Song · Linda Ronstadt
“Blue Bayou” by Linda Ronstadt
From the album Simple Dreams (1977)
“Blue Bayou” by Linda Ronstadt appears on 5 radio countdowns from 4 stations between 2020 and 2026. It was first released in 1977 on the album Simple Dreams. Its best result is #131 on the 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '70s. In the combined RockLists rankings it is #1,432 indie & aaa song of all time and #130 of the '70s.
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Video from YouTube (Linda Ronstadt). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube
Linda Ronstadt took "Blue Bayou", the Roy Orbison and Joe Melson song that Orbison had carried to an international hit back in 1963, and claimed it for keeps on Simple Dreams in 1977: her cover went top 5 and became the song her name is welded to.
Peter Asher produced, Val Garay recorded and mixed, and the band behind her is stacked. Waddy Wachtel plays acoustic guitar, Dan Dugmore adds steel guitar, Kenny Edwards doubles on bass and mandolin, Don Grolnick sits at the electric piano, Steve Forman plays marimba and Rick Marotta handles drums, cowbell and electronic drums. Edwards and Don Henley sing the backing vocals, and Ronstadt's lead rides over all of it, big and aching.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 774 | WXPN | WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time | 2020 |
| 2022 | 131 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '70s | 908 |
| 2023 | 534 | The Colorado Sound | The Colorado Sound Top 800 Songs About Places | 800 |
| 2024 | 262 | WYEP | WYEP Best Songs of the Past 50 Years | 1049 |
| 2026 | 384 | WYEP | WYEP Greatest Songs of All Time | 1180 |
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