Why did Linda Rondstadt's career go straight down the shitter?

Well, you’re obviously no friend of Linda.

God, I thought that was a picture of Mother Pence. Oh, Linda, the years have not been kind.

Actually, her bestselling album was released in 1989, and it continued to sell well into 1990. “Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind”.

Nobody stays young and hot forever. Except me.

It is Ronstadt OP, not Rondstadt.

I would imagine most singers would kill to have a career with the longevity of Linda Ronstadt:

Her first hit to make the Billboard Hot 100 occurred in 1967, as lead singer of The Stone Poneys, with the Michael Nesmith-written "Different Drum"; her last Hot 100 hit came in 1990, with the Aaron Neville duet "When Something Is Wrong With My Baby"; in total, she scored 32 Hot 100 chart hits, 20 of which made the top 40, with 10 of those making the top 10, and 1 #1. She also had 9 top 10 Country hits, including 1 #1.

Even though pop radio stopped playing her songs in the early 90s, she continued to command concert stages for the next two decades before illness forced her to retire.

Her career hardly went down the shitter....shes one of the most acclaimed singers...and unlike Beyonce and Madonna, she had actual talent and didnt need autotune. Theres a reason she has Grammys, Emmys, Tony noms, a Presidential Medal of Freedom and a Kennedy Center honor....just to name a few.

As she herself says, she had a long drink at the trough.

She was a beauty for awhile, which is more than most people get.

Jenna Coleman from Victoria/Doctor Who should play her in a biopic.

r7 she was not that good of a singer - her speaking voice was grating and she was known to be a bitch.

Even Whitney listened to Linda's version of I Will Always Love You before recording it.

OP, I have a fish bone with your name on it.

r11....youre fucking high....please enlighten us as to who you consider a great singer....and dont list givens like Streisand and Garland...or even Ella Fitzgerald

r11....funny, for a bitch, her contemporaries sing her praises.

Yeah, she usually gets “best friend ever” award amongst pop singers

She was never known as a bitch.

She went after Robin Quivers.

Linda was the first musical diva I was obsessed with as kid. I still have a soft spot for “Different Drum” and “You’re No Good” to this day

She went after Stern because of his statements about Selena. Even Stern eventually apologized in Spanish for them.

It's so easy... to be a troll. Right OP?

She got fat then she got old, OP.

r14 Carol King, Sara Bareilles, Emmy Lou Harris, Ann Wilson, Pat Benetar....

Somebody come for the idiot at r23....I cant even.

Actually r23, Pat Benatar is a good "Why did her career go straight down the shitter"....She was on top of the world and within a decade...gone...no body paid attention...and very few cared. I know she still toured and recorded, but it went nowhere. She needed to reinvent herself....hell, she was a trained Soprano.

She was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2012.

I don't think Ronstadt was the best singer in the world, but she was the most versatile. Who else would try folk, pop, country, new wave, 40's standards and Mexican mariachi? I have to admire her for always trying new things.

And she was successful in all of them,

It was her hairdo in at awful American Tale duet video with that black artist no one on DL apparently's ever heard of.

[quote] I have to admire her for always trying new things.

She sure tried new dicks and new coke. All of the time.

And by the looks of it, she's trying new buffets everyday.

I almost spat my tea out at the OP's photo of Linda! Is that recent?

r24 lol trauma much? Face it Linda is not a great singer. You wanted people I thought were better you got it - your turn give me an example where she is vocally superior to any other singer.

Robin Quivers took this bitch down.

R29, I would think even the eldergays remember James Ingram.

There was a thread when he died. Some older folk didn't recall who he was. Or maybe mixed him up with Peabo Bryson.

There are two chronic anti-Linda trolls. One always talks about what a bitch she is, and somewhere in his bleatings will invariably utter "I KNOW!" And the other one, presumably the OP of this thread, spells "Ronstadt" with the second "D" every single time.

They're both cunts. One is a shidthead.

Fun fact about Pat Benatar, hers was the 2nd video played on MTV (after 'Video Killed The Radio Star')

I've always loved her music. But OP's picture looks like Linda is not down, but actually ON the shitter.

I believe that's a very old photo of Linda.

Heres an article from TODAY in The New Yorker with a recent photo...

She looks better there R41.

r42 all she needs is Dorothy, Rose, and Sophia!

R43 made me LOL.

I hope she has some fun memories to keep her happy.

I loved Blue Bayou.

