LAMONT’S MUSIC NOTES-JULY 8, 2019…THIRTY EIGHT YEARS AGO STEVIE NICKS RELEASED ‘STOP DRAGGIN’ MY HEART AROUND’ THE FIRST SINGLE FROM HER DEBUT SOLO ALBUM ‘BELLA DONNA.’ IT’S THE ONLY TRACK ON ‘BELLA DONNA’ THAT WAS NEITHER WRITTEN OR CO-WRITTEN BY STEVIE NICKS. THE SONG WAS COMPOSED BY TOM PETTY AND MIKE CAMPBELL AND WAS ORIGINALLY MEANT AS A TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS SONG.
THE SONG WAS COMPOSED BY TOM PETTY AND MIKE CAMPBELL AND WAS ORIGINALLY MEANT AS A TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS SONG.
HOWEVER, FATE DICTATED THAT STEVIE NICKS SING ON THE SONG THANKS TO PRODUCER JIMMY IOVINE NOT ONLY WORKING WITH STEVIE NICKS ON HER SOLO DEBUT, BUT ALSO WORKING WITH TOM PETTY. HE ARRANGED FOR HER TO SING ON THE TUNE. THE SONG IS ABOUT A COUPLE WITH A COMPLICATED RELATIONSHIP. SHE WANTS TO GET RID OF HIM, BUT HE HAS A HOLD ON HER HEART. WHEN SHE TELLS HIM TO STOP DRAGGING THAT HEART AROUND, HE EXPLAINS HE’S TRYING TO PROTECT HER, WITH “YOU NEED SOMEONE LOOKING AFTER YOU.”
A PERFORMANCE OF THE SONG IN THE STUDIO WAS USED AS THE VIDEO.
THE VIDEO HAD THE GOOD FORTUNE OF BEING AROUND THE TIME MTV WENT ON THE AIR. THEY DIDN’T HAVE MANY VIDEOS AT THE TIME ( THIS VIDEO WAS THE 25TH VIDEO TO BE PLAYED ON MTV’S LAUNCH DATE OF AUGUST 1ST 1981), SO IT GOT A TON OF AIRPLAY AND INTRODUCED A YOUNGER AUDIENCE TO STEVIE NICKS AND TOM PETTY.
‘STOP DRAGGIN’ MY HEART AROUND’ WAS THE BIGGEST HIT FOR EITHER STEVIE NICKS (AS A SOLO ARTIST) OR FOR TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS.
HERE’S THE OFFICIAL VIDEO THAT WAS ALL OVER MTV IN 1981
