In her illuminating 2013 autobiography ‘Simple Dreams‘ Linda Ronstadt states her financial ambition for 1974 was ‘to make enough money to buy a washing machine.’
Four LP’s into a solo career that had begun in 1969 on leaving L.A. based folk-rock trio The Stone Poneys, as the mid-70s beckoned, Ronstadt (born Tucson, 15/7/1946), was feted by a number of rock luminaries having already provided background vocals for the likes of Neil Young, James Taylor and Gram Parsons.
But with her own records the golden-voiced songstress had yet to grab the imagination of the album-buying public, or so it seems, generate sufficient funds to purchase a necessary domestic appliance.
If at this point there was a belief her recordings did not fully convey just how good she was things were about to change with the brilliant ‘HEART LIKE A WHEEL‘ (November 1974) – an album that propelled Ronstadt to superstardom and ended all debate in regard to the finest female rock singer on the planet.
As a member of The Stone Poneys she had contributed distinguished lead vocals to some generally unremarkable late-60s folk-pop, the obvious exception a superb rendition of ‘Different Drum‘ (written by Monkee Mike Nesmith), that not only marked her out as an exceptional vocalist but also gave the group a US hit single.
To varying degrees, the quartet of albums Ronstadt made on her own up to ‘Heart Like A Wheel‘ had suffered from ineffective production and an overall lack of cohesion. The second in that sequence ‘Silk Purse‘ (1970) – recorded in Nashville with local players – was a country record but only in a tentative sense. On her self-titled third album (1972), Ronstadt edged closer to country-pop, backed throughout on this collection by a core line-up of Don Henley, Glenn Frey and Randy Meisner, who would shortly join forces with Bernie Leadon in forming the Eagles.
The following year she joined them, along with singer-songwriters Jackson Browne and J.D. Souther, in the stable of artists being gathered by David Geffen on his recently established Asylum records. Her first release for this label was ‘Don’t Cry Now‘ (1973) a generally pleasing effort although once again the parts were greater than the sum, a gorgeous reading of the Henley-Frey opus ‘Desperado‘ the undoubted highpoint.
But it was on her fifth album when everything became aligned and accomplished. Excellent song selection, imaginative arrangements created by multi-instrumentalist Andrew Gold and production left entirely in the hands of her manager Peter Asher, who had only played a bit part in producing the previous record.
Although Ronstadt was now signed to Asylum, by a strange quirk of fate, ‘Heart Like a Wheel‘ was issued on Capital to whom she owed an album under the terms of her contract.
Improvement in the sound and styling of her music is immediately introduced with opener ‘You’re No Good‘. Gold, Asher and, of course, Ronstadt transform this double-edged, break-up lament into pop music perfection. Written by Clint Ballad jnr, it had previously been an early 60s hit for Betty Everitt.
The protagonist, having dumped her lover in order to be with the subject of the song, is then wronged herself. Layered with atmospheric electric piano, gospel harmonies, pristine electric guitar and swirling strings, the track is capped with a stunning vocal:
‘I broke a heart that’s gentle and true/Well, I broke a heart over someone like you/I’ll beg his forgiveness on bended knee/I wouldn’t blame him if he said to me (You’re No Good).‘
The R&B overtones that clinch the deal in ensuring it became a huge-selling 45 were then adapted by the Eagles for the title-track of their subsequent ‘One of These Nights‘ set, which followed ‘You’re No Good‘ to number one in the US singles chart later in 1975.
The Paul Anka composed ‘It Doesn’t Matter Anymore‘ that had been recorded by Buddy Holly shortly before his death in 1959, is delivered as an exquisite country-rock ballad, complete with skillful input from noted harmonica player Jimmy Fadden and the pedal steel guitar of Flying Burrito brother Sneaky Pete Kleinow.
In similar vein, the 1951 Hank Williams gem ‘I Can’t Help It‘ (If I’m Still in Love with You) receives more traditional country attention, not that far removed from an arrangement chief Burrito brother Gram Parsons might have come up with. His posthumous ‘Grievous Angel‘ album, released in January 1974 four months after the country-rock pioneer had succumbed to a fatal drug overdose at the age of just 26, featured Emmylou Harris throughout and on one track harmonies from Ronstadt.
