Nancy Wilson and Ann Wilson of Heart at their December 27, 2023 concert in Highland, Calif.
The logo on the drum kit was prominent as sisters Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson performed as Heart on December 27, 2023), and though their new run of shows were not yet being called a reunion, the concert in Highland, Calif., sure felt like one. (Watch clips from the first three performances below.) The sisters had first made a surprise announcement on Oct. 24 of their return for a New Year’s Eve show that was held in Seattle. The Dec. 27 performance that actually marked their first date as Heart since 2019 was revealed a few days later. Since then, they began what was to be an extensive 2024 run, the “Royal Flush Tour.” It was halted on May 29, when the band canceled their summer dates in Europe and the U.K. At that time, it was noted that Ann Wilson required a “time-sensitive but routine medical procedure for which the minimum recover time is six weeks.” On July 2, the group announced that she “recently underwent an operation to remove something that, as it turns out, was cancerous.” Happily, they’ve rescheduled the tour, which picks up on February 28, 2025. Tickets for are available here and on StubHub.
The sisters had shared the stage on Oct. 10 when Nancy Wilson was a surprise guest at Ann Wilson’s concert in Santa Rosa, Calif. As the stunned audience applauded, Nancy strode across the stage and planted a kiss on her sister’s cheeck, as the crowd roared its approval. The pair performed Heart‘s classic rock favorite, “Barracuda,” marking the first time that the sisters had performed together on stage since 2019. In an extensive 2021 interview with Best Classic Bands, Nancy Wilson said, “Live Nation has put a big offer on the table for Heart for 2022. That will be a really fun thing to look forward to! Ann and I are both up for it.” Regrettably, things changed, and it never took place as the sisters again toured separately in 2022. That all changed with their 2024 tour.
Watch them perform “Magic Man”
In 2016, the sisters had a falling out over a family dispute. Before Nancy and Ann reunited as Heart for their big “Love Alive” tour in 2019, they performed together in New York City for a benefit concert.
Whether the limited dates in Dec. 2023 would become a full reunion tour was still to be decided. In an with the 96.1 KLPX radio in Tucson, Ariz., Ann Wilson said of the concerts (via Blabbermouth.net): “We’re gonna see how it works with the Heart thing, whether it feels like a level up. If it does feel like a level up, then we’ll keep doing it. But that’s what it has to be. It can’t just slide down into jukebox time… It’s gotta be real. No going through the motions. No phoning it in. No just getting on some kind of circuit just to take people’s money and play the old songs again and again and again. No, we’re gonna make it cool, really make it cool.”
The 17-song set included not one, not two, but three Led Zeppelin covers. Watch a portion of their performance of “Stairway to Heaven” at their Dec. 28 concert…
They closed out the year on December 31 in Seattle, ending the concert with “Crazy On You” and “Auld Lang Syne.”
Heart – Yaamava’ Theater, Highland, CA, December 27, 2023 Setlist
Bebe Le Strange
Never
Love Alive
Roll the Dice
Magic Man
Little Queen
Straight On
Let’s Dance
These Dreams
(Drum Moment)
Mistral Wind
The Ocean
Alone
What About Love
Barracuda
Crazy On You
Encore
The Battle of Evermore
Stairway to Heaven
“We’re sisters, first and foremost,” Nancy Wilson said in our interview, “and that’s the most important story to tell about Heart. It’s not really a business between me and Ann. It shouldn’t really be a business. That [doesn’t] help the sisterhood. That’s where the blood is thicker than water. That’s the biggest joy to celebrate.” She turns 71 on March 16, 2025. Older sister Ann turned 74 last June 19.
Heart 2023 “Tour” (Tickets are available at Ticketmaster, AXS.com and StubHub)
The original Heart lineup formed in 1973. Nancy Wilson joined one year later.
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1 Comment so far
Jump into a conversationWe love Heart & play them a bunch on our station as well as Ann’s solo stuff. Hope they tour the US in 2024!