and add new vocals before re-releasing the disc; Heart had originally wanted the album taken off the market completely.^{[citation needed]}

Nancy Wilson (left) and Roger Fisher on stage, 1978.

Little Queen, with the hit "Barracuda" (number 11, 1977), became Heart's second million-seller. Ann and Nancy appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone in July 1977 (issue No. 244).^[13] Magazine was re-issued by Mushroom in April 1978 in a version authorized by the group. It peaked in the top twenty. Magazine achieved platinum status and generated the Top 20 hit single "Heartless". Heart performed at the first Texxas Jam on July 4th weekend in 1978 in Dallas, Texas, at the Cotton Bowl in front of 100,000 people with musical acts like Aerosmith, Van Halen, Ted Nugent, Journey, Frank Marino, Atlanta Rhythm Section, Headeast, and Walter Egan (www.TexxasJam78.com).

In late 1978, the double-platinum Dog and Butterfly followed suit garnering ecstatic critical reviews, and yielded top 30 hits with its title song and "Straight On". The album was composed of 8 tracks and divided into two sections, the A-side being "Dog" and featuring more uptempo rock/pop songs, whilst the "Butterfly" B-side featured longer tracks with a more experimental and moody flavor. The closing 7-minute opus "Mistral Wind" became an immediate live favorite and is a staple of all Heart set lists to this day.

After the 77-city "Dog and Butterfly" tour, the Wilson-Fisher liaisons ended, as Roger had by then left the band in the fall of 1979 and formed his own band in the Seattle area. Nancy Wilson and longtime guitarist Howard Leese filled in the guitar void, and her childhood friend Sue Ennis helped with song collaborations. Still, the absence of Fisher's guitar work was evident to some in the band's subsequent albums.

Heart then released Bebe le Strange in 1980. It became the band's third top ten album (behind Dreamboat Annie and Little Queen), peaking at number 5 and achieving gold status, and yielded the Top 40 hit "Even It Up". By the end of the year, the band scored their highest charted single at the time; a remake of the ballad "Tell it Like it Is" which peaked at number 8.^[14]

In November 1980, to mark the significant achievement of their first five studio albums, the double album Greatest Hits Live was released to double platinum success and reached number 12 on the US chart, continuing a chart run until spring 1981. Something of a misnomer, the two-disc set actually featured studio versions of most of Heart's singles to date plus a couple of new studio tracks and 6 live tracks, amongst which were covers of "Unchained Melody", Led Zeppelin's "Rock and Roll" and The Beatles' "I'm Down". But with a total of only two hit singles in 1980 (five singles were actually released) and a hiatus of almost two years to their next studio album, sales following this greatest hits package were weaker than previous efforts.

Decline (1982–84)[link]

The decline of Heart's success was immediately preceded by the loss of producer Mike Flicker and manager Michael Fisher. Private Audition presented an eclectic range of styles and marked quite a departure in sound from previous Heart releases. The hard rock opener "City's Burning" and Nancy's contribution "The Situation" were the only real connections to the sound of 1980's "Bebe Le Strange"; the rest of the album featured a Supremes-sounding Top 40 hit, "This Man Is Mine", a Ragtime-influenced title track, several gentle pop ballads, (the standout being "Perfect Stranger"), and an intensely dramatic coda in the form of "America".

Following the release of Private Audition in 1982, Fossen and Derosier left the band. Both Private Audition and 1983's Passionworks, (featuring new bassist Mark Andes and new drummer Denny Carmassi), failed to go gold.^[15]

Passionworks featured the Top 50 Pop and Number 1 Rock single "How Can I Refuse", and was a definite step towards the mainstream rock sound which reached its zenith in the three studio albums that followed. This was particularly evident in the metal ballad "Allies" and rocker "Sleep Alone".

In 1984 Ann Wilson recorded a duet, with Mike Reno of Loverboy, called "Almost Paradise". It was featured on the soundtrack of the movie Footloose. The song was a hit on the pop charts, reaching number 7, and was a further foreshadowing of the sound that shaped the band's enormous comeback.

Comeback (1985–90)[link]

Heart's next album and first for Capitol, simply titled Heart (number 1, 1985), turned out to be the biggest commercial success in the band's history. It sold five million copies on the strength of four Top-10 hits: "What About Love" (number 10, 1985), "Never" (number 4, 1985), "These Dreams" (number 1, 1986) and "Nothin' at All" (number 10, 1986).^[14] A fifth single, the hard rocker "If Looks Could Kill" also charted.

Sex appeal was considered a major ingredient in the sisters’ resurgence. In 1988, the sisters told author James L. Dickerson that they would never apologize for exploiting their sex appeal. Ann pointed out that cleavage ran in their family and she saw no reason to deny it. “I’ve always been lucky to know men who have encouraged us for that,” she said, laughing.^[16]

In June 1986, Nancy Wilson married journalist, screenwriter and director Cameron Crowe. (She had made a cameo appearance in his movie, Fast Times at Ridgemont High in 1982, in a scene where she was driving a Corvette, and was listed in the credits as "Beautiful Girl in Car".)

Heart's next album, Bad Animals (number 2, 1987), continued the hair metal theme that defined much of 1980s rock music. It also contained a chart-topper, "Alone" (number 1, 1987), as well as "Who Will You Run To" (number 7, 1987), "There's the Girl" (number 12, 1987) and "I Want You So Bad" (number 47, 1988),^[14]. Bad Animals also became the band's first top 10 album success in the UK, peaking at number 7 on the UK Album Chart.^[17]

In a 1988 interview with Nine-O-One Network Magazine, Ann Wilson disclosed that the title song from the album, “Bad Animals,” was written about a bad experience at a posh Memphis hotel. “We walked in and people looked at us like we were scum,” she explained. “It was an elegant lobby, with elegant rugs and vases, and we were tired and our hair was wild.” Nancy interrupted, “All the people were dressed to the hilt. They all looked like they were all from Dynasty. It was like a hush fell over the place . . . So, we just looked at each other and said, ‘sore thumb lobby.’”^[18]

Heart entered the 1990s with Brigade (number 3, 1990) which became the band's 6th multi-platinum LP and added three more Top-25 hits to its catalog: "All I Wanna Do Is Make Love to You" (number 2 U.S.), "Stranded" (number 12 U.S.) and "I Didn't Want to Need You" (number 24 U.S.).^[14] Three other album cuts, "Secret", "Wild Child" and "Tall, Dark Handsome Stranger" were Billboard Mainstream Rock chart hits and received considerable airplay on US hard rock and metal stations. Brigade was the band's highest charting album ever in the UK, reaching number 3.^[17]

1991–95[link]

Following the 1990 tour, Heart released their first complete live album in the autumn of 1991. Rock the House Live! featured highlights of the Brigade world tour, and was a moderate success in the US and UK.

The Wilson sisters then put together an informal acoustic group called The Lovemongers with Sue Ennis and Frank Cox.^[19] A four-song EP, that included a live version of Led Zeppelin's "The Battle of Evermore" and an updated version of the Heart standard "Crazy On You", came out in late 1992, and the quartet performed several times in the Seattle area. The Lovemongers released a full-length album titled Whirlygig in 1997, and a collection of mostly self-penned Christmas songs entitled "Here is Christmas" in 1998. This was later re-released as a Heart album Heart Presents a Lovemongers' Christmas in 2001.

Also in 1992, Ann sang with Alice in Chains on the songs "Brother," "Am I Inside," and "Love Song," from the EP Sap. When Heart re-emerged with Desire Walks On (number 48) in 1993, Schuyler Deale played bass on the album's sessions. (Mark Andes had left the band by 1992.) Desire Walks On included the galloping hard rock/metal radio hit "Black on Black II" (number 4 Mainstream Rock Chart, 1993) as well as the Top 40 hit "Will You Be There (In the Morning)" (number 39, 1994).^[14] For the group's subsequent tour, Heart was joined by bassist Fernando Saunders and drummer Denny Fongheiser. The band offered live acoustic versions of its best-known songs on 1995's The Road Home, which was produced by Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones, with Jones also performing with the band on mandolin and other instruments.

