The record was produced by Elliot Mazer. I was hired to arrange and played the fender bass and the electric harpsichord. Pete Wade played the Finger style acoustic guitar, Buddy Spicker played the two violin parts and Weldon Myrick played a fuzz cello. The track was recorded with Linda's vocal, my bass and Pete's guitar. We did three takes. Later the same day we overdubbed the violins and Weldon's steel with my Harpsichord part. The record was recorded at 10AM on a Saturday morning at Woodland Sound Studio Nashville. NP
That’s great. The production and mix stood out to me right away. And as a bassist, love the tone and how it’s driving but back in the mix. Just curious if you went DI? (If you remember) - I’m always after those vintage tones :)
Thank you for your insight and contribution to music. I play bass and am learning to play this song because of The Last of Us. I have a Linda Ronstadt vinyl, and your name is in the credits for harpsichord and bass. I thought it was cool how one guy played both. Now seeing your comment in a UA-cam video about this masterpiece just warms my heart.
I'm also obsessed with Linda there are some cds that she put out in the latter part of her career that if you don't have them you should check out Frenesi an orchestra style Cuban album this is not one of the Mexican ones Winter Light where she does several genres of music on one cd and Hummin to Myself a jazz cd that she did for the legendary Verve record label this is not one of the Nelson Riddle sessions this is Linda with about four or five superb jazz musicians and finally a cd entitled We Ran a slightly dark pop rock cd I'm not a Linda Ronstadt fan I'm a Linda Ronstadt FANATIC!!!
A superb deconstruction of one of the greatest songs ever written and sung (by Linda). Thank you Seth for adding colour, wisdom and insight to something already beyond sublime
@Genevieve Schorr I always heard from people that worked with her that she was very professional but very personable at the same time how was your experience with her
Authentic heartbreak in RONSTADT's pipes. Especially when she sang live. Robust power and unadorned sorrow. A songwriter's champion and the musicians- the good, the bad and the very very stoned were devoted to her. Linda never bathed in her own reflection - her voice was the beauty. Good lord that voice... Thank you Seth, for your gallant assist in exposing this performance.
On one of the Stone Poneys albums in the list of musicians and the instruments they play it says “Linda Ronstadt: pain and suffering.” And her voice is the ultimate instrument of those emotions.
@curtisshaw9317 What an erudite and deeply honest tribute to Linda. You’ve encapsulated her essence beautifully. Yes, thanks much to you Seth, for highlighting this long-ago gem, and breaking it down…anew
My mother wore out three 8-track tapes with this song on it. She wore her hair like Dolly and drove a silver Trans-am and drank like a fish. The year was 1978 and this is and will always be my song to my mother. She despised me for being and at 59 with a lot of hard work I can say it was her loss and yes it has been and will always be a long, long time. 🕊💜☮🤍
This makes me sad. Sad that, as a music lover with no knowledge of the mechanics behind the music, I can never appreciate a song the way Seth can. Unless, of course, he makes more of these videos, which open a whole new world of understanding for me. Please make more, Seth!
If you put “Seth Rudetsky deconstructs” into the search for UA-cam, you will find a few similar videos he did for the Playbill channel. I agree that these are great videos, and hope he will make more on this channel.
I adore Linda and have everything she's recorded I understand how you feel about the music I'm also very much into what's behind the music or the mechanics as you call it.good music is like good food when you know the manner in which its prepared and the ingredients you not only.enjoy it you appreciate it
@bojack40 music does make people feel but when you know the details you can appreciate it more the same way if you eat a delicious healthy gourmet meal your knowledge of the preparation and the ingredients at least for me make it a much more enjoyable experience to each his own everyone is different
I was a teenager when this song first came out - a socially awkward, emotionally wounded boy who was living through that same scenario. The song perfectly expressed what I was feeling. It broke my heart, but at the same time, it was good to hear it said so beautifully by someone else and know that I wasn't alone. Ms. Ronstadt will never know it, but that song helped me cope when nothing else could. God bless her!
I totally feel the same way that Linda Ronstadt helped me survive my adolescence because it was a dark time and thank God her voice reached me, because I heard her empathy and understanding, and I was consoled by it
I am a huge Linda Ronstadt fan, and this was my favorite of her songs. I can't listen to it without crying because at the time it came out, I was in just such a relationship. He finally told me he loved me while he was telling me I wasn't good enough for him and his family would never accept me. I mourned for years over him, but years later, when he finally wanted me, I didn't want him anymore. This is the saddest song on earth, it's the death of hope, of the belief in love.