Her Mexican music is sublime.

That interview is so sad, she's pretty much housebound now. And 73 isn't really that old.

That's sad, R47, but Linda has had a nice long run in the industry.

She was very chunky before she became famous so she’s just morphed back to her original form.

I don't see how anybody can seriously claim m Ronstadt was a bad singer. Empirically, she sang very well. Her vocal range is stunning: contralto to soprano, and she's had great success in many different genres, from pop to torch songs to light opera (Penzance).

You may not like her, her voice may not be to your taste, but to call her a bad singer is just idiotic.

are you all ignorant? She got Parkinsons.

Best white pipes in the business.

Yeah, r49. So chunky.

Yeah, r49. So chunky.

What a lousy singer.

Loved the recent interview in the New Yorker. She speaks like a real musician.

Was that loud shouty kind of singing considered good technique though? Seems like a gimmick. If she were well today I bet she couldn’t still do that, she’d drone like Stevie Nicks.

When I was in my twenties, her "Long, Long Time" described my life.

Same here, r58. The first guy I fell in love with played it for me while he was breaking up with me. I never quite got that. It was 1976.

Actually r49 is correct....LR was chunky in high school but NOT overweight....heres a photo from the time. It doesnt really reflect her weight, but there is another out where she has blond hair and its reflected in that photo...I cant find it for some reason, but its out there...

R60 thanks for backing me up. I couldn’t find her fat high school pictures either. She had them scrubbed it appears.

Paramount wanted either her or Carly Simon for Sandy in Grease because they had an interest in the soundtrack and wanted a hit female recording artist. Thank God it didn't happen as both are as wrong as can be for Sandy.

Carly Simon as Sandy? Would she have met Danny in rehab?

Anyhoots, love Linda, those who say she can't sing are not being objective. Also, I would like to hear about her and Robin Quivers.

Actually, it wasnt Grease that they were wanted for...it was Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band...another Robert Stigwood production....They wanted Linda for Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds...

[quote]Also, I would like to hear about her and Robin Quivers.

Linda was upset about a bit Howard did on his show about Selena.

Linda and Robin were both guests on the same night on The Tonight Show.

Linda confronted Robin about it on the show after she performed.

R64, no they didn't. Stigwood wanted Natalie Cole for Lucy but she was pregnant at the time. As I said, Paramount was more concerned with the sales of the Soundtrack but ONJ became the most brilliant idea for everyone involved.

She became famous at a time when voices didn't have to be "melodic". Compare her to singers who established themselves 10 or so years before her. Nancy Wilson, Streisand, Warwick and others---much better voices and more range. When she got out of her idiom and did stuff like the Mootown covers, it was clear that she lacked the versatility to have a great voice.

R67, She's done rock, country, Gilbert and Sullivan, the Great American Songbook and Mexican canciones. But she lacks versatility? You clearly have a hard-on against her, and are immune to facts. Bye.

[quote]Nancy Wilson, Streisand, Warwick and others---much better voices and more range.

I would have loved Dionne Warwick's Bacharach-David catalog if it had been performed by someone else. Her range went from muttering to a throaty chortle. I was so happy Dusty Springfield did a number of their songs. Never liked Streisand much, either. TWWW, The Broadway Album, and Funny Girl were it. Nancy Wilson was before my time.

But I do love my Linda.

[quote] Compare her to singers who established themselves 10 or so years before her. Nancy Wilson, Streisand, Warwick and others---much better voices and more range.

These are not singers of the rock era. By your criteria, Janis Joplin sucked as a singer because she never would've been able to sing the score of Funny Girl.

Linda was versatile and a fantastic singer, but never fabulous like me

Ronstadt was considered for Rizzo in Grease. Lucie Arnaz almost had the role.

Susan Dey was considered for Sandy as was Marie Osmond. Never heard about Carly being considered.

Ronstadt was considered for Rizzo in Grease. Lucie Arnaz almost had the role.

Susan Dey was considered for Sandy as was Marie Osmond. Never heard about Carly being considered.

r73, I didn't know she was up for Rizzo.

My major problem with that film was that as a 13 year old ,they all looked as old as my parents..and some were older.

If she was still capable of singing and touring people would still be paying to see her. After she hit it big with "Heart Like A Wheel" she was always a popular singer.

Ronstadt considered for Rizzo in "Grease?" I don't think I believe that. And Susan Dey was considered for Sandy? Since Susan Dey never could sing I don't believe that either. There were always a million rumors about who was to have the played the female leads in "Grease.

