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| {{Infobox musical artist <!-- See Misplaced Pages:WikiProject Musicians --> | |||
| | name = Linda Ronstadt | |||
| | background = solo_singer | |||
| | image = LindaRonstadtPerforming.jpg | |||
| | image_size = | |||
| | alt = Ronstadt, in the summer of 1978, sings in concert dressed in a camisole top and pants with medium-length hair, clutching the microphone on a stand with both hands. | |||
| | caption = At the ], August 16, 1978<ref name="NEWHAVEN1978"> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304192801/http://www.wolfgangsvault.com/linda-ronstadt/photography/fine-art-print/NHC780816-02-16.html |date=March 4, 2016 }}, ''wolfgangsvault.com''</ref><ref name="SETLISTNH1978">. ''setlist.fm''</ref> | |||
| | birth_name = Linda Maria Ronstadt<ref name="allmusic1">{{cite web |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas |url={{Allmusic |class=artist |id=p5302/biography|pure_url=yes}} |title=Linda Ronstadt > Biography |publisher=] |accessdate=December 13, 2009}}</ref> | |||
| | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1946|7|15}} | |||
| | birth_place = ], U.S. | |||
| | origin = | |||
| | death_date = | |||
| | death_place = | |||
| | genre = {{hlist|]|]|]|]|]|]|]|]|]|]|]}} | |||
| | occupation = Singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, actress, activist | |||
| | instrument = Vocals | |||
| | years_active = 1967{{ndash}}2011 | |||
| | label = ], ], ], ] | |||
| | associated_acts = ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ] | |||
| | website = {{official website}} | |||
| }} | |||
| '''Linda Maria Ronstadt''' (born July 15, 1946) is an American ] singer known for singing in a wide range of genres including rock, country, jazz, light opera, and Latin. She has earned 11 ]s, three ], two ] awards, an ], and an ], and many of her albums have been ] in the United States and internationally. She has also earned nominations for a ] and a ] award. She was awarded the ] by ] in 2011 and also awarded the ] by ] in 2016. She was inducted into the ] in April 2014.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://rockhall.com/inductees/ceremonies/2014 |title=2014 Induction Ceremony The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum |accessdate=October 16, 2013 |date=October 16, 2013 |publisher=Rock and Roll Hall of Fame}}</ref> On July 28, 2014, she was awarded the National Medal of Arts and Humanities.<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=] |title=President Obama Honors Linda Ronstadt, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Others in Art and Humanities Ceremony |agency= Associated Press | date=July 28, 2014 |accessdate=November 23, 2015 |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/president-obama-honor-linda-ronstadt-jeffrey-katzenberg-art-humanities-ceremony-article-1.1882876}}</ref>{{refn|Some of the content of the lead section is supported by these news items:<ref name="aladdin incident" /><ref name="defends politics" /><ref name="everlasting linda" /><ref name="female rocker" /><ref name="heart to heart" /><ref name="interview" /><ref name="jazz" /><ref name="lets wisdom" /><ref name="melancholy baby" /><ref name="wait wait" />}} | |||
| In total, she has released over 30 studio albums and 15 ] or ] albums. Ronstadt charted 38 ] singles, with 21 reaching the top 40, 10 in the top 10, three at number 2, and "]" at number 1. This success did not translate to the UK, with only her single "]" reaching the UK Top 40.<ref>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt |url=http://www.chartstats.com/artistinfo.php?id=2688 |publisher=Chart Stats |accessdate=September 25, 2009}}</ref> Her duet with ], "]", peaked at number 2 in December 1989.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chartstats.com/songinfo.php?id=16995 |title=Don't Know Much |publisher=Chart Stats |accessdate=September 25, 2009}}</ref> In addition, she has charted 36 albums, 10 top-10 albums and three number 1 albums on the ''Billboard'' Pop Album Chart. Her autobiography, ''Simple Dreams: A Musical Memoir'',<ref name=Memoir>{{cite book |title=Simple Dreams: A Musical Memoir |author=Ronstadt, Linda |publisher=] |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-4516-6872-8 |oclc=829743967}}</ref> was published in September 2013. It debuted in the Top 10 on ]. | |||
| Ronstadt has collaborated with artists in diverse genres, including ], ],<ref name=Eckstine>{{cite web |work=Playboy After Dark DVD Collection |title=Disc 2, October 1969: Featuring Linda Ronstadt, Joe Cocker, Billy Eckstine, Mort Sahl, and Sid Caesar, God Bless the Child Linda Ronstadt and Billy Eckstine Duet |url=http://www.audiofidelity.net/pc-dvd-playboy.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060821235734/http://www.audiofidelity.net/pc-dvd-playboy.html |archivedate=August 21, 2006 |accessdate=December 13, 2012}}</ref> ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and ]. She has lent her voice to over 120 albums and has sold more than 100 million records, making her one of the ].<ref name=Guest>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt Guest Appearances and Unique Recordings |date=September 12, 2006 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/GuestAppearances.pdf |author=Partridge, Tony <!--site owner--> |format=PDF |accessdate=August 30, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509070218/http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/GuestAppearances.pdf|archive-date=May 9, 2008}}http://lyricswww.ronstadt-linda.com/guestapp.doc</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://ottawacitizen.com/entertainment/musical-memoirs-hit-some-high-notes |title=Musical memoirs hit some high notes |first=Bruce |last=Ward |publisher=] |date=December 27, 2013 |accessdate=February 14, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221153553/http://www.ottawacitizen.com/entertainment/Musical%2Bmemoirs%2Bsome%2Bhigh%2Bnotes/9328315/story.html |archive-date=February 21, 2014 |deadurl=no |df= }}</ref> Christopher Loudon, of '']'', wrote in 2004 that Ronstadt is "blessed with arguably the most sterling set of pipes of her generation."<ref name=JazzTimes2>{{cite web|title=Linda Ronstadt: ''Hummin' to Myself'' (Verve) |first=Christopher |last=Loudon |work=] |url=http://jazztimes.com/reviews/cd_reviews/detail.cfm?article_id=15185§ion=CD%20Reviews&issue=200412 |date=December 2004 |accessdate=April 19, 2007 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070413113105/http://www.jazztimes.com/reviews/cd_reviews/detail.cfm?article_id=15185§ion=CD%20Reviews&issue=200412 |archivedate=April 13, 2007 |deadurl=yes |df= }}</ref> | |||
| After completing her last live concert in late 2009, Ronstadt retired in 2011. She was diagnosed with ] in December 2012, which left her unable to sing.<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=] |title=Like a Wheel, but Turning Slower – Linda Ronstadt Discusses Her Memoir and Parkinson’s |author= ] | date=August 28, 2013 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/01/arts/music/linda-ronstadt-discusses-her-memoir-and-parkinsons.html}}</ref> | |||
| == Early life == | |||
| Linda Maria Ronstadt was born in 1946 in ], daughter to Gilbert Ronstadt (1911{{ndash}}1995), a prosperous machinery merchant who ran the F. Ronstadt Co.,<ref name=fredronstadt>{{cite web |title=Borderman: Memoirs of Federico José María Ronstadt |url=http://www.uapress.arizona.edu/BOOKS/bid1482.htm |publisher=University of Arizona Press |year=2003 |accessdate=May 7, 2007 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070210024613/http://www.uapress.arizona.edu/BOOKS/bid1482.htm |archivedate=February 10, 2007 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> and Ruth Mary (Copeman) Ronstadt (1914{{ndash}}1982), a homemaker.<ref>{{cite book |title=Linda Ronstadt: It's So Easy |last=Bego |first=Mark |year=1990 |publisher=Eakin Press |isbn=0-89015-775-8 |pages=9–11}}</ref> | |||
| Ronstadt was raised on the family's {{convert|10|acre|ha|0|adj=on}} ranch with her siblings Peter (who served as Tucson's ] for ten years, 1981{{ndash}}1991), Michael J., and Gretchen (Suzy). The family was featured in '']'' magazine in 1953.<ref name=family>{{cite web |title=Gilbert Ronstadt Was Born in 1911 |work=] |year=1953 |first=Deborah J. |last=Ronstadt |url=http://www.ronstadt.com/GilbertRonstadt.htm |accessdate=May 17, 2007 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929101949/http://www.ronstadt.com/GilbertRonstadt.htm |archivedate=September 29, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| Linda's father came from a ] Arizona ranching family<ref name="tiptheirhat" /> and was of ], ], and ] ancestry.<ref name=tucsonsronstadtfamilyhistory>{{cite web |title=Tucson's Ronstadt Family |work=Through Our Parents' Eyes: History and Culture of Southern Arizona |publisher=Arizona Library |url=http://parentseyes.arizona.edu/ronstadtfamily/ |accessdate=April 9, 2007}}</ref> The family's influence on and contributions to Arizona's history, including wagon making, commerce, pharmacies, and music, are chronicled in the library of the ].<ref name=tucsonsronstadtfamily>{{cite web |title=The Ronstadt Family |work=The University of Arizona Archives |url=http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/ronstadt/index.html |accessdate=October 3, 2007 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060904230839/http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/ronstadt/index.html |archivedate=September 4, 2006}}</ref> Linda Ronstadt's great-grandfather, graduate engineer Friedrich August Ronstadt (who went by Federico Augusto Ronstadt) immigrated to the ] (then a part of Mexico) in the 1840s from ], Germany, and married a Mexican citizen, eventually settling in Tucson.<ref name=helmut>{{cite web |title=The People |work=Early Pioneers of Tucson |url=http://www.emat-tucson.org/Germany/People.html |date=September 2011 |accessdate=May 16, 2007 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060618000242/http://www.emat-tucson.org/Germany/People.html |archivedate=June 18, 2006 |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref name=lindar1>{{cite web |title=Songs from Her Heart |first=Don |last=McLeese |work=Ford Times |date=June 1992 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/fordtimes.htm |accessdate=October 30, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071205083748/http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/fordtimes.htm|archive-date=December 5, 2007}}http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/ford_times.html</ref> In 1991, the City of Tucson opened its central transit terminal on March 16 and dedicated it to Linda's grandfather, ], a local pioneer businessman; he was a wagon maker whose early contribution to the city's mobility included six mule-drawn streetcars delivered in 1903{{ndash}}04.<ref name=fredronstadt2>{{cite web |title=Tucson Opens Ronstadt Transit Center |url=http://tris.trb.org/view.aspx?type=CO&id=358937 |date=August 1991 |author=Bluestein, T |accessdate=June 5, 2010}}</ref> | |||
| Her mother Ruth Mary, of German, English, and ] ancestry, was raised in ]. She was a daughter of ], a prolific inventor and holder of many patents. Copeman, with nearly 700 patents to his name, invented an early form of the toaster, many refrigerator devices, the grease gun, the first electric stove, and an early form of the microwave oven. His flexible rubber ice cube tray earned him millions of dollars in royalties.<ref name=LloydCopeman>{{cite web |title=LloydCopeman.com – Prolific U.S. Inventor |publisher=LloydCopeman.com |url=http://www.lloydcopeman.com/ |accessdate=April 9, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| == Career summary == | |||
| {{Quote box | |||
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| | quote="Everybody has their own level of doing their music. ... Mine just happened to resonate over the years, in one way and another, with a significant enough number of people so that I could do it professionally." | |||
| | source=—Linda Ronstadt<ref name="Goldmine589" />}} | |||
| Establishing her professional career in the mid-1960s at the forefront of California's emerging ] and ] movements{{snds}}genres which defined post-1960s rock music{{snds}}Ronstadt joined forces with ] and ] and became the lead singer of a folk-rock trio, the ]. Later, as a solo artist, she released ''Hand Sown ... Home Grown'' in 1969, which has been described as the first ] record by a female recording artist.<ref name="Linen106">{{cite web |work=Dirty Linen Issue #106 |title=Linda Ronstadt Silver Threads & Golden Needles |first=T. J. |last=McGrath |date=June–July 2003 |url=http://www.dirtylinen.com/106/ronstexc.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040717164311/http://www.dirtylinen.com/106/ronstexc.html |archivedate=July 17, 2004 |accessdate=November 15, 2012}}</ref> Although fame eluded her during these years, Ronstadt actively toured with the ], ], ], and others, appeared numerous times on television shows, and began to contribute her singing to albums by other artists. | |||
| With the release of chart-topping albums such as '']'', '']'', and '']'', Ronstadt became the first female "arena class" rock star. She set records as one of the top-grossing concert artists of the decade.<ref name="Linen106" /><ref name="doubleplatinum">{{cite book |title=We Gotta Get Out of This Place: The True, Tough Story of Women in Rock |first=Gerri |last=Hirshey |publisher=Grove Press |page=86 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-SiL4_ay5zoC&pg=PA86&lpg=PA86&dq=%22highest+paid+woman+in+rock%22#PPA86,M1 |accessdate=May 11, 2007}}</ref><ref name=RocksVenusSuccess>{{cite news |title=Rock's Venus Takes Control of Her Affairs (as reprinted in Herbst, ''The Rolling Stone Interviews'', 1989) |first=Peter |last=Herbst |work=Rolling Stone |publisher=Google Books|date=October 19, 1978 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LBXGGpvaDmcC&pg=PA340#v=onepage&q=&f=false |accessdate=November 15, 2012}}</ref><ref name=hamill>{{cite book |title=Linda Ronstadt, Pirate Queen |publisher='']''. Google Books. |date=July 21, 1980 |author=] |page=23 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=buUCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA23#v=onepage&q=&f=false |accessdate=November 15, 2012}}</ref> Referred to as the "First Lady of Rock"<ref name="tiptheirhat">{{cite web |title=Playboy Interview: Linda Ronstadt |first=Jean |last=Vallely |date=April 1980 |work=Playboy |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/playboy80.htm |accessdate=May 7, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/whats-new-19831013 |title=What's New – Album Reviews |work=Rolling Stone |first=Christopher |last=Connelly |date=October 13, 1983 |accessdate=November 15, 2012}}<!-- lowercase by 1983 --></ref> and the "Queen of Rock", Ronstadt was voted the Top Female Pop Singer of the 1970s.<ref name="tiptheirhat" /> Her rock-and-roll image was as famous as her music; she appeared six times on the cover of '']'' and on the covers of '']'' and '']''. | |||
| In the 1980s, Ronstadt went to Broadway and garnered a Tony nomination for her performance in '']'',<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/181461-Tony-Nominee-and-Grammy-Winner-Linda-Ronstadt-Diagnosed-With-Parkinsons-Disease-and-Is-Unable-to-Sing |title=Tony Nominee and Grammy Winner Linda Ronstadt Diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease and Is Unable to Sing |work=Playbill.com |first=Michael |last=Gioia |date=August 26, 2013 |accessdate=October 3, 2013 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004220547/http://www.playbill.com/news/article/181461-Tony-Nominee-and-Grammy-Winner-Linda-Ronstadt-Diagnosed-With-Parkinsons-Disease-and-Is-Unable-to-Sing |archivedate=October 4, 2013 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> teamed with the composer ], recorded traditional music, and collaborated with the conductor ], an event at that time viewed as an original and unorthodox move for a rock-and-roll artist. This venture paid off,<ref name=gambleoff>{{cite news |title=Ronstadt: The Gamble Pays Off Big |first=Mary Ellin |last=Bruns |date=January 8, 1984 |newspaper=Family Weekly |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/famwkly.htm |accessdate=April 9, 2007}}</ref> and Ronstadt remained one of the music industry's best-selling acts throughout the 1980s, with multi-platinum-selling albums such as '']'', '']'', and '']''. She continued to tour, collaborate, and record celebrated albums, such as '']'' and '']'', until her retirement in 2011.<ref name="retirement" /> | |||
| Most of Ronstadt's albums are ] gold, platinum, or multi-platinum.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?content_selector=gold-platinum-searchable-database |title=RIAA – Gold & Platinum Searchable Database |publisher=] |accessdate=November 15, 2012}} (Search for "Ronstadt, Linda")</ref><ref name=certifications>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt Top Pop Albums |work=Joel Whitburn presents the Billboard Albums 6th ed. (2007) |publisher=ronstadt-linda.com |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/toppopa.htm |accessdate=April 19, 2007}}<!--Ok, due to "Used by permission"--></ref> Having sold in excess of 100 million records worldwide<ref name=worldwidesales>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt Record Sales Page |work=lindaronstadt.de |publisher=Linda Ronstadt (DE) fan site |url=http://lindaronstadt.de/facts.htm |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101108092354/http://lindaronstadt.de/facts.htm |archivedate=November 8, 2010 |accessdate=November 15, 2010}}{{dubious|date=November 2012}}</ref> and setting records as one of the top-grossing concert performers for over a decade, Ronstadt was the most successful female singer of the 1970s and stands as one of the most successful female recording artists in U.S. history. Ronstadt opened many doors for women in rock and roll and other musical genres by championing songwriters and musicians, pioneering her chart success onto the concert circuit, and being at the vanguard of many musical movements.<ref name="Linen106" /> | |||
