Linda Ronstadt vs. Stevie Nicks

[markolas]

Originally Posted by dissention

That's one of the most insightful things I've read on here in a while. And that's precisely how I feel. It's to the stage where even when she does release new stuff, the songs are just newly packaged retreads of stuff she did years earlier.

For the most part, yeah...but, it's to the point where I think...why expect anything else? Like, when people here talk about how cool it would be for Rick Rubin to produce an album for her...it's a nice idea, but it'll be a cold day in hell. Stevie thinks of herself as a big, flashy rock star...she's never going to cut her hair, tour small clubs, and release a stripped-down album without all the bombast, as great as it might be if she did. I honestly don't think a new album from her would knock me out. TISL was the best thing she'd done in quite a number of years, but I have a feeling a follow-up to it would be anti-climactic. Even though I'd totally buy it.

I think I said before that I thought she's been plagiarizing from herself for eons. I don't see any growth as an artist in her.

I agree, but I don't know if I really expect that of her. I'm not sure why. I think it might be because it was a bit late in the game when I got into her, so I already knew that she did her best songwriting (for the most part) from 1975-81 and then went downhill.

I don't think it makes you or I or anyone else less of a fan simply because of viewpoints like that, either.

I don't think it does either. I mean, I like RAL, and even parts of Street Angel.

If I were to disagree with anything you said, I'd disagree with your assertion that it's fine to do the same old, same old. It's not fine, it's downright lazy.

Yeah, but she's far from the only one. She found a niche and she stayed there, and I've just never expected anything else. I think my biggest peeve is probably that she's too concerned with selling records and pleasing her audience. Joni Mitchell (I hate to keep bringing her up, but I can't think of anyone to better make my point) basically alienated her entire audience when she did the album with Charles Mingus, but she didn't give a ****. She did it because she loved the music. Everything else was secondary. And I don't think Stevie feels that way. She wants people to like her.

[JWS]

Originally Posted by BombaySapphire3

You obviously have not been around on the Ledge for very long.Going from Stevie/Linda to Emmylou is a very minor digression compared to where alot of threads go on here.

True...I haven't been around here long...but I have been a contributor to other message boards (not dealing with Stevie Nicks or Fleetwood Mac) and off topic posts have been deleted or redirected to another area. I've noticed some of these threads have over 100 posts and maybe 30 or so are on topic. Hey, I don't care...if everyone wants to go off talking about everything under the sun that's OK with me. lol

[JWS]

I'm getting this thread back on track with this. Linda Ronstadt was a star way back in 1966 with the Stone Poneys at the extreme young age of 20. Stevie Nicks was 27 before she piggybacked her way into Fleetwood Mac stardom with LB.

Has anyone ever thought what would have happened to Stevie if Mick Fleetwood and FM had not come calling for LB? Well, in an interview, SN says BN would have had made it big on their own, but I don't think so. Stevie was very lucky, and talented.

[JazmenFlowers]

Originally Posted by markolas

She wants people to like her.

I don't think that's necessarily so. I think it's more that Stevie's music is, in part, created for her listeners - as she has said to create a "little world to escape to for a minute of your time", it's not that she wants people to like her...just my opinion

[JazmenFlowers]

Originally Posted by JWS

I'm getting this thread back on track with this. Linda Ronstadt was a star way back in 1966 with the Stone Poneys at the extreme young age of 20. Stevie Nicks was 27 before she piggybacked her way into Fleetwood Mac stardom with LB.

Has anyone ever thought what would have happened to Stevie if Mick Fleetwood and FM had not come calling for LB? Well, in an interview, SN says BN would have had made it big on their own, but I don't think so. Stevie was very lucky, and talented.

I don't think BN would have made it big, but I think Stevie would have been a star in some way, regardless. She's too charismatic and talented, not to mention gorgeous. FM was a very, very lucky turn of the cards, but I think she would have made it anyway, maybe just not to the magnitude that she did with FM.

[The Tower]

Originally Posted by amber

I love you, Towie.

I love you too, honey.

anyway - you sure got my number on Mad Love. Although, it would be more perfect if it was lightely sauteed with Bonnie Tyler and just a dash of Benatard.

Here I go to all the trouble to make this big mathematics analogy and you muck it all up with culinary stuff. Whatever....

Oh, and for the record, I believe that Stevie had issues with Klonopin and getting out of bed and all that. I don't really believe that someone who toured incessantly for years and years with FM and her own band, and who worked to support herself and Lindsey, could really be that lazy. Many scientific accounts say Klonopin can be nast, and I believe she had epstein barr as well. Stevie just strikes me as someone who would go go go as much as she could for the most part. Gemini's usually do. Especially if they have rising Aries and moon in Capricorn. All that is actually the antithesis of lazy.

I'm sure all that has a lick of truth to it as well. However, Stevie's actions have revealed her laziness. I think she had something to prove 1975-1980. Her solo career was the beginnning of the end in terms of her songwriting craft. Every once and awhile she would snap out of her narcissism, but not often.

Originally Posted by JazmenFlowers

it seems like we are running out of original criticisms...

...so, we've covered her laziness, her sucky setlists, her lack of varied projects, lack of "adventure" and small catalog...

come on guys...how else can we slice it?

Oh, jeezus Jason enough already. Your signature and stance has already made your post redundant. No one is attacking. In my post I talked about the gorgeousness of Bella Donna. Did you notice that??? No.

