4 // COASTWEEKEND.COM
Heart By
Heart comes
straight on
for you
Original Heart members
perform at Liberty Theatre
on March 10
By DON FRADES
FOR COAST WEEKEND
H
eart, one of the most famous and
successful rock bands of the late 20th
century, rose to fame with hits like
“Crazy on You,” “Barracuda” and “Magic
Man,” as well as softer songs like “Dog
and Butterfly.” Their sound was defined by
the powerful vocals and guitar stylings of
the Wilson sisters, Ann and Nancy, backed
by a versatile core of musicians.
Founding members Steve Fossen on
bass and Mike Derosier on drums played
with the band from its earliest incar-
nation in 1967 until 1982, and again
when the original Heart lineup reunited
for a single performance at their 2013
induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of
Fame.
Fossen and Derosier have formed a
new tribute band, Heart By Heart, which
Fossen said in an interview with Coast
Weekend is “the next viable choice to
recreate the excitement of when Heart
first came out.”
The band will play Astoria’s Liberty
Theatre 7 p.m. Saturday, March 10, with
acclaimed vocalist Somar Macek. Other
members include Lizzy Daymont on
guitar, vocals and keyboards; and Chad
Quist on guitar, filling in for Randy
Hansen. Doors open at 6 p.m.
Fossen, who lives in Seattle, where
Heart was founded, said the idea for the
new band came about a few years ago
when he and Macek began performing
Heart songs as a duo in bistros and clubs
in the city. As they became better known
and offered more gigs, they decided to
fill out the band, inviting Derosier and
TODD W. HOBERT PHOTO
Heart By Heart, which Steve Fossen called the “second generation of Heart”
IF YOU GO
What: Heart By Heart concert, with original Heart members and Rock & Roll
Hall-of-Famers
When: 7 p.m. Saturday, March 10. Doors open at 6 p.m.
Where: Liberty Theatre (1203 Commercial St., Astoria)
General admission tickets $28; seniors and active military $24. Tickets can be
purchased at the box office or online at libertyastoria.org.
For more information about Heart By Heart, visit heartbyheart.com.
guitarist Randy Hansen to join. “One
thing led to another, and we started get-
ting bookings,” Fossen said.
Joined hearts
The name “Heart By Heart,” Fossen
said, comes from the “joined hearts” of
himself and Macek, whom he married two
years ago. “We were in love, and having
the word ‘heart’ in there seemed like a
no-brainer. First and foremost was that our
hearts were joined — heart by heart.”
The band has been touring the country
recently, playing smaller venues like the
Liberty Theatre and interacting with fans
after the show. Fossen said there are a lot
of younger people familiar with Heart
songs who show up to see the concerts.
“In Klamath Falls, a couple came up and
said they had conceived their child to
(1975’s) ‘Dreamboat Annie.’”
Though Fossen and Derosier left Heart
during a shake-up in 1982, before the
band’s big-hair power-ballad phase, Heart
By Heart does a 12-minute medley of ’80s
songs. “I like playing all of them,” Fossen
said.
What’s their favorite song to perform?
Both Fossen and Derosier have a fondness
for 1978’s “Mistral Wind.” “I really love
Mike’s drums on that,” Fossen said, “It’s
fun to play, and it has a lot of meaning to
it.”
One legend holds that the two founders
COURTESY STEVE FOSSEN
Steve Fossen, a founding member of
Heart, which was inducted into the
Rock and Rock Hall of Fame in 2013
created a “poor man’s copyright” for Heart
in the band’s early days by creating the
name, signing a letter and mailing it back
to themselves. Fossen chuckled, “Yes,
that’s true. I still have the envelope, but
I’ve never opened it. I’m curious to see
what it says.”
Heart By Heart encourages fans to
bring albums, photos and memorabilia for
autographs after the show. CW