In 1995 Nancy decided to take a break from music to concentrate on raising a family with husband Cameron Crowe. Ann toured that year with a band that was alternately called The Ann Wilson Band or Ann Wilson & the Ricola Brothers. This lineup included Leese, Scott Olson (guitars), Jon Bayless (bass), and Scott Adams (sax). Additionally, Lovemongers members Ben Smith (drums) and Frank Cox (guitars, keyboards, percussion) performed in this lineup. They were joined by Nancy for at least one show at The Joint in Las Vegas on October 16, 1995, which was billed as a Heart show and later broadcast by the Westwood One Superstars in Concert series. A videotape of the show was also shown on VH1.

1996–2001[link]

In 1998 Ann toured again without Nancy, this time billed as Ann Wilson and Heart. The lineup was the same as it had been in 1995, but without Scott Adams. This was long term band member Leese's last tour with Heart; he left the band later in the year. Nancy kept busy scoring her husband's movies Jerry Maguire, Almost Famous, Elizabethtown and Vanilla Sky. She wrote and, along with her husband, produced the song "I Fall Apart" in Vanilla Sky that Cameron Diaz performed, and also composed "Elevator Beat", a non-vocal composition for the film. In 1999 Nancy released a solo album, Live at McCabe's Guitar Shop. Also in 1999, Nancy and Ann embarked on a tour of their own, this being the first time that they had done so.

2002–06[link]

Nancy and Ann Wilson playing at a charity concert for the Canary Foundation 28 July 2007

In 2002, Ann and Nancy returned to the road with a brand-new Heart lineup that included Scott Olson, Ben Smith, Alice in Chains bassist Mike Inez, and keyboardist Tom Kellock. In 2003, Heart released their concert DVD Alive in Seattle which has since been certified Gold - Video Longform by the RIAA.^[20] The DVD includes such hits as "Alone", "Barracuda", "Crazy on You", "Magic Man", "Straight On", "These Dreams" and many more.

Also in 2003, Gilby Clarke (ex-Guns N' Roses) and Darian Sahanaja replaced Olson and Kellock. These two new men didn't stay very long and were succeeded in 2004 by Craig Bartok and Debbie Shair. (Sahanaja's schedule became very busy after he joined Brian Wilson's touring band, but he returned to play with Heart in 2007 for their "Dreamboat Annie Live" show.)

In 2004, with the new lineup, Heart released Jupiter's Darling, their first studio album since 1993. It featured a variety of songs that included a return to Heart's original hard rock sound, as well as a blend of pop and new textures. Stand-out tracks included the singles "The Perfect Goodbye", "Oldest Story in the World" (number 22 Billboard Rock Airplay, 2004) and "Lost Angel". In 2005 the Wilsons appeared on the CMT Music Awards as a special guest of country singer Gretchen Wilson (no relation) and performed the Heart classic, "Crazy on You", with Gretchen. Also in 2005 Heart appeared in the finale episode of the second season of The L Word on Showtime (broadcast on May 15, 2005), performing "Crazy on You".

Heart performed with Gretchen Wilson on VH-1's 10 March 2006 tribute to the band, "Decades Rock Live".^[21] The special also featured Alice in Chains, Phil Anselmo, Dave Navarro, Rufus Wainwright, and Carrie Underwood.^[22] Later in the year, bass player Inez left Heart to re-join the reformed Alice in Chains. Ric Markmann then became Heart's new bassist.

2007–09[link]

Heart was honored at the second annual VH1 Rock Honors (24 May 2007), and also performed along with Ozzy Osbourne, Genesis and ZZ Top. Gretchen Wilson and Alice in Chains honored the group by performing "Barracuda".^[23] This, along with the inclusion of "Crazy on You" in Guitar Hero II, "Barracuda" in the Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, and Guitar Hero: Smash Hits video game, renewed interest in Heart once again.

In September 2007, Ann Wilson released her first solo album, Hope & Glory. The album features guest appearances by Elton John, Alison Krauss, Nancy Wilson, k d lang, Wynonna Judd, Gretchen Wilson, Rufus Wainwright, Shawn Colvin, and Deana Carter, and was produced by Ben Mink (Barenaked Ladies, k d lang, and Feist). Both Nancy Wilson and Roger Fisher commenced writing autobiographies, but no publication dates have yet been mentioned.^[24]

Heart appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on January 25, 2008 for Ellen's birthday show, and performed "Barracuda." Ellen played an intro to "Barracuda" on Guitar Hero in front of the audience before announcing Heart. On April 9, 2008, the band appeared on Idol Gives Back with Stacy "Fergie" Ferguson, who sang "Barracuda" in harmony with Ann.^[25] In mid 2008, Heart made a U.S. tour with Journey and Cheap Trick.

On 31 May 2008, Heart performed at the Artist for the Arts Foundation benefit at Barnum Hall, Santa Monica High School, Santa Monica, CA. Performing live, along side Jackson Browne (Something Fine), Venice (Crazy on You) and over 70 members of the Santa Monica High School (SaMoHi) Orchestra and Girls Choir (Bohemian Rhapsody),^[26] the benefit helped to provide funds for the continuation of Music Education in public schools. The event was filmed and recorded by Touring Video and Post by On the WAVE Productions. The video was produced by Harry Rabin of OTW and can be seen on the AFTA Foundation website.^[27]

In July 2009, Heart were special guests on 15 dates of Journey's summer arena tour. They played at a number of venues, including Louisville's Freedom Hall, Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, the Sovereign Center, Reno Events Center, and Taco Bell Arena.^{[citation needed]} Heart also headlined a series of shows, with The Bangles opening for them. Heart also headlined at the Verizon Wireless American Music Festival Labor Day 2009. They also wrote two songs ("Mine," "Civilian") with American female pop rock duo 78violet for their upcoming self titled studio album.^[28]

2010 and Heart's return to the Top 10[link]

On August 31, 2010 the band's long-awaited new studio album entitled Red Velvet Car was released.^[29] The album featured 10 tracks, including a new working of the Lovemongers' song "Sand". It marked a stylistic return to Heart's melodic hard rock and folk sound previously featured most prominently on Little Queen and Dog and Butterfly. Red Velvet Car peaked at number 10 on the Billboard Album chart^[30] and became the group's first top 10 album in 20 years (after 1990's Brigade). The album also reached number 3 on Billboard's Rock Album chart. Red Velvet Car spawned two singles, "WTF" aimed at hard rock and classic rock radio and "Hey You" aimed at Adult Contemporary. "Hey You" peaked at number 26 on Billboard's AC chart, while "WTF" peaked at number 16 on Billboard's Top Selling Rock Singles chart.

The unique cover artwork for Red Velvet Car was created by Seattle's Jesse Higman, a longtime friend of the band who has also created artwork for other Seattle grunge and hard rock bands.^[31] Some limited edition versions of the album sold through U.S. Target stores (also available on the CD in UK, Canada, Japan and Europe as well as on iTunes UK, Europe and Canada) included the bonus track "Closer to the Sun". Additional Bonus tracks include: "In the Cool" (also available through U.S. Target stores and on iTunes UK, Europe and Canada), "Bootful of Beer" (available on the CD in UK, Canada, Japan and Europe as well as on iTunes UK, Europe and Canada) and the track "Listening" - available only on the Japanese CD Import version. The album release was accompanied by a North American tour, which commenced in January and ran until December 2010.^[32] On November 4, 2010, it was announced that Heart would do its first cross-Canada tour in thirty years, beginning on January 28, 2011 in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.^[33]

Heart also played as part of 2010 VH1 Divas Support the Troops, along with Katy Perry, Paramore, Nicki Minaj, Sugarland, Keri Hilson, and Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. During Heart's set, Grace Potter played keyboards and dueted with Ann on vocals on "Crazy on You". After an initial rollout with multiple airings, this show is currently being aired occasionally on VH1 and affiliated channels, as well as Palladia HD channel. The concert was presented by the USO, hosted by Kathy Griffin, and recorded Friday, December 3, 2010 at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, California.

