SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES
Other members of Heart say “don’t forget about us”
Dec 13, 2012, 12:45 PM | Updated: 5:29 pm
Ann and Nancy Wilson are getting all the attention, but fellow founding Heart members Roger Fisher, Steve Fossen, Michael Derosier were a huge part of their success. They still perform in a Heart tribute band called Heart By Heart(HeartbyHeartBand.com/D Roland Photography)
(HeartbyHeartBand.com/D Roland Photography)
When the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced Tuesday Seattle music legends Heart were getting the call up, sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson got most of the attention. But the other band members that played a huge part in the band’s success deserve plenty of props as well.
Guitarist Roger Fisher, bassist Steve Fossen, and drummer Michael Derosier were a part of the original lineup when the band wrote and released their most iconic hits and joined the Dori Monson Show Thursday to reminisce about the creation of songs like Barracuda and Magic Man.
Often unacknowledged, Roger, Steve, and Michael were instrumental in the band’s success, creating some of the most dramatic guitar riffs that became the band’s signature.
Although the musicians have been estranged from Ann and Nancy Wilson, they feel a good deal of responsibility for the Hall of Fame induction.
“There’s a specific chemistry of a group that made it, and it wasn’t just the musicians in the band,” said guitarist Roger. “It was the periphery of people – specifically Mike Fisher, that helped the whole thing be what it was.”
Heart was up for the honor for more than a decade before finally getting the selection. It a wait plenty of fans think was far too long.
“A lot of us thought this was long overdue because it’s undeniable your guys’ place in rock history, and the role you played especially in the late ’70s there,” said Dori.
“When someone confirmed to me that it was true I was speechless, and kinda choked up,” said Steve.
Roger, who says he keeps in touch with Ann and Nancy by email, says the original members including the Wilson sisters might come together to perform at the induction ceremony in Los Angeles next spring.
“She said that she’d be welcome to have all the former members of the band play, and she said more the merrier,” said Roger. “So as far as she’s concerned it seems there’s no problem at all.”
The classic Heart songs still play a big part in each of their lives. The band members tour as Heart By Heart,a tribute band playing many of the iconic songs they were known for back in the 1970’s.
The group even treated Dori to some of their biggest iconic songs for the show, including ‘Barracuda’ and ‘Mistral Wind.’
“This [Mistral Wind] was one of the songs I looked forward to playing every night,” said Roger.