| == Career overview == | |||
| === Early influences === | |||
| {{Quote box | |||
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| | quote="I don't record (any type of genre of music) that I didn't hear in my family's living room by the time I was 10. It just is my rule that I don't break because ... I can't do it authentically ... I really think that you're just hard-wiring (synapses) in your brain up until the age of maybe 12 or 10, and there are certain things you can't learn in an authentic way after that." | |||
| | source=—Linda Ronstadt<ref name="Asheralbumsales" /> | |||
| }} | |||
| Ronstadt's early family life was filled with music and tradition, which influenced the stylistic and musical choices she later made in her career. Growing up, she listened to many types of music, including ], which was sung by her entire family and was a staple in her childhood.<ref name=AARP-07>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt : The music legend opens up to AARP Segunda Juventud Online |first=Anita Mabante |last=Leach |date=August 2007 |url=http://www.aarpsegundajuventud.org/english/entertainment/2007-AS/07AS_ronstadt.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081222084100/http://www.aarpsegundajuventud.org/english/entertainment/2007-AS/07AS_ronstadt.html |archivedate=December 22, 2008 |accessdate=November 25, 2012}}</ref> | |||
| Ronstadt has remarked that everything she has recorded on her own records{{snds}}rock 'n' roll, jazz, rhythm and blues, gospel, opera, country, choral, and mariachi{{snds}}is all music she heard her family sing in their living room, or heard played on the radio, by the age of 10. She credits her mother for her appreciation of ] and her father for introducing her to the ] and ] repertoire that she would, in turn, help reintroduce to an entire generation.<ref name="Asheralbumsales">{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt Interview 17 June 1998 at Linda's home in Tucson, Arizona |first=Debbie |last=Kruger |publisher=debbiekruger.com |date=June 17, 1998 |url=http://www.debbiekruger.com/writer/freelance/ronstadt_transcript.html |accessdate=July 6, 2007}}</ref><ref name=starbulletin /> | |||
| {{Quote box|quote="If I didn't hear it on the radio, or if my dad wasn't playing it on the piano, or if my brother wasn't playing it on the guitar or singing it in his boys' choir, or my mother and sister weren't practicing a Broadway tune or a Gilbert and Sullivan song, then I can't do it today. It's as simple as that. All of my influences and my authenticity are a direct result of the music played in that Tucson living room."<ref name=McGrath03>{{cite news|last1=McGrath|first1=T.J.|title=Linda Ronstadt: Silver Threads & Golden Needles|url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/dirty2003.html|accessdate=15 November 2015|issue=#106-June/July 2003|publisher=Dirty Linen|date=}}</ref>|source =—Linda Rondstadt|align = left|width = 200px}}Early on, her singing style had been influenced by singers such as ] and ]; she has called their singing and rhythms "more like Greek music ... It's sort of like 6/8 ] ... very hard driving and very intense."<ref name=influences>{{cite web |work=Hit Parader |title=Sanity on the Line Every Show |date=February 1971 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/arthitp1.htm |accessdate=May 7, 2007}}</ref> She also drew influence from country singer ]. | |||
| She has said that "all girl singers" eventually "have to curtsy to ] and ]".<ref name="tiptheirhat" /> Of ], Ronstadt says, "There's no one in her league. That's it. Period. I learn more ... about singing rock n roll from listening to Maria Callas records than I ever would from listening to pop music for a month of Sundays. ... She's the greatest chick singer ever."<ref name=NYTGarden>{{cite news |title=At Lunch With: Linda Ronstadt; And This Is What 48 Looks Like |newspaper=] |author=] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/04/19/garden/at-lunch-with-linda-ronstadt-and-this-is-what-48-looks-like.html?scp=1&sq=%22And+This+Is+What+48+Looks+Like%22&st=nyt |accessdate=September 5, 2011 |date=April 19, 1995}}</ref> She admires Callas for her musicianship and her attempts to push 20th-century singing, particularly opera, back into the ] "natural style of singing".<ref name=kqed>{{cite web |date=July 19, 2006 |title=Linda Ronstadt: Forum with Michael Krasny |url=http://www.kqed.org/epArchive/R607191000 |publisher=] radio |format=MP3, transcript |accessdate=July 6, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| A self-described product of American radio of the 1950s and 1960s, Ronstadt is a fan of its eclectic and diverse music programming.<ref name=starbulletin>{{cite news |newspaper=Honolulu Star-Bulletin |title=Silver threads golden moments: After 35 years, Linda Ronstadt returns to sing in Diamond Head Crater |first=Burl |last=Burlingame |url=http://archives.starbulletin.com/2006/03/28/features/story01.html |accessdate=April 9, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| === Beginning of professional career === | |||
| At age 14, Ronstadt formed a folk trio with her brother Peter and sister Gretchen. The group played coffeehouses, fraternity houses, and other small venues, billing themselves as "the Union City Ramblers" and "the Three Ronstadts", and they even recorded themselves at a Tucson studio under the name "the New Union Ramblers".<ref name=MIXMag2000 /> Their repertoire included the music they grew up on{{snds}}folk, country, bluegrass, and Mexican.<ref name=ramblers>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt: The Queen of Rock & Roll is also a Queen of Country Music |work=] |date=October 1978 |first=Russ |last=Barnard |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artcm78.htm |accessdate=May 11, 2007}}</ref> But increasingly, Ronstadt wanted to make a union of folk music and rock 'n' roll,<ref name=hamill /> and in 1964, after a semester at Arizona State University,<ref name=ramblers /> the 18-year-old decided to move to Los Angeles.<ref name=LATimes>{{cite journal |first=Randy |last=Lewis |date=August 20, 2010 |title=Linda Ronstadt remembers Kenny Edwards: 'A beacon to me' |journal=Los Angeles Times |publisher=Tribune Company |url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2010/08/linda-ronstadt-kenny-edwards.html}}</ref><ref name="Soulful" /><ref name="Claire">{{cite book |title=Linda Ronstadt |last=Claire |first=Vivian |year=1978 |publisher=Flash Books |location=New York |isbn=0-8256-3918-2 |page=10}}</ref> | |||
| === The Stone Poneys === | |||
| {{Main article|Stone Poneys}} | |||
| Ronstadt visited a friend from Tucson, ], in Los Angeles during Easter break from college in 1964, and later that year, shortly before her eighteenth birthday,<ref name=LATimes /> decided to move there permanently to form a band with him.<ref name="Soulful" /> Kimmel had already begun co-writing folk-rock songs with guitarist-songwriter ], and eventually the three of them were signed by ] to ] in the summer of 1966 as "]". The trio released three albums in a 15-month period in 1967{{ndash}}68: '']''; '']''; and '']''. The band is best known for their hit single "]" (written by ] prior to his joining ]), which reached number 13 on the ] chart as well as number 12 in '']'' magazine. Nearly 50 years later, the song remains one of Ronstadt's most popular recordings.<ref>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt |publisher=Rhapsody |url=http://www.rhapsody.com/artist/linda-ronstadt |accessdate=April 1, 2009}}</ref> | |||
| In 2008 Australia's ] released a compilation CD titled ''The Stone Poneys''. The disc features all tracks from the first two Stone Poneys albums and four tracks from the third album. | |||
| === Solo career === | |||
| Still contractually obligated to Capitol Records, Ronstadt released her first solo album, ''Hand Sown ... Home Grown'', in 1969. It has been called the first ] record by a female recording artist.<ref name="Linen106" /> During this same period, she contributed to the '']'' "super session" project. | |||
| Ronstadt provided the vocals for some commercials during this period, including one for ] electric razors, in which a multitracked Ronstadt and ] claimed that the electric razor "cleans you, thrills you ... may even keep you from getting busted".<ref name=Remington>{{cite web|work=The Linda Ronstadt Download Center |title=Remington Electric Razor |url=http://home.comcast.net/~westhamptonpg/razor.html |publisher=westhamptonpg personal webpage |accessdate=June 16, 2007 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://archive.is/20121219221429/http://home.comcast.net/~westhamptonpg/razor.html |archivedate=December 19, 2012 }}</ref> | |||
| Ronstadt's second solo album, '']'', was released in March 1970. Recorded entirely in Nashville, it was produced by ], whom Ronstadt chose on the advice of ], who had worked with him on the '']'' album.<ref name=Capitol>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt's 1969–1974 Capitol Records Solo Output Presented in New 2-CD Collection, 'The Best Of Linda Ronstadt: The Capitol Years' |publisher=PR Newswire |date=November 8, 2005 |url=http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/11-08-2005/0004211041&EDATE= |accessdate=September 30, 2007}}</ref> The ''Silk Purse'' album cover showed Ronstadt in a muddy pigpen, while the back and inside cover depicted her onstage wearing bright red. Ronstadt has stated that she was not pleased with the album, although it provided her with her first solo hit, the multi-format single "]", and earned her first Grammy nomination (for Best Contemporary Vocal Performance/Female). | |||
| ==== Touring ==== | |||
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| | quote="], who was the then reigning queen of folk music, said to me at ], 'Honey, in this town there are four sexes. Men, women, homosexuals, and girl singers.'" |source=—Linda Ronstadt | |||
| <ref name=Windy>{{cite web |title=The Very Best: Linda Ronstadt |work=Windy City Times |first=Gregg |last=Shapiro |date=February 1, 2003 |url=http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/gay/lesbian/news/ARTICLE.php?AID=451 |accessdate=July 31, 2008}}</ref>}} | |||
| In the autumn of 1975, Ronstadt performed shows with ], the ], and ].<ref>Eliot, Marc. . Da Capo Press. 2004. Page 119. Retrieved 15 Dec. 2016</ref><ref>A Jackson Browne Concert Chronology. Ghosts On The Road. The Old Homestead Press. Ghostsontheroad.co.uk. Web. <http://www.ghostsontheroad.co.uk/JB/1975.html{{dead link|date=December 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}> Retrieved Dec. 9 2016.</ref> | |||
| In a 1976 '']'' interview with ], Ronstadt explained that "they haven't invented a word for that loneliness that everybody goes through on the road. The world is tearing by you, real fast, and all these people are looking at you. ... People see me in my 'girl-singer' suit."<ref>{{cite web |work=Rolling Stone |date=December 2, 1976 |title=Linda Ronstadt: The Million-Dollar Woman |first=Cameron |last=Crowe |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artrs76.htm |accessdate=July 31, 2008}}</ref> In 1974 she told ] in '']'', "People are always taking advantage of you; everybody that's interested in you has got an angle."<ref>Knobler, Peter. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305010004/http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artcrw74.htm |date=March 5, 2016 }} ''],'' June 1974.</ref> | |||
| Several years before Ronstadt became what author Gerri Hirshey called the first "arena-class rock diva", with "hugely anticipated tours",<ref name="doubleplatinum" /> she began her solo career touring the North American concert circuit. But being on the road took its toll both emotionally and professionally. There were few "girl singers" on the rock circuit at the time, and they were relegated to "groupie level when in a crowd of a bunch of rock and roll guys", a status Ronstadt avoided.<ref name=groupie>{{cite web |work=Fusion Magazine |title=Female Rocker Roundup: Linda Ronstadt, Lynn Carey, Lydia Pense, Nansi Nevins – Part 1 |date=December 26, 1969 |first=Pete |last=Senoff |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/intfus1.htm |accessdate=November 25, 2012}}</ref> Relating to men on a professional level as fellow musicians led to competition, insecurity, bad romances, and a series of boyfriend-managers. At the time, she admired singers like ] for not sacrificing their femininity, but says she felt enormous self-imposed pressure to compete with "the boys" at every level.<ref name="Soulful">{{cite book |title=Rock 'n' Roll Woman |first=Katherine |last=Orloff |year=1974 |publisher=Nash Pub |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/intwom2.htm |accessdate=May 8, 2007}}</ref> She noted in a 1969 interview in ''Fusion Magazine'' that it was difficult being a single "chick singer" with an all-male backup band.<ref name=groupie /> According to her, it was difficult to get a band of backing musicians because of their ego problem of being labeled sidemen for a female singer.<ref name=backupband2>{{cite web |title=Female Rocker Roundup: Linda Ronstadt, Lynn Carey, Lydia Pense, Nansi Nevins – Part 2 |first=Pete |last=Senoff |work=Fusion Magazine |date=December 26, 1969 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/intfus2.htm |accessdate=November 25, 2012}} ( {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314091408/http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/intfus1.htm |date=March 14, 2012 }})</ref> | |||
| Soon after she went solo in the late 1960s, one of her first backing bands was the pioneering country-rock band ], famous for synthesizing ] and swamp-rock elements into their music. Its members included Cajun fiddler ] and ], who later joined ],<ref name=swamprock>{{cite web |work=The Rising Storm |title=Swampwater "Swampwater" |author=jason |date=May 20, 2007 |url=http://therisingstorm.net/swampwater-swampwater/ |accessdate=June 14, 2007}}</ref> as well as Stan Pratt, Thad Maxwell, and Eric White, brother of ] of ]. Swampwater went on to back Ronstadt during TV appearances on '']''<ref name=swampwater>{{cite web |work=The Barking Spider |title=John Beland |first=John |last=Roberts |date=May 2003 <!-- Article refers to 2000 in the past; 2003 was the only year with Monday, May 19, between 2000 and the accessdate--> |url=http://www.barkingspider.abelgratis.com/artists/beland.shtml?functions |accessdate=June 14, 2007}}</ref> and '']'', and at the ].<ref name=BigSur>{{cite web |title=Gib Guilbeau, 1970–1972 |work=Swampwater |url=http://members.chello.at/thomas.aubrunner/gib4.htm |accessdate=June 14, 2007 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070609103002/http://members.chello.at/thomas.aubrunner/gib4.htm |archivedate=June 9, 2007 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> | |||
| Another backing band featured players ], ], ], and ], who went on to form the ]. They toured with her for a short period in 1971 and played on '']'', her self-titled third album, from which the failed single, Ronstadt's version of Browne's "]", was drawn. At this stage, Ronstadt began working with producer and boyfriend ]. She said, "As soon as I started working with John Boylan, I started co-producing myself. I was always a part of my productions. But I always needed a producer who would carry out my whims."<ref name=MIXMag2000 /> Also in 1971, Ronstadt began talking with ] about moving from Capitol Records to Geffen's ] label.<ref>See generally Tom King, ''The Operator: David Geffen Builds, Buys, and Sells the New Hollywood'', p. 159, 173, Broadway Books (New York 2001).</ref> | |||
| ==== Collaborations with Peter Asher ==== | |||
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| | source=—], on collaborating with Ronstadt<ref name="Goldmine589" />}} | |||
| Ronstadt began her fourth solo album, '']'', in 1973, with Boylan (who had negotiated her contract with ]) and ] producing most of the album's tracks. But needing someone willing to work with her as an equal, Ronstadt asked ], who came highly recommended to her by ] sister ], to help produce two of them: "Sail Away" and "I Believe in You".<ref name="producer3" /> | |||
| The album featured Ronstadt's first country hit, "]", which she had first recorded on ''Hand Sown ... Home Grown''{{snds}}this time hitting the Country Top 20. | |||
