Ann Wilson (4) (1950–)

I'm a sucker for a good rock bio and there's been some good ones and some horrible ones. This, thankfully, is one of the better ones. It was also a great feature of the audiobook that Ann and Nancy narrate the bulk of the book.

Heart has always been a favourite band, but one that I didn't know much of the story about. The early years (once you get past the inevitable "our parents met..." part) detailing the initial rise of the band, the crap they had to deal with in the early years, the show more lawsuits and all the ups and downs that follow were fascinating, and there's some absolute gems in here. I had no idea Ann's house became the crash pad for the movers and shakers of the early Nineties Seattle grunge movement.

This book proves that Heart is a great band, with Ann and Nancy straddling the line between rock Gods like John Paul Jones and Elton John and the newer gods like Chris Cornell and Jerry Cantrell, while also jamming or hanging with the likes of Carrie Underwood and Joni Mitchell. And yet, Paul McCartney didn't really know who the hell they were.

Fun and fascinating stuff. Could have been twice as long. I yanked one star just for the sometimes awkwardly horrible writing, which I blame on their co-author. show less

Having been a Heart fan since the late 1980s I approached this autobiographical account by the Wilson sisters with interest. I expected good things and wasn’t disappointed.

I like the occasional insertion from other contributors, such as the third non-famous Wilson sister and former Heart members. These brief interludes either fill in gaps where Ann and Nancy are unable to relate info as sufficiently as they’d prefer, or it reveals events from different perspectives to their own. I was show more especially glad that a snippet written by Roger Fisher was included, as I rate him as the best lead guitarist who's ever played in Heart.

On the subject of lead guitar, I’ve always wondered why Nancy seldom adopts this role, usually sticking to rhythm guitar instead. After reading “Kicking & Dreaming” I understand the reason: she much prefers playing rhythm to lead. Fair enough!

The way the book opens with a prologue relating to how Heart got their first big gig was a great way to draw the reader in. Well, it worked with me, anyway. After this short intro we go way back before the beginning, to the 1690s in fact, as the Wilsons are able to trace their maternal ancestry right back to Hannah Dustin, who’s famous in her part of America for not only escaping from Indians, but for killing and scalping them too. This may seem irrelevant with this being a book about musicians, but personally I think it fits in just fine, plus it’s entertaining thanks to Nancy’s narrative style.

From here we soon progress to Ann’s birth in 1950, Nancy’s four years later, and continue with an absorbing narrative of their childhood, during which music was an essential ingredient. Seems like they were born for success. Yet success was earned, not handed to them, and it’s fascinating to read about their lives before they released "Dreamboat Annie".

I’ve no negative comments to make as such, but after the lengthy section of the Wilsons’ pre-fame years, I did feel more focus should’ve been given to their albums. I would’ve liked to have read more about what they felt about their songs, how each track was inspired and developed, and how the male members of Heart responded to classics like “Mistral Wind” and “Barracuda”.

It seems that once we reach 1976 the years start to wiz by faster and faster, when I would’ve liked to pause here and there. Comments are featured on several tracks, though, including the two I’ve mentioned, which proved interesting. Shame they didn’t discuss a few more.

But the above is an observation, not a criticism, as the Wilson duo has proven throughout this tome that their writing skills are not limited to songs. The way Ann and Nancy have alternated their narratives throughout the book is expertly done.

A rocking good read. show less

There have been nearly 30 members of Heart over the band’s history, but the constants--and its public face--have always been the Wilson sisters, so it’s a bit surprising to learn that it wasn’t originally their band. Ann--the middle child of three girls, four years older than Nancy--started the group with a few male musicians she’d played with in their hometown of Seattle, after they’d all ended up in Vancouver; after years of pleading from her sister, Nancy eventually dropped out show more of college and moved north to join them. The sisters were used to wandering and to relying on one another, having grown up in a Marine Corps family and moving often until their father retired. That may have been good preparation for the constant touring that building a career in rock and roll demanded, and having each other’s backs in settings where they were often the only women (not counting the groupies) helped too. And while having the women out front--Ann singing, Nancy on guitar--didn’t hurt in attracting attention, the Wilsons truly saw Heart as a group effort, with their sister act linked to the Fisher brothers; guitarist Roger was another of the the founding members from Seattle, while his brother Michael was the band’s behind-the-scenes leader. For nearly a decade, Michael was also Ann’s boyfriend (and songwriting muse, the inspiration for “Magic Man” and “Crazy on You”), and for a time, Roger was Nancy’s. When these couplings crumbled, the band’s future grew cloudy, but the sisters still had each other. With new cohorts, they forged ahead and changed with the times, if sometimes reluctantly...but the music kept on going.

I prefer celebrity autobiographies to tell a little less than “all,” and this one complies. Kicking and Dreaming is candid without being excessively graphic; the Wilsons refer to the sex and drugs that accessorize the rock-and-roll life but don’t provide unnecessary play-by-play detail. However, this isn’t just a tale of the rock-and-roll life; it’s a tale of being women in the rock-and-roll life...and of being women, full stop.

READ MORE: http://www.3rsblog.com/2013/08/audiobook-talk-kicking-and-dreaming-ann-nancy-wil... show less

Review of “Kicking and Dreaming” by Ann and Nancy Wilson
with Charles R. Cross
November 13, 2012
By: Jean Houser-Cantley

I have been a Heart fan since I was in my early teens. I was drawn to them by Ann’s amazing voice and Nancy’s powerful guitar playing. A former friend of mine from middle/high school and I would pretend to be Ann and Nancy. We would sing and play air guitar all the while imitating their movements from their videos. We spent hours trying to prefect the vocals and even show more tried starting a band that didn’t really pan out all because we looked up to Ann and Nancy. This book is a very detailed look at the Wilson sister’s musical roots and beginning. Their candid demeanor makes this book feel genuine and not fake just to sell books. The book takes you through the way that Ann and Nancy were treated in what was considered as a “man’s world” career and how they “proved” themselves among the masses. In addition, the book discusses the entire Wilson family as a whole, along with personal struggles; such as weight, infertility, drugs and alcohol abuse. After reading this book I became even more of a Heart fan that ever before. Ann and Nancy are role models that hard work and dedication certainly can pay off. In essence the Wilson sisters rock! I would recommend this book to any Heart fan or fan of rock and roll music. show less