Watching the Kennedy Center honors open with Linda Ronstadt brings back so many memories. Her music would create the mood in Reynolda Hall and sometimes on The Quad. She was a fearless performer, had great personal strength, was amazingly beautiful and had damn near the perfect voice.
Without her, there may not have been The Eagles. Glenn Frey was her guitarist. Then, she added Don Henley as her drummer.
I can't think of a person in music history who has not just done, but owned as many styles of music as Linda Ronstadt. She repeatedly defied her record company and "conventional wisdom" to do massively successful albums of standards, country, Mariachi and even Broadway.
At a time when women weren't taken seriously, she didn't open the door. She kicked it the fuck down and set it on fire. She took no prisoners and seemed always be right. She helped countless people live their dreams.
It was a travesty that she wasn't inducted into the R&R HOF until 2014.
One weekend , I went back home to Philly to see Linda Ronstadt play at the legendary Main Point in Bryn Mawr. It held 150-200. You sat on turn of the 20th century school desks, even with holes for ink wells and big enough for two people. We got there early enough to sit in the front row.
About midway through the show, my friends were laughing at me. One pushed my jaw closed and told me to wipe the drool off my chin. If I could 18/19 again and could see the 24/25 yo Linda Ronstadt, I'm sure I'd be drooling again and not at all ashamed to be doing it.
Almost all straight guys of my generation would love to be able say, "I spent a lot of time under Linda Ronstadt."
One of the first people I met in CA was Gov. Pat Brown. Near the end of our first meeting, he handed me his address book (yes they existed) and smiled. He said something like he would never remember my last name and instructed me to put my name in his book under his son's ex-girlfriend's info as he could remember Rick. Well, that ex was Linda Ronstadt.
I don't know how much time I spent under Linda, but I was there.