Current[link]

A live DVD and Blu-ray disc of the 2010 US tour, A Night at Sky Church, was released on March 8, 2011, the show already having been filmed on March 5, 2010, in their hometown of Seattle.^[34]

Coming off their latest Top 10 album and cross country tour of Canada, Heart embarked on a 2011 summer tour co-headlining with Def Leppard.^[35] According to Ann Wilson, "Nancy and I are really excited to be bringing Heart to the stage this summer with Def Leppard. It's going to be a powerful, monster show. The real thing. The summer of 2011 will be amazing."^[36]

Heart is scheduled to release a box-set entitled "Strange Euphoria" in June 2012 and a studio album entitled "Fanatic" in October.^[37]

Heart has also scheduled a 2012 Summer Tour to support the release of their box set and new album.

Legacy[link]

In addition to their own recording careers, the Wilson sisters have played a role on the Seattle music scene. Among the groups who have recorded at their Bad Animals studio are R.E.M., Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains,^[38] Soundgarden and Candlebox.

"Heart's Heart: 20 Years of Rock & Roll" was the first CD-ROM multimedia biography/greatest hits package ever released.^{[citation needed]}

In 2009 the Wilson sisters were also awarded ASCAP's Founders Award in recognition of their 35-year songwriting career.

Heart has achieved Top 10 albums on the Billboard charts in the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, and 2010s with chart singles in each decade. This span of over four decades places them among the most commercially enduring hard rock acts of all time.

Heart's diversity in music styles has been evident in their chart successes. The band has had singles chart success on Billboard's Hot 100, Mainstream Rock Tracks, and Adult Contemporary charts. Throughout history Heart has been labeled as Hard Rock, Folk, Easy Listening, Heavy Metal, and Hair Metal, many times demonstrating two or more of these styles on the same album. Their album title Dog and Butterfly was a symbol of their sometimes contradictory styles, with the "Dog" side of the album focusing on hard rock tunes and the "Butterfly" side made up of acoustic folk music. Their epic "Mistral Wind" from this album captured both styles in one song, starting as a mellow acoustic ballad and building to a metal crescendo. "Mistral Wind" is considered by many followers of Heart^[who?] to be the band's finest studio recording.^{[citation needed]}

On September 26, 2011 Heart was named as one of the 2012 nominees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame but was not selected for induction. Considering the band's longstanding appeal and pioneering status for women in rock, Heart's exclusion from the Rock Hall is viewed with skepticism by some^[39] who question the credibility of the Cleveland-based organization.^[40]

Members[link]

Current

• Ann Wilson - vocals, flute, guitar, keyboards, percussion, violin, autoharp (1972–present)
• Nancy Wilson vocals, guitars, mandolin, keyboards, synthesizers, harmonica (1975–1995, 2002–present)
• Ben Smith - drums (1995–1998, 2002–present)
• Craig Bartock - guitars (2004–present)
• Debbie Shair - keyboards, synthesizers (2004–present)
• Kristian Attard - bass guitar (2009–present)

Former^[41]

Timeline[link]

id:vocals     value:red         legend:Lead_Vocals
id:Vguitar    value:brightgreen legend:Guitar,_Backing_Vocals
id:guitar     value:green       legend:Guitar
id:keys       value:orange      legend:Keyboards
id:bass       value:purple      legend:Bass
id:Vbass      value:lightpurple legend:Bass,_Backing_Vocals
id:drums      value:brightblue  legend:Drums,_Percussion
id:lines      value:black       legend:Studio_Albums
id:lines2     value:gray(0.75)  legend:Recording_of_Live_Albums

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 at:16/04/2007 color:lines2 layer:back

 bar:Ann        text:Ann Wilson
 bar:Nancy      text:Nancy Wilson
 bar:FisherM    text:Mike Fisher
 bar:FisherR    text:Roger Fisher
 bar:Cox        text:Frank Cox
 bar:Olson      text:Scott Olson
 bar:Clarke     text:Gilby Clarke
 bar:Bartock    text:Craig Bartock
 bar:Hannah     text:John Hannah
 bar:Leese      text:Howard Leese
 bar:Kellock    text:Tom Kellock
 bar:Sahanaja   text:Darian Sahanaja
 bar:Shair      text:Debbie Shair
 bar:Fossen     text:Steve Fossen
 bar:Andes      text:Mark Andes
 bar:Deale      text:Schuyler Deale
 bar:Saunders   text:Fernando Saunders
 bar:Bayless    text:Jon Bayless
 bar:Inez       text:Mike Inez
 bar:Markmann   text:Ric Markmann
 bar:Attard     text:Kristian Attard
 bar:Johnstone  text:Brian Johnstone
 bar:DeRosier   text:Michael DeRosier
 bar:Carmassi   text:Denny Carmassi
 bar:Fongheiser text:Denny Fongheiser
 bar:Smith      text:Ben Smith

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 bar:Leese      from:01/01/1975 till:31/12/1998 color:Vguitar
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 bar:Deale      from:01/01/1993 till:30/06/1993 color:bass
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 bar:Bayless    from:01/07/1995 till:31/12/1998 color:bass
 bar:Inez       from:01/01/2002 till:30/06/2006 color:bass
 bar:Markmann   from:01/07/2006 till:30/06/2009 color:bass
 bar:Attard     from:01/07/2009 till:end        color:bass
 bar:Johnstone  from:01/01/1974 till:31/12/1974 color:drums
 bar:DeRosier   from:01/01/1975 till:30/06/1982 color:drums
 bar:Carmassi   from:01/07/1982 till:31/12/1992 color:drums
 bar:Fongheiser from:01/01/1993 till:30/06/1995 color:drums
 bar:Smith      from:01/07/1995 till:31/12/1998 color:drums
 bar:Smith      from:01/01/2002 till:end        color:drums

Discography[link]

• Dreamboat Annie (1975)
• Little Queen (1977)
• Magazine (1978)
• Dog and Butterfly (1978)
• Bebe le Strange (1980)
• Private Audition (1982)
• Passionworks (1983)
• Heart (1985)
• Bad Animals (1987)
• Brigade (1990)
• Desire Walks On (1993)
• Jupiters Darling (2004)
• Red Velvet Car (2010)

See also[link]

• List of best-selling music artists
• Category:Images of Heart (band)
• Offshoots from Heart and subsequent activities of former band members:
  • Fisher, Fossen, DeRosier: Alias

References and notes[link]

Notes[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Jake Brown, Heart: In the Studio, Ecw Press (June 1, 2008), ISBN 1-55022-831-5 (There are many errors in this book including wrong dates and wrong song titles.)
• Dickerson, James L. (2005)" Go, Girl, Go! The Women's Revolution in Music," Schirmer Trade Books. ISBN 0-8256-7316-X.

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Heart

• Heart's official site
• Interview with Howard Leese
• Heart discography at Discogs
• "The first Canadian version of Heart" (Steve Fossen, Brian Johnstone, John Hannah, Ann Wilson & Roger Fisher)
• Assorted early performances - videos at RogerFisher.com

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2008)

Eli Young Band
Mike Eli
Background information
Origin	Denton, Texas, U.S.
Genres	Country
Years active	2000-present[1]
Labels	Carnival Universal South Republic Nashville
Website	http://www.eliyoung.net
Members
Mike Eli James Young Jon Jones Chris Thompson
Past members
Bryan Tyler Mark Sims

Eli Young Band is an American country music band based in Denton, Texas. The band is composed of Mike Eli (vocals, guitar), James Young (guitar), Jon Jones (bass guitar), and Chris Thompson (drums). They released their self-titled debut album in 2002, followed by the Carnival records release Level in 2005. Their third album, Jet Black & Jealous, was released in 2008 by Universal South Records. A second major-label album, Life at Best, was released in 2011 by Republic Nashville; it includes their first #1 hit, "Crazy Girl".

