On This Day in 1975, Linda Ronstadt Released Her Chart-Topping Crossover Cover of This 1960 Everly Brothers Hit

While she has written her own material before, Linda Ronstadt truly shines at making other artists’ work entirely her own. The 11-time Grammy Award winner has seen success in the folk, rock, pop, country and soul genres. On this day (March 25) in 1975, Ronstadt released her cover of the Everly Brothers’ 1960 hit “When Will I Be Loved”. The sibling duo reached the Top 10 with their version. However, Ronstadt outperformed them, peaking atop the Hot Country Songs chart and No. 2 on the Hot 100.

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The Song That Solidified Linda Ronstadt’s Superstar Status

Released in November 1974, Heart Like a Wheel spawned three Top 5 country hits for Linda Ronstadt. Reportedly, Capitol Records had a tough time choosing between “When Will I Be Loved” and the Dee Dee Warrick cover “You’re No Good” as the album’s lead single. Ultimately, they went with “You’re No Good”. This proved to be a solid choice, as it gave Ronstadt her first-ever No. 1 on the Hot 100.

Never one to simply hit copy and paste, Ronstadt reworked the Everly Brothers’ “When Will I Be Loved”, switching the first and fourth verses: I’ve been cheated / Been mistreated / When will I be loved.

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♬ original sound – payolas1

If it weren’t for the year’s biggest hit—”Captain & Tennille’s cover of Love Will Keep Us Together”—Ronstadt very well could have scored two straight chart-toppers on the Hot 100. As it was, Heart like a Wheel earned the singer four Grammy nominations. She took home Best Female Country Vocal Performance for her cover of the Hank Williams hit “I Can’t Help It (If I’m Still in Love with You).”

[RELATED: “Like Trying to Catch Mercury”: Linda Ronstadt on the Classic Top 10 Album That Almost Never Came To Be]

Why She Apologized for Making This Album

Linda Ronstadt’s definitive 1974 album, Heart Like a Wheel, outshined both Led Zeppelin and Elton John on the charts. Additionally, it set the stage for her status as the first female “arena class” rock star. And yet, Ronstadt found herself cringing when she listened to Heart Like a Wheel.

“I just walked around apologizing every single day,” she told Rolling Stone, adding, “I could see that my supposed friends resented me. I went around going, ‘I’m not that good of a singer. . . .’ And I got so self-conscious that when I went onstage, I couldn’t sing at all. It almost made me go crazy . . . I mean, I needed a lot of help, you know.”

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