"These Dreams" is a popular song released in 1986 by the
rock band Heart from their 1985 self-titled album. It was the
first song by the band to become a number one hit on the
Billboard Hot 100.
In 1985, Martin Page (who co-wrote several other pop hits,
including "We Built This City" and "King of Wishful Thinking")
and Bernie Taupin (longtime collaborator of Elton John) wrote
the music and lyrics to the song now known as "These Dreams."
At the time, Page and Taupin were under contract to Columbia
Records and the record company offered the song to Stevie
Nicks, who expressed no interest in recording it. Heart had
just recently signed with Capitol Records. While the band had
previously recorded their own material, they were impressed by
"These Dreams" and agreed to use it on their upcoming
album.
"These Dreams" differed from past Heart hits in that it was
a polished, pop power ballad. The song also marked the first
Heart single on which lead vocals were performed by Nancy
Wilson instead of Ann Wilson. According to
The Billboard Book of Number One Hitsby Fred Bronson,
when it came time for Nancy Wilson to record her vocal, she was
suffering from a cold and her voice sounded somewhat raspy and
gravelly. After the song reached its peak of success, producers
reportedly wanted Nancy to recreate the gravelly sound on
future recordings, asking her, "Can't you just get sick
again?"
"These Dreams" was released as the third single from Heart's
1985 album
Heart. Following two consecutive US top-ten singles, the
song elevated the band's success even further, becoming Heart's
first single to hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on
March 22, 1986. It also became Heart's first (and, to date,
only) number one song in the US Adult Contemporary chart and
peaked at number sixty-two in the UK Singles Chart; however, a
re-issue released in 1988 reached number eight.
The music video for "These Dreams" received heavy airplay
from MTV and was the third of four US top-ten singles from the
Heartalbum. The single's B-side, "Shell Shock", was also
the B-side of Heart's previous single "Never".
The petite sail-shaped electric guitar Nancy played in the
music video was the creation of Nashville luthier David
Petschulat, which had been purchased years earlier.
This song was dedicated (on the album) to Nancy Wilson's
good friend Sharon Hess, who died of leukemia shortly before
the song was made. The lyrics of the song describe the fantasy
world a person enters when faced with a difficult situation in
real life. The final verse seemingly suggests that, moments
before awakening, what one desires the most is exactly that
which is out of reach in a dream: "In a wood full of princes,
freedom is a kiss. But the prince hides his face from dreams in
the mist."