The two women harmonise on this cut to magnificent effect, nobody better than Linda at delivering the simple, yet emotive words of the opening verse:
‘Today I passed you on the street and my heart fell at your feet/I can’t help it if I’m still in love with you/
Somebody else stood by your side and she looked so satisfied/I can’t help it if I’m still in love with you.’
Along with a country standard from the past Ronstadt also selects two contemporary variations on the theme, the truck driver anthem ‘Willin‘ penned by guitarist Lowell George for Little Feat, the song reputedly in the repertoire of every California bar-band of the time and ‘Faithless Love‘ – an aching heartbreak lullaby that stood as the best thing Souther had so far written.
Often naming Little Feat as her favourite rock band, she does them proud in giving the song more country inflections than their delightful soft-rock original. The gender-switching of the narrator is of no consequence as Ronstadt produces a nuanced vocal that makes every line vivid, the number becoming a mainstay of her concert set list for years:
‘I been warped by the rain, driven by the snow/I’m drunk and dirty, don’t you know, but I’m still willin’/Out on the road late last night/I’d see my pretty Alice in every headlight, Alice, Dallas Alice‘.
On ‘Faithless Love‘ the yearning and regret that Souther conveys in the lyric (‘Well, I guess I’m standing in the hall of broken dreams/That’s the way it sometimes goes/Whenever a new love never turns out like it seems/I guess the feeling comes and goes‘), is set against the backdrop of restrained banjo work by Herb Pederson and subtle keyboard fills from Gold. The composer, with whom she had just shared a love affair, provides harmonies and acoustic guitar – Ronstadt defying credulity on more than occasion with phrasing that soars and resonates without ever sounding strained or over-wrought.
While the work of Memphis-born songsmith Paul Craft did not have the renown of George or Souther, his reputation was growing due to the Eagles recording ‘Midnight Flyer‘ for their ‘On the Border‘ album of earlier in the year – and by Ronstadt coming up with her take of the altogether more substantial ‘You Keep Me from Blowing Away.’
For this melancholy country ballad instrumentation is kept to a minimum of bass, pedal steel and a couple of acoustic guitars (one of which is played by the writer), Ronstadt captivating as mistakes and sad ironies are reflected upon:
‘Well, I spent my whole lifetime in a world where the sunshine/Finds excuses for not hangin’ ’round/I squandered emotions on the slightest of notions/And the first easy lovin’ I found.’
With a mournful pedal steel solo the music takes the form of a hymn from the old west, a feeling reinforced by a plea for guidance and forgiveness from on high:
‘Oh Lord, if you’re listening, I know I’m no Christian/And I ain’t got much coming to me/So send down some sunshine, throw out your lifeline/And keep me from blowing away.’
Despite since being recorded by Jerry Lee Lewis and Willie Nelson, hers remains the most expressive, resonant take. Or as Jackson Browne remarked in the excellent 2019 ‘The Sound of My Voice‘ documentary of her life and career: ‘When Linda Ronstadt covers a song it becomes the definitive version.’
In contrast ‘When Will I be Loved‘ a 1960 hit for the Everly Brothers, written by brother Phil, is pop at its most rousing. Background singers Gold and bassist Kenny Edwards (once a Stone Poney himself), do sterling work with the harmonies and through every second this well-crafted effort sounds a surefire hit, duly reaching number two in US charts in the early summer of 1975.
The two selections that close side one of the album are far more reflective in tone. Ronstadt gives a fine account of herself on the Chips Moman/Dan Penn R&B nugget ‘The Dark End of the Street’ and the wistful title track – a number she had been eager to record since first hearing the Anna McGarrigle composition a couple of years before.
The former was revered in LA country-rock circles since being aired on the Flying Burrito Bros exceptional 1969 debut album ‘The Gilded Palace of Sin‘, where the plaintive tenor of Gram Parsons infuses the tale of errant lovers with a sense of finality, Ronstadt offering more in the way of hope in her deeply affecting vocal.
Of the song that gives the record its title Ronstadt later wrote, ‘I spent a lot of thought and energy planning the arrangement, masterfully written by violist David Campbell, making sure it had a cello solo. I particularly wanted the spare sound of a chamber group, rather than the more lush, orchestral approach I thought clogged up some of my previous releases.’
Therefore credit is due to all concerned, be they arranger, player or singer. On occasion it follows a course not dissimilar to that of ‘For a Dancer’ a brilliant Jackson Browne song (fiddle player David Lindley playing on both) depicting the death of a friend, Ronstadt here surveying a love affair in ruins, helpless in the face of circumstances she cannot affect:
‘Some say the heart is just like a wheel/When you bend it, you can’t mend it/But my love for you is like a sinking ship/And my heart is on that ship out in mid-ocean.‘
To close the set she opts for the James Taylor composed ‘You Can Close Your Eyes‘, a song that came to prominence on his 1971 ‘Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon‘ album. Ronstadt gives the song a broader sweep than his lone acoustic guitar original, emphasising the need to enjoy the moment before time moves on, the song pretty much perfect in that respect to end the album.
By his own admission a song he wrote in the wake of breaking up with Joni Mitchell, while Taylor has first person experience to call upon, she offers a wider perspective – ‘you‘ being us the listeners who are encouraged to carry on embracing the music after the record has finished:
‘So close your eyes, you can close your eyes, it’s alright/I don’t know no love song/ I can’t sing the blues anymore/But I can sing this song/You can sing this song when I’m gone.’
In the performance Ronstadt is supported by Gold (piano), current Eagles Frey (guitar) and Henley (drums), future Eagle Timothy B. Schmit (bass), manager Asher (background vocals) and an understated string score.
How any of them manage to retain their concentration when she goes up a few octaves without pause for breath during the last airing of the chorus is testament to their professionalism – everyone else on hearing it surely reduced to a dazzled, bewildered wreck.
Upon release the record quickly climbed to heights none of her previous offerings had attained. On the back of ‘You’re No Good‘ cleaning up in the singles market, ‘Heart Like a Wheel‘ did likewise on the album listings, holding the number one spot for two weeks in February 1975. It also rode a wave of unanimous critical approval. In their review Rolling Stone proclaimed ‘a masterpiece of writing and arrangement‘ later describing it as ‘a landmark of mainstream ’70s rock.‘
‘Heart Like a Wheel‘ set in motion a run of extraordinary success. Over the next five years Linda Ronstadt released four more studio albums, her record sales entering multi-platinum territory while tickets for the concerts she was playing in vast arenas sold out in an instant. The 70s came to a close with frequent reference to Ronstadt being the highest paid woman in rock.
But notice she had finally arrived came hot on the heels of ‘Heart Like a Wheel‘ racing up the charts. Superlatives for her supreme talent as a vocalist were widespread, Ronstadt landed the coveted spot of being on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine and had enough money to buy a washing machine – only now she had enough for the Malibu beach house to go with it.
None of which was undeserved in the slightest.
LINDA RONSTADT – HEART LIKE A WHEEL (Released November 19 1974):
You’re No Good/It Doesn’t Matter Anymore/Faithless Love/The Dark End of the Street/Heart Like a Wheel/When Will I Be Loved/Willin’/I Can’t Help It (If I’m Still in Love with You)/Keep Me from Blowing Away/You Can Close Your Eyes;
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NEIL SAMBROOK is the author of ‘MONTY’S DOUBLE‘ – an acclaimed thriller now available in paperback and an Amazon Kindle book.
Thank you for your spot on review of “Heart Like a Wheel”, an underappreciated masterpiece that Capitol is too stupid to re-issue. Linda Ronstadt was a rock & roll superstar in an era when there were very few female rock singers period. Ronstadt opened the door for all the female rockers that followed (not that the hipster critics give her an ounce of credit). If your history of rock & roll has been corrupted by those hipster critics (who seem to prefer mediocre singers whose voices will become increasingly laughable in years to come), you might not be as familiar with the music of Linda Ronstadt as you should. I recommend this spotify playlist to discover the great voice the hipster critics don’t want you to hear: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3dW3QgORIElIEBmAuiu41z
Hello – hope you are well;
Thank you for your kind words in regard of my review of ‘Heart Like A Wheel’ – very pleased to hear you enjoyed it and thanks for saying so.
Much appreciated.
It is a superb record – arguably the best she recorded in that superlative run of albums made during the 70s – although all through there are excellent song choices, great musicianship, accomplished production and above all that voice, that extraordinary resonant voice, that placed Linda Ronstadt in a class of her own.
Thanks also for the playlist – look forward to embracing it!!
Stay safe and well.
Best wishes
Neil