| With the release of ''Don't Cry Now'', Ronstadt took on her biggest gig to date as the opening act on ] ''Time Fades Away'' tour, playing for larger crowds than ever before. Backstage at a concert in Texas, ] introduced her to ], telling them, "You two could be good friends",<ref name=goldmine>{{cite web |title=And then there were two... Linda Ronstadt talks about her friend Emmylou Harris, and about the unhappy end of the ''Trio'' project |work=] |date=August 2, 1996 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/intgm.htm |accessdate=May 11, 2007}}</ref> which soon occurred, resulting in frequent collaborations over the following years. Meanwhile, the album became Ronstadt's most successful up to that time, selling 300,000 copies by the end of 1974.<ref name=producer3>{{cite book |title=Not Fade Away: A Backstage Pass to 20 Years of Rock & Roll |chapter=Linda Ronstadt, Heartbreak on Wheels (Rolling Stone, March 27, 1975) |first=Ben |last=Fong-Torres |year=1999 |publisher=] (via Google Books) |pages=209–220 |isbn=978-0-87930-590-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=igEvYlgm4HIC&pg=PA209#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=November 25, 2012}}</ref> | |||
| Asher turned out to be more collaborative, and more on the same page with her musically, than any producer she had worked with previously.<ref name=MIXMag2000>{{cite web |work=] |title=Linda Ronstadt |date=December 1, 2000 |first=Dan |last=Daley |url=http://mixonline.com/mag/audio_linda_ronstadt/index.html |accessdate=May 7, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051113092247/http://mixonline.com/mag/audio_linda_ronstadt/index.html|archive-date=November 13, 2005}}http://www.mixonline.com/news/profiles/linda-ronstadt/365380</ref> Ronstadt's professional relationship with Asher allowed her to take command and effectively delegate responsibilities in the recording studio.<ref name="producer3" /> Although hesitant at first to work with her because of her reputation for being a "woman of strong opinions (who) knew what she wanted to do (with her career)", he nonetheless agreed to become her full-time producer,<ref name="negativequalities">{{cite web |title=Peter Asher Interview |first=Caroline |last=Ryder |work=] |date=October 2007 |url=http://swindlemagazine.com/issueicons/peter-asher/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071025181433/http://swindlemagazine.com/issueicons/peter-asher/ |archivedate=October 25, 2007 |accessdate=November 25, 2012}}</ref> and remained in that role through the late 1980s. Asher attributed the long-term success of his working relationship with Ronstadt to the fact that he was the first person to manage and produce her with whom there was a solely professional relationship. "It must be a lot harder to have objective conversations about someone's career when it's someone you sleep with", he said.<ref name="producer3" /> | |||
| Asher executive produced a tribute CD called '']'', released September 6, 2011, on which Ronstadt's 1976 version of ] "]" appears among newly recorded versions of Holly's songs by various artists.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://hangout.altsounds.com/news/132169-listen-buddy-holly-tribute-cd-sept-6th.html |title=Listen To Me: Buddy Holly Tribute CD Out Sept. 6th |date=July 26, 2011 |publisher=AltSounds.com |accessdate=July 26, 2011 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121003125925/http://hangout.altsounds.com/news/132169-listen-buddy-holly-tribute-cd-sept-6th.html |archivedate=October 3, 2012 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> | |||
| ==== Vocal styles ==== | |||
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| | quote="I grew up singing Mexican music, and that's based on indigenous Mexican rhythms. Mexican music also has an overlay of West African music, based on huapango drums, and it's kind of like a 6/8 ], but it really is a very syncopated 6/8. And that's how I attack vocals."|source=—Linda Ronstadt, on reconciling her musical instincts with rock 'n' roll.<ref name=MIXMag2000 />}} | |||
| Ronstadt captured the sounds of ] and the rhythms of ] music{{snds}}which she likened in 1968 to ''"Mexican bluegrass"''{{snds}}and redirected them into her rock 'n' roll and some of her pop music. Many of these rhythms and sounds were part of her ] roots.<ref name=Soulful2>{{cite web |work=Cleveland Scene |title=Gypsy Eyes, Interview 1968 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artdis.htm |accessdate=May 8, 2007}}</ref> Likewise, a country sound and style, a fusion of country music and rock 'n' roll called ], started to exert its influence on mainstream pop music around the late 1960s, and it became an emerging movement Ronstadt helped form and commercialize. However, as early as 1970, Ronstadt was being criticized by music "purists" for her "brand of music" which crossed many genres. ''Country Western Stars'' magazine wrote in 1970 that "Rock people thought she was too gentle, folk people thought she was too pop, and pop people didn't quite understand where she was at, but Country people really loved Linda." She never categorized herself and stuck to her genre-crossing brand of music.<ref name=CWS>{{cite web |work=Country Western Stars |title=Sexy new sweetheart for country western |date=March 1970 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/cws70-3.html |accessdate=April 8, 2008}}</ref> | |||
| ==== Interpretive singer ==== | |||
| Ronstadt is considered an "interpreter of her times",<ref name=interpreter4>{{cite news |newspaper=U-T San Diego |date=November 21, 2004 |title=A 'song interpreter' for her times: Linda Ronstadt is ready to give jazz another whirl |first=George |last=Varga |url=http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/features/20041121-9999-1a21linda.html |accessdate=August 1, 2008}}</ref> and has earned praise for her courage to put her own unique "stamp" on many of her songs.<ref name="DeanofRock">{{cite web |work=Chicago Sun-Times |title=`Courageous' singer plunges back into pop-music mainstream |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-3975133.html |accessdate=April 6, 2008}}</ref> Nevertheless, her hits were criticized in some quarters for being ]s.{{by whom|date=October 2016}} Ronstadt herself has indicated that some of her 70s hits were recorded under considerable pressure to create commercially successful recordings, and that she prefers many of her songs that were non-hit album tracks.<ref name=MIXMag2000 /> An infrequent songwriter, Ronstadt co-composed only three songs over her long career. | |||
| Ronstadt's natural vocal range spans several octaves from ] to ], and occasionally she will showcase this entire range within a single work. Ronstadt was the first female artist in popular music history to accumulate four consecutive platinum albums (fourteen certified million selling, to date). As for the singles, '']'' pointed out that a whole generation, "but for her, might never have heard the work of artists such as ], ], and ]."<ref name="interpreter6">{{cite web |work=Rolling Stone |title=Artists: Linda Ronstadt Bio, Pictures, Video |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/linda-ronstadt/biography |accessdate=November 24, 2012}}</ref> | |||
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| | quote="Music is meant to lighten your load. By singing it ... you release (the sadness). And release yourself ... an exercise in exorcism. ... You exorcise that emotion ... and diminish sadness and feel joy."|source=—Linda Ronstadt<ref>{{cite web |work=American Way |date=April 1, 1988 |title=Linda Ronstadt's New Old Flame- Mexican Music 1. "I'm Not Good At Doing What I'm Told" |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artamway.htm |accessdate=July 31, 2008}}</ref>}} | |||
| Others have argued that Ronstadt had the same generational effect with her ] music, exposing a whole new generation to the music of the 1920s and 1930s{{snds}}music which, ironically, was pushed aside because of the advent of rock 'n' roll. When interpreting, Ronstadt said she "sticks to what the music demands", in terms of lyrics.<ref name=Demands1>{{cite web |title=Songbird Sisters: South Louisiana's Ann Savoy teams up with pop icon Linda Ronstadt for their new CD, Adieu False Heart |first=Joshua Clegg |last=Caffery |date=July 26, 2006 |work=The Independent Weekly |url=http://www.theind.com/cover2.asp?CID=-1710469275 |accessdate=May 13, 2007 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928000105/http://www.theind.com/cover2.asp?CID=-1710469275 |archivedate=September 28, 2007}}</ref> Explaining that rock and roll music is part of her culture, she says that the songs she sang after her rock and roll hits were part of her soul. "The (Mariachi music) was my father's side of the soul," she was quoted as saying in a 1998 interview she gave at her Tucson home. "My mother's side of my soul was the Nelson Riddle stuff. And I had to do them both in order to reestablish who I was."<ref name=hersoul>{{cite web |title=Everlasting Linda (Interview 17 June 1998 in Tucson, AZ) |work=Linda Ronstadt |url=http://www.debbiekruger.com/writer/freelance/ronstadt_transcript.html |accessdate=July 6, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| In the 1974 book ''Rock 'N' Roll Woman'', author Katherine Orloff writes that Ronstadt's "own musical preferences run strongly to rhythm and blues, the type of music she most frequently chooses to listen to ... (and) her goal is to ... be soulful too. With this in mind, Ronstadt fuses country and rock into a special union."<ref name="Soulful" /> | |||
| By this stage of her career, Ronstadt had established her niche in the field of country-rock. Along with other musicians such as ], ], ], ], ], and the ], she helped free country music from stereotypes and showed rockers that country was okay. However, she stated that she was being pushed hard into singing more rock and roll.<ref name=goldmine /> | |||
| ==== Most successful female singer of the 1970s ==== | |||
| Author ], in his book ''God in Popular Culture'', described Ronstadt as "the most successful and certainly the most durable and most gifted woman Rock singer of her era."<ref name=Greeley>{{cite book |title=''God in Popular Culture'' |author=Greeley, Andrew |year=1989 |chapter=14:Ronstadt and Mellencamp: The Search for Roots |page=214- |publisher=Thomas More Press |isbn=978-0-88347-234-7 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artgod88-1.htm |accessdate=November 25, 2012}}</ref> Signaling her wide popularity as a concert artist, outside of the singles charts and the recording studio, '']'' magazine describes her as the "first true woman rock 'n' roll superstar ... (selling) out stadiums with a string of mega-successful albums."<ref name="Linen106" /> ] defines her as ''the'' American female rock superstar of the decade.<ref name=medecade>{{cite web |work=Official Amazon Review |title=The Very Best of Linda Ronstadt, September 24, 2002 |url=https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006J424 |accessdate=May 14, 2007}}</ref> '']'' gave Ronstadt a ''Special Decade Award'',<ref name=cashbox>{{cite web |title=Cashbox |work=Special Decade Award |url=http://www.lindaronstadt.com/files/pwoi/Decade.html |accessdate=June 24, 2007}}</ref> as the top-selling female singer of the 1970s.<ref name="tiptheirhat" /> | |||
| Her album covers, posters, magazine covers{{snds}}her entire rock 'n' roll image{{snds}}were as famous as her music.<ref name="Goldmine589">{{cite journal |title=Home at Last: The Journey of Linda Ronstadt |first=Bill |last=DeYoung |date=February 21, 2003 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/gold03.htm |work=Goldmine |issue=589 |accessdate=April 28, 2014}}</ref> By the end of the decade, the singer whom the '']'' described as the "Dean of the 1970s school of female rock singers"<ref name="DeanofRock" /> became what '']'' called "the most successful female rock star in the world."<ref name=Redbook>{{cite web |work=Redbook |title=Linda Ronstadt: Why Is She the Queen of Lonely? |first=Elizabeth |last=Kaye |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/intrb.htm |accessdate=May 7, 2007}}</ref> "Female" was the important qualifier, according to '']'' magazine, which labeled her "a rarity ... to (have survived) ... in the shark-infested deeps of rock."<ref name=Time>{{cite news |title=Linda Down The Wind |work=TIME {{subscription required}} | date=February 28, 1977 |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,918735,00.html |archiveurl=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/inttime.htm |archivedate=June 14, 2002 |accessdate=August 2, 2008 |deadurl=no}}</ref> | |||
| Although Ronstadt had been a cult favorite on the music scene for several years, 1975 was "remembered in the music biz as the year when 29-year-old Linda Ronstadt ''belatedly'' happened."<ref name=people75>{{cite web |title=When Will She Be Loved? Linda Ronstadt Finds the Time, at Last, Is Now |work=] |date=November 17, 1975 |first=Robert |last=Windeler |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artpeo75.htm |accessdate=May 18, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| With the release of ''Heart Like a Wheel''{{nsmdns}}named after one of the album's songs, written by ]{{nsmdns}}Ronstadt reached number 1 on the ] chart;<ref name=BillboardWheelno1on200>{{cite web |last1=Caulfield |first1=Keith |title=Linda Ronstadt Rocks Highest-Charting Album In 24 Years |url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/6062513/linda-ronstadt-rocks-highest-charting-album-in-24-years |website=] |date=April 18, 2014}}</ref> it was also the first of four number 1 Country Albums, and the disc was certified double-platinum<ref name=RIAAsearch>{{cite web|url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/ |title=RIAA – Gold & Platinum |author=RIAA |date= |accessdate=February 28, 2016}}</ref> (over two million copies sold in the U.S.). In many instances, her own interpretations were more successful than the original recordings, and many times new songwriters were discovered by a larger audience as a result of her interpretation and recording. Ronstadt had major success interpreting songs from a diverse spectrum of artists. | |||
| ''Heart Like a Wheel''{{'}}s first single release, "]"{{snds}}a rockified version of an R&B song written by ] that Ronstadt had initially resisted because ] guitar tracks sounded too much like a "Beatles song" to her<ref name="producer3" />{{snds}}climbed to number 1 on both the '']'' and ''Cash Box'' Pop singles charts.<ref name=bronson>Bronson, Fred. ''The Billboard Book of Number 1 Hits''. {{ISBN|0-8230-7677-6}}.</ref> The album's second single release, "]"{{snds}}an uptempo country-rock version of a Top 10 ] song{{snds}}hit number 1 in ''Cashbox'' and number 2 in ''Billboard''.<ref name=bronson /> The song was also Ronstadt's first number 1 country hit.<ref name=bronson /> | |||
| The album showed a physically attractive Ronstadt on the cover but, more importantly, its critical and commercial success was due to a fine presentation of country and rock, with ''Heart Like a Wheel'' her first of many major commercial successes that would set her on the path to being one of the best-selling female artists of all time. Ronstadt won her first Grammy Award<ref name=1stgrammy>{{cite web|title='The GRAMMYs: Past Winners Search' |url=http://www.grammy.com/nominees/search |accessdate=February 28, 2016 }}</ref> for ] for "]" which was originally a 1940s hit by ]. Ronstadt's interpretation peaked at number 2 on the country chart. The album itself was nominated for the Album of the Year Grammy. | |||
| '']'' put Ronstadt on its cover in March 1975. It was the first of six ''Rolling Stone'' covers shot by photographer ]. It included her as the featured artist with a full photo layout and an article by ], discussing Ronstadt's many struggling years in rock n roll, as well as her home life and what it was like to be a woman on tour in a decidedly all-male environment. | |||
| In September 1975, Ronstadt's album '']'' was released. It quickly climbed into the Top Five on the ''Billboard'' Album Chart and sold over a million copies.<ref name = RIAAsearch /> It became her second in a row to go platinum, "a grand slam" in the same year (Ronstadt would eventually become the first female artist in popular music history to have three consecutive platinum albums and would ultimately go on to have eight consecutive platinum albums, and then another six between 1983 and 1990).<ref name=people75 /> The disc's first single release was "]". It was climbing the pop and country charts but ], a rockified version of the 1963 hit by ], was receiving considerable airplay. Asylum pulled the "Love Is a Rose" single and issued "Heat Wave" with "Love Is a Rose" on the B-side. "Heat Wave" hit the Top Five on ''Billboard''{{'}}s Hot 100 while "Love Is A Rose" hit the Top Five on Billboard's country chart. | |||
| In 1976, Ronstadt reached the Top 3 of ''Billboard''{{'}}s Album Chart and won her second career ] for her third consecutive platinum<ref name = RIAAsearch /> album '']''. The album featured a sexy, revealing cover shot and showcased Ronstadt the singer-songwriter, who composed two of its songs, "Try Me Again" (co-authored with Andrew Gold) and "Lo Siento Mi Vida". It also included an interpretation of Willie Nelson's ballad "]", which became a Top 10 Country hit for Ronstadt in early 1977. | |||
