Greatest Hits of Linda Ronstadt [Import, Best of]

But Ronstadt was not without her critics. She did not write her own songs-instead she often took songs which had been hits for others and made them even bigger successes with a much wider audience. Yet it was said that compared to the originals, Ronstadt's versions were cold and distant having little of the emotional depth the lyrics called for. Defenders pointed to Ronstadt's successful track record and charged detractors with sexism-stating that her critics could not deal with a successful, powerful woman.

Even nearly thirty years later, opinion is not settled on the merits of Ronstadt's work. Any casual and fair-minded listener can marvel at the sheer power of her voice. Again, the same listener might also conclude that Ronstadt's versions of works of others are somewhat pale. Even so, there is clearly something uniquely appealing in her singing. It is also fair to say that had Ronstadt never recorded their works many a songwriter would never have emerged from obscurity.

GREATEST HITS was released just a short time after Linda Ronstadt first made her big splash with HEART LIKE A WHEEL, PRISONER IN DISGUISE and HASTEN DOWN THE WIND. These three albums quickly established Ronstadt as a major star. Yet Ronstadt had made only minimal impact since her hit single "Different Drum" released in 1970 up to that point. Ronstadt's record labels clearly wanted to cash in on her newfound success before the fire went out. As such, GREATEST HITS only catches Ronstadt in the middle of the upward arc to the pinnacle of her success. Still, to the public in 1976, this is who Linda Ronstadt was up to that point. GREATEST HITS did it's job of introducing vast audiences to her earlier work as well as the handful of hits she had up to that point. GREATEST HITS now serves as a kind of snapshot of what 1970's music was like at the time with the heavy flavor of "country rock" that saturated nearly everything before the advent of disco and punk.

Those less nostalgic will want a more comprehensive collection than is represented here

Some suggestions:

THE VERY BEST OF LINDA RONSTADT or
THE LINDA RONSTADT BOX SET

If you are to have only one Linda Ronstadt studio album then be sure to buy HEART LIKE A WHEEL.

Sadly, the CD paperwork has no "goodies", just a list credits for each of the songs. But, the quality of this CD is very good, and I highly recommend it to everyone.

All of her seminal work is included here for you casual enjoyment, from "When Will I Be Loved" to "When Will I Be Loved?", from "You're No Good" to "It's So Easy", and all the others, including "Long, Long Time", "That'll Be The Day", "Love Is A Rose", "Different Drum", "Heat Wave", and many others. This album give us all of Linda's formidable hits, all her in a definitive play list that anyone would want to have to ensure an accurate representation of her volumes of work, from dozens of hit albums recorded and released over more twenty years of popular work. This is an essential album for your collection, and one I have both in the house and in the car. For easy listening as I zoom down the highway. Other than the Beach Boys, on the one hand, or Jackson Browne on the other, nobody articulates the southern California folk rock style as well or as consistently as Linda Ronstadt, the little woman with the big, big voice. Enjoy!