Biography[link]

Mike Eli and James Young met each at the University of North Texas when they became dorm roommates their freshman year. They played guitar and eventually began writing and singing songs together; they formed the acoustic duo, Eli & Young, while attending the University of North Texas.^[1] Chris Thompson and Jon Jones joined them later on and they became the Eli Young Band.^[2]

They released their first album in 2002, self-titled "Eli Young Band". In 2005 they released "Level" on Carnival Records and opened shows for Miranda Lambert.^[2] National exposure on CMT and GAC helped them begin to build a following well outside of their touring base. They sold as many as 2,000 tickets a night in multiple markets. In late 2006 they released Eli Young Band Live At the Jolly Fox located in Huntsville, Texas. Early in 2007, they signed a management deal with George Couri and C3 Management. Their plans included a rigorous tour schedule and key opening spots with Pat Green, Robert Earl Keen, and Jack Ingram, as well as a spot on the 2007 Austin City Limits Music Festival.

While touring, they were also making songwriting a top priority and made time for writing trips and retreats at the Young family ranch. Energized with new songs, they were ready to begin working on a new album in late 2007. Working with producers Frank Liddell and Mike Wrucke (who have also produced for Lambert), they took time off from touring to record at Omni Studios in Nashville. Their third album, Jet Black & Jealous, was released in 2008. Its lead-off single, "When It Rains", spent thirty-seven weeks on the country charts and peaked at #34.^[3] A second chart single, "Always the Love Songs" (co-written by David Lee Murphy and George Ducas), scored the Eli Young Band their first top 15 hit, making #11. ("Radio Waves" also made top 40, while "Guinevere" peaked at #45.)

They were nominated for an Academy of Country Music award as the Top New Vocal Group or Duo, an award that is based on the number of fan entries on the GAC website. They lost to the Zac Brown Band. They were then nominated for the 2010 Top New Vocal Group for the 45th ACM Awards, but lost to Gloriana.

They appeared as part of the pregame ceremonies for an NFL game between the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri on December 5, 2010. Mike Eli forgot the words to "The Star-Spangled Banner" and was promptly booed. He attempted to sing the song again, but forgot a considerable amount of the lyrics in his second try.^[4]

In 2011, the Eli Young Band moved to Republic Nashville and released their fifth overall single, "Crazy Girl" as the lead single off "Life at Best". It became the band's first gold-selling digital single,^[5] as well as their first #1 single.

The band received three nominations for the 2012 Academy of Country Music Awards: Song of the Year, Top Vocal Group of the Year, and Single Record of the Year. On April 1, 2012 the band won the Academy of Country Music Award for Song of the Year.

Band members[link]

Current[link]

• Mike Eli (lead vocals, guitars)
• James Young (lead guitar, backing vocals)
• Jon Jones (bass guitar, backing vocals)
• Chris Thompson (drums)
• Keith Davis (pedal steel, keys, guitars, backing vocals)

Former[link]

• Mark Sims (guitar)
• Bryan Tyler (guitar)

Guests[link]

• Blu Sanders (guitars, backing vocals)
• Allen Huff (organ)

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

Extended plays[link]

Live albums[link]

Singles[link]

• ^ACurrent single.

Other charted songs[link]

Songs charted from unsolicited airplay.

Videography[link]

Music videos[link]

Cultural References[link]

Australian Golfer Rhein Gibson claimed, after possibly scoring the lowest score ever recorded in a round of golf, "I had this song playing in my head... that new one from the Eli Young Band. It was in there all day."^[12]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website

Nick Mason
Nick Mason in 2004
Background information
Birth name	Nicholas Berkeley Mason
Born	(1944-01-27) 27 January 1944 (age 68) Edgbaston, Birmingham, England
Genres	Progressive rock, psychedelic rock, hard rock, instrumental rock
Occupations	Musician, drummer, record producer, author, composer, auto racer
Instruments	Drums, percussion, keyboards, guitar, vocals
Years active	1964–present
Labels	Capitol, Columbia, Sony, EMI, Harvest
Associated acts	Pink Floyd, Sigma 6, The Screaming Abdabs, The Tea Set, Mason & Fenn, Robert Wyatt, Carla Bley, Michael Mantler

Nicholas Berkeley "Nick" Mason (born 27 January 1944) is an English drummer and songwriter, best known for his work with Pink Floyd. He is the only constant member of the band since its formation in 1965. Despite solely writing only a few Pink Floyd songs, Mason has contributed to some of Pink Floyd's most popular compositions such as "Interstellar Overdrive", "A Saucerful Of Secrets" and "Echoes".

He is the only Pink Floyd member to be featured on every one of their albums. It is estimated that as of 2010, the group have sold over 250 million records worldwide,^[1][2] including 74.5 million units sold in the United States.

He also competes in auto racing events, such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans.^[3]

Early life[link]

The son of the documentary film maker Bill Mason, he was born in Birmingham but brought up in Hampstead, London (many online biographies mistakenly cite the street address Downshire Hill – sometimes as "the Downshire Hills" – as a district of Birmingham) and attended Frensham Heights School, near Farnham, Surrey. He later studied at the Regent Street Polytechnic (now the University of Westminster), where he teamed up with Roger Waters, Bob Klose and Richard Wright in 1964 to form Pink Floyd's predecessor, Sigma 6.

Musical career[link]

Mason has been the drummer on every Pink Floyd album^[4] (but not on every song; some session drummers have been used^[4]).

Despite legal conflicts over ownership of the name 'Pink Floyd' which began when Roger Waters left the group in 1986 and lasted roughly 7 years, Waters and Nick Mason are now on good terms.^[4] Mason joined Waters on the last two nights of his 2002 world tour to play drums on the Pink Floyd song "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun", and he also played drums on some concerts of Waters' European tour in 2006, and during performances in Los Angeles and New York City in the United States. On 12 May 2007, Mason joined Waters again on stage at Earls Court to play The Dark Side of the Moon. Again on 12 May 2011 Mason was featured, along with David Gilmour, on the encore Outside the Wall at Waters´ concert who was performing The Wall in its entirety. Gilmour also performed on Comfortably Numb that night.

In July 2005, Mason, Gilmour, Wright, and Waters played together on stage for the first time in 24 years.^[4] A four song set was played at the Live 8 concert in London.^[4] Mason also joined David Gilmour and Richard Wright for the encore during Gilmour's show at the Royal Albert Hall, London, on 31 May 2006, reuniting the post-Waters Pink Floyd. Mason has also claimed to be the link between Gilmour and Waters, and believes the band will play live again. His answers have ranged from "playing again for a charitable cause" to "a tour" given in various interviews in the last few years. He also stated in 2006 that Pink Floyd have not officially disbanded yet.

The only Pink Floyd songs that are solely credited to Mason are "The Grand Vizier's Garden Party Parts 1-3" (from Ummagumma) and "Speak to Me" (from The Dark Side of the Moon).^[4] The one-off song by the band entitled "Nick's Boogie" was named after him.^[4]

The only times Mason's voice has been included on Pink Floyd's albums are "Corporal Clegg", the single spoken line in "One of These Days" and spoken parts of "Signs of Life" and "Learning to Fly" (the latter taken from actual recording of Mason's first solo flight) from A Momentary Lapse of Reason.^[4] He does, however, sing lead vocals on two unreleased but heavily bootlegged tracks, "Scream Thy Last Scream" (1967) and "The Merry Xmas Song" (1975–76). In live performances of the song "Sheep", he did the spoken section.^[4]

Unlike the other members of Pink Floyd, Mason has rarely played an instrument other than his usual one (drums), although he has contributed sound effects to many Pink Floyd albums. He has only ever played non-percussive instruments on "The Grand Vizier's Garden Party", his personal composition from Ummagumma, where he provided some keyboard, guitar and bass noises, and on live versions of "Outside the Wall", where he played acoustic guitar along with the rest of the band. He has claimed that he took some failed violin and piano lessons as a child. However, on the Profiles album Nick released with Rick Fenn in 1985, he is also credited with keyboards.^[5] He can be seen playing a synthesizer in the promo video for "Lie for a Lie", but it is unknown if he actually played on the recording.

