Post by the Scribe on Mar 22, 2020 12:22:28 GMT
When you look through this thread the one thing that should "stick out" is you will be hard pressed to find a photo where Linda Ronstadt isn't smiling. Hence she is known as the "smiling ROCK star."
APRIL 27, 1972
"Just One Look"
Linda and Me aka the Scribe aka ronstadtfanaz
I had been a fan of Linda since I first saw her on the tv show called "It's Happening" back in 1968. I was taking a nap on the old red velour couch my Grandma had given us one summer day. The tv was on, I was having a dream when I suddenly woke, sat up, looked at the television and there was Linda Ronstadt singing High Muddy Water. I was 14 years old, not so much interested in girls except for friends and my first words were Wow, she's not bad for a girl!
Fast forward to 1972 while a freshman at a University in Kentucky a poster (cover of Linda's eponymous album) appeared on the wall of the lobby in my residence hall. It had an appearance date of April 27 with Earl Scruggs Revue (at our Fieldhouse). I couldn't believe it. How did I get so lucky? It was tabbed as a benefit concert for some recent flooding victims in the area.
Few if any of my fellow residents had heard of Linda before they met me. My dorm room was the worship headquarters of Linda Ronstadt. Photos, posters (I had made), scrapbooks, etc. Suddenly there was great interest in Linda for the upcoming concert. I was disappointed that most of my new college friends didn't think they would go. Not because of Linda but it was the first concert of the year that wasn't free. There was a $2:50 cover charge. So I went with my friend Roy, had my tape recorder and some photos, two album covers, etc. I wanted Linda to autograph if I was lucky enough to meet her.
As her part of the concert was ending I thought...it's now or never.... so I walked to the back of the stage where Linda had entered thinking she would leave the same way. Busted. Oh no, there were campus police guarding the area but wait, I knew them. I had worked in the dorm cafeteria grill where they often came by for coffee. They smiled at me and let me go through where I waited for Linda to make her exit down the stage ramp.
Sure enough, she came off the stage holding the hand of her bodyguard or road manager. As she approached me I said...Linda, you're my FAVORITE singer. She said BLESS YOUR HEART. I then shyly asked would you sign some stuff for me? She said sure, you gotta pin? (yes, I came prepared just in case she had no pen in her act and I loved her Arizona accent)
All of a sudden my friend Roy shows up backstage with my borrowed camera. Even though there was an announcement that no flash photos could be taken at the concert Linda was more than happy to be in a photo with me. She jumped next to me while Roy FUMBLED with the camera. I said HURRY UP ROY. Evidently Roy had NO IDEA how to work a camera. He mumbled a few things and the flash went off...phew... So that is how the photo came about. Linda then left the area as Earl Scruggs was about to take the stage. That's when I got to meet Richard Bowden and the guys in the band.
In May I returned back to LINY for the summer and was looking through the magazine racks for any news about Linda for my scrapbook when I came upon a short clip from a national magazine . The article was about how she wasn't too happy with her music or singing at the time. She was asked a question about it which led her to mention this: "Recently some guy came up to me after a concert and told me I was his favorite singer and I thought man does this guy have bad taste."
She remembered me!!!
companion thread conservatism.freeforums.net/thread/10462/
A FEW MONTHS LATER:
Performance captured from the very first airing of The Midnight Special (August 19, 1972).
Here is a photo of her then group all which look to be in the video. Richard Bowden was very helpful in gathering the boys up for a photo. Surprisingly Ed and Mickey are both from where I landed permanently (Tempe Phoenix AZ) just a few years later. Ed, the guy with the lips founded what is now called The Marquee Theatre here in Tempe on the Salt River but at the time he called it The Red River Opry. He got to realize his dream but died soon after. Nice guy. Talented. All of them went on to record with her on Don't Cry Now. They were very excited Linda allowed them to do that and were looking forward to it immensely.
More from that night:
same outfit different concert
24 days earlier:
If anyone knows the photographers of any of the photos in this thread let me know and I will post the photo credit along with their website if they have one.