by James O’Barr
Summer has found its way home to the South Sound in fine form these past few weeks, and the City of Lacey is ready. In addition to a variety of programs spread across the cityscape, Lacey Parks will once again be bringing its popular “Lacey in Tune” concerts, kids programs, and movie nights downtown to Huntamer Park. The children’s entertainment series happens on Tuesday evenings, noon concerts are on Wednesdays, and Friday nights, a concert at 7 p.m. is followed at dusk by a movie on the big 18’ by 18’ screen. (For the full schedule, go to laceyparks.org/events)
Kicking off the Friday night music and movies on July 14 will be Heart By Heart, the Seattle-based Heart-tribute rock band last seen in Lacey at the July 3rd Fireworks Spectacular in 2019. With vocalist Somar Macek up front, multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Lizzy Daymont, and guitar master Chad Quist, the rhythm section features two Rock and Roll Hall of Fame musicians, Steve Fossen on bass guitar and Michael Derosier on drums.
Steve Fossen was one of the founding members of Heart, considered by many to be one of the truly great rock ’n’ roll bands, and the only major band to come out of the Seattle area in the 1970s. And come out they did: their first album, Dreamboat Annie, released in 1975, sold a million copies, and had two hit singles: “Crazy on You” and “Magic Man.” By1978 Heart was unstoppable, with the re-release of Little Queen going platinum,and “Barracuda” the big hit,and, later in the year, “Dog and Butterfly” went double platinum, with the title song and “Straight On” high on the charts. Heart went on to release six top-10 albums and had 20 top-40 chart hit singles, including “Heartless,” “Even It Up,” “How Can I Refuse,” and a cover of “Tell It Like It Is.”
Fossen and Derosier left Heart in 1982 and went on to other things. Fossen met virtuoso vocalist Somar Macek in 2008, and they began performing together at clubs and other venues around the Northwest. They soon found that there was a fan base and an audience eager to hear the music from the great Heart playlist of the 1970s glory days, and that, to do it right, they needed a band. Mike Derosier welcomed the opportunity to pick up where he and Fossen had left off, and, with Macek, Daymont, and Quist, Heart By Heart was born.
In 2013, Steve Fossen and Mike Derosier joined the other original members of Heart to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. And while you can go to Spotify for the audio version of the Heart phenomenon, if you want to actually experience the sound, or relive it, live and in-person, you’ll want to come to Huntamer Park on July 14, where Heart By Heart will be, according to Fossen, “delivering those iconic songs as faithfully as possible.” The performance will start at 7 p.m. and will be followed at dusk by a showing of another classic, The Princess Bride. Food trucks will be on site and serving at 6 p.m. Be sure to bring your own seating, although dancing is also an option, and may be impossible to resist.
WHAT
Heart By Heart at Lacey in Tune, to be followed with a screening of The Princess Bride
WHEN
7 p.m. July 14
WHERE
Huntamer Park, 618 Woodland Square Loop SE, Lacey,
HOW MUCH
Free
LEARN MORE
https://laceyparks.org/lit/
https://heartbyheart.com/tour-dates
Download the flyer (PDF format) here.