Mason has done some work with other people, notably as a drummer and producer for Steve Hillage, Robert Wyatt (with whom he appeared on Top of the Pops^[4]), The Damned and Gong.^[5] He also drummed for Michael Mantler.^[5]

Nick Mason used Premier drums in the 1960s and occasionally in the 1970s (mainly on recordings up to Wish You Were Here). After that, he used Ludwig drums from 1970 until 1992. He currently uses Drum Workshop (DW) drums, pedals and hardware. His kit is a DW double bass kit with the Dark Side of the Moon logo on the drums. He has also used Paiste cymbals during his entire career with Pink Floyd. He currently uses a mixture of Paiste Traditional, Signature and 2002 cymbals.

Nick Mason's book, Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd, was published in the UK in October 2004.^[4] It is also available, abridged, as a 3CD audio book, read by Mason.^[4] An updated edition was published, in paperback, in 2011.

Notable Pink Floyd songs co-written by Mason[link]

• Pow R. Toc H. (1967) (The Piper at the Gates of Dawn)
• Interstellar Overdrive (1967) (The Piper at the Gates of Dawn)
• A Saucerful Of Secrets (1968) (A Saucerful of Secrets)
• Careful with that Axe, Eugene (1968) (B-side of their single Point Me at the Sky)
• Atom Heart Mother (1970) (Atom Heart Mother)
• Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast (1970) (Atom Heart Mother)
• One of These Days (1971) (Meddle)
• Echoes (1971) (Meddle)
• Time (1973) (The Dark Side of the Moon)
• Any Colour You Like (1973) (The Dark Side of the Moon)

Drumming style[link]

Influenced by jazz and big band music, Nick was a pioneer who embraced acoustic drums, (both single and double headed) tuned percussion, electronic drums and Roto toms, melding all of these into a melodic whole. His snare drum sound shifted from harsh demarcation of beats 2 and 4 (Careful with that Axe, Eugene) to a fatter and gentler timbre (Echoes) — a change that reflected growing studio chops.^[6] Mason has been seen as playing a big part in creating the atmosphere and mood in Pink Floyd's compositions.

Non-musical ventures[link]

Nick Mason

Nationality	British
24 Hours of Le Mans career
Participating years	1979–80, 1982–84
Teams	Dorset Racing Associates EMKA Productions Dome Racing GTi Engineering
Best finish	18th (1979)
Class wins	0

Mason is married (to his second wife, Nettie) and has four children; two daughters (Holly and Chloe) from his first marriage and two sons (Guy and Cary) from his second. They live in Hampstead, London; however they often stay in the Wiltshire town of Corsham in the former home of Camilla Parker Bowles.

As Floyd's recording and touring schedule grew more sporadic, Mason was left with more time to pursue his favourite hobby: motor racing. He owns (through his company Ten Tenths) and races several classic cars, and has competed successfully at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. His collection has been a subject of his 1998 book, Into the Red in which he documents his experience with his cars, along with some histories.^[7] He is also a qualified pilot, and flies an Aerospatiale AS 350 Squirrel helicopter in specially painted colours.^[8]

Mason was invited by Ferrari to purchase one of their 400 Enzos, which he let Jeremy Clarkson borrow for reviewing purposes on the BBC motoring programme Top Gear. Mason agreed, on the sole condition that throughout the review, Clarkson promoted the release of the book Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd. This led to Clarkson using Pink Floyd album titles in his description of the Enzo and The Stig driving round the track with "Another Brick in the Wall" playing (despite the fact that the Enzo does not come equipped with a stereo). Mason says that his favourite car of all time is the Ferrari 250 GTO, and owns one of the 39 built (which is valued at between £16,000,000 and £20,000,000).

His wealth amounts to £55 million, according to the Sunday Times Rich List 2006–07.^[9]

Views and advocacy[link]

Mason has played concerts to raise funds for Countryside Alliance.^[10] He is a board member and co-chairman of the Featured Artists' Coalition.^[11][12]

Discography[link]

With Pink Floyd[link]

Pink Floyd portal

With Nick Mason's Fictitious Sports[link]

• Nick Mason's Fictitious Sports – 3 May 1981^[4]

With Rick Fenn[link]

• Profiles – 29 July 1985^[4]
• White of the Eye – 1987 (soundtrack)^[4]
• Tank Malling – 1988 (soundtrack)

With Michael Mantler[link]

• The Hapless Child - 1976^[5]
• Something There – 1982^[5]
• Live – 1987^[5]
• Review - 2000
• Concertos – 2008

As a producer[link]

• Principal Edwards Magic Theatre – The Asmoto Running Band (1971)^[5]
• Principal Edwards Magic Theatre – Round One (1974)^[5]
• Robert Wyatt – Rock Bottom (1974)^[5]
• Gong – Shamal (1976)^[5]
• The Damned – Music for Pleasure (1977)^[5]
• Steve Hillage – Green (1978); Co-produced with Steve Hillage. Mason also plays a drum on "Leylines to Glassdom"^[5]

Books[link]

• Into the Red: 22 Classic Cars That Shaped a Century of Motor Sport (with Mark Hales) – 3 September 1998 (first edition), 9 September 2004 (second edition)
• Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd – 28 October 2004^[4]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Nick Mason's Drummerworld profile
• Nick Mason interviews
• Ten Tenths official site
• Inside Out book page from Pink Floyd official site
• Pink Floyd Drums: The Division Bell Tour Drums
• Nick Mason's interview for Hit Channel website

Ann Wilson
Ann Wilson May 2010
Background information
Birth name	Ann Dustin Wilson
Born	(1950-06-19) June 19, 1950 (age 62) San Diego, California
Genres	Rock, hard rock, folk rock, pop rock
Instruments	Vocals, flute, guitar, 12 string guitar, bass guitar, violin, piano, autoharp, keyboards, percussion
Years active	1970–present
Associated acts	Heart, The Lovemongers, Alice in Chains, Pantera, Marilyn Manson

Ann Wilson in May 2010

Ann Dustin Wilson (born June 19, 1950) is an American musician, best known as the lead singer, flute player, songwriter, and occasional guitar player^[1] of the rock band Heart.

Personal life[link]

Wilson was born in San Diego, California. Her father was a colonel in the Marine Corps, and she moved frequently. Her family eventually settled in Bellevue, a suburb of Seattle, Washington. Shy because of a stutter, Wilson sought fulfillment in music. In the early 1970s she joined a local band, White Heart, which changed its name to Hocus Pocus, and then in 1974, to Heart.

During the 1970s, Ann Wilson was in a relationship with Michael Fisher, the manager of the band, while her younger sister Nancy was involved with lead guitarist Roger Fisher, Michael's younger brother. Both couples co-controlled the band. In 1979, both relationships ended; Ann stated that Michael had fallen in love with another woman and they parted. The song "Magic Man" was written about Michael and contains autobiographical lyrics about the beginning of their relationship.^[2]

Ann adopted her daughter Marie in 1991 and her son Dustin in 1998.

As a child, Ann was teased for being overweight. She revealed that in the 1970s and into the eary 80's she would starve herself to stay thin. When Heart created a comeback in the mid-1980s, Ann had gained significant weight. Fearing it would compromise the band's image, record company executives and band members began pressuring her to lose weight. In music videos, camera angles and clothes were often used to minimize her weight, and more focus was put on her sister Nancy. Ann stated she began suffering from stress-related panic attacks due to the negative publicity surrounding her obesity.^[3] She underwent a weight-loss surgery called "adjustable gastric band" in January 2002^[4] after what she calls "a lifelong battle" with her weight.

