Little Queen

Little Queen is the third studio album by American rock band Heart. It was released on May 14, 1977, by Portrait Records. The album was recorded and mixed at Kaye-Smith Studios in Seattle, Washington, from February to April 1977.[5] On June 29, 2004, a remastered version of Little Queen was released by Epic Records and Legacy Recordings with two bonus tracks.[6]

For other uses, see Little Queen (disambiguation).

Little Queen
Studio album by
Heart
ReleasedMay 14, 1977 (1977-05-14)
RecordedFebruary–April 1977
StudioKaye-Smith, Seattle
Genre
Length39:00
LabelPortrait
ProducerMike Flicker
Heart chronology
Magazine
(1977)		 Little Queen
(1977)		 Dog & Butterfly
(1978)
Singles from Little Queen
  1. "Barracuda"
    Released: May 28, 1977
  2. "Little Queen"
    Released: August 1977
  3. "Kick It Out"
    Released: October 1977
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
PopMattersMixed[2]
Rolling StoneMixed[3]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[4]

Overview

The group intended Magazine to be the official follow-up to their debut album Dreamboat Annie. However, a contract dispute with their label, Mushroom Records, resulted in the group signing with the newly formed Portrait Records, a division of CBS Records (now Sony BMG).[7]

The Mushroom contract called for two albums, and the label took the position that they were owed a second one. On that basis, Mushroom attempted to prevent the release of Little Queen and any other work by Heart. They took the five unfinished tracks for Magazine and added a B-side and two live recordings. The first release of the album in April 1977 included a disclaimer on the back cover.[7]

The court eventually decided that Heart was free to sign with a new label but indeed owed Mushroom a second album. Therefore, Heart returned to the studio to re-record, remix, edit, and resequence the Magazine recordings in a marathon session over four days. A court-ordered guard stood nearby to prevent the master tapes from being erased.[7]

Little Queen was released on May 14, 1977, and the reworked version of Magazine was re-released on April 22, 1978. With the successful single "Barracuda", Little Queen outsold Magazine handily, eventually earning a triple platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[8] However, the almost simultaneous 1977 releases also gave the band the distinction of having all three of their albums ("Dreamboat Annie", "Magazine" & "Little Queen") on the charts at the same time.[7]

"Barracuda"

After the first album became a million seller, Mushroom took out a full-page ad in the December 30, 1976 issue of Rolling Stone magazine touting the band's success, using the headline "Million to One Shot Sells a Million".[9] The ad looked like the front page of the tabloid newspaper National Enquirer and included a photo from the Dreamboat Annie cover shoot. The caption read: "Heart's Wilson Sisters Confess: 'It Was Only Our First Time!'".[7]

After this ad surfaced, a Detroit radio promoter asked Ann Wilson who her lover was (referring to sister, Nancy). Ann was outraged and retreated to her hotel room to write a song. When she relayed the incident to Nancy, she, too, was outraged. Nancy joined Ann and contributed a melody and bridge. The song became "Barracuda", which peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100[10] and remains one of the band's signature songs.

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Barracuda"
4:20
2."Love Alive"
  • A. Wilson
  • Fisher
  • N. Wilson
4:21
3."Sylvan Song"
  • N. Wilson
  • Fisher
2:12
4."Dream of the Archer"
  • A. Wilson
  • Fisher
  • N. Wilson
4:30
5."Kick It Out"A. Wilson2:44
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."Little Queen"
5:10
7."Treat Me Well"N. Wilson3:24
8."Say Hello"
  • A. Wilson
  • Fisher
  • N. Wilson
3:36
9."Cry to Me"
  • A. Wilson
  • N. Wilson
2:51
10."Go On Cry"
  • A. Wilson
  • Fisher
  • N. Wilson
5:52
2004 remastered reissue bonus tracks[11]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
11."Too Long a Time" (early demo version of "Love Alive")
  • A. Wilson
  • Fisher
  • N. Wilson
3:30
12."Stairway to Heaven" (live at the Aquarius Tavern, Seattle, WA, 1976)
9:20

