Heart’s Rock Hall performance ‘most joy’ guitarist Roger Fisher ever felt

It was the first time in 34 years that the original members of Seattle band Heart had played together when they accepted their spot in the Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame April 18.

Fans got to see video of that performance for the first time on HBO Saturday night.

For Dori, seeing the band that was the soundtrack of his youth reunited after so long was a magical moment.

And guitarist Roger Fisher said the moment was just as great for the band.

“The room was already uplifted tremendously by the time we got up there,” Roger told Dori. “And there was so much love in that room, it was just palpable. It was a wonderful, wonderful experience to be there.”

“It was absolutely the most joy I’ve ever experienced.”

But when Heart was nominated last year, lead singers Ann and Nancy Wilson originally told Rolling Stone Magazine that they wouldn’t be performing together.

It’s well known that Ann and Nancy have been estranged from the band for years. Roger, along with bassist Steve Fossen, and drummer Michael Derosier, were original members of the band and helped write such hits as Barracuda and Magic Man. They now tour as a tribute band called Heart to Heart.

“We haven’t been in the band for 34 years, and she has a band that have been together for several years,” said Roger. “And she’d kind of like to get those guys more well known and established.”

But after Roger emailed Ann, she reconsidered. The reunion had the potential to draw a big audience.

She told him they’d play one last song together: Crazy on You. Then she and the current band would play Barracuda.

“To have the guitarist who wrote the song sitting down in the audience watching other people play it is a little bit funny, a little bit odd,” said Roger. “But actually, now that I watch it on TV, it’s a real honor. I feel really complimented by watching all these guys try and play my guitar parts.”

Heart had been nominated in 2011 for the honor, and Dori argued they should have won because of their number of timeless hits.

And Dori said the performance proved that Heart still had it, unlike many musical groups that dated and tired.

“The fact that 34 years after your first hits, that she [Ann] can still sing the way she does, it was phenomenal to listen to,” said Dori.

Roger called it the best night of his life – until two days later when his son hit a home run right over the fence at his little league baseball game in San Diego.

“That was at least as cool as the whole Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame thing,” he said.