Why is Linda Ronstadt’s Heart Like A Wheel on my best 1,000 albums ever list?
One would be well advised to express the opposite of “you’re no good” with regard to this album. Which is to say… it’s good.
What does Linda Ronstadt’s Heart Like A Wheel mean to me? What does it make me feel? Why is it exciting or compelling?
Heart Like A Wheel is a great example of an album that, especially in my younger years, I would have likely rejected on its surface. Between its mainstream 1970s pop virtues and soft rock sheen – both overkilled to death on the 1980s radio airwaves I grew up listening to on Long Island – I’d normally pass by an album like this one and not think twice.
Except that I’m so glad that I did think twice, because Linda Ronstadt’s Heart Like A Wheel is an exceptionally produced and executed album that absolutely elevates the 1970s pop and soft rock genres that it works in.
And then there’s Ronstadt’s voice, of course. I can’t imagine anyone else doing quite what she can do with “You’re No Good,” my favorite song on the album. The verses and choruses expertly weave together, too, and I love how the background vocals blend in.
“Willin’” is a pretty country rock tune that builds momentum wonderfully.
“Faithless Love” has some masterful chord changes and is a masterclass in song production. And just wow on Linda Ronstadt’s vocals.
Some stats & info about Linda Ronstadt – Heart Like A Wheel
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Pop Music, Soft Rock, Country Rock
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – #490
- All Music’s rating – 5 out of 5 stars
- When was Heart Like A Wheel released? 1974
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #712 out of 1,000
Linda Ronstadt’s Heart Like A Wheel on Spotify
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective review of what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.