"Tell It Like It Is", and "There's The Girl" by Heart

         Long time readers of the blog know that on occasion, two songs by the same act will share the Radio Dial spotlight. Basically, I can't decide which of the two equally deserved tunes should get the attention, so both songs are featured. Tonight is one of those very times. Settle on in, as the Dial brings you the music of Heart, featuring the inimitable sisterly duo of Ann and Nancy Wilson, and their underplayed hit singles “Tell It Like It Is”, and “There's the Girl”.

“If you want something to play with... go and find yourself a toy.
Cause baby, baby, my time is much too expensive... And I don't want no little boy”

A #8 U.S. hit single pulled from 1980's “Greatest Hits / Live” LP, Ann belts out a passionate cover of this 1966 Aaron Neville soul ballad that lays out the desire felt by the singer for her intended beau.

Coming along at the tail end of their “Little Led Zeppelin” phase, and many years prior to their mid-80s MTV fueled career resurgence, “Tell It...” was their highest charting single at this point in their career. Even the ubiquitous '70s hits “Magic Man” and “Barracuda” lagged slightly behind this hit cover chartwise, as they hit US #9, and #11, respectively.

“Tell It” also dates from a rather cover-heavy period for the band, as it was preceded a year prior by the 1979 single release of Badfinger/Harry Nilsson’s “Without You” (taken from the '78 LP “Magazine“), and was immediately followed by another extract from “Greatest Hits / Live”, a powerful live cover of the pop standard “Unchained Melody” (most closely associated with The Righteous Brothers), which hit US #83 in 1981. Additionally, other covers from the 1980 live set include songs originally recorded by The Beatles, Little Richard, and the Wilson’s sister’s idols… Led Zeppelin, themselves.

“Tell it like it is... Oh yeah, just let your conscience be your guide...
You know, deep down inside... I believe you love me, just forget your foolish pride” 

 

Following a period of declining sales, and diminishing chart success, Heart reinvented themselves and burst back onto the scene in 1985 with their 5X Platinum self titled LP, which, among other hits, contained their first #1 hit single, the ethereal “These Dreams”. The AOR sounds of the new MTV-embracing Heart continued with 1987's “Bad Animals” LP, from which was extracted our second spotlight single, the US #12 hit “There's the Girl”.

“You're a polished diamond... Now you're feeling kinda rough...
Yes I know how long you've been searching... for the perfect touch
You better hear what I say... I can tell your eyes are just about to give you away”

Following the release of Bad Animals' #1 smash ballad “Alone”, and the top 10 “Who Will You Run To”, “There's...” is a warning put to song. A warning by a woman telling her (platonic?) male friend that the girl HE carries a torch for is bad news and will likely leave him heartbroken. I imagine you could even call this girl a “Bad Animal”, as per the album title.

Of note here is that lead vocals are handled by Nancy, not Ann, who typically sang lead on most Heart releases. “There's” peaked at US #12, and was the last sizable hit from its parent LP.

Aside from the Wilson sisters, the only other Heart bandmate to appear on both “Tell It...” and “There's...” is Howard Leese, performing guitar and keyboards on both cuts. The rest of the 1980 line up included Steve Fossen on bass, Roger Fisher on guitars, and Michael DeRosier on drums. By the 1987 release of “There's...”, The Wilsons and Leese were joined by Mark Andes on bass, and drummer Denny Carmassi.

“'Cause there's the girl... that you were after... feel your heart beating faster now
There's the girl that you were after... Can you say that you don't want her anymore?”

 

Yes, I know these tracks aren’t especially “deep cuts” from Heart’s discography, but they are quite rare to hear on terrestrial radio (at least in my home market of central Ohio). In fact, last month I heard “There’s The Girl” on the radio for the first time in at least a decade, and I still haven't heard “Tell It Like It Is” over the airwaves since its original chart run.

Give these forgotten tracks a listen and reawaken your musical memories, brought to you courtesy of Ann and Nancy and the rest of the Heart family, and Kyle's Radio Dial!