"City's Burning" is a song by the American rock band

Heart The heart is a muscular Organ (biology), organ found in humans and other animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels. The heart and blood vessels together make the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrie ...

, which was released in 1982 as the opening track on their sixth studio album ''

Private Audition ''Private Audition'' is the sixth studio album by American rock band Heart, released on May 20, 1982, by Epic Records. The album reached number 25 on the US ''Billboard'' 200, spending 14 weeks on the chart. It spawned the single " This Man Is M ...

''. It was written by

Ann Wilson Ann Dustin Wilson (born June 19, 1950) is an American singer best known as the lead singer of the rock band Heart. Wilson has been a member of Heart since the early 1970s; her younger sister, Nancy Wilson, is also a member of the band. One o ...

, Nancy Wilson,

Sue Ennis Sue Ennis is a songwriter from Seattle, Washington. She has co-written over 80 songs with Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson of the band Heart. Career Ennis' songwriting with Heart includes " Straight On", " Even It Up" and " Dog & Butterfly", and she ...

, and produced by the Wilsons, Ennis and

Howard Leese Howard M. Leese (June 13, 1951) is an American guitarist, record producer, and musical director who played with Heart as guitarist and keyboardist for 23 years (1975 through 1998). He continues to record and tour as a solo artist, and as guitar ...

. The song reached No. 15 on the US ''Billboard'' Rock Albums & Top Tracks chart. A music video was filmed to promote the song. The song was re-recorded for the band's sixteenth studio album, '' Beautiful Broken'', released in 2016.

Background

"City's Burning" was inspired by the 1980 murder of

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...

. In a 1985 interview with Bob Andelman, Ann Wilson revealed: "It was a story we made up. A couple – they get the news about John on the radio or TV, and it tells about each of their reactions."

Reception

Upon release ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' noted Ann Wilson's vocals on the song, describing them as having a "

Plant Plants are the eukaryotes that form the Kingdom (biology), kingdom Plantae; they are predominantly Photosynthesis, photosynthetic. This means that they obtain their energy from sunlight, using chloroplasts derived from endosymbiosis with c ...

-like rasp". Joe Konz of ''

The Indianapolis Star } ''The Indianapolis Star'' (also known as ''IndyStar'') is a morning daily newspaper that began publishing on June 6, 1903, in Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It has been the only major daily paper in the city since 1999, whe ...

'' wrote: ""City's Burning" promises to be one of the most powerful songs of the year. Its deficient lyrical clout is more than offset by an instrumental tour de force, a ravaging display of heavy metal rock. Equipped with the same harsh phrasing, shrill vocals and heavy-metal guitar licks that powered the hits "

Magic Man "Magic Man" is a song by the American rock band Heart released as a single from their debut album, ''Dreamboat Annie.'' Written and composed by Ann and Nancy Wilson, the song is sung from the viewpoint of a young girl who is being seduced by an ...

" and "

Barracuda A barracuda is a large, predatory, ray-finned, saltwater fish of the genus ''Sphyraena'', the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, which was named by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque in 1815. It is found in tropical and subtropical oceans worldw ...

", "City's Burning" runs roughshod over everything else on the band's new LP." Eric Davis of ''

The Marion Star ''The Marion Star'' (formerly known as ''The Marion Daily Star'') is a newspaper in Marion, Ohio. The paper is owned by the Gannett Newspaper organization. The paper is also notable as having once been owned and published by Warren G. Harding ( ...

'' described the song as one of the album's "loud ones that should satisfy the power bugs". He added: "It's an improvement over previous power jettings by the band, as it includes an interesting tempo and mood change midway through, followed by a wailing, but soulful, lead guitar solo." Mike Diana of '' Daily Press'' commented: ""City's Burning" is the only all-out rocker on the album, and even though it pales before what other female rockers have been doing of late, the cut gets the album off with a bang." In a review of one of the band's 1982 concerts, Larry Rhodes of the ''Daily Press'' described the song as a "heavy metal screamer about crime-ridden, chaotic city life".Daily Press - 'Heart' rates high at concert - Larry Rhodes - October 19, 1982 - page 13 In a retrospective review of the album, Jim Smith of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

stated: "''Private Audition'' starts tough with "City's Burning," possibly the band's most underrated song, but it's dragged down by the trite songwriting that follows."

Charts

Personnel

Heart *

– lead vocals * Nancy Wilson – acoustic guitar, backing vocals *

– electric guitar, synthesizer, Moog drum *

Steve Fossen Steve Fossen (born November 15, 1949) is an American bassist and a founding member of the band Heart (band), Heart.Sue Ennis Sue Ennis is a songwriter from Seattle, Washington. She has co-written over 80 songs with Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson of the band Heart. Career Ennis' songwriting with Heart includes " Straight On", " Even It Up" and " Dog & Butterfly", and she ...

, Howard Leese) - producers * David Thoener,

Shelly Yakus Sheldon Gershon "Shelly" Yakus (born November 1945) is an American music engineer and mixer. Formerly chief engineer and vice president of A&M Records, he was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999. Yakus is referenced ...

- engineers * Rob Perkins - assistant engineer * Brian Foraker - assistant engineer, mixing * Steve Marcantonio - mixing * David Thoener - mixing, mastering *

Greg Calbi Gregory Calbi (born April 3, 1949) is an American mastering engineer at Sterling Sound, New Jersey. Biography Greg Calbi was born on April 3, 1949, in Yonkers, New York, and raised in Bayside, Queens, New York. He graduated in 1966 from Bishop ...

- mastering

References

{{authority control Heart (band) songs 1982 songs Songs written by Sue Ennis Songs written by Nancy Wilson (rock musician) Songs written by Ann Wilson