Recording career[link]

In 1974 Ann's younger sister Nancy joined Heart, and the band moved to Canada. Heart recorded their first album Dreamboat Annie in Vancouver in 1975; it was released in the United States in 1976. In 1977 Little Queen was released, and in 1978, Dog & Butterfly. Ann also sang the duet "Almost Paradise" with Mike Reno in the movie Footloose from 1984 which reached number seven on Billboard's Hot 100.^[5] In 1986 she released a solo single from the movie "The Golden Child" called "The Best Man in the World" which reached number sixty-one in the U.S. She also had a hit in 1988-89 called "Surrender to Me" which was a duet with Cheap Trick singer Robin Zander, taken from the film Tequila Sunrise which reached number six in the U.S. singles chart.

In 1992 Ann appeared on Alice in Chains' EP Sap; she did vocals for "Brother", "Am I Inside" and "Love Song". In 1993, Alice in Chains singer Layne Staley contributed to vocals on "Ring Them Bells," a Bob Dylan cover from Heart's album Desire Walks On. In addition, Alice in Chains bassist Mike Inez and touring guitarist Scott Olson appeared on Heart's 2003 release Alive in Seattle.

Ann and Nancy started a recording studio, Bad Animals, in Seattle in the mid-1990s. They formed a side band, The Lovemongers, which performed "The Battle of Evermore" on the 1992 soundtrack to the Cameron Crowe (Nancy's then husband) movie Singles, and later released a four-song EP. The Lovemongers' debut album Whirlygig was released in 1997.

Solo career[link]

In 2006 Ann began recording her first solo album, Hope & Glory, produced by Ben Mink, and released by the Rounder (Zoe) Music Group on September 11, 2007. That same year, she and sister Nancy were on stage for a series of concerts in Las Vegas. Hope & Glory features guest appearances from Elton John, k.d. lang, Alison Krauss, Gretchen Wilson, Shawn Colvin, Rufus Wainwright, Wynonna Judd and Deana Carter. Ann's sister, Nancy, also contributed. Four singles were released from the project, "Little Problems, Little Lies", "Isolation" and "Immigrant Song".

The Hope & Glory version of Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" is available on Ann's official MySpace page, and charted as "the #9 most podcasted song of 2007" on the PMC Top10's annual countdown. Ann's powerful, piercing voice led many to refer to her as "the female Robert Plant" (Led Zeppelin's lead vocalist).^[6]

Ann joined producer Alan Parsons in the 2001 live tribute tour to Beatles music called A Walk Down Abbey Road.

In June 2007 she sang with the group Sed Nove and Ian Gillan in the Festival of Music in Paris.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ann Wilson

• Heart
• Official Ann Wilson MySpace page
• Ann Wilson at the Internet Movie Database

Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Clarkson at the 2009 Women's World Awards in Austria
Background information
Birth name	Kelly Brianne Clarkson
Born	(1982-04-24) April 24, 1982 (age 30) Fort Worth, Texas, U.S.
Origin	Burleson, Texas
Genres	Pop rock, pop
Occupations	Singer, songwriter, record producer, actress
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	2001–present[1]
Labels	RCA, 19
Associated acts	Reba McEntire
Website	kellyclarkson.com

Kelly Brianne Clarkson (born April 24, 1982) is an American singer, songwriter and occasional actress. Clarkson came into prominence after becoming the winner of the inaugural season of the television series American Idol in 2002 and later was the runner-up in the television special World Idol in 2003.

In 2003, Clarkson released her debut album, Thankful, which was a commercial success and established herself in the pop music industry. The release of its first single, "A Moment Like This" (2002), broke The Beatles' record for the biggest leap to number one, from 52, in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. After parting ways with her management, Clarkson developed a more rock-oriented music with the release of her critically acclaimed sophomore album, Breakaway (2004), which sold more than 12 million copies worldwide^[2] and which garnered Clarkson more worldwide success as a pop rock artist. The album's single, "Because of You" (2005), became the best-selling single by an Idol contestant worldwide. In 2007, Clarkson took full creative control for her third album My December, which had a more rock-inspired sound and was met with controversy and moderate success. Clarkson later returned to a more pop-oriented sound with All I Ever Wanted (2009), which became a commercial and critical success. The album's lead single, "My Life Would Suck Without You" (2009), surpassed "A Moment Like This"'s record for the biggest leap to number one on a single week in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 Chart, a milestone it still holds today. Furthermore, it also became her first number one single in the United Kingdom. Clarkson's fifth studio album, Stronger, was released in 2011, containing elements from synthpop, R&B and country music. The album's single, "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" (2012), became her longest number one single and eventually became her best-selling single in the United States.

In a career spanning a decade, Clarkson has become the most successful Idol contestant around the world, with album sales of over 23 million worldwide and singles sales of over 36 million,^[3] according to Billboard^[4] and Nielsen SoundScan.^[5][6][7] Clarkson's work also gained her numerous accolades, including two Grammy Awards, three MTV Video Music Awards, 12 Billboard Music Awards, four American Music Awards and a Women's World Award. Billboard also ranked Clarkson as the 14th best-selling artist of the 2000s, as well as also being ranked on the top 200 album sellers of the Nielsen SoundScan era at number 187.^[8][9] She is currently a mentor on ABC's singing competition show Duets.

Early life and career beginnings[link]

Clarkson was born in Fort Worth, Texas, and grew up in the small town of Burleson, a suburb of Fort Worth. She is the third and youngest child of Jeanne Rose, a first grade English teacher of Greek descent and Stephen Michael Clarkson, a former engineer of English descent.^{[citation needed]}

Clarkson's siblings include her older brother and sister, Jason and Alyssa. When Clarkson was six years old, her parents divorced after seventeen years of marriage. The family settled in Burleson, where Clarkson's mother married her second husband, Jimmy Taylor.^[10]

Clarkson's family struggled financially, and after her parents divorced, music became her refuge. Clarkson attended Pauline G Hughes Middle School and Burleson High School. She wanted to become a marine biologist but changed her mind after seeing the movie Jaws.^[11] In seventh grade, a teacher (Mrs. Cynthia Glenn) overheard her singing in a hallway and asked her to audition for the school choir; Clarkson told the teacher that she had never received professional vocal training.

In high school, Clarkson performed in musicals such as Annie Get Your Gun, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and Brigadoon. She sang at her high school talent show, after which an audience member shared some inspiring words with her: "God has given you this gift. You've got to sing. You're destined to sing." Clarkson continued singing and soon started classical training, hoping that music would be her ticket to a college scholarship.^[12]

Upon high school graduation, Clarkson was offered full scholarships to The University of Texas at Austin, University of North Texas, and Berklee, but decided against college because she had "already written so much music and wanted to try it on her own," and she figured "you're never too old to go to college."^[12] Clarkson later turned down two recording contracts from Jive Records and Interscope Records in the late 1990s, stating "They would have completely pigeonholed me as a bubblegum act. I was confident enough that something better would come along."^[13] She went to Los Angeles in late 2001 to pursue a career in music, but worked as a waitress and appeared as an extra in such shows as Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and Dharma & Greg to support herself.^[14] She worked with songwriters such as Gerry Goffin and recorded five tracks between January and March 2002 to try to get a record deal, but returned to Texas after four months in Los Angeles.^[1]

Music career[link]

[edit] 2002–03: American Idol and World Idol

Clarkson auditioned for the first season of American Idol (under the full title American Idol: The Search for a Superstar) in May 2002. She subsequently won the competition on September 4, 2002, earning 58% of the vote against runner-up Justin Guarini.^[15] Clarkson performed the ballad "A Moment Like This", the song written for the winner of American Idol, which subsequently appeared on her debut album, Thankful. When released as a single in October 2002, it set a record on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart when it rose from number 52 to number one.^[16] The CD single sold 236,000 copies in its first week of sales in the U.S.^[17] and spent five weeks at number one in Canada.

[edit] American Idol season 1 performances and results

[edit] World Idol performance and results

Clarkson performed at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., on September 11, 2002, following her win on American Idol.

In December 2003, a competition titled World Idol was held at the Pop Idol stage in London, gathering the winners of the first seasons of Idol series around the world. Clarkson was contractually obligated to participate, and placed second behind Norwegian Idol Kurt Nilsen. She performed Aretha Franklin's "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman". She left immediately after the competition, later explaining to fans that she was not feeling well.^[18]

[edit] 2003–04: Thankful

Shortly after the completion of the first season of American Idol, Clarkson was signed to RCA Records by Clive Davis and Simon Fuller. In 2003, Clarkson was later accused of working with a record company prior to winning American Idol. American Idol's rules stated that a contestant was not allowed to compete on the program if they had been linked to a record company. However, she was cleared of all allegations, as she only had a contract in order to conduct demonstration work.^[19]

Following the release of "A Moment Like This", Clarkson's full-length debut album Thankful was released in North America by RCA Records on April 15, 2003 with several singers and songwriters including Christina Aguilera, Diane Warren and Babyface contributing on the tracks.^[20] It debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200. To promote the album, Clarkson appeared on various episodes of American Idol in 2003. In October that year she performed in Australia at the 2003 NRL grand final.^[21] "A Moment Like This" was certified double platinum by the RIAA for sales of two million copies on December 8, 2003^[22] and platinum by the CRIA for sales of 100,000 copies on February 10, 2004.^[23] Thankful peaked at number 41 on the UK albums chart and at number 33 on the Australian albums chart.

Reviews for the album were generally favorable. However, several critics noted that her early achievement was established due to her performances on American Idol. Allmusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine praised the album for its vocal ability: "throughout this record, [Clarkson] makes it seem effortless and charming. She can croon, she can belt out a song, she can be sexy and sassy while still being graceful and as wholesome as the girl next door".^[24] Rachel Kipp of JS Online criticized Clarkson for not having the same personality on Thankful that she had on American Idol, and wrote: "on American Idol, Clarkson showcased a great voice and an endearing, 'aw-shucks' personality. That personality is missing on Thankful, and there lies the album's greatest fault". Kipp blamed the producers behind the album for not allowing Clarkson to be herself.^[25] Clarkson covered Danielle Brisebois' "Just Missed the Train" on the album.

"Miss Independent" was released as the second single from Thankful. It reached the top ten of the U.S. and Canadian singles charts, and earned Clarkson a 2004 Grammy Award nomination for "Best Female Pop Vocal Performance".^[26] When the single was released in the United Kingdom and Australia, it reached the top ten of the charts. "Low", the third single from Thankful, reached number two in Canada, but it was unable to make the top 40 of the US chart. The final single, "The Trouble with Love Is", was released as a promotional single for the British romantic film Love Actually and failed to chart in the United States, she then promoted the song on Pop Idol in 2003.

Soon after the first season of American Idol ended, Clarkson starred with Idol runner-up Justin Guarini in the movie From Justin to Kelly (2003). The film was poorly received by critics^[27] and grossed only $5 million at the North American box office, less than half its reported budget.^[28] Clarkson has mentioned in interviews that she is shocked when people send her scripts after From Justin to Kelly, often citing contractual obligation as her sole reason for involvement in the film.^[29] Clarkson was quoted telling People, "I knew when I read the script it was going to be real, real bad, but when I won, I signed that piece of paper and I could not get out of it."^[30] The script was written by Kim Fuller, Simon Fuller's brother.^[31]

She played Brenda Lee in the television drama American Dreams and appeared in the sitcom Reba. She also participated in sketch comedy on MADtv (2002) and Saturday Night Live (2005).^[32]

[edit] 2004–06: Breakaway

	"Because of You" (2005) noicon At the age of 16, Clarkson wrote the lyrics and melody to this song to cope with her emotions. The later composition resulted in the use of the piano and a full orchestral arrangement.
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Distancing herself from her American Idol image, Clarkson parted ways with 19 Entertainment and took more creative control with her second studio album Breakaway, to develop a more rock-oriented image.^[33] Clarkson co-wrote six of the songs with songwriters such as former Evanescence band members Ben Moody, David Hodges and producer Max Martin; the title track was co-written by punk-pop singer Avril Lavigne.

Breakaway was released by RCA Records on November 30, 2004.^[34] The album debuted within the U.S. top five and Canadian top ten, but sales were initially low in comparison to Thankful.^[35] The singles from Breakaway were very successful, and the album became only the fourth album in history to stay in the Billboard 200 top 20 for a consecutive year, as well as being certified six times platinum in the U.S. in late 2007^[36] and five times platinum in Canada in May 2006.^[37] With worldwide sales of over 12 million copies, Breakaway is the most successful album by an Idol.

Breakaway received different responses from critics; Rolling Stone commented that "on Kelly Clarkson's second album, ... she embraces her rock side rather than the pop pageantry that put her on top of the American Idol heap".^[38] TeenInk noted the strength of her vocals on Breakaway, and praised the change from pop music to contemporary rock: "[Clarkson] retains the incredible power and beauty of her voice while switching to rock".^[39] Stylus magazine also enjoyed Clarkson's foray into rock music, however, she was called out because of her American Idol image, which reviewer Charles Merwin believed she had yet to lose. He praised the non-singles and wrote that they "maintain a quality high".^[40] Allmusic called the album "a nice, low-key relief".^[41]

Clarkson performing her Hazel Eyes concert tour on November 10, 2005, Geelong, Australia

"Breakaway" served as the original song for The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (2004) and achieved considerable success across the world; it became Clarkson's third top-ten single in the U.S. and fourth top-ten single in Canada. It reached number ten in Australia, and number 22 in the UK. The second single, "Since U Been Gone", which was produced by Max Martin, became the most successful release from the album. It reached number two in the U.S. and the top five across the world. It also earned Clarkson her first Grammy Award for "Best Female Pop Vocal Performance"; she won a second award for "Best Pop Vocal Album".^[42]

The third and fourth single releases, "Behind These Hazel Eyes" and "Because of You", also followed with chart success. The video for "Because of You" won the 2006 MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video, her second consecutive win in that category (following "Since U Been Gone"). Clarkson was the most-played artist of 2006 on American radio, despite releasing only one single in the entire year, "Walk Away" (the fifth single from Breakaway).^[43] She was also the most radio-broadcasted artist of 2006 in Australia and "Because of You" was the third most broadcast song of the same year, despite being released in 2005.^[44]

Clarkson at the Naval Air Station Fort Worth, Texas, Joint Reserve Base in 2006

In 2005, Clarkson made a performance during the 2005 NBA All-Star Weekend as part of the festivities leading up to the All-Star Game.^[45] Later that year, she performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" at Game 2 of the NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and Detroit Pistons She also performed that spring as part of the 2005 NCAA Final Four festivities in St. Louis, Missouri.^[46]

Clarkson performed during the festivities of the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy.^[47] In mid 2006, Clarkson lent Ford Motor Co. a song titled "Go", written by Clarkson and Rhett Lawrence ("Miss Independent"). The song was used in the company's advertising campaign in 2006, "Bold Moves" and the song, along with its music video, was made available free at Ford's AddictedtoKelly.com website (now defunct).^[48]

[edit] 2006–08: My December

Clarkson in April 6, 2008 during her My December Tour

During her tour in Europe in 2006, Clarkson began writing songs for her third album, My December.^[49] The first single from My December was "Never Again", which peaked on the Billboard Hot 100 at number eight. Clarkson released "Sober" as the second single. She returned to American Idol for the season 6 finale, performing "Never Again" and "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" with Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry during a Beatles medley.^[50]

Clarkson parted with her management, The Firm, in June 2007, amid low radio airplay for "Never Again" and low ticket sales for her then-upcoming tour.^[51] Clarkson then signed with Starstruck Entertainment, run by Narvel Blackstock – the husband of Reba McEntire – on July 2, 2007.^[52] The same month, Live Nation announced that the tour – her first nationwide arena tour – had been canceled due to underwhelming ticket sales, to be rescheduled after the release of the My December album at smaller, more intimate concert environments.^[53] Clarkson reinstated plans to tour the U.S. during 2007, with a much smaller tour than the one she canceled in June. She began her My December Tour in October 2007 in venues significantly smaller than those previously booked.^[54] The August 2007 issue of Blender included a feature on Clarkson and her new album, as well as her music label woes.^[55]

