If you asked any Heart fan other than myself what the most important album of their career was, you’d probably yield the results “Dreamboat Annie,” “Dog and Butterfly,” “Little Queen,” and “Heart.” However, I firmly believe that the most important album of their career came in 1990 with “Brigade.” Heart had built such a loyal fan base from the mid 70’s to the early 80’s. They were known for their edgy rock that touched on folk at times, and the fans ate it up. However, in 1982 and 1983, Heart released “Private Audition” and “Passionworks,” respectively. These albums had a different sound than the band normally put out, and thus they started to lose the trusty Heart Mongers that once filled up arenas and stadiums. In 1985, Heart sold themselves out to corporate rock with the glam-pop, power ballad filled “Heart.” While they still had some fans left from the first incarnation, they garnered even more fans and accolades with this new pop sounding album. Another album followed and Heart’s success became bigger and bigger. The makeup got thicker, the heels got taller, the hair got bigger, and the drug use got worse. In 1990, Ann and Nancy Wilson were done with the current version of the band, and thus stripped off some of the glam, sobered up, and produced their most important album: “Brigade.” This album still retained some of the synthesizer-driven glam rock that we had previously seen in the recent years, however they also brought back an edgy guitar and a folk touch that harkened back to their first incarnation. This album blended both periods of Heart into one jam-packed, 13 song album. Songs like “All I Wanna Do Is Make Love to You,” “Stranded,” and “Secret” stayed true to their 80’s pop sound. However, songs like “Call of the Wild,” “Under the Sky,” and “The Night” all brought back the nostalgia of the 70’s folk rock sound. I think this album is so integral for Heart’s career because it took both factions of their career and made it one. After this album, Heart found a groove with albums that are much more true to themselves.