I've always loved this song and would listen to it for hours without stopping. The reason for this was Linda's performance. No one could ever do it better. Not ever.
I have loved this song for years too and was playing it obsessively just last night, driving my husband nuts. I wanted to hear all the different versions. He doesn’t like to repeat songs.. I’m still listening to it today 😄
A hauntingly beautiful beautifully sung song. I’m glad Linda’s voice recorded this and not any other because this song needed to sound exactly like this.
Another piece of this for me, as a straight guy about her age: Willie Nelson said, "There are two kinds of men in this world. Those with a crush on Linda Ronstadt and those who never heard of her." The idea that somebody could resist her breaks my brain!
@@MizCriz46 A web search shows my version several times, but not yours. And mine makes more sense: I never met LR,, but I certainly had a crush on her!
OMG Seth, I was RAISED on this song! I’ve loved it since the age of six. And… “Deceptive Cadence!?!” There’s a NAME for that? Who KNEW!? You‘ve done a real mitzvah in explaining it & naming it. What a gift to finally be able to put a legit music term to that one turn in the song I’ve always been obsessed with, but didn’t have words for. I think Deceptive Cadence should be renamed in your honor as “DeSETHptive Cadence.” PS You should’ve TOTALLY been allowed to be sassy in the Conservatory!
MARY!!!! This is such an amazing post!!! Thank you!! I love the re-naming idea!!! AND Nicole Parker thinks “Deceptive Cadence” should also be a Drag name!
What’s most amazing about Linda’s performance is that she can make us believe there is actually a straight male who is NOT attracted to her! Pure artistry ❤
Ha, that's the truth. Most young Boomer and Generation X men consider Linda their first crush. Remember when Obama said he had a crush on her? She's awesome then and now. Brilliant woman
It’s Friday night in a frigid NYC weather, home from work and happy. Then I watched this deconstruction and now, I’m sad and heart broken in gloomy and cold NYC weather. Thank you Seth.
Thank you Epet, I played the bass as well as the harpsichord and Buddy Spicher played the two violin parts with Weldon Myrick's fuzz cello part on the steel guitar. Norbert Putnam
Seth---I believe that is a harpsichord in "Long, Long Time." I wish I could tell all of you what it was like to hear Linda sing this live back in the 70s. It was often the only time when she would strap on a guitar and play. But her voice used to slice through you at the end. I think I matured emotionally every time I heard this song or saw her sing it live. One of the ten greatest ballads of the entire rock era. In 1996, Linda did a sort of retrospective tour , and at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby, PA she sang Long, Long Time live for the first time in decades.
@@rhymeswithorange6092 There is also a harpsichord, which was played by Norbert Putnam. But apparently the steel pedal player played it through some kind of fuzz box. Anyway, in that section, it sounds more like harpsichord.
So so glad the end of the song was addressed. Even as a kid and heard this song for the time, somehow I knew of longing and yearning for an unrequited love. And even though at the time I wasn’t equipped with the vocabulary to express how I felt about the end of the song; I can say now the way it ends on that chord is genius because the whole song is about longing. And the thing about longing is that there is No Closure. There never will be. There is no closure to the last chord. That’s longing. Yet somehow as young as I was I understood that.
Yes, you did because on an emotional level, children can understand very deep things. They may not have the words for it, but what hits us at the heart, feeling or gut level is understood, young, or old. It’s understood as important, even sacred, and I appreciate your contribution. as a young child I also understood these things and I think also, if you developed a deep empathy as a child, I think you’re more likely to feel and effected by such emotions at deeper levels, for good, and for bad.
I adore this song . And adore Linda Ronstadt. Thank you for your observations. She was such a talented singer. Such a shame she was robbed of her voice. Thank goodness we have her recordings.
As a gay man, this song resonates so deep for me. Falling for the straight guy who can never/will never reciprocate. Yet you allow yourself to live in the fantasy; create scenarios and conjure visions of a great romance, but it's all in vain. And each time you do, it only hurts more. Ugh, such a devastatingly beautiful song!
I'm doing this right now! Well, we're both straight but still devastating. I'm cursed with a very creative fantasy imagination. The great romance that might have been never will. Came here to cry and feel sorry for myself. Sometimes that's all there is to do.
It was kind of weird for a 15-year-old boy to listen to Linda Ronstadt albums by himself in his bedroom, but I did for several years, and she probably helped me keep my sanity. Somehow I felt like she knew my sadness and my torment and my loneliness, and I could feel hers and I could cry. Linda Ronstadt has been walking with me in my life since I was 12 years old. I appreciate her so much.
