Linda Ronstadt’s “Canciones de mi Padre” still holds the record as the biggest-selling Spanish-language album in American history.
Now a new generation of Americans will get to experience the seminal album when Iconic Artists Group re-releases it on vinyl Sept. 8.
The official album release will be part of the HoCo Homecoming Labor Day set for downtown Tucson the weekend of Sept. 1-4.
Throughout the four-day festival, in its 18th and final year, artists will pay tribute to Ronstadt through her music, from her pop and country hits to her catalogue with Nelson Riddle and her Latin influences from her late father Gilbert to the Mariachi music that informed her from childhood.
The re-release comes 35 years after Ronstadt put out “Canciones” in 1987 in a creative move that initially didn’t sit well with her record label, Ronstadt has told the Star and other publications. The album, produced by Ronstadt’s longtime manager Peter Asher and Rubén Fuentes of Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, also featured Mariachi Vargas, Mariachi Los Camperos and Mariachi Los Galleros de Pedro Rey — three of the world’s greatest mariachi.
“This music is like an old friend to me,” Ronstadt said in a prepared statement, “and I hope the new generation of vinyl fans will enjoy it.”
The re-release is part of Ronstadt’s 2021 deal with Iconic, the artist management group formed by entertainment mogul Irving Azoff, to sell her music assets including the masters Ronstadt owns and royalties from the ones she does not, according to a report from Variety. The arrangement creates a partnership with Ronstadt and her team, including her manager John Boylan and her longtime personal assistant Janet Stark to market Ronstadt’s catalog and preserve her 50-year legacy in the digital era, Variety reported.
Iconic and Azoff, the powerful music executive behind the careers of the Eagles, Christina Aguilera, Journey, Van Halen and Bon Jovi, to name a few, also own the catalogues of Cher, Nat King Cole, the Beach Boys, Dean Martin and David Crosby.
The HoCo Fest celebration of Linda Ronstadt kicks off at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 1, when Tucson vocalist Katherine Byrnes joins pianist and longtime Ronstadt collaborator Jeff Haskell to revisit “Linda Ronstadt & Nelson Riddle.” That show is at the Century Room.
The Dusty Chaps, the Tucson country-rock band that started playing in 1969, around the same time Ronstadt left Tucson for California, are teaming up with Linda’s nephew Peter Ronstadt and his musical duo partner Liz Cerepanya to showcase Ronstadt’s country side. That show begins at 5 p.m. on the Congress Plaza stage.
At 2 p.m. Sunday, Orkesta Mendoza joins Brian Lopez, Chetes, Los Cenzontles and Nick and Shawn from DeVotchka for the official “Canciones de mi Padre” re-release concert on the Plaza stage.
For tickets and details, visit hocofest.com.
Photos: Tucson-native, Grammy-winner Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt arrives at Tucson International Airport on Sept. 16, 1976 for a benefit concert for the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.
Linda Ronstadt arrives at Tucson International Airport on Sept. 16, 1976 for a benefit concert for the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.
Linda Ronstadt signs autographs at Tucson's Symphony Cotillion Ball in 1977.
Linda Ronstadt make a face while signing dozens of autographs at Tucson's Symphony Cotillion Ball in 1977.
Linda Ronstadt at Tucson's Symphony Cotillion Ball in 1977.
Linda Ronstadt and the Stone Poneys at Minus One Coffeehouse on 6th Street Nov. 24, 1966.
Linda Ronstadt and the Stone Poneys at Minus One Coffeehouse on 6th Street Nov. 24, 1966.
Ad for a Linda Ronstadt concert at TCC in 1972.
Linda Ronstadt appearance in Tucson in September, 1976.
Linda Ronstadt concert in Tucson, February, 1975.
Linda Ronstadt in concert at the Tucson Community Center on Sept. 16, 1976. The original negatives are missing from the archives, but the photo assignment and contact sheets of all the outtakes remain.
Linda Ronstadt in concert on Feb. 9, 1975 at Tucson Community Center. Note the changed spelling on the original photo request.
Linda Ronstadt in concert at McKale Center on Nov. 2, 1980. The original negatives are missing from the archives, but the contact sheets of all the outtakes remain. Note the comment on the photo assignment.
Linda Ronstadt in concert at Tucson Community Center on Sept. 16, 1976. The original negatives are missing from the archives, but the contact sheets of all the outtakes remain.
"Heart Like a Wheel" by Linda Ronstadt, the album that started it all and went Platinum.
FILE - This Feb. 20, 1977 file photo shows singer Linda Ronstadt is flanked by Ringo Starr, left, and Paul Williams after she was named best pop singer for her "Hasten Down the Wind" at The 19th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. A documentary, “Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice,” will premiere on CNN on New Year's Day. (AP Photo)
FILE - In this 1976 file photo, California Gov. Edmund Brown Jr. and singer Linda Ronstadt stand with members of the Eagles rock group during a concert in Maryland. Brown and Ronstadt dated for several years before going their separate ways. Brown, who was re-elected to the governor's office in 2010, leaves office Jan. 7, 2019, after a record four terms in office, from 1975-1983 and again since 2011. (AP Photo/Karin Vismara, File)
FILE - This Aug. 5, 1979 file photo shows Linda Ronstadt performing during the Lowell George Tribute in Los Angeles. Now at 74, the 10-time Grammy winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has been recognized as a “Legend” at the 33rd annual Hispanic Heritage Awards. (AP Photo)
Singer Linda Ronstadt performs at the Providence Civic Center in Providence, R.I., on Aug. 8, 1978. (AP Photo)
Singer Linda Ronstadt visits British rocker David Bowie backstage during his break in the Broadway play "The Elephant Man," at the Booth Theater in New York, Dec. 5, 1980. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Actor Kevin Kline, left, arrives at the premier of the film version of "The Pirates of Penzance" with his co-star Linda Ronstadt in New York, Feb. 18, 1983. (AP Photo/G. Paul Burnett)
Linda Ronstadt singing at Mariachi Espectacular at Tucson Community Center in on May 9, 1986.
