Linda Ronstadt’s “Long Long Time” Is A Hit After A Long Long Time!
A 52 year old song has become the latest smash hit thanks to a brilliant new TV show!
I love this story, as recounted on a website the other day – the story of how a song from 52 years ago is now a huge smash hit!
It’s due to the third episode of HBO’s The Last Of Us, the post-apocalyptic drama that is a huge hit – and for good reason – it’s terrific!
On January 29, the episode titled “Long, Long Time” aired, starring Murray Bartlett and Nick Offerman…the title derived from a 1970 song written by Gary White and sung by Linda Ronstadt.
Before I share what happened in the week since the episode aired, you need of course to hear the song:
Within an hour of the show’s premiere, Spotify reported that streams of the song jumped a massive 4,900%!
Why I Love Linda Ronstadt…
Ronstadt is one of music’s great singers of all time. She had to stop performing in 2011 due to progressive supranuclear palsy, a Parkinson’s-like disease for which there is no known cure.
She has remained active in other ways which I will explain. This is why I love her so much.
When she was told of the song’s new success, she didn’t think of herself at all. She simply replied:
“I still love the song and I’m very glad that Gary will get a windfall.”
You see, she cared more that the song’s Writer got recognition – and money – for his work!
Check out this live performance from 1995:
Ronstadt had an incredible career, and wrote a beautiful, candid memoir of her life – and this documentary also tells her story:
Here’s a look at the film and her life:
Ronstadt’s generosity toward the writer of “Long Long Time” isn’t unusual – did you know she helped The Eagles when they were starting out?
Here’s the story of how they went from being her backing band to the biggest musical group in the US!
Finally, I recently purchased Linda’s new memoir that tells the story of the food she ate growing up in Sonora:
Of course, I had to cook some of her favorite recipes, and you can see her Sonoran Cheese Soup recipe by clicking on my story here – this is from my “Bite!Eat!Repeat!” blog:
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Categories: 70's Music, Art, Books / Media, documentary films, Food, Music, Obscure Music, Pop Culture, Talent/Celebrities, TV Show
I’ve always been a big Ronstadt fan. Actually, that’s a lie. My husband Jim loves her more!
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I haven’t seen the TV show but love how they are introducing a new audience to great old songs. The same thing happened last year with Kate Bush and Stranger Things.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Exactly Pete!
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Her voice was amazing….sadly she has had to give up singing….chuq
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she has one of the best voices in rock and roll and love that this song reemerged again. everything old is new.
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Yes! Thanks for commenting!
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I love Linda Ronstadt’s music, and I remember this song. So, I checked my Linda Ronstadt album, Heart Like a Wheel, and the song is not there. I must have fallen in love with it on the radio. It deserves to be the hit song of the HBO series. How sad that Linda has a Parkinson’s-like disease, and how wonderful that she didn’t care about herself when the song became a recent hit.
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Great story! One of the best things about your blog is finding stories like this. What a talent!
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Thanks for reading! I love her talent and her grace…her memoir is a fascinating look at her art – with some cautionary tales of the music business in there as well!
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Love her!
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I love Linda Ronstadt, what an amazing voice. So nice to see her music still being appreciated.
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Yes, she is timeless! thank you for commenting!
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An all time great—thx for the story. Thinking back to her concert with JD Souther and the Eagles at the Kingdome…
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What a night that was!
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