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Little Queen.[5]

Heart
  • Ann Wilson – lead vocals (tracks 1, 2, 4–6, 8–10); flute (track 2)
  • Nancy Wilson – acoustic guitar (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6–9); autoharp (tracks 2, 4); vocals (tracks 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9); mandolin (tracks 3, 4); piano (track 5); electric guitar (tracks 7, 10); blues harp, lead vocals (track 7)
  • Roger Fisher – lead guitar (tracks 1, 2, 5, 6, 10); mandolin (tracks 3, 4); electric guitar (track 10)
  • Howard Leese – lead guitar (track 1); Mellotron (tracks 1, 4); acoustic guitar, piano (track 2); vocals (tracks 2, 4, 6, 8, 10); Moog bass (tracks 3, 4); electric guitar (tracks 5, 8); guitar (track 6); grand piano, string arrangements, string conducting (track 7); mandolin (track 8)
  • Michael DeRosier – drums (tracks 1, 2, 5–8, 10); tabla (track 2); percussion (tracks 4, 8); timpani, chimes (track 10)
  • Steve Fossen – bass (tracks 1, 2, 5–8, 10)

Additional musicians
  • Lynn Wilson Keagle – vocals (tracks 9, 10)
  • Seal Dunnington – vocals (tracks 9, 10)

Technical
  • Mike Flicker – production, engineering
  • Buzz Richmond – engineering
  • Winslow Kutz – engineering
  • Mike Fisher – special direction

Artwork
  • Heart – cover concept
  • Mike Doud – art direction
  • Marilyn Romen – art direction
  • John Kehe – design
  • Bob Seidemann – photography

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[21] 2× Platinum 200,000^
United States (RIAA)[8] 3× Platinum 3,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Henderson, Alex. "Little Queen – Heart". AllMusic. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  2. Horning, Rob (August 9, 2004). "Heart: Little Queen / Dog & Butterfly / Bebe Le Strange [reissue]". PopMatters. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  3. Altman, Billy (June 30, 1977). "Heart: Little Queen". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on June 5, 2008. Retrieved April 21, 2013.
  4. Coleman, Mark; Berger, Arion (2004). "Heart". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). New York City: Simon & Schuster. p. 372. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  5. Little Queen (liner notes). Heart. Portrait Records. 1977. JR 34799.CS1 maint: others (link)
  6. Jurek, Thom. "Little Queen [Expanded Edition] – Heart". AllMusic. Retrieved July 21, 2019.
  7. Wilson, Ann; Wilson, Nancy; Cross, Charles R. (September 18, 2012). "Natural Fantasies". Kicking & Dreaming: A Story of Heart, Soul, and Rock & Roll. New York City: It Books. ISBN 978-0-0621-0167-9.
  8. "American album certifications – Heart – Little Queen". Recording Industry Association of America. October 26, 1994. Retrieved July 21, 2019. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
  9. "Mushroom Records Ad" (JPG). Mushroom Records (Canada). Retrieved May 20, 2014.
  10. "Heart Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 21, 2019.
  11. "Little Queen [Expanded Edition] – Heart". AllMusic. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  12. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. p. 136. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  13. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 3690a". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved July 21, 2019.
  14. "Dutchcharts.nl – Heart – Little Queen" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 26, 2014.
  15. "Offiziellecharts.de – Heart – Little Queen" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 26, 2014.
  16. "Swedishcharts.com – Heart – Little Queen". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 26, 2014.
  17. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 21, 2019.
  18. "Heart Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved July 21, 2019.
  19. "Top 100 albums of '77". RPM. Vol. 28 no. 14. December 31, 1977. p. 15. ISSN 0315-5994 – via Library and Archives Canada.
  20. "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1977". Billboard. Archived from the original on July 21, 2019. Retrieved July 21, 2019.
  21. "Canadian album certifications – Heart – Little Queen". Music Canada. December 1, 1977. Retrieved July 21, 2019.
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