| At the end of 1977, Ronstadt surpassed the success of ''Heart Like a Wheel'' with her album '']'', which held the number 1 position for five consecutive weeks on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart.<ref name=Billboardsimpledreams5weeks>{{cite journal |title=Billboard Jan 17, 2009 |journal=] |date=January 17, 2009 |volume=121 |issue=2 |page=37 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aKAOa7WLRrYC&pg=PT36&lpg=PT36&dq=%22simple+dreams%22+Ronstadt+billboard+five+weeks&source=bl&ots=mIyqI89esS&sig=3rXnDWhqySpI0Hf5D5WFwd7s538&hl=en&sa=X&ei=oTqGVITPDoKqogST7IGABA&ved=0CDMQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=%22simple%20dreams%22%20Ronstadt%20billboard%20five%20weeks&f=false |publisher=] |issn=0006-2510}}</ref> It sold over 3½ million copies in less than a year in the U.S. alone – a record for a female artist. ''Simple Dreams'' spawned a string of hit singles on numerous charts. Among them were the ] platinum-certified single "]", a country rock interpretation of a ] song; "]"{{snds}}previously sung by Buddy Holly{{spaced ndash}}; and "]", a song written by ], an up-and-coming songwriter of the time. The album garnered several Grammy Award nominations{{snds}}including Record of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance/Female for "Blue Bayou"{{snds}}and won its art director, ], a Grammy Award for Best Album Cover, the first of three Grammy Awards he would win for designing Ronstadt album covers. | |||
| ''Simple Dreams'' became one of the singer's best-selling international-selling albums as well, reaching number 1 on the Australian and Canadian Pop and Country Albums charts.<ref name="international">{{cite web |title=Ronstadt Facts, Investigative International Sales |work=Linda Ronstadt Record Sales Information Page (German Site) |url=http://lindaronstadt.de/facts.htm |accessdate=April 17, 2007}}</ref> ''Simple Dreams'' also made Ronstadt the most successful international female touring artist. The same year, she completed a concert tour around Europe. As ] magazine wrote in October 1978, ''Simple Dreams'' solidified Ronstadt's role as "easily the most successful female rock and roll ''and'' country star at this time."<ref name=ramblers /> | |||
| Also in 1977, she was asked by the ] to sing the ] at game three of the ] against the ].<ref name=nationalanthem>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt Singing the National Anthem at Game three of World Series |publisher=] |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DxYYwE_ezE |accessdate=August 11, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| ==== ''Time'' magazine and Ronstadt's "rock chick" image ==== | |||
| Ronstadt has remarked that she felt as though she was "artificially encouraged to kinda cop a really tough attitude (and be tough) because rock and roll is kind of tough (business)," which she felt wasn't worn quite authentically.<ref name=identitycrisis>{{cite web |title=Not My Job: Linda Ronstadt |publisher=NPR |url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9888452 |accessdate=May 10, 2007 |date=April 28, 2007}}</ref> Female rock artists like her and ], whom she described as lovely, shy, and very literate in real life and the antithesis of the "red hot mamma" she was artificially encouraged to project, went through an identity crisis.<ref name=identitycrisis /> | |||
| ]'' magazine]] | |||
| By the mid-1970s, Ronstadt's image became just as famous as her music.<ref name="Goldmine589" /> In 1976 and 1977, she appeared on the covers of ''Rolling Stone'' and '']'', respectively. The ''Rolling Stone'' cover story was accompanied by a series of photographs of Ronstadt in a skimpy red slip, taken by ]. Ronstadt felt deceived by the photographer, not realizing that the photos would be so revealing. She says her manager Peter Asher kicked Leibovitz out of the house when she visited to show them the photographs prior to publication. Leibovitz had refused to let them veto any of the photos, which included one of Ronstadt sprawled across a bed in her underpants.<ref name="Goldmine589" /> In a 1977 interview, Ronstadt explained, "Annie saw that picture as an expose of my personality. She was right. But I wouldn't choose to show a picture like that to anybody who didn't know me personally, because only friends could get the other sides of me in balance."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Rockwell |first=John |title=Linda Ronstadt: Her Soft-Core Charms |journal=New Times |date=October 14, 1977 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artnt77.htm |accessdate=April 26, 2014}}</ref> | |||
| Her 1977 appearance on the cover of ''Time'' magazine under the banner "Torchy Rock" was also upsetting to Ronstadt, considering what the image appeared to project about the most famous woman in rock.<ref name=identitycrisis /><ref name=rockwell>{{cite book |title=Stranded – Rock and Roll for a Desert Island | editor=Greil Marcus | contribution=Living in the USA | last=Rockwell | first=John | url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/desertisle.htm |accessdate=May 7, 2007}}</ref> At a time in the industry when men still told women what to sing and what to wear,<ref name=Asherscomment>{{cite web |work=Mojo |title=Homecoming Queen, April 1995 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artmojo.htm |accessdate=May 11, 2007}}</ref> Ronstadt hated the image of her that was projected to the world on that cover,<ref name=identitycrisis /> and she noted recently how the photographer kept forcing her to wear a dress, which was an image she did not want to project.<ref name=identitycrisis /> In 2004, she was interviewed for '']''<ref name=cbs>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt |publisher=] |date=December 5, 2004 |url=http://www.lindaronstadt.com/files/CBSNSM/CBS_SundayAM.html |accessdate=July 12, 2007}}</ref> and stated that this image was not her because she did not sit like that. Asher noted, "Anyone who's met Linda for 10 seconds will know that I couldn't possibly have been her ]. She's an extremely determined woman, in every area. To me, she was everything that feminism's about."<ref name=Asherscomment /> Qualities which, Asher has stated, were considered a "negative (in a woman at that time), whereas in a man they were perceived as being masterful and bold".<ref name="negativequalities" /> Since her solo career had begun, Ronstadt had fought hard to be recognized as a solo female singer in the world of rock, and her portrayal on the ''Time'' cover did not appear to help the situation.<ref name=backupband2 /> | |||
| In 1978, ''Rolling Stone'' declared Ronstadt "by far America's best-known female rock singer."<ref name=RocksVenusSuccess /> She scored a third number 1 album on the Billboard Album Chart – at this point equaling the record set by Carole King in 1974 – with '']''. She achieved a major hit single with "]", with her rendition hitting all four major singles charts (Pop, AC, Country, R&B). ''Living in the USA'' was the first album by any recording act in music history to ship double-platinum (over 2 million advance copies).<ref name="doubleplatinum" /> The album eventually sold 3 million U.S. copies. | |||
| At the end of that year, ''Billboard'' magazine crowned Ronstadt with three number-one Awards for the Year: Pop Female Singles Artist of the Year, Pop Female Album Artist of the Year, and Female Artist of the Year (overall).<ref name=TopFemale>{{cite web |work=Billboard |title=Congratulations |date=December 23, 1978 |url=http://www.lindaronstadt.com/files/pwoi/BB_23Dec1978_Congrats.html |accessdate=June 24, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| ''Living in the USA'' showed the singer on roller skates with a newly short, permed hairdo on the album cover. Ronstadt continued this theme on concert tour promotional posters with photos of her on roller skates in a dramatic pose with a large American flag in the background. By this stage of her career, she was using posters to promote every album<ref name="Goldmine589" /> and concert – which at the time were recorded live on radio or television. | |||
| Ronstadt was also featured in the 1978 film '']'', where the plot involved disc jockeys attempting to broadcast a Ronstadt concert live, without a competing station's knowledge. The film also showed Ronstadt performing the songs "Poor, Poor Pitiful Me", "]", and "]". Ronstadt was persuaded to record "Tumbling Dice" after ] came backstage when she was at a concert and said, "You do too many ballads, you should do more rock and roll songs."<ref name=MickJagger>{{cite web |work=The Hit Parader Interview |title=Tour Reflections and Simple Dreams |date=March 1978 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/arthp78.htm |accessdate=December 29, 2010}}</ref> | |||
| Following the success of ''Living in the USA'', Ronstadt conducted album promotional tours and concerts. She made a guest appearance onstage with ] at the Tucson Community Center on July 21, 1978, in her hometown of Tucson, where she and Jagger sang "Tumbling Dice".<ref>{{cite web |title=Ronstadt and Rolling Stones, July 21, 1978 |work=Photos |url=http://www.iorr.org/talk/read.php?1,1222215,1222980 |publisher=iorr.org forum |accessdate=December 9, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Why Linda Ronstadt Still Matters to Tucson |date=September 12, 2013 |url=http://www.tucsonweekly.com/tucson/why-linda-ronstadt-still-matters-to-tucson/Content?oid=3872523 |accessdate=May 28, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Rolling Stones U.S. Tour 1978 |date=July 21, 1978 |url=http://www.myetymology.com/encyclopedia/Rolling_Stones_U.S._Tour_1978.html0 |publisher=MyEtyomology.com/SpeedyLook |accessdate=December 9, 2010}}</ref> On singing with Jagger, Ronstadt later said, "I loved it. I didn't have a trace of stage fright. I'm scared to death all the way through my own shows. But it was too much fun to get scared. He's so silly onstage, he knocks you over. I mean you have to be on your toes or you wind up falling on your face."<ref name=RocksVenusSuccess /> | |||
| ==== Highest-paid woman in rock ==== | |||
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| | quote="Rock is the thumping heart of Linda's music, and the rock world is dominated by males. The biggest stars are male, and so are the back-up musicians ... rock beats are ... phallic, and lyrics ... masculine. ... ], the first great white woman rocker, rattled the bars ... but she died. ... ] ... stylish (but can't) compete in drawing power with men ... (however) Linda Ronstadt ... has made herself one of the biggest individual rock draws in the world." |source=—''Time'' magazine, in 1977<ref name="Time" />}} | |||
| By the end of 1978, Ronstadt had solidified her role as one of rock and pop's most successful solo female acts, and owing to her consistent platinum album success, and her ability as the first woman to sell out concerts in arenas and stadiums hosting tens of thousands of fans,<ref name="tiptheirhat" /> Ronstadt became the "highest paid woman in rock".<ref name="doubleplatinum" /> She had six platinum-certified albums, three of which were number 1 on the ''Billboard'' album chart, and numerous charted pop singles. In 1978 alone, she made over $12 million<ref name="tiptheirhat" /> (equivalent to $44,000,000 in 2016 dollars)<ref name="CPI1">{{cite web |title=The Inflation Calculator |work=The following form adjusts any given amount of money for inflation, according to the Consumer Price Index |url=http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl |accessdate=August 10, 2009}}</ref> and in the same year her albums sales were reported to be 17 million{{snds}}grossing over $60 million<ref name=Ward1978>{{cite web |title=The Queens of Rock: Ronstadt, Mitchell, Simon and Nicks talk of their men, music and life on the road |first=Ed |last=Ward |date=February 21, 1978 |work=] |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=DHJkAAAAIBAJ&sjid=7X0NAAAAIBAJ&pg=1859,3122645&dq=none+of+the+beatles+are+female+neither+are+any+of+the+rolling+stones+nor+were&hl=en |publisher='']'' (via Google News Archive) |accessdate=November 25, 2012}}</ref> (equivalent to a gross of over $220,000,000, in 2016 dollars).<ref name=CPI1 /> | |||
| As ''Rolling Stone'' dubbed her "Rock's Venus",<ref name=RocksVenusSuccess /> her record sales continued to multiply and set records themselves. By 1979, Ronstadt had collected eight gold, six platinum, and four multi-platinum certifications for her albums, an unprecedented feat at the time. Her 1976 '']'' album would sell consistently for the next 25 years and in 2001 was certified by the ] for seven-times platinum<ref name=RIAAsearch /> (over seven million U.S. copies sold). In 1980, '']'' was released and certified platinum.<ref name=RIAAsearch /> | |||
| In 1979, Ronstadt went on an international tour, playing in arenas across Australia to Japan, including the ] in ], and the ] in Tokyo. She also participated in a benefit concert for her friend ], held at ], in Los Angeles. | |||
| By the end of the decade, Ronstadt had outsold her female competition; no other female artist to date had five straight platinum LPs{{snds}}'']'' and '']'' among them.<ref name=PeopleMagazine>{{cite web |work=] |title=On the Charts and in Men's Hearts Linda Ronstadt is No. 1 With a Bullet |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artpeo77.htm |date=October 24, 1977 |accessdate=May 7, 2007}}</ref> '']'' reported in 1978 that Ronstadt, ], ], and ] had become "The Queens of Rock"<ref name=Ward1978 /> and "Rock is no longer exclusively male. There is a new royalty ruling today's record charts."<ref name=Ward1978 /> | |||
| She would go on to parlay her mass commercial appeal with major success in interpreting ]{{snds}}made famous a generation before by ] and ]{{snds}}and later the Mexican folk songs of her childhood. | |||
| ==== From rock to operetta ==== | |||
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| | quote="Rampant eclecticism is my middle name."|source=—Linda Ronstadt<ref name=Windy />}} | |||
| In 1980, Ronstadt released '']'', her seventh consecutive platinum-selling album. It was a straightforward rock and roll album with post-punk, new wave influences, including tracks by songwriters such as Elvis Costello, ], and musician ] who played on the record himself. | |||
| She also made the cover of ''Rolling Stone'' for a record-setting sixth time. ''Mad Love'' entered the ''Billboard'' Album Chart in the Top Five its first week (a record at that time) and climbed to the number 3 position. The project continued her streak of Top 10 hits with "]", originally recorded by ], and "]", originally a Top 10 hit for ]. The album earned Ronstadt a 1980 ] nomination for ] (although she lost to ] '']'' album). Benatar praised Ronstadt by stating, "There are a lot of good female singers around. How could I be the best? Ronstadt is still alive!"<ref name="recordreview">{{cite web |title=Pat Benatar: Rock's Reluctant Sex Symbol |work=Record Review, December 1980 |url=http://www.lemuseumdebenatar.com/vintage4.html |accessdate=July 5, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| In the summer of 1980, Ronstadt began rehearsals for the first of several leads in Broadway musicals. ] cast her as the lead in the ] production of ] '']'', alongside ].<ref name=Pirates>{{cite web |work=Hit Parader |title=Rock Queen Conquers Broadway and Lives Happily Ever After |date=September 1981 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/arthp81.htm |accessdate=May 8, 2007}}</ref> She said singing Gilbert and Sullivan was a natural choice for her, since her grandfather Fred Ronstadt was credited with having created ] first orchestra, the ''Club Filarmonico Tucsonense'', and had once created an arrangement of ''The Pirates of Penzance''.<ref name=AARP-07 /> | |||
| ''The Pirates of Penzance'' opened for a limited engagement in New York City's ], eventually moving its production to Broadway, where it became a hit, running from January 8, 1981, to November 28, 1982.<ref name=imbd>{{cite web |publisher=] |title=Linda Ronstadt |url=http://www.ibdb.com/person.asp?id=58306 |accessdate=May 8, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015170003/http://ibdb.com/person.asp?id=58306|archive-date=October 15, 2007}}http://www.ibdb.com/Person/View/58306</ref> '']'' was effusive in its praise: "... she has not dodged the ] demands of her role (and Mabel is one of the most demanding parts in the G&S canon): from her entrance trilling 'Poor Wand'ring One,' it is clear that she is prepared to scale whatever soprano peaks stand in her way."<ref name=bronson /> Ronstadt co-starred with Kline and ] in the 1983 operetta's film version. Ronstadt received a ] nomination for the role in the film version. She garnered a nomination for the ] and '']'' won several Tony Awards, including a ]. | |||
| As a child, Ronstadt had discovered the opera '']'' through the silent film with ] and was determined to someday play the part of Mimi. When she met the opera superstar ], she was told, ''"My dear, ''every'' soprano in the world wants to play Mimi!"'' In 1984, Ronstadt was cast in the role at Joseph Papp's ]. However, the production was a critical and commercial disaster, closing after only a few nights.<ref name=Mimi>{{cite web |work=] |title=A Pop Star Goes Puccini |first=Jack |last=Kroll |date=December 10, 1984 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artnw84.htm |accessdate=May 8, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| In 1982, Ronstadt released the album '']'', a primarily rock album with some country and pop music as well. It remains her only album between 1975 and 1990 not to be officially certified platinum. It peaked at number 31 on the ''Billboard'' Album Chart. The release continued her streak of Top 40 hits with "Get Closer" and "]"{{snds}}a 1965 hit by ]{{snds}}while the ] song "Easy For You To Say" was a surprise Top 10 Adult Contemporary hit in the spring of 1983. "Sometimes You Just Can't Win" was picked up by country radio, and made it to number 27 on that listing. Ronstadt also filmed several music videos for this album which became popular on the fledgling MTV cable channel. The album earned Ronstadt two Grammy Award nominations: one for Best Rock Vocal Performance/Female for the title track and another for Best Pop Vocal Performance/Female for the album. The artwork won its art director, ], his second Grammy Award for ]. | |||