Originally Posted by markolas

I've been a fan for about 10 years...I'd heard everything up to 1977, and a few songs from her '80s albums, then everything from 1994 on...until recently. Then, I heard the Wild Things Run Fast album, and something about it just gave me a whole new appreciation of her. There are a couple of songs that are something akin to "blue-eyed soul" that are just great. It made me realize completely that people who call her a folk singer really have no idea what they're talking about.

Yeah, well.... she never really was one. She was penned into that mold without even having a chance to voice her own opinion. Just because she sang in a soprano register and sang her voice to a lone guitar never made her a folk singer, although people saw her as just that. Her songwriting and tenacious intellect liberated her from that sterotype fairly quickly. She singlehandly created the singer/songwriter/confessionalist, which Stevie has greatly benefitted from.

Originally Posted by amber

And Markolas? You don't have to laugh because you like RAL.

Oh, yes he does- that album is crap.

Originally Posted by JazmenFlowers

I don't think that's necessarily so. I think it's more that Stevie's music is, in part, created for her listeners - as she has said to create a "little world to escape to for a minute of your time", it's not that she wants people to like her...just my opinion

Oh, she wants people to like her alright.

[Ghost_Tracker]

Originally Posted by The Tower

Oh, she wants people to like her alright.

*GT places finger on nose and points* . . . .

[Miss Vicky]

After reading a bit of this thread, I dug through my parents' LP collection and got out LR's "Greatest Hits" and "Hasten Down the Wind."

Granted, these two records probably aren't the best representation of Linda's work, but I have to say I had very mixed feelings about the music. The first thing that struck me was that between the two albums, I only recall seeing one track that Linda had any songwriting credit for. Instead, I saw names like Warren Zevon, Paul Anka, Phil Everly, and Glenn Frey and Don Henley and judging by a lot of other people's responses, it seems safe to say that Ronstadt makes quite the habit of recording covers.

Don't get me wrong, Linda has a great voice, but it's hard for me to have any respect for someone who relies so heavily on other people's work, even if they do them well. I've made it no secret that I am not a Stevie Nicks fan, but between the two I have to give my vote to SN simply for the fact that most of her songs are original, even if not always great.

[DavidMn]

Originally Posted by Miss Vicky

After reading a bit of this thread, I dug through my parents' LP collection and got out LR's "Greatest Hits" and "Hasten Down the Wind."

Granted, these two records probably aren't the best representation of Linda's work, but I have to say I had very mixed feelings about the music. The first thing that struck me was that between the two albums, I only recall seeing one track that Linda had any songwriting credit for. Instead, I saw names like Warren Zevon, Paul Anka, Phil Everly, and Glenn Frey and Don Henley and judging by a lot of other people's responses, it seems safe to say that Ronstadt makes quite the habit of recording covers.

Don't get me wrong, Linda has a great voice, but it's hard for me to have any respect for someone who relies so heavily on other people's work, even if they do them well. I've made it no secret that I am not a Stevie Nicks fan, but between the two I have to give my vote to SN simply for the fact that most of her songs are original, even if not always great.

Fair enough. I can certainly respect that, even if I dont necessarily agree.

[~*BellaDonna*~]

Sigh. This is like asking me which of my children I love more. I just can't do it...

[Macfanforever]

Atlease Linda tried other music types and won and get top hits and a truck load of number 1 hits .Stevie and the Mac stick to the same old music and never wanted to expand to other music genders and did not accept written tunes from outside sources except a few and did not get any more number 1 hits.The handful of country flavored tunes from her and the Mac like After The Glitter Fades and Macs country flavored were not pushed to the stations and badly promoted .They could of been potential hits if they were pushed promoting them properly.

[TsnFan4Ever]

Linda is from Tucson and is a few years older than Stevie and had her first hit record ("Different Drum") around 1967 (I went to middle school with her cousin). She was already in LA and was already successful in her solo career with the guys who later became the Eagles as her back-up band when Stevie and Lindsey were starting their music career in northern CA.

Stevie is from Phoenix originally but her father was a corporate executive so she grew up in AZ, Texas and California (family frequently relocated because of his promotions). Stevie and Lindsey joined Fleetwood Mac in the mid-70's and the rest, as they say, is history.

It's ironic that Linda and Stevie have many friends in common (including Waddy and Don Henley) but apparently either haven't met or don't remember meeting. Both are very intelligent, articulate women who have strong opinions and because of their focus on their careers, have remained mostly single throughout their lives.

Sadly, Linda was forced into retirement prematurely for medical reasons. Hopefully Stevie will have a very long-lasting career. I hope someday they will be able to hang out together. It would be so interesting to hear the stories they'd be able to share and feel confident that they would have a strong connection.

[He's So Unusual]

I've never warmed to Linda Ronstadt. She had a great voice, but she's just a bit meh. Other than a couple of songs I don't think she was ever that popular in the UK.

[markolas]

Wow, this thread is a blast from the past! Sounds like I was pretty hard on Stevie then - I don't think I meant to be.

I have listened to more Linda Ronstadt in the last 10 years...she's pretty great. She almost single-handedly resurrected the Great American Songbook in the '80s with her Nelson Riddle albums. I don't think anyone believed those songs could be made popular again, but she did it. It's criminal how swept under the carpet they were in the '60s and '70s.

She and Stevie definitely had a lot of connections in the Southern California rock scene in the '70s. I sometimes wonder who slept with more Eagles, Linda or Stevie.

Comparing them really is like comparing apples & oranges, though.

[porkpie]

I love Stevie, but Linda is arguably one of the greatest, if not the greatest, female vocalists of all time. However, their back catalogues compliment each well with the crossover in band members, collaborators, etc.