that had kind of that riff. So we kind of borrowed that. And we made it into 'Barracuda.' And we saw the guys from Nazareth later and they were pissed. 'You took our riff!'. But that's kind of what everybody – you borrow from what you love and then you make it your own. It's one of those sounds too, it's one of those guitar tones that I'm still trying to figure out what we did. [Laughs] It's hard to re-create. Reception "Barracuda" has been labeled by reviewers as heavy metal and hard rock. Upon the song's release, it became Heart's second top-20 entry in the United States, peaking at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100, spending 20 weeks on the chart. Cash Box called it "an aggressive rocker, tempered with sparkling production and Ann Wilson's alluring lead vocal.." Record World said that it is "tough, driving rock 'n' roll, topped by the Wilsons' evocative vocals." Usage at the 2008 Republican National Convention "Barracuda" was played at the 2008 Republican National Convention in reference to John McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin, who claims she was known as "Sarah Barracuda" as a high school basketball star (and as "Sarracuda" after the convention, a play on her name). The Wilson sisters disapproved, as they disagreed with Palin's politics, and sent a cease-and-desist letter to John McCain's campaign, despite the McCain campaign's claim to have lawfully purchased rights to use the song. In an appearance on a Seattle talk show, song co-writer and lead guitarist Roger Fisher announced he was thrilled with the RNC's use of the song, because it both resulted in royalties for the band and gave them an opportunity to publicly point out that he is a "staunch" supporter of Barack Obama. Michael Derosier, a co-writer of the song and the band's drummer on the recording, also supports the use of the song by the RNC. The McCain campaign continued to use the song, despite Nancy Wilson's statement to Entertainment Weekly that "Sarah Palin's views and values in no way represent us as American women." Personnel Credits adapted from the liner notes of Little Queen. Ann Wilson – lead vocals Nancy Wilson – acoustic guitar Roger Fisher – lead guitar Howard Leese – lead guitar; mellotron Steve Fossen – bass Michael DeRosier – drums Charts Weekly charts Year-end charts Certifications See also "Five Per Cent For Nothing", 1971 Yes