My December was released in the U.S. on June 26, 2007. The album debuted at number two in the U.S. with 291,000 albums sold,^[56] a slightly higher debut than Clarkson's previous album, Breakaway, which debuted at number three.^[57] In Canada, the album was awarded a platinum certification for shipments of more than 100,000 copies.^[58] My December was certified platinum in December 2007 by the RIAA.^[59] It has sold more than three million copies worldwide.^[60]

In April 2007, Clarkson appeared on the American Idol Idol Gives Back charity show aimed at raising money for tackling poverty, hunger and AIDS in Africa, as well as the Hurricane Katrina appeal. Clarkson noted that she was in a dispute with her record label bosses and executives as to which song to perform for the event. Clarkson refused to perform her new single "Never Again" viewing it as simple self-promotion through a charitable event. She is quoted as saying,

She opted to perform Patty Griffin's "Up to the Mountain". After the performance, the audience who watched Clarkson perform live gave her a standing ovation. American Idol judge Simon Cowell described her as "incredible", saying, "When you let her [Clarkson] come back on the show it makes everybody else look like an amateur."^[62] Clarkson later sang "Never Again" in the American Idol grand finale on May 23, 2007. On July 7, 2007, Clarkson performed on the American leg of Live Earth.^[63] Clarkson was invited to be a celebrity mentor for Canadian Idol during its Top 5 week of the fifth season, aired on the CTV network on August 20, and she performed on the results show the next night. Clarkson also performed the grand finale of Swedish Idol in December 2007.^[64] Clarkson also performed at the 2007 NFL opening kickoff where she sang the national anthem and songs from My December.^[65] Clarkson also performed in the halftime show for the Dallas Cowboys and New York Jets game on Thanksgiving Day.^[66][67]

Clarkson performing at the Live Earth concert

Clarkson and Reba McEntire performing during 2 Worlds 2 Voices Tour

In addition to her roles as spokeswoman for the acne treatment Proactiv as well as Vitaminwater, Clarkson partnered with NASCAR for the 2007 season. She appeared in televised advertising spots, performed at pre-race concerts, promoted NASCAR Day, and appeared at the Champions' Banquet in December.^[68] In April 2008, Clarkson participated in a Papal Youth Rally at the campus of St. Joseph's Seminary, Dunwoodie in Yonkers, New York performing a mini-concert for those in attendance. This was the Papal Visit of Pope Benedict XVI. She performed Schubert's "Ave Maria" for the Pope later in the day following the Pope's speech.^[69]

Clarkson performed "What Hurts the Most" with Rascal Flatts at the ACM Awards in 2006 and returned again to sing a duet with Reba McEntire in 2007. This was her second performance on a country music award show, even though she is in the pop/rock genre. Along with her performance with Rascal Flatts, Clarkson also performed "Cigarettes", with the country duo The Wreckers during one of their shows in Texas.^[70]

Building on her country music status, Clarkson and Reba McEntire, who first met after Clarkson won the first season of American Idol,^[71] recorded an hour-long CMT Crossroads special at Nashville's famed Ryman Auditorium on February 22, 2007. It aired on CMT and Palladia (then known as MHD) on June 24, 2007. Previously, Clarkson was a performer on CMT's Giants: Reba McEntire. where she sang McEntire's hit song "Why Haven't I Heard From You", introduced Dolly Parton, and later also sang McEntire's hit "Does He Love You" with Martina McBride. Clarkson also appeared on an episode of McEntire's sitcom Reba, that aired on January 14, 2007.^[72]

At the Academy of Country Music Awards on May 16, 2007, Clarkson and McEntire sang a duet of Clarkson's own 2005 single, "Because of You", which also became the lead single from McEntire's album of all-star duets.^[73] The music video for this version of the song later debuted on June 20, 2007. This collaboration with McEntire earned Clarkson a CMA Award nomination for "Musical Event of the Year" in 2007 and a Grammy Award nomination for "Best Country Collaboration With Vocal" in 2008. Additionally, the song was featured on Now That's What I Call Country, which was released in August 2008.

Clarkson was a surprise guest at the 2007 CMA Music Festival in Nashville on June 7, 2007, where she performed "Does He Love You" and "Because of You" with Reba McEntire during the internationally-renowned annual event. The performance of "Because of You" was taped and aired as part of the "CMA Music Festival: Country's Night To Rock" television special that aired on ABC on July 23, 2007.^[74]

On January 17, 2008, Clarkson embarked on the 2 Worlds, 2 Voices Tour 2008, a co-headlining tour with Reba McEntire. Reba and Clarkson have since stayed in touch and Clarkson is now managed by McEntire's husband Narvel Blackstock.^[75]

On May 18, 2008, Clarkson performed on stage at the Academy of Country Music Awards All-Star Jam with Reba McEntire and Ronnie Dunn of Brooks and Dunn.^[76] The All-Star jam is the final event of the week taking place immediately after the awards show. Clarkson was not announced ahead of time for an appearance.

[edit] 2008–10: All I Ever Wanted

Clarkson at red carpet 2009 VH1 Divas

Clarkson's fourth album, All I Ever Wanted, was released on March 10, 2009. During recording of the album, Clarkson worked closely with producer-songwriters Ryan Tedder, Dr. Luke, Max Martin, and Howard Benson, among others. In its first week of sales, it sold 255,000 copies in the U.S., debuting at number one on the Billboard 200; it stayed at number one for two weeks.^[77] All I Ever Wanted received a Grammy Award nomination for "Best Pop Vocal Album".^[78] Clarkson was placed eighth on Billboard's Top Female Artists of 2009 and ninth on Billboard's Top Hot Artists of 2000s.^[79] She was ranked second on Billboard's Best of 2000s: Pop Song Artist, behind Pink.^[80]

Clarkson in 2010 during her All I Ever Wanted World

The first single from All I Ever Wanted, "My Life Would Suck Without You", entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 97 and rose to number one the following week; this broke the record for the largest leap to the top spot, formerly held by Britney Spears' "Womanizer".This was the second time Clarkson broke this record. Moreover, "My Life Would Suck Without You" was Clarkson's first number one in the United Kingdom and it made her the first American Idol winner to achieve a number one single in the UK. The album's second single, "I Do Not Hook Up", peaked at number 20 in the U.S. "I Do Not Hook Up" did not fare very well overseas and the believed reason for this is due to a lack of radio support because a previous version had been recorded by Katy Perry. The third single, "Already Gone", reached number 13 in the USA and number 15 in Canada, but had mixed results internationally. "Already Gone" sparked another conflict between Clarkson and her label. There was a widely reported scandal with the album's third single, which Clarkson wrote with OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder. Many critics had noticed that the backing track and style of the song sounded similar to Beyoncé's "Halo". After becoming aware of the comparisons, Clarkson did not want to release the song out of respect for Beyoncé, instead requesting release for a self-penned song, "Cry", which later hailed extremely positive reviews, most notably from the BBC.^[81] However, her record company refused, publishing "Already Gone" against Clarkson's wishes. In response to the entire fiasco, Clarkson penned a song called "Wash Rinse Repeat" in which she states her view on the lack of creativity record labels give their artists; it is widely believed the song is an attack on Ryan Tedder.

The fourth single was "All I Ever Wanted". Clarkson performed as one of many guests for the return of VH1 Divas in September 2009.^[82] Clarkson also became a guest mentor on the Dutch television series X Factor in November 2009.

Clarkson was announced as one of the VH1 Save the Music Foundation ambassadors for 2009–2010.^[83] She began her 32-date All I Ever Wanted tour in October, following a string of summer concerts around the United States. Clarkson toured all over the world with the album, reaching territories such as Europe, South Africa, Oceania and Asia.The fall tour shows were performed in arena/theater type venues, with the summer tour being performed in outdoor amphitheatres. Her Indonesia show was initially sponsored by tobacco company Djarum, but after complaints from some fans and anti-tobacco groups, the promoter removed the sponsor.^[84] The tour ended in May 2010 in China.^[85]