Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice

What a wonderful experience... lots of terrific concert footage. She truly could sing anything, any style. This is a must for fans and those who, for lack of age or perhaps being in a long-term coma, are unfamiliar with her delightfully outspoken character and phenomenal pipes... my only regret is that it could have easily been an extra half-hour long. Cannot get enough of her!!

"I had a galvanised voice: I could sing through a 105 fever or a flu or a root canal or anything that you could throw at me." Linda Ronstadt

Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice is a perfect documentary about a rock star: It's not the confessional like David Crosby: Remember My Name, not fanciful about Bruce Springsteen in Blinded by the Light, nor romantic like the Beatles' almost-tribute Yesterday.

It is authentic about the titular gifted lady, who could step into any genre easily, and who could win the audience's heart without falsification.

To hear her sing Different Drum is to be hurtled back to the '60's and '70's when a good folk-rock song could make you believe that women were empowered: "All I'm saying is I'm not ready/For any person, place, or thing to try and pull the reins in on me-e-e-e-e." When you see her, Dolly, and Emmy sing together, you want more, and you forget how tough it was to break through the male-dominated rock scene.

Directors Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman deftly guide the audience through the small lives of friends as well as the big musical moments that define Linda's life. As she guides herself through light opera and Mexican music, we can't help but be further curious while respecting her we'll-earned privacy. That the Mexican album sold the most for Spanish-speaking albums in history is testament to her ability to do well whatever she wanted to do.

This doc is exemplary for giving some lengthy time watching Linda sing as well as just right for the biographical information and talking-head commentary. Her acceptance of Parkinson's disease later in life is another testament to a woman of courage. In fact, there are more achieving women in this doc than in Wonder Woman.

"I miss singing every day. I can't sing anymore. My voice doesn't work. I have Parkinson's disease, and it sometimes takes my words away from me." Linda Ronstadt

Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice is all you need to know about her and her music. Enjoy.

The thing that should strike you most as you watch this film is the fact that Linda Ronstadt never stopped challenging herself, and she always succeeded. She changed genres several times, she challenged herself with singing a foreign language, she tried stage acting, and she revitalized lost gems that were considered "elevator music." She removed herself from her comfort zone many times, and she could have fallen straight on her face. But she did it anyway. She is one of the boldest musicians ever. As people state in the film, any one of the things that I listed could have damned her to obscurity forever because the general public also doesn't like to leave *its* comfort zone with a known performer. They want the familiar hits and a familiar genre. Familiarity bored Linda. As she stated in the film, when she played the same songs in the same arenas time after time she could practically hear the guitar solo from last week echoing in the building. Boring. A true artist wants challenges. She is a true artist, and her life is well worth researching.

I loved this film, as Linda Ronstadt's music is part of my history growing up. It was great to see the vast range of her styles and variety of her many, many hits --something I didn't take note as it is happening amidst all the other factors of growing up. I would have given this movie 10 stars but it is more of a positive spin with some allusions to the obstacles she faced, rather than a revealing bio-pic. Nothing as telling as the bio-pics of Freddie Mercury or Elton John that are both truly superb pictures because as fans we gained insight into their struggles as well on their way to success. To be fair, there is some discussion about drugs, sexism and health issues, but it is not critical to the film. I totally enjoyed the film because it was sort of "greatest hits" of LR, (her actual performances) with famous people commenting and some fun collaborations thrown into the mix. Well done and keeps your interest throughout. If you like Linda Ronstadt's music, you will enjoy this film!

Wow this Documentary really brings back the memories for me. We had a console stereo and my Mom and Dad had a ton of 33 records including Linda Ronstadt records. Even as a 9 10 year old kid i used to Love to play her records and cassette tapes with the volume set high. Can whistle all her hits. I remember seeing her on Johnny Carson as a teenager. I looked her up on Wikipedia after the Film, quite the read. So Sad she can no longer perform. This Film will churn up the memories of Linda for you too ! Her Voice and Songs will be heard and remembered forever.