Watson, Mark (Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University)

Linda Ronstadt: Rock's First Female Superstar Watson, Mark (Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University)

Linda Ronstadt was born in Tucson, Arizona during the Truman Administration, one year after World War Two ended. She grew up listening to a wide array of musical styles, from Jazz to Country to Mariachi to Opera to early Rock & Roll. At the age of eighteen, she dropped out of college and headed to Hollywood in search of fame and success as a musician. Shortly afterward, she formed The Stone Poneys - a Folk Rock band responsible for the revolutionary and poignant classic 'Different Drum'. After three albums released on Capitol Records, the group disbanded in 1968 and Linda experienced several years of career ups and downs. In 1975, Ronstadt became a superstar with the explosion of Heart Like A Wheel, a shimmering aural masterpiece considered to be the blueprint of the Country Rock genre still in effect today. Linda became the most successful female singer of the 1970s, and, ultimately, one of the most successful recording artists of all time. As of 2014, Linda has sold more than 100 million albums worldwide and has won 12 heralded Grammy Awards including the 2011 Lifetime Achievement honor. 2014 was also the year that she was inducted into The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame and awarded The National Medal Of Arts from President Barack Obama. Despite losing her singing ability to Parkinson's Disease, Linda Ronstadt continues to influence people with her remarkable body of timeless recorded works. This is her story, penned by writer Mark Watson for the sake of posterity.