Unbetitelt

Ann and Nancy Wilson's deep admiration for Led Zeppelin has had a profound influence on their careers. Heart's first hit, "Crazy On You," featuring Ann's soaring vocals, reflected that influence.

"Led Zeppelin became such a big, important band in pop culture at the same time that we were putting Heart together," Ann says. "And so we went from a bar band that did radio covers to a band that could do Led Zeppelin songs. And I went from being the chick in the band who sang 'Superstar' by Karen Carpenter to the lead singer who sang 'Whole Lotta Love' or 'Communication Breakdown.'"

Ann and Nancy met Robert Plant for the first time in the mid-eighties.

"We were playing in Leeds, England, and he came to our show," Ann continues. "At that time, we were doing 'Rock And Roll' in our set. ... I was really near-sighted and I couldn't really see the good-looking blond guy standing on the left side of stage, just checking us out. And nobody wanted to tell me because they didn't want me to freak out. They knew what a big fan I was.

"After the show, he came back and we said 'hi' and everything. He really has a vibe around him. Nancy and I used to joke that the air moves around him as he walks."

Ann remembered Plant as a gentleman.

"Let's face it, Zeppelin is a boy's club, and it must have been something for them to accept these two women playing their stuff with all this confidence."

BP Fallon, the band's effusive press officer, recalls the impact Led Zeppelin had the moment they arrived in a city on the Starship. Band and entourage were ushered into a fleet of limousines before speeding through the streets with a police escort, sirens wailing towards a stadium where 50,000 people awaited in feverish anticipation. "The Stones sang about sex," he says. "The music of Led Zeppelin was sex. The audience knew that, the girls dug it and the guys too. This wasn't a knitting lesson. And remember too, you can do a lot during a wild drum solo — especially if you're not the drummer."