Linda Ronstadt - Linda Ronstadt (1972)

Linda Ronstadt is a highly successful American singer.

Linda Ronstadt's third solo album was a self-titled release, produced by John Boylan, presenting a finely-honed country-rock sound with plenty of commercial appeal, a natural development from her first two albums. Three of the songs were recorded live at The Troubadour in L.A. in 1971. Six of the songs, including the live ones, featured backing from her touring band of the time, which included guitarist Glen Frey and drummer Don Henley. Other musicians featured on the album included  J.D. Souther, Bernie Leadon, Randy Meisner, Gib Guilbeau, Dean Webb and Herb Pederson of The Dillards, three pedal steel guitarists in Sneaky Pete Kleinow, Weldon Myrick and Buddy Emmons, and the Muscle Shoals rhythm section of Barry Beckett, David Hood and Roger Hawkins. The diverse selection of songs included numbers originally by Neil Young, Jackson Browne, Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline, Woody Guthrie and Fontella Bass.

Like her first two albums, it proved to be not much of a commercial success, which prompted her departure from Capitol Records. However it was surely an artistic triumph, and set the groundwork for her later successes. Another result of the album was that Frey and Henley from her backing band teamed up with Leadon and Meisner in the studio, and with Ronstadt's blessing they subsequently went off on their own as The Eagles.

Silk Purse (1970) <|> Don't Cry Now (1973)
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Linda Ronstadt - Silk Purse (1970)

Linda Ronstadt is a highly successful American singer, best known as an interpreter of other people's songs.

In the late 60s Linda Ronstadt toured across America with the country-rock band Swampwater backing her, getting some national exposure along the way through performing on The Johnny Cash Show. When it came to recorded her second album, she went to Nashville to work with producer Elliot Mazer. Silk Purse came out in 1970, and presented her fusion of country, rock and pop in a stronger, more confident and finely honed form than her debut had offered. Again, it consisted entirely of cover songs, including numbers by Mickey Newbury, Gene Clark, Paul Siebel and Gary White (who also appeared as a harmony vocalist). One surprise inclusion was a version of the Goffin and King pop classic "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?", which was a hit for girl group The Shirelles back in 1960.

The album produced her first hit single. Her cover of White's ballad "Long, Long Time" got to #25. This success turned out to be a hint of great things to come for the young singer's solo career.

Hand Sown ... Home Grown (1969) <|> Linda Ronstadt (1971)
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Linda Ronstadt - Hand Sown ... Home Grown (1969)

Linda Ronstadt is a highly successful American singer, best known as an interpreter of other people's songs.
 

Linda Ronstandt was born in Tuscon, Arizona in 1946. She was brought up in highly musical family environment, and aged 14 she formed a folk trio with her brother and sister. They performed a wide variety of styles they were brought up on, including folk, country, bluegrass and Mexican music. However at the age of 17 she went out on her own and made the move to L.A. to pursue a serious career in music.
By 1966 she had formed a trio with Bobby Kimmel and Kenny Edwards, calling themselves The Stone Poneys. They were signed to Capitol Records, and released three excellent folk-rock albums. Their biggest success was the song "Different Drum", which got to #13 on the singles charts. When the Stone Poneys broke up in 1968 she was all set for a solo career, and was still contractually obliged to Capitol.
Her debut solo album, Hand Sown ... Home Grown came out in 1969. It was an eclectic mix, but was mostly focused on country, making it part of the late 60s country-rock movement. Retrospectively it has also been referred to as the first alternative country album by a female artist. It proved to be a great album, showcasing her youthful energy and her knack for crafting superb cover versions of other artists' material. The covers included Bob Dylan's "Mama You've Been On My Mind" and "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight", Fred Neil's "The Dolphins", Randy Newman's "Bet No One Ever Hurt This Bad" and John D. Loudermilk's "Break My Mind", among others.
Despite its strengths and the recognition Ronsdtadt had already earned through the Stone Poneys, it was actually a commerical failure. She would have to wait a few more years for real success as a solo act.

|> Silk Purse (1970)
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