Heart was a hugely successful female-fronted hard rock band of the 1970s, that became an AOR outfit in the following decade and amassed a number of big hits.
The band, whose earlier sound fused elements of folk-rock and power ballads, was heavily influenced by Led Zeppelin — Heart's drummer during the '80s, Denny Carmassi later played with Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page in Coverdale Page.
Heart began life as the Army in 1963 in Seattle, Washington formed by bassist Steve Fossen and brothers Roger Fisher (guitar/mandolin) and Mike Fisher (sound engineer). The group went under White Heart, before settling on just Heart in the early 1970s. Ann Wilson joined the group in 1970. Romance sprang up between her and Mike, and she came along when they moved to Vancouver in Canada to avoid the Vietnam draft some years later.
Soon after the move, Nancy joined the group. Mirroring her sister she became romantically involved with Roger. The band gained a following in Canada and was signed to the the small Canadian label Mushroom, issuing their debut album, Dreamboat Annie, in 1976, with added members, guitarist/keyboardist Howard Leese and drummer Michael Derosier.
Combining classic hard rock stylings of the day with softer, more folk-oriented ones the album sold well in Canada, and was issued in the US, where it reached platinum status, supported by the #9 hit "Magic Man," and the #35 hit "Crazy On You." The title track, a slower tune, was also a substantial hit almost making the Top 40, peaking at #42.
In 1977, Heart now well known moved to CBS affiliate Portrait. This didn't go well with Mushroom owner Shelly Siegal, and a legal battle ensued. After the smoke cleared, Heart's second album Little Queen was released on Portait in 1977. It was a substantial hit, but wasn't the enormous hit their debut album was. Only one single, "Barracuda," from the album made the Top 40 this time around. Curiously, the single, "Heartless," from the unfinished LP Magazine released by Mushroom charted higher than Little Queen's other two singles.
