Platinum-Selling Legend Linda Ronstadt
Performs at Mountain Laurel Center
on Saturday, August 4, at 8 p.m.
Multiple Grammy Winner Gained Fame as World’s First
Female Rock Superstar
BUSHKILL, PA – The legendary Linda Ronstadt, who rocketed to fame in the ‘70s as the world’s first female rock superstar and has maintained a storied career ever since, will perform at Mountain Laurel Center for the Performing Arts on Saturday, August 4 at 8 p.m. Tickets, ranging from $32 to $52 for the pavilion, and only $22 for lawn seating, are on sale now via Ticketmaster at 570.693.4100, through Ticketmaster outlets, online at mountainlaurelcenter.com, or by visiting MLCPA’s on-site box office.
“Welcoming Linda Ronstadt to Mountain Laurel Center is indeed an honor,” said Richard Bryant, President and CEO of the center. “Not only is she one of the world’s most beloved singers, she has never hesitated to break the mold and conquer musical realms that few others would dare to attempt. Her spectacular career, highlighted by eleven Grammy Awards and album sales of more than 60 million worldwide, has endeared her to millions of fans, and we are thrilled to present her to our audiences.”
No vocalist has had a more diversified career than Linda Ronstadt. She began her career in the mid-1960s with the folk-rock group the Stone Poneys, a leading attraction on the California folk circuit. After the breakup of that group, Ronstadt entered the country music field, and in 1969, with the release of her first solo album, Hand Sown... Home Grown, she became the first female singer to release an “alt-country” album. Her followup album, Silk Purse (1970) also emphasized her country and folk roots. Linda Ronstadt, her third album (1971), marked a major turning point in her career, shifting to the rock side and including soft-rock songs by such names as Jackson Browne, Neil Young and Eric Anderson, backed by session musicians who would later go on to form The Eagles.
Don’t Cry Now, released in 1973, followed the same format, but it was 1974’s Heart Like a Wheel that catapulted Ronstadt to enduring stardom. Featuring the hit songs “You’re No Good,” “When Will I Be Loved” and “It Doesn’t Matter Anymore,” the album soared to #1 on the Billboard charts and sold more than two million copies. Her next two albums, Prisoner in Disguise (1975) and Hasten Down the Wind (1976) were nearly as successful, and 1977’s Simple Dreams became the singer’s biggest album ever, holding the #1 position on the charts for five weeks and selling more than three million copies.
Ronstadt has always explored new avenues and new styles of music, and 1978’s Living in the U.S.A. found her tasting the new-wave world with the Elvis Costello-penned “Alison,” scoring another #1 hit. 1980’s Mad Love was a full-fledged new-wave album, featuring three more Costello songs. Shortly thereafter, Ronstadt switched gears again, starring on Broadway in a smash production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance, as well as a movie version of the operetta. Ever experimental, she next teamed with the venerable bandleader and arranger Nelson Riddle to record What’s New (1983), an album of pre-rock standards that was so successful (selling more than 2 million copies) that it spawned two more: Lush Life (1984) and For Sentimental Reasons (1986).
Ronstadt turned back to the world of movies again in 1986, teaming with fellow singer James Ingram to record the contemporary pop song “Somewhere Out There,” the theme song of the animated An American Tail, which rose to #2 on the Billboard singles chart. She next returned to her country roots to record the album Trio in 1987 with Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris – and, that same year, recorded Canciones de Mi Padre (Songs of My Father), an album of traditional Mexican songs saluting her Hispanic heritage that became a surprise hit. Two years later, she was back with the album Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind, which included the single “I Don’t Know Much,” a duet with Aaron Neville that rose to #2 on the pop charts.
Ronstadt’s more recent albums have continued this ecletic trend, including a return to her Hispanic roots (Mas Canciones and Frenesi), a holiday collection (A Merry Little Christmas), more jazz-pop standards (Hummin’ to Myself), and an album of lullabies (Dedicated to the One I Love). Most recently, she teamed with singer Ann Savoy and the Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band to explore Cajun traditional music in the Grammy-nominated CD Adieu, False Heart (2006).
MOUNTAIN LAUREL CENTER 2007 PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
All events will be presented in the Tom Ridge Pavilion.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 4, 8 p.m.
LINDA RONSTADT
Inside reserved seating: $32-$52. Lawn seating: $22.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 11, 11 a.m.
THE LAURIE BERKNER BAND with Susie Lampert & Adam Bernstein
Inside reserved seating: $25-$35. Lawn seating: $18.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 18, 7:30 p.m.
THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND
BOB WEIR AND RATDOG
Inside reserved seating: $45-$65. Lawn seating: $25.
MONDAY, AUGUST 20, 8 p.m.
BOSTON POPS ESPLANADE ORCHESTRA
Keith Lockhart, Conductor
Inside reserved seating: $45-$65. Lawn seating: $25.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 25, 8 p.m.
Neil Berg’s 100 YEARS OF BROADWAY
Inside reserved seating: $25-$45. Lawn seating: $20.
Mountain Laurel Center for the Performing Arts is a nonprofit performing arts center serving the Pocono Mountains and beyond. Its principal venue, the Tom Ridge Pavilion, offers 2,500 covered seats and room under the stars for thousands more on its comfortable lawn. MLCPA is dedicated to serving the region by providing world-class artists and entertainers through an ongoing series of performances and educational programming. For additional information about the Mountain Laurel Center, please call 570-426-2080 or visit mountainlaurelcenter.com.
For ticket prices, ordering, Harry’s Club membership and general information, the public can visit www.mountainlaurelcenter.com or call 570.426.2080.
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Contact
CJ McKenna
Development Manager
Direct: 570.426.2080 x5007
Email: cmckenna@mlcpa.org
Mountain Laurel Center for the Performing Arts
Bushkill Falls Road P.O. Box 1233
Bushkill, PA 18324
Administration: 570.426.2080
Fax: 570.588.5211
mountainlaurelcenter.com
