‘Heaven’-ly time for her

Rocksino-bound Belinda Carlisle recalls when her post-Go-Go’s career blew up and talks her recent foray into yoga-inspired chants

Three decades ago have passed since Belinda Carlisle was experiencing heaven on earth figuratively and “Heaven on Earth” literally. ¶ The former singer of The Go-Go’s watched her 1987 sophomore solo album by that title go platinum based on hit songs “Heaven Is a Place on Earth,” “I Get Weak” and “Circle in the Sand.”

“When we were making that album, I remember thinking if the stars are aligned, these songs, especially ‘Heaven,’ have a chance of being hit records,” said Carlisle, calling from Salt Lake City. “But I knew also that having a hit record depends on what else is going on the charts and in the world.

“So when it happened, it was like being on that treadmill again with The Go-Go’s, only without the craziness with the band. It was a really amazing feeling having success the second time around like that.”

Of course, earlier in the ‘80s, The Go-Go’s emerged as a new-wave act with ties to California’s punk scene. The all-female band enjoyed radio and MTV success with ubiquitous hits “We Got the Beat,” “Our Lips Are Sealed,” “Vacation” and “Head Over Heels.”

Looking back at the band’s success, impact and influence, it does make one wonder why The Go-Go’s haven’t received Rock & Roll Hall of Fame attention.

“It’s kind of obvious, and I don’t even mean this like tooting my own horn,” Carlisle said. “We were the first of our kind. We put ourselves together. We wrote and performed our own songs. Mind you, when we started out, we didn’t know how to plug guitars into amplifiers.

“So to go from that in 1977 to 1981 and having a No. 1 album in the states, really changing the face of radio and being a big influence in music, it’s a nobrainer. I know it’s very political. The Go-Go’s have never been on the ballot. I don’t lose sleep over it, but it’s kind of an obvious thing.”

Perhaps Carlisle’s healthy sleep habits can be tied to her love of yoga, which she’s been practicing for more than a quarter of a decade. Continuing her theme of always pushing boundaries, the singer, who is a Kundalini yoga teacher, merged her passions last year with new album “Wilder Shores.” The project found Carlisle performing a series of Sikh chants.

“That album was really fun to make, and nobody wanted to hear about it,” Carlisle said. “My record company thought I was nuts. All of the yoga record companies thought it was crazy, but it ended up being No. 1 for weeks on world music and new-wave charts.

“I knew there was something there. The fact of the matter, the response from the people was really good, and people loved it. It brought more people to the practice and exposed more people to chanting, which is what I wanted to do.”

Considering Carlisle is part of “The Retro Futura Tour” that is set to perform Aug. 3 at the Hard Rock Rocksino Northfield Park, does that mean concertgoers should bring their yoga mats?

“They can, but everybody else will be freaking out if I performed that album,” Carlisle laughed. “I don’t think it would go down well.”

SUBMITTED A former member of the Go-Go’s, Belinda Carlisle is known for single hits such as “Heaven Is a Place on Earth,” “I Get Weak” and “Circle in the Sand.”