Wilson's voice has aged; once-effortless high notes stay out of reach. But like a hard-living blues diva who subs soul for sweetness, Wilson makes those whiskey tones work.
Hope & Glory"--which contains 11 covers and one original--is rich in pleasures, even if it plays more like a highlight reel than a thoroughly imagined work.
It's a bleak album to be sure, undoubtedly inspired by the downtrodden national mood of the times in which it was recorded. Ann's voice is strong and convincing on these tunes, largely drawn from the '60s and '70s with a few exceptions.
Ultimately, is that there is a lot more good material than bad here. That is kind of a triumph. But it would be a lot better to just hear a new Heart album.
Ann still Rocks.. it just shows that this amazing woman can sing anything and make it so dam good. I'm very pleased with it and have Ann still Rocks.. it just shows that this amazing woman can sing anything and make it so dam good. I'm very pleased with it and have played it so many times that I may wear it out very soon.. I love it, and can't get enough!!!! keep it coming Ann…Expand
Ann Wilson is a performer and the best Ann Wilson you will ever see or hear is when she is on a stage performing for her fans. Having said Ann Wilson is a performer and the best Ann Wilson you will ever see or hear is when she is on a stage performing for her fans. Having said that, this is the best studio performance of Ann's amazing career. She is top notch on every song and Ben Mink's production and musical genius combine with Ann's voice to make a beautiful masterful work of art. Get this album - you will not be sorry. Ms. Tralwind…Collapse
Great album....being a child from the 80's i loved Heart from that generation. Didn't realize other than a couple, these songs were Great album....being a child from the 80's i loved Heart from that generation. Didn't realize other than a couple, these songs were covers. I loved it! It makes such a strong statement and she interprets each song in such a clear manner.…Expand
I wish there was more brooding hard rock, and less country-rock-twinged nostalgia. But as far as guest vocalists are concerned, I'll I wish there was more brooding hard rock, and less country-rock-twinged nostalgia. But as far as guest vocalists are concerned, I'll take KD Lang and Winona over Rufus and Elton. Ann SOUNDS great; long live her passionate heart.…Expand
I feel bad having to say these things about a former member of a legendary band, but I feel it is necessary for consumers who might buy this I feel bad having to say these things about a former member of a legendary band, but I feel it is necessary for consumers who might buy this album to hear the truth and not be blinded by the nostalgia-based praise for this album by others. This album is horrible. I love the band Heart, however, in the decades since Heart was in their prime, by the time of this album Ann Wilson has lost her ability to sing. Her singing on this album is horrible when compared to how she sounded in her glory days. Sounds nothing at all like her voice used to sound with Heart. Just as bad as that is that she butchers most of the songs on the album with silly things. Like very, very cheesy synthesizers during "Immigrant Song" that sound like they belong on a very bad 80's New Wave one-hit-wonder album, not a classic rock song! Her version of "Immigrant Song" is also over 1:20 longer than the Led Zeppelin original. But Ann doesn't use the extra time to make the song better. Instead she makes it worse by filling that time with more of the horrible synthesizers and really awful-sounding wailing. This is not a rock album, which is bizarre because she made a rock album it might have still sounded ok since she has many years of experience as a rock star in Heart. This is an album with rock songs on it which are heavily "countrified" to very bad effect. The end result sounds much worse than what making this be either a rock OR a country album would have sounded like. Trying to be BOTH at the same time is what this album does, and it just doesn't work. This album also contains a very badly-butchered, severely-"countrified" version of the classic song "Bad Moon Rising". Before the song stars Ann and the other singer on that song can be heard muttering "Mustard and ketchup and..waffles on top?." and then the other singer mutters "Chicken and a waffle and a mustard on top." then Ann says "OH-AW!", sounding here like a very elderly lady with Alzheimer's who got lost on the street late at night and has just remembered what her nursing home address is. What any of this has to do with the Bad Moon Rising song is beyond me, but it's all right there stuck onto that track for every listener's great audio displeasure. Maybe they accidentally put a rehearsal cut of that song on the album and forgot that they were reciting their breakfast meal while recording? Despite her diminished voice, Ann sounds okay on "We Gotta Get Out of This Place", due to her old rock spirit shining through. However, you will soon forget this because she features "Wynonna" on this song, and the two of them completely butcher the chorus together, and continue on butchering the last minute and half of the song, by switching from rock to country right in the middle of the song. The songs on this album that aren't ruined with synthesizers or rock songs being badly countrified, sound like mediocre karaoke versions that you can hear locally in any neighborhood bar. It's easy to want to have good feelings about Ann Wilson album because she was half of Heart, which truly was a legendary band in it's prime. However, "Hope and Glory" is the total opposite of those days in terms of music quality. In my opinion almost all of the good praise this album gets from critics or consumers is due solely due to feelings of nostalgia for the band Heart and Ann Wilson as a person. If you wanna buy the album for nostalgia for Heart go ahead. But if you wanna buy it for music quality, don't believe the hype.…Expand