| Along with the release of her ''Get Closer'' album, Ronstadt embarked on a North American tour, remaining one of the top rock-concert draws that summer and fall. On November 25, 1982, her "Happy Thanksgiving Day" concert was held at the ] in Dallas and broadcast live via satellite to ] radio stations in the United States.<ref name=dallas>{{cite web |work=Billboard |title=Linda Ronstadt Live. On Radio |url=http://www.lindaronstadt.com/files/scans/1982_dallas_radio_concert.jpg |publisher=The Source (NBC) |year=1982 |accessdate=November 4, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| In 1988, Ronstadt returned to Broadway for a limited-run engagement in the musical show adaptation of her album celebrating her Mexican heritage, ''Canciones De Mi Padre{{snds}}A Romantic Evening in Old Mexico''.<ref name=imbd2>{{cite web |publisher=] |title=Linda Ronstadt's Canciones |url=http://www.ibdb.com/production.asp?ID=4514 |accessdate=May 8, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070713233420/http://www.ibdb.com/production.asp?ID=4514|archive-date=July 13, 2007}}http://www.ibdb.com/Person/View/58306</ref> | |||
| === Artistic aspirations === | |||
| Ronstadt has remarked that in the beginning of her career she "was so focused on folk, rock and country" that she "got a bit bored and started to branch out, and ... been doing that ever since."<ref name=bored12>{{cite news |title=Linda Ronstadt to Play at Fantasy Springs |newspaper=] |location=Riverside, California |first=Paul |last=Saitowitz |date=May 31, 2007 |url=http://www.pe.com/entertainment/stories/PE_Ent_Guide_D_ronstadt01.19591ed.html |accessdate=June 6, 2007 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929095508/http://www.pe.com/entertainment/stories/PE_Ent_Guide_D_ronstadt01.19591ed.html |archivedate=September 29, 2007 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> By 1983, her estimated worth was over $40 million<ref name="Reported worth">{{cite web |title=What's New with Linda Ronstadt? She's Singing Her Love Songs to ''Star Wars'' Czar George Lucas |work=] |volume=21 |issue=12 |date=March 26, 1984 |url=http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20087434,00.html |accessdate=November 24, 2012}}</ref> mostly from records, concerts and merchandising. | |||
| Ronstadt eventually tired of playing arenas.<ref name=identitycrisis /> She had ceased to feel that arenas, where people milled around smoking marijuana cigarettes and drinking beer, were "appropriate places for music". She wanted "angels in the architecture"{{snds}}a reference to a lyric in the ] song "]" from the 1986 album '']''. (Ronstadt sang harmony with Simon on a different ''Graceland'' track, "]". The second verse's lyrics pay tribute to Ronstadt: "Take this child, Lord, from Tucson, Arizona. ..."). Ronstadt has said she wants to sing in places similar to the ], where the attention is focused on the stage and the performer.<ref name=angels>{{cite web |work=Gazette'' (Montreal)'' |first=M. |last=Boone |date=July 18, 2007 |title=Great Musicians and Their Legions of Paying Fans Deserve a Great Venue |url=http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=3d66e8e0-b5c8-4106-a56b-95d023c067c3 |accessdate=July 20, 2007 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015160703/http://canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=3d66e8e0-b5c8-4106-a56b-95d023c067c3 |archivedate=October 15, 2007 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> | |||
| Ronstadt's recording output in the 1980s proved to be just as commercially and critically successful as her 1970s recordings. Between 1983 and 1990, Ronstadt scored six additional platinum albums; two are triple platinum (each with over three million U.S. copies sold); one has been certified double platinum (over two million copies sold); and one has earned additional certification as a Gold (over 500,000 U.S. copies sold) double-disc album.<ref name="certifications" /> | |||
| By recording ], ] and ] Ronstadt resonated with a different fan base and diversified her appeal. | |||
| === Jazz/pop trilogy === | |||
| In 1981, Ronstadt produced and recorded an album of jazz and pop standards (later marketed in ] form) titled ''Keeping Out of Mischief'' with the assistance of producer ]. However, Ronstadt's displeasure with the final result led her, with regrets, to scrap the project. "Doing that killed me," she said in a ''Time'' magazine interview.<ref name="Time interview">{{cite news |work=] |title=Linda Leads the Band |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,949833-2,00.html |accessdate=June 6, 2009 |date=September 26, 1983 |first1=Jay |last1=Cocks |first2=Denise |last2=Worrell}}</ref> But the appeal of the album's music had seduced Ronstadt, as she told '']'' in April 1985, crediting Wexler for encouraging her.<ref name="Jerry Wexler">{{cite web |work=] |title=An Intimate Conversation with Linda Ronstadt |first=Steve |last=Bloom |date=July 1985 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artdb85.htm |accessdate=August 18, 2008}}</ref> Nonetheless, Ronstadt had to somehow convince her reluctant record company, ], to ] this type of album under her contract.<ref name="lindaronstadtwithnelsonrddle" /> | |||
| By 1983, Ronstadt had enlisted the help of 62-year-old conductor and master of jazz/traditional pop orchestration ]. The two embarked on an unorthodox and original approach to rehabilitating the ], recording a trilogy of ]/ ] albums: '']'' (1983{{nsmdns}}U.S. 3.7 million as of 2010); '']'' (1984{{nsmdns}}U.S. 1.7 million as of 2010); and '']'' (1986{{nsmdns}}U.S. 1.3 million as of 2010). The three albums have had a combined sales total of nearly seven million copies in the U.S. alone. | |||
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| | quote="I now realize I was taking a tremendous risk, and that Joe Smith (the head of ], and strongly opposed) was looking out for himself, and for me. When it became apparent I wouldn't change my mind, he said: 'I love Nelson so much! Can I please come to the sessions. I said 'Yes.' "When the albums ... were successful, Joe congratulated me, and I never said 'I told you so.'" |source=—Linda Ronstadt<ref>{{cite web |work=U-T San Diego |date=November 2004 |title=A 'song interpreter' for her times |first=George |last=Varga |url=http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/features/20041121-9999-1a21linda.html |accessdate=August 1, 2008}}</ref>}} | |||
| The album design for ''What's New'' by designer ] was unlike any of her previous disc covers. It showed Ronstadt in a vintage dress lying on shimmering satin sheets with a ] headset. At the time, Ronstadt received some chiding for both the album cover and her venture into what was then considered "elevator music" by cynics, but remained determined to record with Riddle, and ''What's New'' became a hit. The album was released in September 1983 and spent 81 weeks on the ''Billboard'' Album Chart and held the number 3 position for a month and a half (held out of the top spot by ] '']'' and ] '']'') and the ] ] it triple platinum<ref name = RIAAsearch /> (over three million copies sold in the U.S. alone). The album earned Ronstadt another ] nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, and critical raves, with '']'' magazine calling it "one of the gutsiest, most unorthodox and unexpected albums of the year."<ref name="TimeWhatsNewReview">{{cite news |title=Music: Linda Leads the Band |date=September 26, 1983 |publisher='']'' {{subscription required}}|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,949833,00.html |archiveurl=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/arttm83.htm |archivedate= August 8, 2008| deadurl=no |accessdate= September 29, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| Ronstadt faced considerable pressure not to record ''What's New'' or record with Riddle. According to ] historian ], author of the book ''September in the Rain{{snds}}a Biography on Nelson Riddle'', Joe Smith, president of ], was terrified that the Riddle album would turn off Ronstadt's rock audience.<ref name="lindaronstadtwithnelsonrddle">{{cite web |work=Jerry Jazz Musician |title=The Peter Levinson Interview |url=http://www.jerryjazzmusician.com/mainHTML.cfm?page=levinson.html |accessdate=June 14, 2007}}</ref> Ronstadt did not completely turn her back on her rock and roll past, however; the video for the title track featured ] as the old beau that she bumped into during a rainstorm. | |||
| ''What's New'' brought Riddle to a younger audience. According to Levinson, "the younger audience hated what Riddle had done with ],<ref name=nelsonriddle>{{cite web |title=Peter Levinson (Interview) |publisher=jerryjazzmusician.com |url=http://www.jerryjazzmusician.com/mainHTML.cfm?page=levinson.html |accessdate=June 14, 2007}}</ref> which in 1983 was considered 'Vintage Pop'". Working with Ronstadt, Riddle brought his career back into focus in the last three years of his life.<ref name=nelsonriddle /> ] of '']'' wrote, ''What's New'' "isn't the first album by a rock singer to pay tribute to the golden age of the pop, but is ... the best and most serious attempt to rehabilitate an idea of pop that ] and the mass marketing of rock LPs for teenagers undid in the mid-60s. ... In the decade prior to Beatlemania, most of the great band singers and crooners of the 40s and 50s codified a half-century of American pop standards on dozens of albums ... many of them now long out-of-print."<ref name=nytimes>{{cite news |newspaper=] |title=Linda Ronstadt Celebrate the Golden Age of Pop |author=] |date=September 4, 1983 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/09/04/arts/linda-ronstadt-celebrates-the-golden-age-of-pop.html |accessdate=May 10, 2007}}</ref> ''What's New'' is the first album by a rock singer to have major commercial success in rehabilitating the ].<ref name=nytimes /> | |||
| In 1984, Ronstadt and Riddle performed these songs live, in ] throughout Australia, Japan, and the United States, including multi-night performances at historic venues ], ], and ]. | |||
| In 2004, Ronstadt released '']'', her album for ]. It was her first foray into ] since her sessions with Jerry Wexler and her records with the Nelson Riddle Orchestra, but this time with an intimate ] ]. The album was a quiet affair for Ronstadt, giving few interviews and making only one television performance as promotion. It reached number 2 on Billboard's Top Jazz Albums chart but peaked at number 166 on the main Billboard album chart. Not having the mass distribution that ] gave her, ''Hummin' To Myself'' had sold over 75,000 copies in the U.S. as of 2010. It also achieved some critical acclaim from the jazz cognoscenti.<ref name="JazzTimes2" /> | |||
| ==== "Trio" recordings ==== | |||
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| | quote="When (we) sang, it was a beautiful and different sound I've never heard before. We (recorded the vocals) as individual parts, because we didn't have the luxury of spending a lot of time together on a tour bus ... and knowing each other's (vocal) moves ... takes years."|source=—Linda Ronstadt<ref name=MIXMag2000 />}} | |||
| In 1978, Ronstadt, ], and ], friends and admirers of one another's work (Ronstadt had included a cover of Parton's "]" on ''Prisoner in Disguise'') attempted to collaborate on a ''Trio'' album. Unfortunately, the attempt did not pan out. Ronstadt later remarked that not too many people were in control at the time and everyone was too involved with their own careers. (Though the efforts to complete the album were abandoned, a number of the recordings were included on the singers' respective solo recordings over the next few years.) This concept album was put on the back burner for almost ten years. | |||
| In January 1986, the three eventually did make their way into the recording studio, where they spent the next several months working. The result, '']'', which they had conceived ten years earlier, was released in March 1987. It was a considerable hit, holding the number 1 position on Billboard's Country Albums chart for five weeks running and hitting the Top 10 on the pop side also. Selling over three million copies in the U.S. and winning them a Grammy Award for ], it produced four Top Ten Country singles including "]" which hit number 1. The album was also a nominee for overall Album of the Year, in the company of Michael Jackson, ], ], and ]. | |||
| In 1994, the three performers recorded a follow-up to ''Trio''. As was the case with their aborted 1978 effort, conflicting schedules and competing priorities delayed the album's release indefinitely. Ronstadt, who had already paid for studio time{{nsmdns}}and owed her record company a finished album{{nsmdns}}removed Parton's individual tracks at Parton's request, kept Harris's vocals, and produced a number of the recordings, which she subsequently released on her 1995 return to country rock, the album '']''. | |||
| However, in 1999, Ronstadt, Parton, and Harris agreed to release the '']'' album, as was originally recorded in 1994. It included an ethereal cover of ] "]" which became a popular music video. The effort was certified Gold (over 500,000 copies sold) and won them a Grammy Award for ] for the track. Ronstadt co-produced the album with ] and the three ladies also received a nomination for the Grammy Award for ]. | |||
| ==== ''Canciones'' – songs of the Ronstadt family ==== | |||
| At the end of 1987, Ronstadt released '']'', an album of traditional Mexican folk songs, or what she has described as "world class songs". Keeping with the Ronstadt history theme, her cover art was dramatic, bold, and colorful; it shows Ronstadt in full Mexican regalia. Her musical arranger was mariachi musician ]. | |||
| These ''canciones'' were a big part of Ronstadt's family tradition and musical roots. For example, the history of this album goes back half a century. In January 1946, the ] published a booklet by Luisa Espinel entitled ''Canciones de mi Padre''.<ref name=MyFathersSongs>{{cite web |work=Tucson'sRonstadtFamily |title=The Singing Ronstadts and Canciones de mi Padre – A Musical Family |first=James S. |last=Griffith |url=http://parentseyes.arizona.edu/ronstadtfamily/music/cancintr.html |accessdate=May 30, 2007}}</ref> Luisa Espinel, Ronstadt's aunt, was herself an international singer in the 1920s and 1930s. Espinel's father was Fred Ronstadt, Linda's grandfather, and the songs she had learned, transcribed, and published were some of the ones he had brought with him from ]. Ronstadt researched and extracted from the favorites she had learned from her father Gilbert and she called her album by the same name as her aunt's booklet and as a tribute to her father and his family. Though not fully bilingual, she has a fairly good command of the Spanish language, allowing her to sing Latin American songs with little discernible U.S. accent; Ronstadt has often identified herself as Mexican-American.<ref name=MexAm>{{cite web |title=American Way |work=Linda Ronstadt's New Old Flame- Mexican Music |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artamway.htm |accessdate=May 7, 2007}}</ref> Her formative years were spent with her father's side of the family.<ref name=rollingstone>{{cite web |first=Peter |last=Herbst |work=] |title=The Rolling Stone Interview |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/intrs78.htm |accessdate=October 19, 2006 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20061022112308/http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/intrs78.htm |archivedate=October 22, 2006}}</ref> In fact, in 1976, Ronstadt had collaborated with her father to write and compose a traditional Mexican folk ballad, ''"Lo siento mi vida"''{{snds}}a song that she included in her Grammy Award-winning album '']''. Also, Ronstadt has credited Mexican singer ] as an influence in her own singing style, and she recalls how a frequent guest to the Ronstadt home, ], father of ] music, would often serenade her as a child.<ref name="AARP-07" /> | |||
| This album won Ronstadt a Grammy Award for ]. The real achievement, however, is the disc's ] double-platinum<ref name=RIAAsearch /> (over two million copies sold in the U.S.) certification, making it the biggest-selling non-English-language album in U.S. music history. Another achievement is that the album and later theatrical stage show served as a benchmark of Latin cultural renaissance in North America. | |||
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| | quote="(I obtained) enough clout and ... after years and years of making commercial records, I was entitled to experiment ... the success of the (Nelson Riddle albums) ... entitled me to try the Mexican stuff."|source=—Linda Ronstadt | |||
| <ref name="Windy" />}} | |||
| Ronstadt produced and performed a theatrical stage show in concert halls across the U.S. and Latin America to both Hispanic and non-Hispanic audiences, including on Broadway. She called the stage show by the same name ''Canciones de mi Padre''. These performances were released on DVD. Ronstadt elected to return to the Broadway stage, four years after she performed in ''La bohème'', for a limited-run engagement. ] ''Great Performances'' aired the stage show during its annual fund drives and the show was a hit with audiences, earning Ronstadt a ]. | |||
