LIVE REVIEW: Heart in Mashantucket, CT (04.12.25)
On April 12, Heart’s Royal Flush Tour arrived at the Premier Theatre at Foxwoods Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut where a full house was treated to a performance that was everything fans would expect from Heart – and more!
Initially set to start in 2024, the tour was postponed and eventually rescheduled to begin in February 2025, with Foxwoods as one of the many stops.
As the house lights went down, the backlit stage curtain revealed silhouettes playing an intro, then dropped to reveal the band as they played “Bebe Le Strange,” “Never,” and “Magic Man.”
Ann Wilson was sitting in a wheelchair which tour photographer, Criss Cain, told the audience was to stabilize a broken elbow.
The next song on the set was Love Alive, a song that Nancy described as being based on her favorite poem, after which Ann introduced the members of the band. Supporting Ann and Nancy Wilson were 3 lead guitarists – Ryan Warner, Ryan Waters, and Paul Moak, who also plays keyboards and mandolin; bass guitarist Tony Lucido; and drummer Sean Lane.
The next song also came from their Little Queen album, and the title track, Little Queen. As she introduced the song, Nancy explained that it was about the motivation and drive that got them going when they were a “baby-band.”
Then, Nancy encouraged the crowd to “get up and move around” during the next song, which was a blended version of “Straight On” and David Bowie’s Let’s Dance, featuring a bass solo, followed by solos from other band members.
Ann then told the crowd how much they like playing this venue, which led into singing “These Dreams.” Nancy then turned up the energy, by strumming the much recognizable intro to “Crazy On You,” which brought the crowd to a resounding roar!
Next, the band sat up front on stools for a beautiful and mellow acoustic rendition of “Dog & Butterfly”, followed by “Dreamboat Annie,” and a cover of Led Zepplin’s “Going To California,” during which Paul Moak was featured on the mandolin.
Afterwards, the band members returned back to their spots on stage where Nancy shared a story about the time in the ‘80’s when they opened for Van Halen. The story went something like this:
She and Eddie were talking one night when he said, “You play acoustic guitar pretty good, for a girl!” She asked him, “What about your acoustic? Don’t you play more acoustic?” He said he was known for his electric.
She responded that maybe he should play more acoustic once in a while. He said that he doesn’t usually have an acoustic with him. So, she gave him an Ovation acoustic guitar she had.
He stayed up all night playing it in his room and writing, after which he called her room and said, “Listen to this! I wrote you a song!” He then played it for her. She said she’s not sure if anyone has ever heard it.
After recounting this memory, she played her acoustic solo for “4- Eddie” that she wrote after he “left us too soon.”
Next, there was a very dramatic drum solo by Sean Lane that was followed by the return of the band who joined him for a lengthy and spacey feel that built up to a harder, rocking version of “Mistral Wind.”
Following Mistral Wind, Nancy stepped forward to begin a slow, solo acoustic introduction to the blending of “Alone/What about Love.” She was joined by Ann’s wonderful vocals to close out the set.
Typically, a band leaves the stage, only to return to the encouraging chants of the crowd for an encore. Ann let the crowd know that they would be staying out for the encore. Nancy then introduced the next song by first telling its back story. The song “Sand” was written about a friend who had passed away and whose ashes were spread in their garden during his memorial.
Following Sand, Heart rocked out with another Zepplin cover, “The Ocean.” The crowd showed its enthusiasm for the song by joining in with the “La La’s” part of the song.
Heart closed out the amazing concert with a rockin’ version of “Barracuda,” that featured tremendous vocal and guitar solos.
Featured image by: Criss Cain
