Heart: Bad Animals CD Track Listing

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Heart Bad Animals (1987)
Originally Released May 1987\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Switching from Epic to Capitol with 1985's Heart proved to be a wise move for the Wilson sisters, who experienced a major resurgence in popularity and gained many new followers. Heart's arena rock sound had become even glossier, and the band was selling more albums than ever. But for all its production gloss (courtesy of Ron Nevison) and pop slickness, Bad Animals comes across as sincere rather than formulaic or cynical. From the rockers "You Ain't Too Tough" and "Easy Target" to the power ballads "Alone" and "Wait for an Answer," all of the songs are quite memorable. The folk elements and acoustic leanings that characterized many of Heart's early ballads were long gone, and the Wilson sisters keep the volume high but slow the tempo. -- Alex Henderson\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nNot to be Confused With BAD HEART by the Animals, October 1, 2005 \nBy Gregory B. Callahan\nJust kiddin'. Wanted to see if you were awake. \n\nWell, I'm the first to admit that neither set of Wilson sisters (Ann and Nancy or Carnie and Wendy) ever really grabbed me, musically speaking. But it's also true that periodically, someone will mention to me (or maybe post on Amazon or someplace else) that they think Ann Wilson is just about the greatest female rock singer ever. More than Janis? Grace? Chrissie or Stevie? Yes, they insist, and actually,they have a point. \n\nAnn Wilson does have some set of pipes, no denying. Whether she is superior to any of the artists listed above (or any number of others) will always be moot--and subject to the whims and tastes of individual listeners everywhere. But after listening to this record some 18 years after its release, I would have to concede that Ann is probably the greatest woman ARENA rocker ever. How much stock you want to put in that depends largely on how you feel about that kind of music. \n\nPower ballads and bombastic art rock were NEVER critical faves, and many of us regular Joes and Joannes may not have been exactly enamored of the genre either. But we all have our little guilty pleasures. One of mine was "Magic Man." But that in itself wasn't quite enough to make me a total Ann fan. I thought "Barracuda" was a little screechy and generally over the top. And "Little Queen" and other 70s entries pretty much made no impression. \n\nI was intrigued when I learned that they had briefly taken up co-writing with one of their old school friends who had gone on to major in German literature (as I had). I was curious as to how that would all pan out. The prospect of Rilke-rock seemed pretty intriguing. But I never quite got around to checking it out. (I believe that would be the DOG & BUTTERFLY era, but I could be wrong.) I didn't expect they'd be entering Nico territory, but literate rock'n'roll never did seem like a contradiction in terms to me. Apparently though, that association didn't last, and Heart itself kind of meandered until their mid-80s commercial (and I do mean "commercial") renaissance. \n\nThe Diane-Warrenization of popular music was well underway by the mid-80s when Heart jumped on that particular bandwagon. And if anyone was suited to that kind of melodious melodrama, it would have been Ann and Nancy. Grace Slick, who of course, also dabbled in 80s commercialism herself, once said that she came to admire Warren (and presumably other hitmakers) for her ability to do what she did so well--even if it wasn't really her thing. Well, it did seem a particularly bizarre match for Grace, but for Ann and Nancy, it pretty much fit like a glove. \n\nNancy does her usual one song ("There's the Girl")on BAD ANIMALS, and it's impressively diaphonous a la "These Dreams"--but with a little more bounce than the earlier track. The track shows off her pretty, but not overly dynamic, voice to good advantage. The rest of the album is Ann's to do with as she will. And regardless of how one may feel about the music as a whole, it is a fascinating, almost textbook example of power rock vocal technique. Call it Rock Singing 101. The grit is there on the title track. And the skilled balladeering dominates elsewhere. \n\nAll in all, a tour de force performance. Like I say, it's easy to see where all her admirers are coming from. But the album is also fronted with hits. The songs you heard in the 80s are the first songs on the CD. And it's clear the radio hits were selected for a reason. As the album goes on, the music gets less and less interesting. And by the last song, "RSVP" many listeners will be all too glad to see the album come to an end. It's not bad, but by then, the R'n'R 101 class presentation has lost some of its steam. All the stops have been pulled out, and it's time for something else. Or maybe just some peace and quiet. \n\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nGood, but not one of Heart's best releases, May 3, 2005 \nBy Darth Kommissar (Las Vegas, NV (USA))\nAlthough Heart faded into obscurity early in the eighties, by the middle of the decade the band had made a huge and unexpected comeback. With a drastic sound change, the band seemed ready to take on the pop-rock superstars of the day. Their 1985 self-titled comeback release proved that they still had what it takes in the music industry. Needless to say, the record company was pushing the band for a follow-up record. Fans were eager for one, too. And two years later, in 1987, the Bad Animals album was released. How does this one measure up? Read on for my review. \n\nBad Animals is a solid entry into the Heart catalogue, but it is not one of the group's stronger releases. The record company must have realized just how successful the power ballads on the 1985 album, because for the most