| Ronstadt later recorded two additional discs of Latin music in the early 1990s; their promotion, like most of her albums in the 1990s, was a quieter affair, where she appeared to do the "bare minimum" to promote them. They were not nearly as successful as ''Canciones De Mi Padre'', but were critically acclaimed in some circles. In 1991, she released '']'', a follow-up to the first ''Canciones''. For this effort she won a ]. The following year, she stepped outside of the mariachi genre and decided to record well known "afro-Cuban" songs. This disc was titled '']''. Like her two previous Latin recordings ventures, this third Latin album won Ronstadt another Grammy Award, this time the ]. | |||
| In 1991, Ronstadt acted in the lead role of arch angel San Miguel in ''La Pastorela'', or ''A Shephard's Tale'', a musical filmed at '']''. It was written and directed by ]. The production was part of the PBS ''Great Performances'' series. | |||
| ==== Returning to the contemporary music scene ==== | |||
| By the late 1980s, while enjoying the success of her big band jazz collaborations with Riddle and her surprise hit mariachi recordings, Ronstadt elected to return to recording mainstream pop music once again. In 1987, she made a return to the top of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles chart with "]", which peaked at number 2 in March.<ref name=bronson /> Featured in the animated film '']'', the sentimental duet with ] was nominated for several Grammy Awards, ultimately winning the ]. The song also received a nomination for the ] and achieved high sales, earning a million-selling gold single in the U.S.{{snds}}one of the last 45s ever to do so. It was also accompanied by a popular music video. On the heels of this success, ] asked Ronstadt to record the theme song for the animated sequel titled '']'', which was titled "]". Although "Dreams to Dream" failed to achieve the success of "Somewhere Out There", the song did give Ronstadt an Adult Contemporary hit in 1991. | |||
| In 1989, Ronstadt released a mainstream pop album and several popular singles. This effort, titled '']'', became one of the singer's most successful albums{{snds}}in terms of production, arrangements, chart sales, and critical acclaim. It became Ronstadt's tenth Top 10 album on the ''Billboard'' chart, reaching number 7 and being certified triple-platinum<ref name=RIAAsearch /> (over three million copies sold in the U.S.). The album also garnered critical acclaim, receiving numerous Grammy Award nominations and being praised by ] as "an album that defines virtually everything that is right about adult contemporary pop."<ref name=CryReview>{{cite web |title=''Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind'' Editorial Review |publisher=] |first=Daniel |last=Durchholz |url=https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000002H7E |accessdate=July 10, 2008}}</ref> Ronstadt featured New Orleans soul singer ] on several of the album's songs. | |||
| Ronstadt incorporated the sounds of the ], ] horns, the ], and numerous musicians. It had the duets with Aaron Neville, "]" (''Billboard'' Hot 100 number 2 hit, Christmas 1989<ref name=bronson />) and "]" (''Billboard'' Hot 100 number 11 hit), both of which were long-running number 1 Adult Contemporary hits. The duets earned several Grammy Award nominations. The duo won both the 1989 and 1990 Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal awards. Ronstadt's last known live Grammy Award appearance was in 1990 when she and Neville performed "Don't Know Much" together on the telecast.<ref name=kqed /> ("Whenever I sing with a different artist, I can get things out of my voice that I can't do by myself", Ronstadt reflected in 2007. "I can do things with Aaron that I can't do alone.")<ref>Thibodeaux, Ron (February 11, 2007). "Home Grown". '']''.</ref> | |||
| In December 1990, she participated in a concert held at the ] to commemorate ] 50th birthday, and to raise awareness of environmental issues. Other participants included ], ], ], ], ], and ]. An album resulted, titled ''Happy Birthday, John''.<ref name=Lennon>{{cite web |title=John Lennon Super Live -- Japan |work=Dream Power |first=Hisataka |last=Suzuki |first2=Shiona |last2=MacKenzie |date=November 9, 2001 |url=http://www.jeclique.com/onoweb/dreampower2001.html |accessdate=May 12, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| === A return to roots music === | |||
| Ronstadt released the highly acclaimed '']'' album at the end of 1993. It included New Age arrangements such as the lead single "]" as well as the self-penned title track and featured the glass harmonica. It was her first commercial failure since 1972, and peaked at number 92 in Billboard, whereas 1995's '']'' was Ronstadt's much heralded return to country-rock and included her version of ] classic hit "]". The single's rollicking, fiddle-infused flip side, "Walk On", returned Ronstadt to the Country Singles chart for the first time since 1983. An album track entitled "The Blue Train" charted 10 weeks in ''Billboard''{{'}}s Adult Contemporary Top 40. This album fared slightly better than its predecessor, reaching number 75. Both albums were later deleted from the Elektra/Asylum catalog. Ronstadt was nominated for three ] in 1993: Female Regional Mexican Artist of the Year, Female Tropical/Salsa Artist of the Year, and her version of the song "Perfidia" was also listed for Tropical/Salsa Song of the Year.<ref name="billboardmag">{{cite journal |last=Lannert |first=John |date=March 30, 1993 |title=Secada Lead Latin Noms Following Grammy Win |journal=] |publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc. |volume=105 |issue=10 |page=10 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0w8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA10&dq=no+se+tu+luis+miguel&hl=es-419&sa=X&ei=_PzlUJ3QOcKsjALfhYEQ&ved=0CFAQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=no%20se%20tu%20luis%20miguel&f=false |accessdate=January 3, 2013}}</ref> | |||
| In 1996, Ronstadt produced '']'', an album of classic rock and roll songs reinvented as lullabies. The album reached number 78 in ''Billboard'' and won the ]. | |||
| In 1998, Ronstadt released '']'', her first album in over two years. The album harkened back to Ronstadt's country-rock and folk-rock heyday. She returned to her rock 'n' roll roots with vivid interpretations of songs by ], ], ], and ]. The recording was produced by ]. A commercial failure, the album stood at 57,897 copies sold at the time of its deletion in 2008. It is the poorest-selling studio album in Ronstadt's Elektra/Asylum catalog. ''We Ran'' did not chart any singles but it was well received by critics. | |||
| Despite the lack of success of ''We Ran'', Ronstadt kept moving towards this adult rock exploration. In the summer of 1999, she released the album '']'', a folk-rock-oriented project with EmmyLou Harris. It earned a nomination for the Grammy Award for the Best Contemporary Folk Album, and made the Top 10 of ''Billboard''{{'}}s Country Albums chart. Still in print as of December 2016, it has sold 223,255 copies per ].{{citation needed|date=December 2016}} | |||
| Also in 1999, Ronstadt went back to her concert roots, when she performed with the ] and ] at ] 1999 New Year's Eve celebration kicking off the December 31 end-of-the-millennium festivities. As Staples Center Senior Vice President and General Manager Bobby Goldwater said, "It was our goal to present a spectacular event as a sendoff to the 20th century", and "Eagles, Jackson Browne, and Linda Ronstadt are three of the most popular acts of the century. Their performances will constitute a singular and historic night of entertainment for New Year's Eve in Los Angeles."<ref name=NewYearsEve>{{cite web |title=The Eagles to Perform at Staples Center |date=May 6, 1999 |publisher=Staples Center |url=http://www.staplescenter.com/news/fullstory.sps?iNewsid=103445&itype=&iCategoryID=0 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928135754/http://www.staplescenter.com/news/fullstory.sps?iNewsid=103445&itype=&iCategoryID=0 |archivedate=September 28, 2007 |accessdate=November 25, 2012}}</ref> | |||
| In 2000, Ronstadt completed her long contractual relationship with the ]. The fulfillment of this contract commenced with the release of '']'', her first holiday collection, which includes rare choral works, the somber Joni Mitchell song "]", and a rare recorded duet with the late ] on Clooney's signature song, "]". | |||
| Since leaving Warner Music, Ronstadt has gone on to release one album each under ] and ]. | |||
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| | quote="Your musical soul is like facets of a jewel, and you stick out one facet at a time ... (and) I tend to work real hard on whatever it is I do, to get it up to speed, up to a professional level. I tend to bury myself in one thing for years at a time." | |||
| | source=—Linda Ronstadt<ref name="Goldmine589" />}} | |||
| In 2006, recording as the ZoZo Sisters, Ronstadt teamed with her new friend, musician and musical scholar ], to record '']''. It was an album of roots music incorporating pop, Cajun, and early-20th-century music and released on the Vanguard Records label. But ''Adieu False Heart'' was a commercial failure, peaking at number 146 in the U.S. despite her touring for the final time that year. It was the last time Linda Ronstadt would record an album, having begun to lose her singing ability as the result of Parkinson's disease, diagnosed in December 2012. ''Adieu False Heart'', recorded in ], features a cast of local musicians, including Chas Justus, Eric Frey and Kevin Wimmer of ], Sam Broussard of ], ], and ], as well as an array of Nashville musicians: fiddler ], mandolinist ], and guitarist ]. The recording earned two Grammy Award nominations: ] and ]. | |||
| In 2007, Ronstadt contributed to the compilation album '']''{{snds}}a tribute album to jazz music's all-time most heralded artist{{snds}}on the track "]".<ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161024115915/http://www.rockonthenet.com/artists-r/lindaronstadt.htm |date=October 24, 2016 }} Rock on the Net.</ref> | |||
| In August 2007, Ronstadt headlined the ], making her debut at this event, where she incorporated jazz, rock, and folk music into her repertoire. It was one of her final concerts. | |||
| In 2010, Ronstadt contributed the arrangement and lead vocal to "A La Orilla de un Palmar" on ] studio album '']'' (with ]). This remains her most recent commercially available recording as lead vocalist. | |||
| === Retirement === | |||
| In 2011, Ronstadt was interviewed by the '']'' and announced her retirement.<ref name="retirement">{{cite web |author=Burch, Cathalena E. |date=April 22, 2011 |title=Ronstadt: Legacy 'Belongs 100 Percent to Nelson' |url=http://azstarnet.com/entertainment/blogs/caliente-tuned-in/ronstadt-legacy-belongs-percent-to-nelson/article_17e2d7b2-6ca0-11e0-b37e-001cc4c002e0.html |work=] |accessdate=September 4, 2013}}</ref> In August 2013, she revealed to ] that she has ], and "can no longer sing a note."<ref>] (August 23, 2013). . '']''. Retrieved September 4, 2013.</ref> | |||
| === Selected list of career achievements === | |||
| {{Prose|section|date=August 2012}} | |||
| * As of 2015, Ronstadt has earned three number 1 pop albums, ten top-ten pop albums and 37 charting pop albums on the ''Billboard'' Pop Album Charts. On the ] chart, she has charted 15 albums, including four that hit number 1. | |||
| * Also as of 2015, Ronstadt's singles have earned her a number 1 hit and three number 2 hits on the ] chart (with ten top-ten pop singles and twenty-one reaching the "Top 40"). Additionally she has scored two number 1 hits on the ] chart, and two number 1 hits and on the ] chart. | |||
| * On April 10, 2014, Linda Ronstadt was inducted into the ]<ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160824234854/http://www.rockhall.com/inductees/linda-ronstadt/ |date=August 24, 2016 }}. "Linda Ronstadt : inducted in 2014 | The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum".</ref> | |||
| * She has recorded and released well over 30 studio albums and has made guest appearances on an estimated 120 other albums. Her guest appearances included the classical minimalist ] album '']'', a hit classical record with other major pop stars either singing or writing lyrics. She also appeared on Glass's follow-up recording '']''. She appeared on ] '']'', where she sang second voice on a song of Simon's called "]"{{snds}}a song which it appears has a verse dedicated to Ronstadt, to her amazing voice and harmonies, and to her birth in Tucson, Arizona. She voiced herself in '']'' episode "]" and sang a duet "]" with ] on '']''. Ronstadt has also recorded on albums with ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], the ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and ]. | |||
| * Her three biggest-selling studio albums to date are her 1977 release '']'', 1983's '']'', and 1989's '']'', each one certified by the ] for over three million copies sold. Her highest-selling album to date is the 1976 compilation '']'', certified for over seven million units sold in 2001.<ref name="RIAAsearch" /> | |||
| * Ronstadt became music's first major touring female artist, selling out major venues, and she also became the top-grossing solo female concert artist for the 1970s.<ref name="doubleplatinum" /> Ronstadt remained a highly successful touring artist into the 1990s at which time she decided to "scale back" to smaller venues. | |||
| * '']'' magazine – fierce competition to ''Billboard'' in the 1970s – named Ronstadt the "#1 Female Artist of the Decade".<ref name="tiptheirhat" /> | |||
| * Her RIAA certification (audits paid for by record companies or artist for promotion) tally as of 2001, totaled 19 Gold, 14 Platinum and 7 Multi-Platinum albums.<ref name="RIAAsearch" /> | |||
| * Ronstadt's album sales have not been certified since 2001, and at the time, Ronstadt's U.S. album sales were certified by the Recording Industry Association of America at over 30 million albums sold, while Peter Asher, her former producer and manager, placed her total U.S. album sales at over 45 million.<ref name="Asheralbumsales" /> Likewise, her worldwide albums sales are in excess of 100 million albums sold, according to the former president of Warner Bros. Records, Joe Smith, now member in the jury of the hitparade hall of fame.<ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304083702/http://hitparadehalloffame.com/linda-ronstadt/ |date=March 4, 2016 }}. ].</ref> | |||
| * She was the first female in music history to score three consecutive platinum albums and ultimately racked up a total of ''eight'' consecutive platinum albums.<ref name=certifications /> | |||
| * Her album '']'' was the first album by any recording act in U.S. music history to ship double platinum (over two million advanced copies).<ref name="doubleplatinum" /> | |||
| * Her first Latin release, the all-Spanish 1987 album '']'', stands as the best-selling non-English-language album in American music history. As of 2013, it had sold over 2½ million U.S. copies. | |||
| * Ronstadt has served as record producer on various albums from musicians from her cousin ] to ] to singer-songwriter ].<ref name="producer">{{cite web |work=MOJO |title=Homecoming Queen |date=April 1995 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artmojo.htm |accessdate=May 13, 2007}}</ref> She produced ''Cristal – Glass Music Through the Ages'', an album of classical music using glass instruments with ], and Ronstadt singing on several of the arrangements.<ref name="Cristal">{{cite web |title=Dennis James interview |first=Rich |last=Bailey |date=January 2002 |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/djames.html |accessdate=May 8, 2007}}</ref> In 1999, Ronstadt also produced the Grammy Award-winning '']''. | |||
| * She has received a total of 27 Grammy Award nominations in various fields from rock, country, and pop, to ], and has won 11 ]s in fields including Pop, Country, Tropical Latin, Musical Album for Children, and Mexican-American. | |||
| * In 2016, Ronstadt was again honored by the ] with the Lifetime Achievement Grammy. | |||
| * Ronstadt was the first female solo artist to have two Top 40 singles simultaneously on ''Billboard'' magazine's Hot 100: "Blue Bayou" and "It's So Easy" (October 1977). By December, both "Blue Bayou" and "It's So Easy" had climbed into ''Billboard''{{'}}s Top 5 and remained there for the entire month.<ref>McAleer, Dave (2001). ''The Book of Singles{{snds}}Top 20 Charts 1984 to Present Day''. {{ISBN|0-87930-666-1}}.</ref> | |||
| * As a singer-songwriter, Ronstadt has also written songs covered by several artists, such as "Try Me Again", covered by ]; and "Winter Light", which was co-written and composed with Zbigniew Preisner and Eric Kaz, and covered by ]. | |||
| * ''Rolling Stone'' wrote, a whole generation "but for her, might never have heard the work of ], ], or ]."<ref name="interpreter6" /> | |||
| * "]" included ''Heart Like a Wheel'' (1974) at number 164 and ''The Very Best Of Linda Ronstadt'' (2002) at number 324.<ref> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090104131142/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5938174/the_rs_500_greatest_albums_of_all_time |date=January 4, 2009 }}. '']''.</ref> The 2012 revision kept only the compilation, but raised it to the place once occupied by ''Heart Like a Wheel''. | |||
