Heart Like a Wheel

For other uses, see Heart Like a Wheel (disambiguation).

Untitled

Heart Like a Wheel (1974) is Linda Ronstadt's fifth solo album release and the last-ever of her studio projects for Capitol Records, released in late 1974. It is universally considered to be Ronstadt's all-time high watermark masterpiece recording and a pioneering blueprint of Country Rock. It spent 51 weeks on the Billboard album chart and has never been out of print in 37 years.

History

In fulfillment of her contract, Ronstadt owed Capitol one more album and, as such, brought in producer Peter Asher, who worked with her on Don't Cry Now, and multi-instrumentalist and arranger Andrew Gold. Asher and Gold have been credited over the years as being a collaborative part of the album's artistic success.

The result — a more refined and streamlined mix of Country and Rock than her previous releases, with less of a Folk influence — proved to be Ronstadt's commercial breakthrough, the album that many critics later said would standardize the musical formula for her subsequent albums in the 1970s. Released in late 1974, Heart Like a Wheel became the first of her three No. 1 peaks on the Billboard album chart, reaching the perch for the week ending Feb. 15, 1975, right alongside the No. 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100, "You're No Good." Ronstadt was featured for the first time on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine in its March 27, 1975, issue. The B-side of the single for "You're No Good," a cover of Hank Williams's "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love With You)," peaked at No. 2 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart. The recording features harmony vocals by Emmylou Harris.

The follow-up single release, a cover of the Everly Brothers' "When Will I Be Loved," spent two weeks at No. 2 on the Hot 100 in late June 1975. It also became Ronstadt's first #1 hit on the Hot Country Songs chart. The B-side of "When Will I Be Loved," a melancholy cover of a Buddy Holly & the Crickets song, "It Doesn't Matter Anymore", subsequently climbed the Pop, Adult Contemporary and Country charts.

There have been numerous subsequent covers of "You're No Good" by artists including Van Halen, the Swinging Blue Jeans, Aswad, Reba McEntire and Wilson Phillips. Likewise, "When Will I Be Loved" has been recorded by the Little River Band, Dave Kelly, Rockpile, Vince Gill and Silk, among others. "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" has been recorded by Don McLean, Martin Simpson, Vince Gill, Daniel O'Donnell, Danny Gatton, Suzy Bogguss and Eva Cassidy, among others. In 2005, the Corrs included a cover of the Anna McGarrigle-penned title track, "Heart Like a Wheel," on their album Home.

"Willin'" was featured in the film The Abyss.

Reception

Heart Like a Wheel spent 51 weeks on the album chart. Based on her performance on the singles and album charts, Billboard magazine named Ronstadt the top female pop artist of the year. The album was certified Gold in January 1975 by the Recording Industry Association of America and belatedly both Platinum and Double-Platinum in 1991.

Ronstadt won her first of a record 10 Grammy Awards in early 1976 for Best Country Vocal Performance Female for "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still In Love With You)." She was also nominated for Best Pop Vocal Performance Female (losing to Janis Ian for "At Seventeen"), and the album was nominated for Album Of The Year (losing to Paul Simon's Still Crazy After All These Years).

In 2005 Rolling Stone magazine ranked Heart Like a Wheel at #164 on its list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time

Track listing

1. "You're No Good" (Clint Ballard, Jr.) – 3:44
2. "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" (Paul Anka) – 3:26
3. "Faithless Love" (J. D. Souther) (also singing harmony) – 3:15
4. "The Dark End of the Street" (Chips Moman, Dan Penn) – 3:55
5. "Heart Like a Wheel" (Anna McGarrigle) – 3:10
6. "When Will I Be Loved" (Phil Everly) – 2:04
7. "Willin'" (Lowell George) – 3:02
8. "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love with You)" (Hank Williams) – 2:45
9. "Keep Me from Blowing Away" (Paul Craft) – 3:10
10. "You Can Close Your Eyes" (James Taylor) – 3:09

Personnel

• Linda Ronstadt – vocals, background vocals
• Andrew Gold – guitar, percussion, piano, drums, keyboards, electric piano, tambourine, ukulele, background vocals
• Peter Asher – guitar, percussion, background vocals, cowbell
• Ed Black – guitar
• John Boylan – guitar
• Paul Craft – guitar
• Kenny Edwards – bass, background vocals
• Chris Ethridge – bass
• Jimmie Fadden – harmonica
• Richard Feves – bass
• Glenn Frey – guitar
• Emory Gordy – bass
• Tom Guidera – bass
• Emmylou Harris – harmony vocals
• Don Henley – drums, background vocals
• Dennis Karmazyn – cello
• Sneaky Pete Kleinow – pedal steel guitar
• Russ Kunkel – drums
• Lloyd Myers – drums
• David Lindley – fiddle
• Cissy Houston – background vocals
• Sherlie Matthews – background vocals
• Maria Muldaur – background vocals
• Clydie King – background vocals
• Wendy Waldman – background vocals
• Joyce Nesbitt – background vocals
• Herb Pedersen – banjo, background vocals
• Danny Pendleton – pedal steel guitar
• Dennis St. John – drums
• Timothy B. Schmit – bass
• J. D. Souther – guitar, background vocals
• John Starling – guitar
• Bob Warford – guitar
• David Campbell – viola, string arrangements

Production notes:

• Peter Asher – producer
• Gregory Rose – conductor, string arrangements
• George Massenburg – engineer
• Peter Kelsey – engineer
• Peter Swettenham – engineer
• John Haeny – engineer
• David Hassinger – engineer, mixing
• Val Garay – engineer, mixing
• Dennis Ferrante – engineer
• Bernie Grundman – mastering
• Rod Dyer – design
• Leandro Correa – photography
• Eve Babitz – photography

Chart positions

Year	Chart	Position
1975	Billboard 200	1

Reissues

Year	Label	Edition
2009	Audio Fidelity	24 Karat Gold HDCD

External links

• Album review