Gate and Garden - No backing vocals
 

I have never been a fan of this song. But someone stripped the backing vocals. Holy crap! The song is so much better. Her vocal is so good it does not need those overloaded backing vocals.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RffNtfVwV8Y

So much better. I always thought Stevie should have just used her own vocals for the studio backup vocals. I have never been a fan of the “girls” on backing vocals on the studio albums .Sharon and Lori and co on her solo tours for live concerts are fine.

She did that on Street Angel. I heard an interview that when they were remixing the album the girls were not available so she added many of the background vocals. They are on other tracks but for the first time on a solo album she was using herself for background vocals on some tracks.
Gate and Garden is drowning in unnecessary background vocals which is a shame because Stevie's vocal is really good. All those extra layers and powerful background stuff is noise IMHO.
Bella Donna was raw and making great songs. Jimmy did not even think there would be a single from the album. That is so crazy. I think Jimmy tried to steer Wild Heart more adult contemporary and pop radio friendly which is why its not as good as its predecessor. Then RAL was trouble because no one could draft her writing into pop songs so the whole project was geared at making a pop star which again failed because the album was not as successful as the other 2. But then again it was the mid 80s and most music was crap.
I would not change a thing on Bella Donna. The Wild Heart I would change and tweak so many things. Its good but could have been sensational.

Jimmy had far less control on WH than he did on BD. Stevie had tasted solo fame and the power that goes with it and they fought a lot more over the direction of the music. She started going down that synth-dance music path over the rock and roll path. It got worse on RAL and at that point he left. Stevie herself said that Tom at some point made a comment about why was she doing this dance stuff instead of rock and roll. All roads lead to Stevie, and the influences she allowed herself to fall under and the people she let influence her choices during her heavy drug years. :distress: (Kenny G, anyone????)

I don't disagree with what you said but there is still some wonky stuff on Wild Heart like the title track ending. That would be Jimmy, the producer. Enchanted is a great song but its an exact copy of another album Jimmy was producing at the same time: The Distance by Bob Segar. The same musicians Roy and Russell just played Even Now and months later went down with Jimmy and Stevie and pretty much played the same exact track just with different lyrics. Your can literally sing Enchanted to Even Now.
But no doubt Stevie let her friend play the dreaded keyboard intro on Nightbird and the basic piano on Wild Heart :lol:
Its still a solid album but a few tweaks could have made it so much better.

Didn't she write Enchanted to one of Lindsey's tracks??:confused:

I dont know anything about that. Stevie attended a release party with Jimmy for The Distance and both suggested Even Now be the first single. The record company disagreed and released Shame On The Moon instead which went to #2. Even Now was the second single hitting #11.

Its the same musicians pretty much playing the same track even the ending is the same.

The Distance
The Wild Heart both sold 2 million copies

Both produced at the same time by Jimmy Iovine and featured many of the same musicians.

Both albums are named with the first letter "The"

Enchanted and Even now have the same syllables and can be interchanged



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-3uDjxUD68

I have thought so much about all the things that I would tweak about the Wild Heart, and I absolutely envision an amazing album that might even have topped Bella Donna in quality. Funny enough, my tweaks don't include swapping out ANY songs. ALL of them stay, although re-ordered and altered.

Since this thread is about Gate and Garden, I will say that I think it should have been one of the synthesizer songs. Not blaring synths. Gentle ones that carry the chorus along. I don't hate the plonking piano that is in the actual version; it just needed something different.

And she really tore into Tom for saying that and said how dar he.

She's dumber than a bag of hammers.

Ooh I never heard that. I know she sang "Wild Heart" while the track of "Can't Go Back" was playing during a magazine cover shoot. It's that famous video.

I like this song a lot, even the original. I didn’t on first listen years ago, but now it’s a highlight of WH for me, probably in part because it’s not overfamiliar. I like the fact that the lyrics make no sense but are evocative and spooky, and of course that wonderful lead vocal building to an intense climax — the so-called “vamp” outro that she perfected on this album.

Hearing that lead vocal isolated is interesting. I think what it underlines most for me is that this song is a kind of rewrite of “How Still My Love,” complete with the plonking (love that, vermicious) trio of piano chords in the chorus and a very similar feel.

This sounds terrific! I still think it's her best vocal on the Wild Heart and it's so good, she needs no backing whatsoever. while not the best lyrically, the performance is just amazing. As for the album, I agree with Macfan that with some tweaks it could've surpassed Bella Donna, but I think only as a twelve track album as All the Beautiful Worlds and at least Belle Fleure and maybe even Sorcerer should've made the cut. Leave Sandy Stewart off and bring in Bittan and some a couple of other great musicians and they could've made this album go from good to spectacular. Here are my suggestions- with Wild Heart, less is more and a tighter 3 + minute track would've worked much better. Sable on Blond- use the discarded version, haunting and gorgeous, Beauty and the Beast more as a slow burn bluesy Tusk type version, not the strained orchestral vibe that didn't work as well. Nothing Ever Changes needed a grittier Edge of Seventeen rock vibe. If Anyone Falls, ditch the heavy synthesizer and give it a country-ish vibe. Enchanted, a slow destiny intro to a faster vibe, less cheese and more that's Alright quality songwriting. Nightbird- use a more Dreams instrumentation. And finally- Stand Back- I wouldn't change a thing- it's great as is and her second best single. what a great album the Wild Heart could've been instead of a so-so album with Stand Back on it.

I have always loved her voice on this song and preferred hearing her background voice on her songs, rather than the girls voices.

It's such a shame she didn't focus on protecting her, younger, voice and on her career. She said she sacrificed everything for it. She could of had everything she wanted and the 'eternal' respect of her fans. We are left to, only, wonder what could of been without the drugs and bad decisions?:shrug:

I dont think Wild Heart could ever surpass Bella Donna no mater how you changed it. But I agree with many of your comments. I love the faster paced title track on the deluxe re-issue. Her vocal is a bit too fast but the overall track is better than the album one. She's just singing too fast and not coming up for air. Another vocal and some tweaks could have been an awesome title track opener. All The Beautiful Worlds should have made the album. The album needed some acoustic guitar. I would have replaced Nightbird with Garbo. I like the Wild Heart version of I Sing For Things. However I see why it did not make the album. The album already had 2 other Roy Bitan bouncy piano tracks. While I love Roy some of those bouncy tracks, it can sound similar. I hate to sound cruel but her friend sort of ruined the title track and Nightbird.