Allan Carr said he thought about Day for Sandy but also thought of Deborah Raffin. He tested Marie Osmond but felt she looked too similar to Travolta. Ronstadt was never asked to audition for any part, although Paramount wanted her on the soundtrack. Carr's first choice for Rizzo was Liza Minnelli. Now that would have been interesting. When she said no, he went for Liza Lite, Lorna who also tested but was rejected.

It wasn't Rizzo, it was Sandy that Linda Ronstadt's name was being bandied about for. I don't know if she was actually considered, and she wouldn't have done it anyway. But her name was brought up in gossip columns at the time as a possible lead.

Carrie Fisher was also briefly considered for Sandy by the director after he saw footage from the unreleased Star Wars.

R54 who is the hottie in the lower right?

r78, that would be Kenny Edwards, one of the Stone Poneys, with whom Linda recorded "Different Drum." The third member is Bobby Kimmel.

Damn R79. Linda sure got a lot of great dick. I'm sure she has stories to tell.

[QUOTE] Ronstadt was considered for Rizzo in Grease. Lucie Arnaz almost had the role.

Lucy was considered for the Rizzo role too, but Gary talked her out of it.

Poor Lucy. If only she had gotten one of those jobs she was considered for she could have been a big star.

Has anyone seen the documentary?

Ronstadt’s lack of assurance or awareness during her career was interesting, I’m not creative but I’d think that an artist would stagnate once they thought they had arrived or believed what managers and toadies told you. Ronstadt must have tried so many types of music because she was still a searching artist. I’ve always loved her voice.

That's a truly awful photo of Linda!

[quote]Why did Linda Rondstadt's career go straight down the shitter?

Obviously, her name was just too hard to spell.

never a fan, the rumors of her bein a snoot were rampant, prob cause she pretty for long time, she got stuk up..

but hey, she sick now, I wish her the best and hope she happi !!!! she seems kool to me

my fave was that stone pony hit, I was in college,

HONEYCHILD IVE GOT MY DOUBTS....was the motto on my dorm floor dooor.

She disrespected Robin Ophelia Quivers on The Tonight Show in 1995 and karma got her.

Because she is ill?

Nobody mentioned that she's gay and bearded for Gov. Jerry Brown?

Loved this...she was very versatile

R88, Robin "Mammy" Quivers isn't doing so well, health wise, either, so maybe Karma got her as well.

Linda Ronstadt has been trending on Twitter all morning...apparently at the State Department dinner last night honoring the Kennedy Center recipients, she laid into Mike Pompeo who was hosting the event.

Per Sam Greisman....At the State Dept. dinner for the Kennedy Center honorees Mike Pompeo wondered aloud when he would be “loved”. Then Linda Ronstadt got up to get laurels, looked the fucker right in the eye and said “maybe when you stop enabling Donald Trump”. Icon.

OP, you're no good!

Looks like she's about to snort and squeal.

Glad she took down Pompeo, but I still think she was limited as a singer. The mention of her name makes me think of her screachy Motown covers.

COULD WE PLEASED DROP THIS "DOWN THE SHITTER" THING? IT'S CRUDE AND NOT FUNNY--NOT WORTHY OF DL. IT SOUNDS LIKE SOMETHING STRAIGHT MEN WOULD SAY.

Keep telling yourself that r96....Beyonce is a limited singer.

Parkinson's took away her ability to sing for any sustained time. Saw a recent documentary, she's not that heavy anymore. Still intelligent, but distracted. She seemed okay, except for the problems her illness causes.

She’s a really fat tub of shit!

Linda Ronstadt never needs to sing another song in her life and that wouldn’t affect her status as a vocal legend. As we age, our voice fades and there is wisdom in knowing when to quit.

Limited range. When I read about her versatility, I instantly hear her screechy Motown covers.

Demi Lovato should star in the Linda Ronstadt biopic.

Her career did not go straight down the shitter. Where'd you get that idea? Linda Ronstadt sang country western / folk / mariachi, operetta, pop, torch, and rock, winning multiple Grammy awards.

I concur with R68 and R75 and R99. OP you seem kind of dopey. I wonder if R53 and R54 and R55 are all the same person.

CNN did a bio on her not long ago with highlights from her career and her own commentary. She had to quit singing because Parkinson’s disease ruined her voice.

She’s a childhood favorite. I will always love her Blue Bayou.