Although
Heart reconquered the charts during the mid- to late '80s, the band forfeited the organic sound of their early recordings in favor of pop gloss. By the early '90s, the
Wilson sisters (vocalist
Ann and guitarist
Nancy) were ready to return to their roots, which they attempted to do in the form of a side band,
the Lovemongers. The group (which saw the
Wilsons joined by keyboardist
Sue Ennis, guitarist
Frank Cox, and drummer Ben Smith) debuted on the motion picture soundtrack to
Cameron Crowe's 1992 film
Singles, with a dead-on cover of the
Led Zeppelin folk classic "The Battle of Evermore." The group issued a four-song EP a year later,
The Battle of Evermore, which included the
Zep cover once more, in addition to covers of
Todd Rundgren,
the Temptations, and even the early
Heart classic "Crazy on You." The band took several years to offer a proper full-length release, which finally arrived in the form of 1997's
Whirlygig. In 1998,
the Lovemongers issued the ten-track holiday recording Here Is Christmas. ~ Greg Prato