Nicolette Larson: Inside the Life and Career of 'Lotta Love' Singer | Rolling Stone

"Lotta Love"
Neil Young with Nicolette Larson
1985 Meadowbrook Rochester, Michigan
photo via Jim Munro‎ on Neil Young's Ditch Trilogy | Facebook
(Click photo to enlarge) 

A major article on Nicolette Larson: Inside the Life and Career of 'Lotta Love' Singer | Rolling Stone by Angie Martoccio.

Nicolette Larson is often best remembered for her 1979 cover of Neil Young's "Lotta Love" which was a #1 hit and launched her musical career.

Nicolette Larson: 1952 - 1997

Regarding the song "Lotta Love", Nicolette said "I got that song off a tape I found lying on the floor of Neil's car. I popped it in the tape player and commented on what a great song it was. Neil said: 'You want it? It's yours.' "

We found this article to be one of the most insightful ever into the ways and whims of Neil Young's "shakey style".

From  Rolling Stone article:

" “With the possible exception of [Crazy Horse guitarist] Danny Whitten, Nicolette sang better with Neil than anyone,” says Young archivist and photographer Joel Bernstein. “Nicolette and Danny absolutely were the two best singers with Neil who really understood his singing, his soulfulness, and what to get across. When you hear Comes a Time now, many years later, it pulls at your heartstrings as much as it did the first time you heard it.” "

A Tribute To Nicolette Larson: Lotta Love Concert
Artist & Track Details

From Neil Young biography Shakey, Nicolette Larson remembers how Young greeted her that rainy night. “He said, ‘I guess I’m supposed to meet you, ‘cause I called three people lookin’ for a singer and everyone told me your name.’ Neil’s kinda cosmic about things like that.” 

"Young’s half-sister, Astrid, who sang with Larson and remained friends with her for the rest of her life, agrees: “Where she was at in her career and what she was doing was not really what he was looking for. I think he wanted something that was a little bit more home. [They] were on different roads. Even though they parted ways on a personal level, I think they still had a lot of love and respect for each other. Neil valued her so much on the work that she did with his music that was so incredibly pivotal to the sound at the time.” "

Nicolette Larson

 

Another key singer during this mid-70's period was Linda Ronstadt, who was a close friend of Nicolette Larson.

"Larson moved in with Ronstadt after the breakup, telling Crawdaddy, “One thing that I learned from the whole Neil episode: Good friends are essential. Linda pulled me through so much of that.” Ronstadt tells Rolling Stone she thought the split was for the best: “We go through those things, and they’re a drag. It was hard for her because they sang really well together, but I don’t think it was meant to be. Neil is really sweet, but he’s moody, and I think that was puzzling to Nicolette. He’s a real complicated guy, and he’s got a wonderful heart.” "

Linda Ronstadt & Nicolette Larsen w/ Neil Young
via "American Stars & Bars" sessions 

After Larson's death, an all-star tribute concert was held in February 1998 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, featuring Ronstadt; Crosby, Stills, and Nash; Bonnie Raitt; Jackson Browne; Carole King; and others.

""Young’s absence at the tribute was felt by many, including him. “I just couldn’t do it,” he says. “I just didn’t want to go. Because I have my own memories of her, and I just felt like I couldn’t do it at that time. But now I would like to say how great she was, and what a wonderful person she was.”"

“She was absolutely fearless,” Young tells Rolling Stone of Larson. “She told me, ‘I’m the best one. I can follow you anywhere you want to go. No one can follow you better than I can.’ And she could.”

Full article @ Nicolette Larson: Inside the Life and Career of 'Lotta Love' Singer | Rolling Stone by Angie Martoccio.

 More on RARE PHOTO: Nicolette Larson & Neil Young - 1985.

 More on Linda Ronstadt and Neil Young (Updated).

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Linda Ronstadt and Neil Young (Updated)

UPDATED: 1/5/20 - ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON Saturday, March 02, 2019

Linda Ronstadt 2013 interview on Neil Young via Hudson Union | YouTube.

There is a recent resurgence in interest of Linda Ronstadt's career in light of her recent Kennedy Center Honors and a new documentary 'The Sound of My Voice' (see trailer below).



Linda Ronstadt and Neil Young's careers briefly -- but beautifully and brilliantly -- intersected back in the 1970s and continued until the late 1980's.

Early in her career, Linda Ronstadt sang backup vocals with James Taylor on Neil Young's #1 song "Heart of Gold" from the multi-platinum album "Harvest". Later, Ronstadt opened for Neil Young's 1973 "Time Fades Away" tour.



