Maps of Music

Heart Like a Wheel (1974)

Where the lyrics of Heart Like a Wheel take you, and where it was really made.

Linda Ronstadt's first US number one album was released by Capitol, the label she had already left for Asylum before it came out.

Key places

Recorded at The Sound Factory, Los Angeles (1974)

Recording site The Sound Factory — The album was recorded at several studios between June and September 1974. The Sound Factory in Los Angeles is one of them. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded in New York City (1974)

Recording site Record Plant Studios — Some sessions for the album were recorded at Record Plant studios in New York City. The point is set at city-center level. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded at Trident Studios, London (1974)

Recording site Trident Studios — Trident Studios in London is listed among the studios where the album was recorded in 1974. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded at AIR Studios, London (1974)

Recording site AIR Studios — AIR Studios in London is listed among the studios where the album was recorded in 1974. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Fifth solo studio album by Linda Ronstadt, released November 1974
• Ronstadt's last album released by Capitol Records
• Released by Capitol because of contractual obligations
• By the time of recording, Ronstadt had already moved to Asylum Records and released her first album there
• Reached the top of the Billboard 200, her first number one album in the United States

Background

• Her first Asylum album was already out when this album was recorded
• Lead single: a cover of Betty Everett's "You're No Good"
• The lead single reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100
• Widely considered Ronstadt's breakthrough album

Recording

• Recorded June to September 1974 at studios in Los Angeles, Maryland, New York City and London
• Peter Asher is the sole producer from this album onward
• Andrew Gold plays on most of the tracks

Cover

• Design by Rod Dyer
• Photography by Leandro Correa and Eve Babitz

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · ja.wikipedia.org · ko.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Career

• Born July 15, 1946 in Tucson, Arizona; American singer across rock, folk, pop, country, and soul.
• In the mid-1960s joined the folk-rock trio the Stone Poneys as lead singer, releasing three albums in 1967–68.
• Solo debut Hand Sown ... Home Grown (1969), described as the first alternative country record by a female recording artist.
• Became the first female "arena class" rock star; top-grossing concert artist of the decade.
• Voted Top Female Pop Singer of the 1970s; "You're No Good" reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
• Worked with producer Nelson Riddle on the Great American Songbook trilogy What's New, Lush Life, and For Sentimental Reasons.
• Recorded Canciones de Mi Padre (1987), the best-selling non-English-language album in US music history.
• Retired in 2011 after losing the ability to sing; later diagnosed with progressive supranuclear palsy.
• Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014; Kennedy Center Honoree in 2019.

Formation

• At age 14 formed a folk trio with her brother Peter and sister Gretchen.
• Moved to Los Angeles in 1964 to form a band with Bobby Kimmel.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Stephen Holden's 1975 Rolling Stone review called the title track a masterwork of writing and arrangement
• The same review praised the album's expansive repertoire, production and song selection

Reappraisal

• Retrospective reviews widely regard it as a high point in Ronstadt's oeuvre
• Stephen Thomas Erlewine's AllMusic review described it as a landmark of 1970s mainstream pop and rock
• John Lingan's Pitchfork review noted that Ronstadt's vocal control improved from album to album, and that she had mastered it by this record

Records

• Billboard 200 number one, her first US number one album
• "You're No Good" reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100
• Four weeks at number one on Billboard Country Albums in early 1975
• 51 weeks on the album chart
• Ranked No. 490 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (2020 edition)
• Selected for the National Recording Registry in 2013
• Inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2018
• At the 1976 Grammys, four nominations and a win for Best Country Vocal Performance, Female

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · ja.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Peter Asher is credited as the sole producer, starting with this album
• Released by Capitol even though Ronstadt had already signed with Asylum
• The Library of Congress picked it for the National Recording Registry in 2013 as a breakthrough album
• Inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2018

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · ja.wikipedia.org

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