Linda Ronstadt Biopic “The Sound of My Voice” On The Way

photo: Henry Diltz

In a curiously under-reported story, country music music icon and now Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Linda Ronstadt is the subject of an upcoming documentary biopic directed by two award-winning filmmakers that will be making its worldwide debut at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 26th. Called The Sound of My Voice, the title is an abbreviation for the song “Still Within The Sound of My Voice” which was written by Jimmy Webb, and was a hit for Glen Campbell in 1987 before Linda Ronstadt recorded it in 1989.

Starring Jackson Browne, Emmylou Harris, Don Henley, Aaron Neville, Dolly Parton, and Bonnie Raitt, The Sound of My Voice is said to include rare photos from Ronstadt’s childhood in Tucson, Arizona, and archival footage from many of her most iconic performances. Linda Ronstadt helps narrate the film, which covers her life up until her retirement from performing due to Parkinson’s Disease in 2011.

The film was directed by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman from Telling Pictures. Epstein has won two Academy Awards for his work directing documentaries previously (Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt, and The Times of Harvey Milk), and Jeffry Friedman was nominated for an Academy Award for the Netflix short documentary End Game. The Linda Ronstadt documentary was produced by James Keach, Michele Farinola, Rob Epstein, and Jeffrey Friedman, and is being distributed by CNN Films, meaning it may air on the cable news network in the future, though no timetable for its release to the public has been revealed.

The 95-minute Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice is scheduled to be premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on Friday, 4/26 at the Stella Artois Theatre, with Sheryl Crow performing after the screening in tribute to Ronstadt. Additional screenings are being held Saturday (4-27), and Monday (4-29) as part of the festival.

Linda Ronstadt began her music career in country music, covering many classic country songs on her early albums, and earning three #1 albums in the genre in the 70’s, as well as a Grammy Award. She also participated in the award-winning supergroup called Trio with Emmylou Harris and Dolly Parton, who both appear in The Sound of My Voice. Trio landed Linda her second country music Grammy in 1987. More information on the new film when it becomes available.

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