| * In 1999, Ronstadt ranked number 21 in ] ''100 Greatest Women of Rock & Roll''. Three years later, she ranked number 40 in ] ''40 Greatest Women in Country Music''. | |||
| == Personal life == | |||
| ] ] in the late 1970s.]] | |||
| Beginning in the mid-1970s, Ronstadt's private life became increasingly public. It was fueled by a relationship with then-Governor of California ], a ] ]. They shared a '']'' magazine cover in April 1979,<ref name=Newsweek>{{cite web |work=] |title=The Pop Politics of Jerry Brown – The Ballad of Jerry and Linda |date=April 23, 1979 |author=Mathews, Tom |author2=Kasindorf, Martin |author3=Huck, Janet |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/newsweek79.htm| accessdate = November 12, 2006}}</ref> as well as the covers of '']'' and '']'' magazine. | |||
| In 1983, Linda Ronstadt dated comedian ] for 8 months.<ref>{{cite interview |url=http://www.howardstern.com/howard-on-air/howard-100-101/2014-10-28 |date=October 28, 2014 |title="MOVIE STAR JIM CARREY STOPS BY" |interviewer=]}}</ref> In the mid-1980s, Ronstadt was engaged to '']'' director ].<ref name=Engaged>{{cite web |work=] |title=Linda Ronstadt – Checking In with the Ex-Flower Child at Home in Tucson |first=Jonathan |last=Schwartz | url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/US2000.htm |accessdate= May 5, 2007 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071008113244/http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artus00.htm |archivedate = October 8, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| In the early 1980s, Ronstadt was criticized by music critics for playing concerts in ].<ref>Latham, Aaron (August 18, 1983). "Linda Ronstadt: Snow White in South Africa". '']''. Retrieved January 29, 2013. {{subscription required}}</ref><ref>] (1990) {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160327014939/http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/bk-cg80/further.php |date=March 27, 2016 }}. ''Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s'' Pantheon Books, {{ISBN|0-679-73015-X}} (via robertchristgau.com). Retrieved January 29, 2013.</ref><ref>Santoro, Gene (March 12, 1988). {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315101703/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-6441785.html |date=March 15, 2016 }}. ''The Nation'' (via ]). Retrieved January 29, 2013. {{registration required}}</ref> She was listed by the U.N. as supporting apartheid by performing there. At the time, she stated, "The last place for a boycott is in the arts", and, "I don't like being told I can't go somewhere."<ref>Wilson, John M. (May 19, 1985). {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160426032448/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1985-05-19/entertainment/8501310597_1_south-africa-cultural-boycott-apartheid |date=April 26, 2016 }}. '']''. Retrieved January 29, 2013.</ref> | |||
| In December 1990, she adopted an infant daughter, Mary Clementine.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Fink |first=Mitchell |title=The Insider |journal=People Weekly |date=September 16, 1991 |volume=1991 |issue=33 |page=33 |quote=Singer Linda Ronstadt quietly became a single parent earlier this year. She has adopted an infant girl and named her Mary Clementine Ronstadt.}}</ref> In 1994, she adopted a baby boy, Carlos Ronstadt.<ref name=SFGateSale>{{cite news |last=Walsh |first=Diana |title=Linda Ronstadt home for sale |url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/e/a/1997/09/25/NEWS10452.dtl |newspaper=] |date=September 25, 1997 |accessdate=November 25, 2012}}</ref> Ronstadt has never married.<ref>Harata, Wayne (March 31, 2006). {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304110729/http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2006/Mar/31/en/FP603310311.html |date=March 4, 2016 }}. '']''. Retrieved November 25, 2012.</ref> Speaking of finding an acceptable mate, in 1974 she told ] in '']'', "... he's real kind but isn't inspired musically, and then you meet somebody else that's just so inspired musically that he just takes your breath away, but he's such a moron, such a maniac that you can't get along with him. And then after that it's the problem of finding someone that can stand you!"<ref>Knobler, Peter. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305010004/http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artcrw74.htm |date=March 5, 2016 }} ''],'' June 1974</ref> | |||
| After living in Los Angeles for 30 years, Ronstadt moved to San Francisco because she said she never felt at home in Southern California.<ref name=SFGateSale /> "Los Angeles became too enclosing an environment", she says. "I couldn't breathe the air, and I didn't want to drive on the freeways to get to the studio. I also didn't want to embrace the values that have been so completely embraced by that city. Are you glamorous? Are you rich? Are you important? Do you have clout? It's just not me, and it never was me." <ref name=NYTGarden /> In 1997, Ronstadt sold her home in San Francisco and moved back to her hometown of Tucson, Arizona, to raise her two children.<ref name=SFGateSale /> In more recent years, Ronstadt moved back to San Francisco while continuing to maintain her home in Tucson. | |||
| In 2009, in honor of Ronstadt, the ] made a 00{{ndash}}42 model "Linda Ronstadt Limited Edition" acoustic guitar. Ronstadt appointed the ] as recipient of all proceeds from her signature guitar.<ref name=martinguitar>{{Cite journal |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=The 00-42 Linda Ronstadt Signature Edition |url=https://www.martinguitar.com/media/4580/vol_26.pdf#page=26 |magazine=The Sounding Board |publisher=Martin & Co. |date=January 2009 |access-date=February 28, 2016}}</ref> | |||
| In the summer of 2011, ] announced their publishing of Ronstadt's autobiography.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-quick-20110729,0,447297.story |title=Quick Takes: Linda Ronstadt plans memoir |date=July 29, 2011 |work=] |accessdate=August 7, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://books.usatoday.com/bookbuzz/post/2011/07/trailblazing-rocker-linda-ronstadt-to-publish-memoir/179169/1 |title=Trailblazing rocker Linda Ronstadt to publish memoir |first=Lindsay |last=Deutsch |date=July 29, 2011 |work=] |accessdate=August 7, 2011}}</ref> ''Simple Dreams: A Musical Memoir'', and the Spanish version ''Sueños Sencillos{{spaced ndash}}Memorias Musicales'' was released on September 17, 2013.<ref>. ] Digital Catalog, 2013. Retrieved August 24, 2013.</ref> | |||
| In August 2013, Ronstadt revealed she has ], leaving her unable to sing due to loss of muscular control, which is common to Parkinson's patients. She was diagnosed eight months prior to the announcement and had initially attributed the symptoms she had been experiencing to the aftereffects of shoulder surgery and a tick bite.<ref>{{cite news |title=Linda Ronstadt has Parkinson's Disease |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2013/08/23/linda-ronstadt-parkinsons-disease/2694053/ |work=] |accessdate=August 24, 2013 |first=Brian |last=Mansfield |date=August 23, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt Says She Has Parkinson's Disease |url=http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2013/08/24/linda-ronstadt-says-she-has-parkinsons-disease/ |publisher=CBS San Francisco Bay Area |accessdate=August 24, 2013}}</ref> | |||
| Ronstadt describes herself as a "spiritual ]".<ref>Asked about her religious beliefs on '']'' (September 26, 2013), she replied, "I'm a spiritual atheist."</ref> | |||
| === Political activism === | |||
| Ronstadt's politics received criticism and praise during and after her July 17, 2004, performance at the ] in ]. Toward the end of the show, as she had done across the country, Ronstadt spoke to the audience, praising '']'', ]'s documentary film about the ]; she dedicated the song "]" to Moore.<ref name=aladdin2>{{cite web |title=The Progressive |work=Linda Ronstadt Gets the Hook at Aladdin |first=Matthew |last=Rothschild |date=July 21, 2004 |url=http://www.progressive.org/mag_mclindar |accessdate=May 12, 2007}}</ref> Accounts say the crowd's initial reaction was mixed, with "half the crowd heartily applauding her praise for Moore, (and) the other half booing."<ref name=aladdin2 /> | |||
| Following the concert, news accounts reported that Ronstadt was "evicted" from the hotel premises.<ref name=aladdin>{{cite web |work=Las Vegas Review-Journal |title=Aladdin officials defend eviction of singer after political comments |first=Mike |last=Weatherford |date=July 20, 2004 |url=http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2004/Jul-20-Tue-2004/news/24348468.html |accessdate=December 13, 2012}}</ref> Ronstadt's comments, as well as the reactions of some audience members and the hotel, became a topic of discussion nationwide. Aladdin casino president Bill Timmins and Michael Moore each made public statements on the controversy.<ref name=aladdin1>{{cite web |publisher=Michael Moore |title=Open Letter to Bill Timmins, President Aladdin Casino and Hotels |url=http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/message/index.php?messageDate=2004-07-19 |accessdate=June 24, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060319134057/http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/message/index.php?messageDate=2004-07-19|archive-date=March 19, 2006}}</ref> | |||
| The incident prompted international headlines and debate on an entertainer's right to express a political opinion from the stage and made the editorial section of '']''.<ref name=Desperadoes>{{cite news |newspaper=] |title=Desperadoes |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/21/opinion/21wed4.html |date=July 21, 2004 |accessdate=May 12, 2007}}</ref> Following the incident, many friends of Ronstadt's, including the ], immediately cancelled their engagements at the Aladdin.<ref name=kqed /> Ronstadt also received telegrams of support from her rock 'n' roll friends around the world, such as ], the Eagles, and ]. Amid reports of mixed public response, Ronstadt continued in her praise of Moore and his film throughout her 2004 and 2006 summer concerts across North America. | |||
| At a 2006 concert in Canada, Ronstadt told the '']'' that she was "embarrassed ] (was) from the United States. ... He's an idiot.... He's enormously incompetent on both the domestic and international scenes. ... Now the fact that we were lied to about the reasons for entering into war against Iraq and thousands of people have died{{nsmdns}}it's just as immoral as racism." Her remarks drew international headlines. In an August 14, 2007, interview, she commented on all her well-publicized, outspoken views, in particular the Aladdin incident, by noting, "If I had it to do over I would be much more gracious to everyone … you can be as outspoken as you want if you are very, very respectful. Show some grace".<ref name=Blogcritics>{{cite web |title=Interview: Linda Ronstadt |first=Nancy |last=Dunham |date=August 14, 2007 |publisher=Blogcritics |url=http://blogcritics.org/archives/2007/08/14/085901.php |accessdate=November 25, 2012|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081014155540/http://blogcritics.org/archives/2007/08/14/085901.php |archivedate=October 14, 2008}}</ref> | |||
| In August 2009, Ronstadt, in a well-publicized interview to ] titled "Linda Ronstadt's Gay Mission", championed gay rights and same-sex marriage, and stated that "homophobia is anti-family values. Period, end of story."<ref name="PlanetOut09">{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt's Gay Mission |publisher=] |date=August 26, 2009 |first=Jenny |last=Stewart |url=http://www.gay.net/entertainment/2009/08/legend-linda-ronstadt-gay-lesbian-mission.html |accessdate=April 30, 2010|archive-url=https://archive.is/20120731025545/http://www.gay.net/entertainment/2009/08/legend-linda-ronstadt-gay-lesbian-mission.html|archive-date=July 31, 2012}}</ref> | |||
| On January 16, 2010, Ronstadt converged with thousands of other activists in a "National Day of Action". Ronstadt stated that her "dog in the fight"{{snds}}as a native Arizonan and coming from a law enforcement family{{snds}}was the treatment of illegal aliens and Arizona's enforcement of its illegal immigrant law, especially Maricopa County Sheriff ]'s immigration efforts.<ref name=NDAProtest>{{cite web |work=] |title=Linda Ronstadt Calls Joe Arpaio 'a Sadistic Man', Will Participate in Anti-Arpaio Human Rights March Saturday, January 16 |first=Stephen |last=Lemons |date=December 29, 2009 |url=http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/bastard/2009/12/linda_ronstadt_call_joe_arpaio.php |accessdate=March 21, 2010}}</ref> | |||
| On April 29, 2010, Ronstadt began a campaign, including joining a lawsuit,<ref>{{cite news |title=Linda Ronstadt joins group filing suit against Arizona law |work=] |url=http://www.csmonitor.com/From-the-news-wires/2010/0430/Linda-Ronstadt-joins-group-filing-suit-against-Arizona-law |agency=] |first=Jonathan J. |last=Cooper |first2=Paul |last2=Davenport |date=April 30, 2010 |accessdate=November 25, 2012}}</ref> against Arizona's new illegal-immigration law ] calling it a "devastating blow to law enforcement ... the police don't protect us in a democracy with brute force", something she said she learned from her brother, Peter, who was Chief of Police in Tucson.<ref>{{cite news |title=2 lawsuits challenge Arizona's immigration law |work=] |date=April 29, 2010 |first=Howard |last=Fischer |agency=Capitol Media Services |url=http://azstarnet.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_5f4f524e-53e0-11df-b705-001cc4c03286.html |accessdate=April 30, 2010}}</ref> | |||
| Ronstadt has also been outspoken on environmental and community issues. She is a major supporter and admirer of sustainable agriculture pioneer ], saying in 2000, "the work he's doing right now is the most important work there is in the (United States)",<ref name=Engaged /> and dedicating the rock anthem "Desperado" to him at an August 2007 concert in ].<ref name=SalinaJ>{{cite web |title=Ex-Interior Department secretary says The Land Institute on right track |work=] |date=October 1, 2007 |author=Strand, Michael |url=http://www.saljournal.com/rdnews/story/Prairie100107 |accessdate=November 25, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081224214156/http://www.saljournal.com/rdnews/story/Prairie100107 |archivedate=December 24, 2008 }}</ref> | |||
| In 2007, Ronstadt resided in San Francisco while also maintaining her home in ].<ref name=sfchronicle>{{cite news |work=] |title=Linda Ronstadt, at 60, is back in San Francisco, raising kids, and singing what she wants to sing |first=Joel |last=Selvin |date=July 28, 2006 |url=http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/07/28/DDG2PK61T81.DTL |accessdate=November 25, 2012}}</ref> That same year, she drew criticism and praise<ref name=azstar1>{{cite web |title=Linda Ronstadt draws readers' ire |work=] |date=June 7, 2007 |url=http://azstarnet.com/news/opinion/mailbag/linda-ronstadt-draws-readers-ire/article_1a69bb9c-6b72-5912-9118-8747115bb201.html |accessdate=November 24, 2012}}</ref> from Tucsonans for commenting that the local city council's failings, developers' ] mentality, greed, and growing dust problem had rendered the city unrecognizable and poorly developed.<ref name=azstar>{{cite web |title=Ronstadt: Dust drove me away |work=] |date=June 2, 2007 |first=Cathalena E. |last=Burch |url=http://azstarnet.com/news/local/ronstadt-dust-drove-me-away/article_9b6bc861-375f-5986-8738-a479dbb3669e.html |accessdate=November 25, 2012}}</ref> | |||
| === National arts advocate === | |||
| {{Quote box | |||
| | width=25% | |||
| | align=left | |||
| | quote="In the United States we spend millions of dollars on sports because it promotes teamwork, discipline, and the experience of learning to make great progress in small increments. Learning to play music together does all this and more." | |||
| | source= —] testimony from Linda Ronstadt<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2009/03/31/linda-ronstadt-wynton-marsalis-and-josh-groban-pitch-congress |title=Linda Ronstadt, Wynton Marsalis, and Josh Groban Pitch Congress |author1=Bedard, Paul |author2=Schwab, Nikki |date=March 31, 2009 |work=Submitted by Linda Ronstadt Singer House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment & Related Agencies |accessdate=March 19, 2012}}</ref>}} | |||
| In 2008, Ronstadt was appointed ''Artistic Director'' of the ] Mariachi and Mexican Heritage Festival.<ref name="artisticdirector1">{{cite news |title=Once a Rock Star, Now a Matriarch of Mariachi |newspaper=] |first=Patricia Leigh |last=Brown |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/21/arts/music/21brow.html?_r=1&pagewanted=2 |accessdate=April 5, 2009 |date=September 19, 2008}}</ref><ref name=SVMerc>{{cite web |title=Testimony by Linda Ronstadt |work=Silicon Valley Mercury News |url=http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_12031166 |accessdate=April 5, 2009}}</ref> On March 31, 2009, in testimony that the '']'' viewed as ''"remarkable"'',<ref name=LAtimesOpinion>{{cite news |title=Linda Ronstadt hails Gustavo Dudamel in testimony on Capitol Hill |work=] |first=Mark |last=Swed |date=April 1, 2009 |url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2009/04/linda-ronstadt-hails-gustavo-dudamel-in-testimony-on-capitol-hill.html |accessdate=April 5, 2009}}</ref> Ronstadt spoke to the ] House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment & Related Agencies, attempting to convince lawmakers to budget $200 million in the 2010 fiscal year for the ].<ref name=SVMerc /> | |||