part, that's what this album consists of. The thing I liked about the 1985 release is that it showed the band doing pretty much everything every band in the eighties was doing - hard rockers and power ballads alike. I was hoping for Bad Animals to be like that, too, but sadly it isn't. Bad Animals features power ballad overkill. This is obviously one of the group's most commercial efforts, trying drastically to appeal to the masses with their ballads. More likely than not, this was record company pressure that led the band to do this, so I don't blame the band. And all of this is besides the point of the music. Although I'm not too crazy that the band recorded an album of almost nothing but power ballads, the fact of the matter is that this are damn good power ballads. Heart knew how to make good ones! Among them is the classic Alone, which went onto become one of the group's biggest hit, and the minor hit Where Will You Run To. From start to finish there is nothing but excellent music here - the only thing it lacks is diversity. If you're a big-time Heart fan, get this album. Otherwise, don't bother. \n\nMost of Heart's albums have only been released on CD once. This is a shame, since some of them got remastered and reissued with expanded liner notes and bonus tracks. Why can't this happen to ALL of their albums!? Most of them are long overdue for remastering and reissuing, due to the mass decline in their availability. If record company executives are reading this - REISSUE THESE ALBUMS! \n\nBad Animals is a good album, it's just not one of my favorite Heart releases. These are good songs, no question, but I'm sure fans of the group wanted more musical diversity. If you only get one eighties Heart albums, the 1985 self-titled release is a much better bet than this one. I don't suggest buying this one unless you're a die-hard fan, or unless you just want to get it for the hit singles. This one may take a little more time to grow on you than some of the other releases in the Heart catalogue, but when you do grow to love it, you'll agree that it's a very good album - for what it is. \n\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nHeart drove it home with this one., November 23, 1999 \nBy Johny Bottom "Insane and lonely guitarist" (Jacksonville, NC)\nTrying to overcome the 'Heart' comeback album, Ann and Nancy, surpassed it with 'Bad Animals'. This album is not only brilliant, but beautiful. 'Wait for an Answer'. was my favorite off this one. Ann's voice is so full of desperation, that anyone who's ever had a broken heart will fall into the trance that this song creates. I always considered this album to be a 'concept' album because of the feel of it and the way the songs go in a particular order. 'Who will you run to?' is a song of breaking up, followed by 'Alone'. The song finally ends with 'RSVP', also a great song which leaves the listener guessing whether they got back together since 'Who Will you run to?' or if it's a new love all together. This album is one of my very favorites when I'm depressed or 'Alone'. \n\n\nHalf.com Details \nProducer: Ron Nevison \n\nAlbum Notes\nOriginally released on Capitol.\nHeart followed up their smash 1985 self-titled comeback album with another big seller, 1987's BAD ANIMALS. Producer Ron Nevison was back behind the mixing desk, and the Wilson sisters scored again with an album chock full of prime pop rock tracks.\nHighlights include the power ballads "Alone" and "Wait for an Answer," as well as the harder rocking cuts "You Ain't Too Tough" and "Easy Target." Again, singer Ann Wilson turns in a superb vocal performance, confirming her unfortunate status as one rock's all-time underrated singers. With their previous self-titled album and BAD ANIMALS, Heart became one of the '80s biggest rock comeback stories.\n\n\nROLLING STONE REVIEW\nOver Heart's eleven-year recording career, the band has often been charged with creating standard-issue stadium rock. That accusation hasn't always been fair: the Wilson sisters and their band mates know how to make the formula yield valid, vital hard pop. On seven of the ten tracks on Bad Animals, they do just that.\n\nEven if Heart had nothing else to offer, its records would be worth the vinyl they're pressed on because of Ann Wilson's voice; time will eventually prove her to be the stylistic forebear of a decade of female Top Forty vocalists. Bad Animals has its requisite dosage of Wilson's sternum-shattering upper register, but it also showcases her increasing restraint and subtlety. Her subdued reading of "Alone" holds an ample supply of palpable 3:00 a.m. loneliness. The menacing "Wait for an Answer" is a sampler of Wilson's textural vocabulary, from the raw silk of her lower register to the jagged edges of her highs.\n\nSurprisingly, four of the five cuts on the album's powerful first side pledge their allegiance not to hard rock but to muscular nightclub pop. "Alone" and "I Want You So Bad" are the vulnerable slow dances; "There's the Girl" and "Who Will You Run To" rock hard without stomping out their radio-ready melodies. With a high-drama outfit like Heart, plain old pop songs are always in danger of getting lost behind outsize musical gestures. That doesn't happen with these songs.\n\nSide two also marries sonic force to pop finesse; it simply has the misfortune of housing the record's three deficient tracks. Arena rock lives by the hook and dies by it: "You Ain't So Tough," "Strangers of the Heart" and "Easy Target" need catchier ones, as well as sharper lyrics in the verses. Despite this wobbly trio of numbers, though, Bad Animals is savvy and spirited; it could give stadium rock a good name. Or a better one, at least. (RS 503 -- Jul 2, 1987) -- LAURA FISSINGER
This rock cd contains 10 tracks and runs 40min 49sec.
Freedb: 99098e0a
Buy: from Amazon.com

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