Heart founder and guitarist Nancy Wilson has released the first song from her upcoming debut solo album, and it's a cover of Bruce Springsteen's The Rising.
"I wanted to make something uplifting and aspirational for those of us who are suffering with all this sickness and loss," says Wilson. "I hope this song can help lift our spirits.”
The song comes from Wilson's debut solo album, which is due for release in March 2021. "There have been so many times I was asked about when I would ever put out a solo album,” she says. “Well, the time is now. Having been unable to tour and having spent so much time at home has made a good space for creating new music."
Springsteen originally recorded The Rising in 2002, in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, when a passing motorist happened to spot the local hero and, speeding by, shouted out from the open window of his car: “We need ya, man!”
“That made me sense, like, ‘Oh, I have a job to do,’ ” Springsteen told Rolling Stone. “Our band, hopefully, we were built to be there when the chips are down.”
The release comes just two months after Springsteen shared a new video for The Rising. It made its debut at the Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in support of Joe Biden’s presidential campaign.
It showed footage of those on the frontline of the coronavirus pandemic, Black Lives Matter protests, emergency service personnel, volunteers delivering food and essentials, and everyday people – and includes a brief appearance from Springsteen and his wife, the guitarist and singer/songwriter Patti Scialfa.
Biden, who hopes to oust Donald Trump from the White House in November, tweeted the video, saying: “We are the United States Of America. There’s not a single thing we cannot do if we do it together."
