Dreamboat Annie

Description

Breakthrough Debut Launched Hearts Hall of Fame Career: Dreamboat Annie Blends Electric and Acoustic Elements, Includes the Classics Magic Man and Crazy on You

2LP: 50th Anniversary Edition of 1975 Album Features Audiophile Sound: Mobile Fidelitys 180g 45RPM 2LP Set Plays with Revealing Clarity and Broad Dynamics
1/4 / 15 IPS Dolby A analogue copy to DSD256 to analogue console to lathe

Hearts breakthrough debut, Dreamboat Annie, has often been framed in the context of a female-led band successfully matching the moves of its male counterparts during an era when women werent associated with rocking out particularly on a mainstream level. While that take is true Ann and Nancy Wilson practically stood alone amid a commercial age dominated by testosterone it undersells the appeal, scope, and craftsmanship of an album that deserves to be revered strictly because of its merit, not because of the gender of the groups principal members.

Mastered at MoFis California studio, housed in a Stoughton gatefold jacket, and pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing in California, Mobile Fidelitys numbered-edition 180g 45RPM LP puts the records artistic significance in proper perspective. Presented in definitive sound, it invites you to hear with stellar clarity the diverse architecture, passionate playing, and fervent emotions that help make Dreamboat Annie an all-time classic. This 50th anniversary edition also marks the first time Hearts opening salvo has been available in audiophile quality on vinyl in more than four decades.

Drop the needle and experience the textures of the guitars, full range of Ann Wilsons voice, spacious backdrops of the arrangements, and rhythmic momentum crucial components of Hearts songs free of veiled tones and artificial ceilings. Ample separation between instruments and black backgrounds bring the music into detailed focus, whether its the full decay of percussive accents, layered stacking of group harmonies, or depth of the bass lines. Helmed by Mike Flicker, Dreamboat Annie features advanced production that belies that of most independent releases of the time. The dynamics alone on this pressing confirm that fact.

Although the passage of time, as well as Hearts Hall of Fame career, have nearly caused the historical tidbit to fade into obscurity, Dreamboat Annie was originally issued by the tiny label Mushroom Records after major imprints inexplicably took a flyer on the album. Released in Canada in September 75, it hit shelves in the States in February of the following year. By the fall of 1976, Heart had a platinum LP and three hit singles. As well as an upcoming battle with Mushroom Records that, while another story entirely, further underlined the Wilson sisters toughness and determination.

Those traits resonate throughout Dreamboat Annie, which kicks off with the spellbinding Magic Man. Released in advance of the LP as the quartets second single, the Wilson sisters anthem partially doubles as an autobiographical tale based on Ann Wilsons then-relationship with band manager Michael Fisher. His brother, Roger, turns in memorable lead-guitar passages that connect with the songs funk-laden structures and Ann Wilsons commanding singing. Mystical, rugged, sensual, persuasive, steady, edgy, well-composed: Magic Man possesses a majority of the elements that would define Hearts finest songs and, fittingly, stands as the ensembles first Top 10 smash.

While the records debut Stateside single, Crazy on You didnt climb quite as high, it cracked the Top 40 and demonstrated the authoritative momentum, melodic build, and contagious crunch that the group was capable of summoning without seemingly breaking a sweat. Hearts now-trademark acoustic-electric frameworks, Ann Wilsons ravishing power, and ace timing are all here in spades. Not to be overlooked, the declarative Sing Child and strutting White Lightning & Wine contain similarly aggressive elements, with the latter combining boogie riffs, cowbell-driven beats, and blustery vocals to remind anyone paying attention that Heart means business.

The band further separated itself from its rock contemporaries via a trove of lighter material. Eclipsing the six-minute mark, Soul of the Sea depicts Hearts ambitious interest in psychedelia, blues, and folk. Hearts tender side also emerges on the misty ballad How Deep It Goes, a prime example of Ann Wilsons penchant to deliver softness with the same penchant she does heaviness and a standout for Nancy Wilsons prowess on guitar. Both sisters similarly shine on the crossover (Love Me Like Music) Ill Be Your Song, whose mix of vulnerability, strings, and handclaps signal the extraordinary vision Heart had from the start. Decades later, it all sounds better than ever.