The Wilson Sisters of Heart Grace The Stage at Hard Rock Indiana

By Christopher David

Going strong into their fifth decade as pioneers of empowering women in rock, the Wilson  sisters brought Heart’s latest tour to the Hard Rock Casino this weekend, delivering a  spectacular setlist that showcased musicians who remain effortless in their power to command  a stage.  

Guitarist Nancy Wilson and vocalist Ann Wilson hardly need an introduction; emerging from Seattle in the mid-70s and quickly establishing themselves as one of the strongest live acts out  there, Heart has seen continued success over the years by adapting their look while  maintaining their sound—the core being Ann’s commanding vocals and Nancy’s stunning  guitar work. Both were in fine form on Saturday, even joking about the ‘big hair’ years of the  ‘80s. 

“Despite the hair styles, we survived and ended up with some pretty good love songs,” Nancy  noted, introducing “These Dreams,” just one of several ‘80s hits that felt a little more evened out in terms of arrangement, the bombast of synth in the studio versions dialed down a little to  showcase the songwriting. “Never,” “Alone,” and “What About Love” all bled beautifully into  ‘70s hits like “Magic Man” and crowd-favorite “Crazy On You,” highlighting how consistent the  Wilson sisters’ songwriting has been since the very beginning. Nancy offered a solo dedication  to Eddie Van Halen (“4 Edward”), introducing it with a beautiful story of her gifting the Van  Halen legend his first acoustic guitar, and there were plenty of surprising but airtight covers. 

“There’s a rumor that this band likes Led Zeppelin,” Ann joked before embarking on a stellar  cover of “Going to California,” which was followed by “The Rain Song” and an encore of “The  Ocean” (which, in particular, really showed off the prowess of Heart’s current lineup, most  notably guitarists Ryan Waters and Ryan Wariner, whose leads nicely complimented Nancy’s  percussive approach to rhythm guitar). A cover of Joni Mitchell’s “River” was nicely timed with  the holidays, and by the time “Barracuda” closed the show, any fan would have been hard pressed to ask for much more.  

Setlist:

Bebe Le Strange  

Never 

Love Alive 

Little Queen 

These Dreams 

Crazy on You 

Dog & Butterfly 

Going to California (Led Zeppelin) 

4 Edward 

Magic Man 

You’re the Voice (Chris Thompson) 

The Rain Song (Led Zeppelin)

Photo by Criss Cain, courtesy of Big Splash Productions