YOU ARE HERE: zharth.net / Zharth's Music Log / Week 124 (Lonely Hearts Club)
(Originally finalized on February 12, 2025)
Preface: Valentine's Day is right around the corner! So this week we're going to explore songs that mention hearts. And not in an especially positive light. But there won't be any heartbreakers - we've heard enough of those already. ;-p
Monday: Big Brother & The Holding Company - Piece Of My Heart [Cheap Thrills, 1968]
Comments: One of the quintessential broken-hearted songs (originally recorded by Aretha Franklin's sister Erma), from the queen of down-hearted blues rock & soul music, this was Janis Joplin's early breakout hit - and one of her most enduring favorites - from before she'd even traded out being the singer in a band to put her name in lights as a solo artist.
Tuesday: The Rolling Stones - Heart Of Stone [released as a single, 1964]
Comments: Released just about six months prior to Satisfaction, this is one of The Stones' earliest singles featuring songwriting credits by "the Glimmer Twins" Mick and Keith. Contemporaries of The Beatles (but with infinitely more longevity), The Stones are one of the few artists that thrived in the mid-'60s era of hit singles and the peak early-'70s era of album-oriented rock. That said, they almost sound like two completely different bands!
Wednesday: The Yardbirds - Heart Full of Soul [released as a single, 1965]
Comments: Written by Graham Gouldman - who also penned another prominent Yardbirds hit, For Your Love (along with the less prominent Evil Hearted You) - this song was The Yardbirds' first single after Jeff Beck replaced Eric Clapton, and is one of my favorites from this band. Originally recorded with a sitar (months before The Beatles attempted something similar on Norwegian Wood), the sitar part was later adapted for guitar by Beck.
Thursday: The Allman Brothers Band - Black Hearted Woman [The Allman Brothers Band, 1969]
Comments: There are bands that are recognized for the only one or two truly great songs they ever managed to record, and many more that have catalogs of good material that's been criminally over-looked. Of the select few bands that have the privileged distinction of becoming "radio darlings", some of them have had their discographies pretty much picked clean. Then again, you might still be able to find a solid song or two - like this one from The Allman Brothers Band's debut album - that you can't recall hearing on the radio...
Friday: The Eagles - Heartache Tonight [The Long Run, 1979]
Comments: A late era hit from The Eagles' final studio album before breaking up, this Grammy Award-winning number one single is almost certainly the best track from that album, and easily among the band's greatest hits. You might be surprised to learn (as I just did) that it was Bob Seger who came up with the chorus, during a late night all-star jam session in which the song was composed. The Eagles definitely got around.
Saturday: Heart - Heartless [Magazine, 1977]
Comments: What would a theme dedicated to hearts be without a song by the band named Heart? And don't let the Wilson sisters fool you - this band's got bite. The release of their second album was poisoned by a fractured relationship with their record label, after the publication of a questionable ad in Rolling Stone magazine. But don't worry, the band got their revenge - the tale is told in the opening track to their next album, with a new label. All in the name of rock and roll.
Sunday: Stevie Nicks - Stop Draggin' My Heart Around [Bella Donna, 1981]
Comments: In 1981, while on temporary hiatus from Fleetwood Mac, Stevie Nicks released her debut album as a solo artist. The album features a duet with Don Henley, former Eagle and ex-lover. But of considerably more interest to me is her collaboration with The Heartbreakers on this song, originally intended for Tom Petty's album Hard Promises, before Stevie Nicks came along and gave it a whole new dimension. It's one of my favorite rock 'n' roll duets of all time.
Honorable Mention: Def Leppard - Bringin' On The Heartbreak [High 'n' Dry, 1981]
Comments: This is another popular subject, with lots of options to choose from - some that I've already used, and some that didn't quite suit the down-hearted nature of this theme. I said we weren't going to do heartbreakers, and technically this isn't one - although it's pretty close. Since it didn't make the cut for my False Endings theme (I ultimately ruled it more of a pregnant pause), and it's one of the few Def Leppard songs I really like, I wanted to give it an honorable mention here. (What, you didn't actually think I was gonna shout out The Beatles, did you? :-p).