| Ronstadt has also been honored for her contribution to the American arts. On September 23, 2007, she was inducted into the Arizona Music & Entertainment Hall of Fame, along with ], ], and filmmaker ].<ref name=Halloffame>{{cite web |publisher=Arizona Music Hall of Fame |title=Home page |url=http://www.azmusichalloffame.org/ |accessdate=July 22, 2008}}</ref> On August 17, 2008, Ronstadt received a ''tribute'' by various artists, including ] and ], when she was honored with the ''Trailblazer Award'', presented to her by ] at the 2008 ],<ref>{{cite web |title=2008 NCLR ALMA Awards Recipients |publisher=National Council of La Raza |url=http://www.almaawards.com/2008-winners.html |accessdate=December 13, 2012 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120227165304/http://www.almaawards.com/2008-winners.html |archivedate=February 27, 2012}}</ref> a ceremony later televised in the U.S. on ]. | |||
| In May 2009, Ronstadt received an ] of music degree from the ] for her achievements and influence in music, and her contributions to American and international culture.<ref name=Berklee>{{cite web |title=Smokey Robinson at Commencement May 9 |url=http://www.berklee.edu/news/641/smokey-robinson-at-commencement-may-9 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090416224122/http://www.berklee.edu/news/641/smokey-robinson-at-commencement-may-9 |archivedate=April 16, 2009 |accessdate=April 14, 2009 |publisher=Berklee College of Music}}</ref> '']'' magazine stated that "Linda Ronstadt (has) left her mark on more than the record business; her devotion to the craft of singing influenced many audio professionals ... (and is) intensely knowledgeable about the mechanics of singing and the cultural contexts of every genre she passes".<ref name=MIXMag2000 /> | |||
| In 2004, Ronstadt wrote the ] to the book ''The NPR Curious Listener's Guide to American Folk Music'',<ref name=NPRCurious>{{cite book |publisher=Perigee Trade |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-399-53033-3 |title=The NPR Curious Listener's Guide to American Folk Music |last1=Lornell |first1=Kip |last2=Ronstadt |first2=Linda |accessdate=}}</ref> and in 2005, she wrote the introduction to the book ''Classic Ferrington Guitars'', about guitar-maker and ] ] and the custom guitars that he created for Ronstadt and other musicians such as ], ], and ].<ref name=forwardguitars>{{cite web |publisher=Barnes & Noble |title=Classic Ferrington Guitars |editor=Giel, Kate |author=Ronstadt, Linda (Introduction) |url=http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&EAN=9780760776056 |accessdate=May 17, 2007}}</ref> | |||
| == Awards == | |||
| === Grammy Awards === | |||
| {{div col|colwidth=30em}} | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Country Vocal Performance, Female, "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still In Love With You)" from ''Heart Like a Wheel'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, ''Hasten Down the Wind'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Musical Album for Children, ''In Harmony: A Sesame Street Record'' (multiple artist compilation w/ Linda Ronstadt)<sup>1</sup> | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, ''Trio'' (with Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris) | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Mexican-American Performance, ''Canciones de Mi Padre'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, "Don't Know Much" from ''Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind'' with Aaron Neville | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, "All My Life" from ''Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind'' with Aaron Neville | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Tropical Latin Album, ''Frenesi'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Mexican-American Album, ''Mas Canciones'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Musical Album for Children, ''Dedicated to the One I Love'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Country Collaboration with Vocals, "After the Gold Rush" from ''Trio II'' with Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Lifetime Achievement Award (Latin Grammy) | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Lifetime Achievement Award | |||
| {{div col end}} | |||
| === Grammy Award nominations === | |||
| {{div col|colwidth=30em}} | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Contemporary Vocal Performance, Female, "Long, Long Time" from ''Silk Purse'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Album of the Year, ''Heart Like a Wheel'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, ''Heart Like a Wheel | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Record of the Year, "Blue Bayou" from ''Simple Dreams'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, "Blue Bayou" from ''Simple Dreams'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female, "How Do I Make You" from ''Mad Love'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, "Get Closer" from the album ''Get Closer'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female, "Get Closer" from the album ''Get Closer'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, ''What's New'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, ''Lush Life'' | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Album of the Year, ''Trio'' with ] and ] | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, "Somewhere Out There" from the soundtrack to ''An American Tail'' with ] | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, ''Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind'' with ] | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Country Album, ''Trio II'' with Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Contemporary Folk Album, ''Western Wall: The Tucson Sessions'' with Emmylou Harris | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Traditional Folk Album, '']'', multiple artist compilation, with vocalist ] | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Best Traditional Folk Album, ''Adieu False Heart'' with Ann Savoy | |||
| {{div col end}} | |||
| === Latin Grammy Award === | |||
| * 2011{{snds}}Latin Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award<ref>{{cite news |title=Ronstadt Draws Lifetime Award – Latin Recording Academy Also Honors Feliciano |work=] |url=http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118040434 |accessdate=September 4, 2013 |first=Christopher |last=Morris |date=July 26, 2011}}</ref> | |||
| === Arizona Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame inductee === | |||
| * 2007{{snds}}For her significant impact and evolution and development of the entertainment culture in the state of Arizona | |||
| === Academy of Country Music Award === | |||
| * 1974{{snds}}Best New Female Artist | |||
| * 1987{{snds}}Best Album / ''Trio'', Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris | |||
| === Primetime Emmy Award === | |||
| * 1989{{snds}}Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program, Linda Ronstadt, Great Performances: ''Canciones de Mi Padre'' | |||
| === American Latino Media Arts Award === | |||
| * 2008{{snds}}Trailblazer Award for Contribution to American Music<ref>{{cite web |title=ALMA Award |publisher=] |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVJHUdmCcPU&feature=PlayList&p=D46B9D0623515D35&index=0&playnext=1 |accessdate=August 1, 2011}}</ref> | |||
| === Tony Award nomination === | |||
| * 1981{{snds}}Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical, Linda Ronstadt in ''The Pirates of Penzance'' as "Mabel" | |||
| === Golden Globe Award nomination === | |||
| * 1983{{snds}}Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical or Comedy, Linda Ronstadt in ''The Pirates of Penzance'' | |||
| === Lo Nuestro Awards nominations === | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Regional Mexican Female Artist, ] (''Canciones de Mi Padre''), and Crossover Artist<ref name="Nominees-1989">{{Cite news |last1=Coto |first1=Juan Carlos |title=Univision Launches Latin Music Awards |newspaper=] |publisher=] |date=May 28, 1989 |url= |accessdate=February 9, 2014 |subscription=yes}}</ref> | |||
| * ]{{snds}}Regional Mexican Female Artist<ref>{{cite journal |date=March 28, 1992 |title=Ana Gabriel leads nominees for Latin Music Awards |journal=] |publisher=] |volume=104 |issue=13 |subscription=yes}}</ref> | |||
| * ]{{snds}}], Regional Mexican Female Artist, and Tropical Song ("Perfidia").<ref name="billboardmag-lonuestro-1993">{{cite journal |last=Lannert |first=John |date=March 30, 1993 |title=Secada Lead Latin Noms Following Grammy Win |journal=] |publisher=] |volume=105 |issue=10 |page=10 |url=https://books.google.com/?id=0w8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA10&dq=no+se+tu+luis+miguel#v=onepage&q=no%20se%20tu%20luis%20miguel&f=false |accessdate=January 3, 2013}}</ref> | |||
| == Discography == | |||
| {{Main article|Linda Ronstadt discography}} | |||
| {{div col|colwidth=30em}}{{div col end}} | |||
| === Studio albums === | |||
| * '']'' (1969) | |||
| * '']'' (1970) | |||
| * '']'' (1972) | |||
| * '']'' (1973) | |||
| * '']'' (1974) | |||
| * '']'' (1975) | |||
| * '']'' (1976) | |||
| * '']'' (1977) | |||
| * '']'' (1978) | |||
| * '']'' (1980) | |||
| * '']'' (1982) | |||
| * '']'' (1983) | |||
| * '']'' (1984) | |||
| * '']'' (1986) | |||
| * '']'' (1987) | |||
| * '']'' (1989) | |||
| * '']'' (1991) | |||
| * '']'' (1992) | |||
| * '']'' (1993) | |||
| * '']'' (1995) | |||
| * '']'' (1996) | |||
| * '']'' (1998) | |||
| * '']'' (2000) | |||
| * '']'' (2004) | |||
| === Duets and trios === | |||
| * '']'' (1987) (Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, and Linda Ronstadt) | |||
| * '']'' (1999) (Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, and Linda Ronstadt) | |||
| * '']'' (1999) (with Emmylou Harris) | |||
| * '']'' (2006) (with Ann Savoy) | |||
| === Compilation albums === | |||
| * '']'' (1974) (The first compilation album of Ronstadt's work released by Capitol) | |||
| * '']'' (1976) | |||
| * ''A Retrospective'' (1977) | |||
| * '']'' (1980) | |||
| * ''Standards'' with Nelson Riddle Orchestra (2008) | |||
| * ''Duets'' (2014) | |||
| == Filmography == | |||
| {| class="wikitable sortable" | |||
| |+ Film, television and theater | |||
| ! Year | |||
| ! Title | |||
| ! Role | |||
| ! class="unsortable"| Notes | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1968{{ndash}}1969 | |||
| | ''It's Happening'' | |||
| | herself | |||
| | 2 episodes | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1969{{ndash}}1971 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | herself | |||
| | 4 episodes | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1970 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | herself | |||
| | episode: "1.28" | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1970 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | herself; singer | |||
| | 2 episodes | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1970 | |||
| | ''The Darin Invasion'' | |||
| | herself | |||
| | ] | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1975 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | herself | |||
| | episode: "1.10" | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1977{{ndash}}1989 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | herself; musical guest | |||
| | 4 episodes | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1978 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | herself{{snds}}Concert Performance | |||
| | ] | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1980 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | Mabel Stanley | |||
| | ] | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1980 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | herself | |||
| | episode: "5.23" | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1981{{ndash}}1982 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | Mabel Stanley | |||
| | nominated{{snds}}] | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1983 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | Mabel Stanley | |||
| | nominated{{snds}}] | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1984 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | Mimi | |||
| | | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1988 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | vocalist | |||
| | winner{{snds}}] | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1989 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | herself, musical guest | |||
| | 1 episode | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1991 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | San Miguel | |||
| | episode: "La Pastorela" | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1992 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | herself | |||
| | Episode: "]" | |||
| |- | |||
| | 1993 | |||
| | '']'' | |||
| | Peggy (singing voice) | |||
| | episode: "Young Indiana Jones and the Scandal of 1920" | |||
| |} | |||
| == Book == | |||
| * {{cite book |author=Ronstadt, Linda |year=2013 |title=Simple Dreams: A Musical Memoir |location=New York City |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-4516-6872-8}} | |||
| == See also == | |||
| {{Portal bar|Arts|Biography|Film|Rock music|Rock and Roll|Country music|Hispanic and Latino Americans}} | |||
| == References == | |||
| <!-- | |||
| The following references are "list-defined references", per ]. | |||
| The following suggestions are not binding at all. | |||
| * To ease editing, avoid confusion, and prevent duplication of sources, the references below are in alphabetical order by ref name. When possible use the author's last name, possibly with some identifying words from the title. Otherwise be creative. | |||
| * While other citation templates are not forbidden, this basic template can be used, and it is placed here for convenience: | |||
| * <ref name=>{{Citation |date= |title= |publisher= |url= |accessdate=}}</ref> --> | |||
| {{reflist|colwidth=30em|refs= | |||
| <ref name="aladdin incident">{{cite web |url=http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/intucson/living/072204a1_ronstadt |title=Report of the Aladdin incident |publisher=Tucson Citizen |date= |accessdate=October 2, 2015}}{{dead link|date=February 2016}}http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,665900,00.html</ref> | |||
| <ref name="defends politics">{{cite web |url=http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/2006/08/10/1731602.html |title=Interview: Linda Ronstadt defends her politics |publisher=Edmonton Sun |date=August 10, 2006 |accessdate=October 2, 2015 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://archive.is/20130115163401/http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/2006/08/10/1731602.html |archivedate=January 15, 2013 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> | |||
| <ref name="everlasting linda">{{cite web |url=http://debbiekruger.com/writer/freelance/ronstadt.html |title=Everlasting Linda |first=Debbie|last=Kruger |publisher=The Weekend Australian |date=July 19, 1998 |accessdate=October 2, 2015}}</ref> | |||
| <ref name="female rocker">{{cite web |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/intfus1.htm |title=Linda Ronstadt: Female Rocker |publisher=Fusion |date=December 26, 1969 |accessdate=October 2, 2015}}</ref> | |||
| <ref name="heart to heart">{{cite web |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/creem76.htm |title=A Heart To Heart with Linda Ronstadt |publisher=Creem |date=December 1976 |accessdate=October 2, 2015}}</ref> | |||
| <ref name="interview">{{cite web |url=http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20040715/news_lz1w15linda.html |title=Interview |publisher=San Diego Union-Tribune |date= |accessdate=October 2, 2015}}</ref> | |||
| <ref name="jazz">{{cite web |url=http://www.topix.net/who/linda-ronstadt/2007/08/ronstadt-rocks-with-jazz-sophistication/ |title=Linda Ronstadt rocks with jazz sophistication |date=August 4, 2007 |accessdate=October 2, 2015}}</ref> | |||
| <ref name="lets wisdom">{{cite web |url=http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2006/Mar/31/en/FP603310311.html/ |title=Linda Ronstadt lets wisdom strike notes |publisher=The Honolulu Advertiser |date=March 31, 2006 |accessdate=October 2, 2015}}</ref> | |||
| <ref name="melancholy baby">{{cite web |url=http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/artesq.htm |title=Linda Ronstadt: Melancholy Baby |publisher=Esquire |date=October 1985 |accessdate=October 2, 2015}}</ref> | |||
| <ref name="wait wait">{{cite web |url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9888452 |title=Linda Ronstadt plays NPR's: Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me! |date=April 28, 2007 |accessdate=October 2, 2015}}</ref> | |||
| }} | |||
| == External links == | |||
| * {{IMDb name|0740168}} | |||
| * {{IBDB name}} | |||
| * {{iobdb name|17211}} | |||
| {{Sister project links|collapsible=yes|wikt=no|voy=no|species=no|d=Q229375}} | |||
| {{Linda Ronstadt}} | |||
| {{EmmyAward VarietyPerformance 1976–2000}} | |||
| {{2014 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame}} | |||
| {{authority control}} | |||
| {{DEFAULTSORT:Ronstadt, Linda}} | |||
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