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Revisiting Ronstadt: A Great Interpreter of Song & One of the Finest Voices of 20th Century Pop

This edition of  "MIDWEST BEAT with Tom Lounges" originally aired on TUESDAY, MARCH 20, 2020 

NO GUEST:  Tom kept everyone safe by hanging at home with his new turntable.

TOPIC/SUBJECT:  Tom Lounges Isolates at Home and Revisits LINDA RONSTADT'S "GREATEST HITS" ALBUM

While respecting the social distancing mandate during the COVID-19 pandemic and staying out of the broadcast studio and isolated at home while the Lakeshore building was being disinfected and thoroughly cleaned, the "Midwest BEAT with Tom Lounges" show host opted to revisit one of his favorite singers of the 1970s and spin her 1976 "Greatest Hits: Vol. 1" album for all to enjoy while collectively self-quarantined. 

LINDA RONSTADT has become sidelined by illness in recent years and no longer records or performs, so Tom's goal in choosing to spotlight this particular album -- from his own extensive vinyl LP collection (listen for the subtle clicks and pops as it spins) -- was simply to remind Lakeshore Radio listeners of just how incredible this lady's voice was as she powered several hit singles up the charts! 

Linda is not gone and she's never far away.  Over the decades Linda Ronstadt gave the world a deep catalog of albums filled with a wide array of musical styles -- rock, pop, country, big band, etc. -- so to revisit the soundtrack of one's life requires simply grabbing one of her many albums and dropping the needle. 

Although she may not have written her own hits, but like Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Barbara Streisand, and other legendary singers of great stature, Arizona-born Ronstadt always had a knack for picking the right songs and giving those songs of others her own spin and style. 

She is without a doubt one of those great interpreters.  No matter who wrote it -- Phil Everly, Roy Orbison, Don Henley, Paul Anka, Neil Young, Smokey Robinson, etc. -- Linda Ronstadt could and would always make the song her own.  That gift is clearly evident on the dozen songs featured on this show's spotlight album selection.

Tom Lounges has been a region radio personality and a music journalist since 1979. For the last 35-years, he has been reporting on entertainment as a weekly columnist and feature writer for The Times newspaper. He was also publisher and editor of the monthly tri-state entertainment magazine ("Midwest BEAT Magazine") for over two decades, he has written hundreds of features for numerous national glossy magazines over the decades, and he wrote "Liner Notes" for over a dozen albums release by Sony Records.