Shortly after that, with Kenny's assistance, Joan formed the backing group "The Blackhearts" with three obscure New York area musicians: Gary Ryan on bass, Eric Ambel (replaced shortly thereafter by Rick Byrd) on guitar and Lee Crystal on drums. After almost a year of touring, Joan's first album with The Blackhearts, entitled I Love Rock'N'Roll came out in December of 1981. The album included a version of "Little Drummer Boy" on the pre-Christmas editions. The album's impact on the music scene was immediate with the LP reaching the Top Five, while the single "I Love Rock'n'Roll" hit the very top of the Billboard's Charts on March 20, 1982 and stayed #1 for 7 weeks. Joan Jett had come back from nowhere.
A string of Top 40 hits followed, as well as sellout tours with The Police, Queen, and Aerosmith, among others. Jett was the second American act of any kind to perform behind the Iron Curtain, the first one being Blood, Sweat & Tears in Romania in 1969. She was among the first English-speaking rock acts to appear in Panama and the Dominican Republic.
Forced label changes in the 80's led to a decline in popularity. Despite the follow-up albums "Album" and "Glorious Results of a Misspent Youth" being praised by her devout fans, neither got the attention or radio play the first two albums received.
After receiving her own MTV New Year's Eve special, Jett beat out a number of contenders to appear in the movie Light of Day with Michael J. Fox. It was about this time that Ryan and Crystal left the Blackhearts. They were soon replaced by the powerful rhythm section of Thommy Price and Kasim Sulton. Later that year, Jett released "Good Music", which featured appearances by The Beach Boys, The Sugarhill Gang and singer Darlene Love. The album only spawned two minor singles which received little airplay. This label decided the band had to either take in outside help or they would lose their contract.
And so they did. Her next release, Up Your Alley, went multi-platinum and was followed by "The Hit List", which was an international hit. Popular songwriter/producer Desmond Child was brought in, resulting in the release of album "Up Your Alley". This album brought the band a resurgence in popularity, with top 10 singles "I Hate Myself for Loving You" and "Little Liar".
This return to the spotlight would be short-lived, however. Follow-up album "The Hit List", an all-cover songs release, spawned only a minor hit with Jett's version of AC/DC's "Dirty Deeds".
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts became the first rock band to perform a series of shows at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on Broadway, breaking the record at the time for the fastest ticket sell-out ever.
1991 and 1994 had two more releases, "Notorious" and "Pure & Simple". But radio had started looking to grunge by this time, and neither album got the attention they deserved.
In the 1990s, Jett and Laguna released "Flashback", a compilation of her career so far on their own Blackheart Records. Her next release, "Notorious" (which featured The Replacements' Paul Westerberg) was the last with Sony/CBS as Jett switched to Warner Brothers.
In 1994, the Blackhearts released the well received Pure and Simple, which featured tracks written with Kat Bjelland (Babes in Toyland), Donita Sparks (L7) and Kathleen Hanna (Bikini Kill).
While a slew of hits packages, some with an occasional new or previously unreleased track were released following this, it would be 10 years before a new studio album would appear.
This would be 2004's "Naked", and thus far has been a Japan-only release. The album sees Jett returning to a more raw and experimental sound, closer to that of her first 4 releases than the polished material that began with "Good Music".
Failing to get "Naked" released in other markets, Jett released on a more international level "Sinner" in June 2006, on Blackheart Records, her own label.. This album featured many remixed tracks from "Naked", and a complete rewrite of "Stuck in the Middle" to new version "Riddles". Lead-off single and video was a cover of "A.C.D.C." by Sweet.
To support the album, the band appeared on the 2006 Warped Tour, and embarked on a Fall 2006 tour with Eagles of Death Metal.
After a long break from recording, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts released a 6-song EP of new material, "Mindsets," in June 2023.
Wynnewood
As I Am
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I wanted to be everything you wanted
I wanted to be everything you needed
I wanted what I said
To bring to you laughter
I wanted what I did to make you smile
But in a perfect world
'Cause in a world of dreams
You're only dreaming
I want it to be real
I just can't take it
As I am
Take me as I am
Now I'm only flesh and blood
Oh I wish that you could
Love me as I am
You thought you had me
Tucked inside your pocket
You thought you had it under your control
You can put my smiling picture in a locket
But you can't put a chain around my soul
But in a perfect world
There's no perfection
'Cause in a world of dreams
You're only dreamin'
Don't make me feel like I can't make it
As I am
Take me as I am
Now I'm only flesh and blood
Oh I wish that you could
Love me as I am
As I am
Now I'm doing the best I can
Try to understand
And love me as I am
Oh, in another place and time
Oh, I will be the vision in your mind
As I am
Take me as I am
Now I'm only flesh and blood
Oh I wish that you could
Love me as I am
As I am
Now I'm doing the best I can
Try to understand
Now I know God has a plan
And I guess that's why she made me
As I am
The lyrics of Joan Jett and the Blackhearts's song "As I Am" talk about the need to be accepted and loved for who one truly is. The singer expresses her desire to be everything that her partner wants and needs, to bring laughter and make their loved one smile. She acknowledges that no one is perfect, and in a world of dreams, we are only dreaming. The singer requests to be loved and accepted for who she is, with all her qualities and flaws. She expresses frustration at the idea of being changed or controlled and emphasizes that she is only flesh and blood.
The lyrics also express the singer's gradual realization of the truth - that God made her as she is, with all her strengths and weaknesses, and that she is doing the best she can. The singer reiterates her longing to be loved and accepted for who she is, despite her imperfections.
Overall, the song is an anthem for self-acceptance and the need for unconditional love and acceptance from others, flaws and all.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, in another place and time, oh, I will be the vision in your mind
In an alternate universe or different time, I would have fulfilled your perfect vision of a partner.
I wanted to be everything you wanted
I desired to be what you wished for so desperately.
I wanted to be everything you needed
I wanted to fill the voids within your heart that needed to be filled.
I wanted what I said
I spoke with truth and intended to live up to my words.
To bring to you laughter
I wished to give you joy and happiness.
I wanted what I did to make you smile
My actions and behavior were aimed to make you smile.
But in a perfect world, There's no perfection
Even if the world was flawless, no one and nothing is perfect.
'Cause in a world of dreams, You're only dreaming
In a world of illusions, we only fulfill our own imaginations.
I want it to be real, I just can't take it
I desire real, genuine feelings, but I cannot endure the facade.
As I am, Take me as I am
Accept me for who I am, unconditionally.
Now I'm only flesh and blood, Oh I wish that you could
I am human with all my imperfections, and I wish that you would love me for that.
Love me as I am
Love me with all my imperfections and flaws.
You thought you had me, Tucked inside your pocket, You thought you had it under your control
You believed you possessed me and could easily control me.
You can put my smiling picture in a locket, But you can't put a chain around my soul
You can keep a keepsake of my happy countenance with you, but you cannot bind me and control my being.
Don't make me feel like I can't make it, As I am
Do not make me feel incapable of living my life as my natural self.
Now I'm doing the best I can, Try to understand
I am striving to do better, so please have empathy and try to comprehend.
And love me as I am
And loving me entirely with all of my imperfections.
Now I know God has a plan, And I guess that's why she made me
I have come to understand that God has a plan, and being myself is a part of that plan.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, BMG Rights Management
Written by: JOAN JETT, DESMOND CHILD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind