By the middle of my teenage years an unquenchable thirst for knowledge and appreciation of what was considered the finest rock music yet recorded (this being 1975-76) had so far led me to The Beatles and 60s British rock, with the next move being onward to Bowie.
The journey then led across the pond to The Beach Boys, Bob Dylan, The Band and thus onto Neil Young, the step from him to The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield and the folk/country rock movement a relatively small one.
Engaging further with music that by now had become instantly identified with Los Angeles, there developed an immediate liking for the trenchant lyrics of Randy Newman, Jackson Browne and particularly Warren Zevon.
This gifted trio of singer-songwriters were making their sharply-honed observations at a time when the all-pervasive sound of mid-70s Californian soft rock was being created by two artists, the Eagles and Linda Ronstadt – whose careers, as I soon discovered, had already been inextricably linked.
By now the Eagles were fast approaching such a rarefied level of success that in terms of record sales only Led Zeppelin and Elton John could match them. Their latest album ‘Hotel California‘ had not only become (and hence remained) a worldwide bestseller but also earned widespread critical approval – several tracks a foretaste of the fine songs drummer Don Henley would go on to write in his future solo career.
Formed in 1971 as a backing group for Ronstadt, if the Eagles had become the most successful exponents of the LA sound, then to reach the top they had needed to overtake her (up until ‘Hotel California,’ Ronstadt arguably held the high ground in relation to sales and favour with the critics).
With a sequence of excellent albums Ronstadt became the biggest selling female artist of the era and by the mid-70s had hit upon the winning formula of mixing Motown covers, revived rock n’ roll numbers and country standards – to which were added excellent material picked up from lesser known writers (at the time) such as Zevon, Anna McGarrigle and Karla Bonoff.
But the key to this astonishing run of success, even beyond a photogenic beauty evident on each album sleeve and regular appearances on the cover of publications such as Rolling Stone, was down to possessing the finest female voice in the business, which could be powerful, subtle, emotive or coy depending on the material – but never anything less than captivating.
Back in 1973 when Ronstadt was on the verge of her massive breakthrough (the ‘Heart Like A Wheel‘ LP of the following year was a career high-point which deservedly won her a Grammy for Best Album) Ronstadt appeared on record for the first time with Emmylou Harris, adding sublime harmony vocals to the record Harris was making with country rock pioneer Gram Parsons.
With aspirations in her early days to become the next Joan Baez, Harris, on the recommendation of his former Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers band mate Chris Hillman, had been invited by Parsons to sing harmony (which effectively became duets) on the solo album he was planning to make.
What transpired was the absurdly overlooked ‘GP‘ record (1973), Parsons managing to fuse the passion of country with a modern folk rock sensibility in producing a minor masterpiece.
By the time the next Parsons/Harris collaboration ‘Grievous Angel‘ was released in early 1974 Parsons was dead, dying of a drug overdose in September 1973, Ronstadt adding her luscious tones to the portentous ‘In My Hour of Darkness,’ the closing track of a fine album that became Parsons’ epitaph.
With Gram gone Harris forged a successful career with a run of decent albums, of which the best (‘Elite Hotel‘ and ‘Luxury Liner‘) are truly exhilarating in places, Emmylou backed live and on record by a superb group of musicians who for good reason became known as ‘The Hot Band.’
In their repertoire Ronstadt and Harris both covered great songs written by Dolly Parton – who reached the mid-70s as the undisputed ‘Queen Of Country Music‘ but anxious to reach the mainstream audience enthralled by Emmylou and even more so Linda.
When she quit her Nashville kingdom for the previously uncharted territory of LA, Parton was accused of leaving country behind, which brought her famous re-taut of: ‘I’m not leaving country – I’m taking it with me.’
Los Angeles and soon the rest of the world quickly succumbed to her infectious brand of country pop. But as the BBC 4 documentary – SISTERS IN COUNTRY Dolly, Linda and Emmylou – reveals, the growing friendships between the three and their aspirations to make an album together were thwarted during the late-70s and early-80s, the project eventually coming to fruition in 1987 with issue of ‘Trio.’
Four Grammy’s and nigh on five million copies sold, over thirty years later does the album or its successor ‘Trio II‘ (1999) need much re-appraisal?
Not to this listener who still finds them both a pair of exquisite recordings – expertly chosen material ranging from traditional folk, a few Parton originals, some contemporary country material, right through to covering Neil Young and Randy Newman.
Naturally there is great musicianship, superb arrangements and in stating the obvious, beautifully sung – the glorious blend of their three voices sending the lyrics into the stratosphere.
Indeed the only disappointment is they were not able not make any more. Ronstadt and Harris did manage to record another album together, the excellent ‘Western Wall – The Tucson Sessions‘ (1999) which covers much of the same ground as the ‘Trio‘ collections but with edgier material that would have seen it labelled ‘Americana‘ had anyone thought of such a title at the time. Pushed for a highlight it would have to be the stunning cover of Jackson Browne’s ‘For A Dancer‘ which is an absolute gem.
In more recent times Harris has done nothing to harm her illustrious reputation on collaborative projects with Mark Knopfler (‘All The Roadrunning‘) and Rodney Crowell (‘Old Yellow Moon‘) while also showing up strongly, as one would expect, on the 1999 Gram Parsons tribute album ‘Return of the Grievous Angel‘ – singing gorgeous duets with Beck (‘Sin City‘) and Sheryl Crow (‘Juanita‘).
In 2011 Harris also turned up singing harmony on ‘Better Day‘ the album released by Parton that year, a record that showed the spirit, hope and exuberance evident in her best work seemed in no danger of dissipating. As a live performer Dolly has remained irrepressible – as everybody among the thousands who gathered in front of the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury in 2014 will happily testify.
The duet she sang with Don Henley on the track ‘When I Stop Dreaming,’ from his 2015 album ‘Cass Country‘ was a timely reminder of what an outstanding singer she has always been.
Unfortunately the exalted voice of Linda Ronstadt will never again lend itself to new material. After retiring from recording and touring in 2011, the following year brought announcement she had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease leaving her unable to sing – providing a sad but even greater reason to celebrate and be enraptured by the incredible way she delivered a song.
In resisting the temptation to list a hundred examples I will restrict it to just one – her breath-taking rendition of the Joni Mitchell song ‘Christmas‘ which is so compelling it would stop anyone with a beating heart in their tracks.
So thank you ladies for greatly enriching our lives in the way you have – you were the definitive Sister Act.
This article was first published on 26/6/2018.
NEIL SAMBROOK is the author of MONTY’S DOUBLE – an acclaimed thriller now available as an Amazon Kindle Book.