Linda Ronstadt sings to her father, Gilbert, at the Mariachi Espectacular concert to close the Tucson International Mariachi Festival on May 9, 1986.
Linda Ronstadt at the Mariachi Espectacular concert to close the Tucson International Mariachi Festival on May 9, 1986.
Linda Ronstadt (left), Emmylou Harris and Dolly Parton (right) rehearse for the annual Country Music Association awards show at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville on Sunday, Oct. 13, 1986. The trio will perform during the show on Monday. (AP Photo/Dan Loftin)
Linda Ronstadt singing with her father, Gilbert, at Mariachi Espectacular on April 24, 1987 at Tucson Community Center.
Linda Ronstadt in Los Angeles on Dec. 7, 1987.
Linda Ronstadt in Los Angeles on Dec. 7, 1987.
Linda Ronstadt in Los Angeles on Dec. 7, 1987.
Linda Ronstadt with Mariachi Vargas at Centennial Hall on Feb. 11, 1988.
Linda Ronstadt with Mariachi Vargas at Centennial Hall on Feb. 11, 1988.
Linda Ronstadt, center, during an interview about a school exchange program in Arizpe, Mexico, in October, 1989.
Chuck Berry shares the stage with Linda Ronstadt during his 60th birthday celebration at the Fox Theatre in St. Louis, Mo., Oct. 17, 1986. Ronstadt is one of the guests during the concert, which was filmed for a motion picture documentary titled "Chuck Berry Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll." (AP Photo/James A. Finley)
Actor Robert Wagner pictured with singer Linda Ronstadt rehearsing on the set of "Saturday Night Live," Dec. 9, 1989. (AP Photo/Timothy Clary)
Linda Ronstadt, one of the Hall of Fame's first five inductees, brought mariachi music to the masses with two popular LPs.
In the 1924 photo, Federico Ronstadt and his wife, Lupe, pose with their four sons, (from left) Bill, Edward, Gilbert and Alfred. Gilbert is Linda's father.
FILE - Singer Linda Ronstadt appears at the 26th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on Feb. 28, 1984. Now at 74, the 10-time Grammy winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has been recognized as a “Legend” at the 33rd annual Hispanic Heritage Awards. (AP Photo, File)
Grammy winner Linda Ronstadt teams up with veteran arranger/conductor Nelson Riddle to perform classic ballads in Linda Ronstadt in concert with the Nelson Riddle Orchestra. Featuring songs from Ronstadt's hit LP "What's New" in 1998.
Chuy Rodriguez of Los Camperos de Nati Cano's Chuy Rodriguez sings with Linda Ronstadt during the Mariachi Conference Espectacular concert at the Tucson Arena on Friday, April 24, 2009.
Tucsonan Linda Ronstadt performs with Sam Bush at the Berger Performing Arts Center here on June 12, 2002.
Linda Ronstadt performs during the Mariachi Espectacular concert in the Tucson Arena on Friday, April 24, 2009.
This Sept. 17, 2013 photo shows American musician Linda Ronstadt poses in New York to promote the release of her memoir "Simple Dreams."
Tucson native and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Linda Ronstadt talks with Jeff Haskell during the resurrected Sunday Evening Forum at the Fox Theatre, 17 W Congress St. The Grammy award winner and pop and country music icon recently announced she has been diagnosed with Parkinson Disease. In addition to being inducted in the Hall of Fame she was also honored with the National Medal of Arts. The interview series, in which the moderator takes written questions from the audience, only recently returned in March after a 30-year hiatus. Admission was free and no reservation were accepted. The photo was taken on Sunday, October 5, 2014, in Tucson, Ariz.
President Obama shakes hands with musician Linda Ronstadt in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Monday, July 28, 2014, where he presented her with a 2013 National Medal of Arts. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
Front row from left, Susan Pompeo, 2019 Kennedy Center Honorees Michael Tilson Thomas, Linda Ronstadt, Sally Field, Joan Ganz Cooney, Lloyd Morrisett and Kennedy Center President Deborah F. Rutter, back row from left, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, 2019 Kennedy Center Honorees Philip Bailey, Verdine White, Ralph Johnson, characters from "Sesame Street," Abby Cadabby, Big Bird, and Elmo, Kennedy Center Chairman David M. Rubenstein, Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss pose for a group photo following the Kennedy Center Honors State Department Dinner at the State Department on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019, in Washington. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)
Maria Muldaur, left, and Linda Ronstadt onstage at the 19th Annual Movies For Grownups Awards at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel on Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)
Grammy-winning singer and Tucson native Linda Ronstadt stands before a Rock Martinez mural of her as she is honored during the renaming ceremony of the Tucson Music Hall, which became the Linda Ronstadt Music Hall, in 2022.
For years, Linda Ronstadt railed against the razing of the barrio to make way for the Tucson Convention Center. Now her name has become a part of it with the renaming of the Tucson Music Hall to the Linda Ronstadt Music Hall.
Tucson native, Emmy and Grammy winner Linda Ronstadt honored at a ceremony before the International Mariachi Conference's Espectacular Concert with the renaming of the Tucson Music Hall as The Linda Ronstadt Music Hall. Video by Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
Tucson native, Emmy and Grammy winner Linda Ronstadt honored at a ceremony before the International Mariachi Conference's Espectacular Concert with the renaming of the Tucson Music Hall as The Linda Ronstadt Music Hall. Video by Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star
