Linda Ronstadt • Simple Dreams
Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab/Elektra Entertainment MFSL 1-321
33-RPM 180 g LP
I remember hearing two of the tracks from this album years ago, when I was a kid. The two tracks were Ronstadt’s cover of the Buddy Holly track, It’s So Easy, and Poor Poor Pitiful Me. It was only relatively recently that I discovered that those tracks were from the same album (as a rule I prefer not to buy “best of” collections), so after living with a used copy I found somewhere, I was pleased to discover that Mobile Fidelity had released this remastered version of Simple Dreams.
The album was Ronstadt’s fifth consecutive million-seller, and contains a mixture of light rock and country songs. The sound quality is pretty good, presumably at least partially due to the relatively simple production. Being pressed on thick, silent vinyl doesn’t hurt, either!
The packaging is up to MFSL’s usual high standards: the record itself is stored in one of MFSL’s trademark anti-static sleeves, and the whole shebang is stored in a heavy cardboard gatefold sleeve.
Recommended if you’re a Ronstadt fan; if you’re interested in exploring her work, this album is as good a place as any to start!