Description
Linda Ronstadt’s extraordinary genre-hopping career encompassed more than two dozen studio LPs and several greatest-hits compilations, but one format that had been missing from her discography until now was a live album. On February 1st, Rhino issued Live in Hollywood, featuring 12 performances handpicked by Ronstadt from a 1980 concert originally filmed for HBO.
Recorded at Hollywood’s Television Center Studios on April 24th, 1980, to coincide with the release of Ronstadt’s underappreciated Mad Love LP, Live in Hollywood includes a mix of rock, pop and country tunes the singer both charted with and included on her albums up to that point. This is Ronstadt toward the end of her rock years, supporting a new album but also performing tracks that have been honed to perfection from years on the road. The Mad Love and Back in the U.S.A. cuts hem closely to the studio recordings. The thrill of discovery comes from hearing the time-tested material. Sometimes it means a more nuanced and interpretive vocal, like on a particularly mournful “Blue Bayou” and a down and dirtier “Willin’” that better matches the spirit of its lyric. “You’re No Good” is the absolute highlight, thanks to an extended band jam that stretches her signature hit past the six minute mark. Also worthy of note is “Desperado,” which closes out the set with a slow build that brings new intensity to an overly familiar song.