Linda Ronstadt covered Neil Young's "Birds" (from album After the Goldrush) on her 1972 self titled album. (See video above) Also, Ronstadt, with Nicolette Larson, sang on Neil Young's 1977 album, American Stars 'n Bars, with Linda Ronstadt on the tracks "Old Country Waltz", "Saddle Up the Palomino", "Bite the Bullet", "Hold Back the Tears", and "Hey Babe".

Linda Ronstadt also sang backup vocals on Neil Young's "Hanging on a Limb" and "The Ways of Love" on Freedom. She also sang on the Harvest Moon (Unknown Legend, From Hank to Hendrix, Harvest Moon, War of Man, One of These Days) and Silver & Gold (Red Sun) albums. (Thanks Babbo B. & Jeff G.!)

Linda Ronstadt and Neil Young - early/mid 1970's

In Neil Young's auto-biography "Waging Heavy Peace", he discusses Linda Ronstadt. In an interview with Linda Ronstadt on Hudson Union | YouTube she is asked about working with Neil Young. In this clip, Linda Ronstadt discusses how Neil Young's epilepsy condition impacted him. Her comments are even more heartfelt given Linda's own situation.

From an interview with ultimateclassicrock.com on Ronstadt opening for Neil Young's 1973 "Time Fades Away" tour:

Linda Ronstadt: “Neil and I first met at the Troubadour, I think.

But we did the Johnny Cash Show together and he was recording, so he asked me to come along and sing harmonies. James Taylor was doing the same show and James came along and we recorded on 'Heart of Gold' and 'Old Man' for the Harvest album. It was a great record and friends of mine were playing on it. Kenneth was playing drums, so we were there all night long. We came out the next morning and it was snowing. I remember singing all night long and never getting bored.

I love Neil’s music.

As a club act, we weren't really ready for Madison Square Garden, but we did our best.

Larger venues ended up becoming a persistent issue. They did a pretty good job of trying to make it all work. But in those hard, huge cavernous spaces, it’s hard to do really, really quiet, subtle music. You need a small theater for that.

You know, when you’re finished with your show, you just want to get out of there and go home and do something else. It was good exposure for me. It really helped the record. In time, everyone developed a deep sense of camaraderie, as well.

I stayed every night for his [Neil Young] show, which was almost two hours long. He had great players. He had Kenneth Buttrey for part of that tour playing drums, [and] Tim Drummond.

It was really a great band.”

In Neil Young's auto-biography "Waging Heavy Peace", he writes that Linda Ronstadt once warned her protege Nicolette Larson not to get involved with him because "He doesn’t live in the real world". (Incidentally, Larson ignored Ronstadt’s advice and had her biggest career hit with the song Neil wrote for her “Lotta Love”.)

Linda Ronstadt : Love is a Rose (In Concert - Atlanta 1977)

From Linda Ronstadt on her best albums: “I’ve got a huge jukebox in my brain” by Tom Pinnock:

Linda Ronstadt: There were a lot of great writers around then [early 1970's].

California is like a big lens, people would come from other places and California would focus them. A guy like Bernie would come from Florida, or Glenn would come from Michigan, or Don from Texas, and by the time they got to California the Californian sensibility would put its own little spin on things. Then it would be broadcast to the world.

Neil Young is another one – I still think he’s one of the best guys that ever came out of rock’n’roll, he’s just brilliant.

Linda Ronstadt - Live In Hollywood

Across The Border - Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, Neil Young

Above video of Bruce Springsteen song, by Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, and Neil Young. From the "Western Wall: Tucson Sessions" album.

Linda Ronstadt & Nicolette Larsen w/ Neil Young
American Stars & Bars sessions

Linda Ronstadt and Neil Young [purportedly & unconfirmed] Riding Horses

More on Neil Young's Musical Influences.

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Linda Ronstadt Cover of Neil Young's "Birds"

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Linda Ronstadt covering Neil Young's "Birds" (from album After the Goldrush) on her 1972 self titled album.

Linda Ronstadt, with James Taylor, sang backup on "Heart of Gold" -- Neil Young's only number one hit single in his long musical career. Also, Ronstadt, with Nicolette Larson, sang on Neil Young's 1977 album, American Stars 'n Bars, with Linda Ronstadt on the tracks "Old Country Waltz", "Saddle Up the Palomino", "Bite the Bullet", "Hold Back the Tears", and "Hey Babe".

"Hanging on a Limb" and "The Ways of Love" on Freedom. (Thanks Jeff G.!)

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