Heart’s Leading Lady, Ann Wilson, Rocks The Parker in Fort Lauderdale with Tripsitter: A Night of Timeless Hits and Unforgettable Energy!

December 5^th, 2023

Ann Wilson is unquestionably the quintessential rock vocalist. In my estimation, the greatest rock female vocalist of all time, not to mention one of the greatest, period. Of course, with her sister Nancy, they are the founding members of super band HEART. Rock’n’roll Hall of Fame inductees, icons in the music industry, award winners, chart toppers, you get the idea. For a cherry on the top moment, Heart will be celebrating their 50^th Anniversary starting at the end of 2023. I am hopeful a tour will commence. This evening, however, belongs to Ann and Tripsitter in Fort Lauderdale.

This evening Ann Wilson commanded the stage with a setlist spanning all decades of her illustrious career.  For the Heart in the audience, (I am a card-carrying member), she picked the crème-of-the-crop when it came to the hits.  Her voice, ah, that amazing voice, is as strong as it ever was. Like fine wine, she has gotten better over the years and shows no signs of slowing down. The band, Tripsitter, is certainly a formidable partner to Wilson. They rock, roll, and hit the searing guitar solos in all the right places. Most importantly, they’re having fun and it shows. The energy they evoke as a unit is contagious and fed the audience throughout the set.

Basking in the limelight, Wilson addressed the faithful. “Welcome everybody. We’re going to treat you to all kinds of things. Old stuff, new stuff, and some special treats.” Of course, it was the ‘old’ HEART songs that gained the most enthusiastic applause. Standing ovations and sing-a-longs abound. “Even it Up,” “Love Alive,” “Magic Man,” “Crazy on You,” Straight On and “Barracuda” were some of the heavy hitters of the evening. Sprinkling in were amazing covers of John Lennon’s “Isolation,” The Who, “Reign O’Er Me, and David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance.” But wait, there’s more. No Ann Wilson concert would be complete without a nod to Led Zeppelin. “Going to California,” “The Immigrant Song” were showstoppers. Ann and Tripsitter included some ‘new stuff’ to the evening’s mix. “Ruler of the Night,” “This is Now,” “Rain of Hell,” among them.  For me, the greatest moment came during the encore when an acoustic version of “Alone” rang. Goosebumps, people. I have seen Ann Wilson many times live over the years and had the pleasure of meeting her in person some 40 years ago. She is, and remains, one of the greatest treasures in music. Ann Wilson and Tripsitter were Christmas gifts to myself. Red bow and all.