NEED TO KNOW
Nancy Wilson’s heart is broken.
The Heart guitarist, 71, revealed that a few of the band’s prized instruments have been stolen.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Famers were set to launch their An Evening With Heart tour at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City on Saturday, May 31, when they noticed some of their instruments, which were set up the day before, were missing.
Mark Sullivan/Contour
According to a press release shared on Tuesday, June 3 via Billboard, the band discovered that “two irreplaceable instruments were stolen from the venue, where gear had been set up the day prior to the show.”
“These instruments are more than just tools of our trade — they’re extensions of our musical souls,” vocalist and founding member Nancy said in a statement issued by the group, per the outlet.
According to Billboard, the two items include a “custom-built, purple sparkle baritone Telecaster guitar with a hand-painted headstock” and “a vintage 1966 Gibson EM-50 mandolin,” with special significance to Nancy and member Paul Moak, respectively.
“The baritone Tele was made uniquely for me,” Nancy said in a statement, adding that “Paul’s mandolin has been with him for decades.”
She added: “We’re heartbroken, and we’re asking for their safe return — no questions asked. Their value to us is immeasurable.”
The group is offering an unspecified reward for any information regarding the theft that leads to their safe return.
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Prior to their latest string of dates, Heart wrapped their North American Royal Flush Tour dates in February.
The North American leg of Heart’s Royal Flush Tour was initially postponed in July of 2024 after Nancy’s sister Ann Wilson informed fans of her cancer diagnosis. The changing tour dates allowed her to undergo surgery and get through a course of preventive chemotherapy.
“We were just getting into the big groove of it all and starting to really get a full head of steam with the whole tour,” Nancy told PEOPLE in February of last year’s tour postponement. “And then, we found ourselves on a plane the next day. We just went home and tried to figure out what was going on and making sure that Ann was okay.”
Nancy and Ann will perform An Evening with Heart throughout North America until June 28.
