SignOnSanDiego.com > Political praise polarizes Linda Ronstadt's fans at Humphrey's (Sunday Performance)

SignOnSanDiego.com > News > Features -- Political praise polarizes Linda Ronstadt's fans at Humphrey's: "Linda Ronstadt, a late-blooming rabble-rouser? The woman with one of the most glorious voices in pop music and several decades' worth of hits, a political agitator at 58?

This 10-time Grammy Award-winner didn't burn a flag or shout out a raging manifesto of sedition during her Sunday night concert at Humphrey's Concerts by the Bay. But by dedicating her encore to someone she hailed as 'a great American patriot and certainly the man of the hour' - 'Fahrenheit 9/11' filmmaker Michael Moore - the Tucson-born singer ignited a fiery response.

Like a musical Moses staging a song-fueled parting of the Red Sea, the veteran star instantly split her sold-out audience of 1,360 in two.
Half the crowd heartily applauded her praise for Moore, the other half booed. In an instant, the intimate outdoor venue on Shelter Island filled with a roar of cheers and jeers that grew to a near-fever pitch.

As Ronstadt started to perform her encore, an impassioned version of the Eagles' 'Desperado,' dozens of concertgoers angrily streamed toward the exits, while others gave her an ovation.

Ronstadt performed each song with a winning combination of soul and finesse, rising from a whisper to a full-bodied vocal swoop and back again. She benefited from the expert backing of her six-man band, three harmony singers, and – on many selections – the crisply amplified Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.

But the most memorable moment came with her brave dedication to Moore. (Her on-stage salute to him Saturday night at the Aladdin hotel-casino in Las Vegas created so much controversy that hotel management barred her from her suite and had her escorted off the property after the show.)

Those who complain that Ronstadt should just sing, rather than express her opinions, forget that all art has a responsibility to inspire and provoke, not just soothe and entertain."


George Varga
Sign On San Diego