Category Archives: deep dive

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Song of the Day #6,553: ‘Carmelita’ – Linda Ronstadt

Continuing my deep dive into the career of Linda Ronstadt…

I wrote about Ronstadt’s eighth album, Simple Dreams, during my Decades look at the year 1977. But it holds such an important place in her career that I had to give it another post today.

This is the best-selling album in her catalog, going 3X Platinum and knocking Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours from the #1 spot after 29 straight weeks. It was her fifth straight million-selling album (a record for a female artist) and the second highest seller by a woman after Carole King’s Tapestry.

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Song of the Day #6,550: ‘Down So Low’ – Linda Ronstadt

Following the chart-topping Heart Like a Wheel, Linda Ronstadt really hit her stride. Her next two albums — 1975’s Prisoner in Disguise and 1976’s Hasten Down the Wind — both went Platinum, making her the first woman to release three straight million-selling albums.

Both records sound great, and find Ronstadt at her most confident and creative vocally, knocking rockers and ballads alike out of the park.

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Song of the Day #6,549: ‘When Will I Be Loved’ – Linda Ronstadt

Linda Ronstadt was frustrated that her growing profile and critical acclaim wasn’t paired with bigger commercial success, so she decided to leave Capitol Records and sign with Asylum. She was still under contract to Capitol for one more record, though, so she recorded her fifth album knowing it would be released by her old label.

Wouldn’t you know it, that album — 1974’s Heart Like a Wheel — became her first smash hit. It reached #1 on the Billboard albums chart and landed its first single — ‘You’re No Good‘ — at #1 on the Hot 100. Third single ‘When Will I Be Loved’ made it to #2.

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Song of the Day #6,548: ‘Desperado’ – Linda Ronstadt

Linda Ronstadt quickly took the California music scene of the 70s by storm, enchanting everybody with her unique beauty and her mesmerizing voice. As Willie Nelson famously said, “there are two types of men in this world: those who love Linda Ronstadt, and those who have never heard of her.”

She drew talent like a magnet. Her session musicians during live shows in the early 70s included a couple of up-and-comers named Glenn Frey and Don Henley, who soon decided they should start up a band of their own. That’s right… we have Linda Ronstadt to thank for the Eagles.

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Song of the Day #6,547: ‘Long Long Time’ – Linda Ronstadt

Following the dissolution of The Stone Poneys, it was time for Linda Ronstadt to embark on a solo career. She jumped right in, releasing her first two albums within a year of each other.

Both her solo debut, 1969’s Hand Sown…Home Grown, and its follow-up, 1970’s Silk Purse, followed a similar pattern. They were collections of dynamic folk and country covers with a few originals mixed in (though not Ronstadt originals… she almost never wrote her own songs).

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