Thank you Seth. You are a riot, but for real, I have loved this song ever since it first came out. It struck a chord with the devastating loneliness I was destined to live with and not understanding why. I know now. I've followed Linda all these years and admired all the exceptional work she has accomplished, An American Tale, Casciones me Padre, ect. Her voice is gone now, yet she continues to be gracious and oh so sweet. A lovely human being🙂
Linda’s voice brings out emotion of the lyrics in such a beautiful way. Silk Purse was the first album by her that I bought because I’d heard her sing Long Long Time on a television show in 1970. I appreciate and love her early music which had a country feel to it. Simple yet beautiful melodies with her gorgeous vocals on top of it.
I remember when this came out. I was very young, very much in love with a wrong, bad man and the song devastated me. I couldn't listen to it without sobbing my wounded soul to destruction. This is what I thought love was. I am so, SO glad I know differently now. But Linda Ronstadt had my heart. That was it. She still does because she sings these songs with her whole being.
I've loved this piece for a long,long time(no pun intended). It has a wonderful melody and the strings are just beautiful. And lastly,Ronstadt's voice is incomparable. Grazie mille Seth for doing your usual great job deconstructing and explaining the many facets of the song.Thanks for sharing it.
Seth, I want to tell you how much I appreciate your "deconstructing" these pieces of music. I'm a singer, but seem to always learn something new every time I tune in. Wonderful insights. Thanks.
I'm a long-time Linda fan, but you brought an amazing perspective to the song that I never even thought about. As a non-musician, I feel these things from a song, but I don't know why the music does it, and now, for this song, I know. And the ending that never ends is really the best part. Thank you for pointing it out.
I'm so glad you brought up "What a Fool Believes" because it has such a similar message. I love Linda, I love this song. What was so amazing is she writes in her autobiography how she thought her voice wasn't so great when she sang this song, how much she had to learn. One of my all time favorite artists and my favorite female pop singer.
"on my own' from les miserable captures this sentiment complete with third verse climax and acceptance. "Without him, I feel his arms around me." Eponine knows the drill but she doesn't have much else to look forward to. She prefers to live with the fantasy.
I keep coming back to this because I love this song so much and Linda's voice is devastating on it. What puts it over the top is your spot on analysis of it. You break it down in a way that makes me appreciate it even more. Well done, Sir!
This was definitely on my sad gay boy playlist as a kid. Except we didn't have playlists back then, so it was just me manually playing it over and over on a record player.
This was a marvelous breakdown - it actually put a voice to all the elements of this song that I’ve always appreciated but could never define (I’m not a musician). This song has literally haunted me since 1971. I was only 10 at the time but it turned into a premonition of something that I would later go through at 45. The song is masterful and her performance is LEGENDARY. God how I miss Linda Ronstadt
Thank you for suggesting this song for the last of us, because this is just the perfect song for that episode. I wouldn't know this amazingly heartbreaking song if not for your suggestion to the creator of the show
Thank you for this video, I'm 52 and heard this sad song all my life, i'm still obsessed with Linda Ronstadt. Her voice and gift are rare. This is my breakup song, but she never had the relationship in this song that I've had. Pure emotion.
"I never drew..one response from you..." Gorgeous instrumentals in this song. I taught myself to sing listening to alot of Ronstadt. Great, great vocals, learned and inherent.
I remember hearing this song on the radio when I was 10 years old. I remember exactly where I was and I just stopped in my tracks and listened. I didn’t know exactly what was being said but knew enough to know she was talking about being in love with someone who basically didn’t know she even existed. The way she described things and just the emotions was overwhelming. I instantly fell in love with the song and her way of delivering it. It’s is still my favorite Linda Ronstadt song and definitely one of my top songs of all time and I’m almost 66. It’s just such a beautiful song verbally, emotionally and musically.
I finally located the person responsible for me bawling over a song about unrequited love! Linda Ronstadt's brilliant performance is revelatory. I heard Craig Mazin say how his brilliant friend Seth Rudetsky (You!) gave him "Long Long Time". "Long Long Time" is amazingly written/performed; full of longing it's Bill's story before Frank. Bill can't stand Frank playing it, not just badly, but like a jaunty jig. Bill's "No, No, Not This Song" tells us so much. A Linda Ronstadt song about unrequited love is precious to Bill; Bill doesn't need the book when he plays/sings, he knows it by heart. Frank's subtle facial expressions speak volumes; he sees into Bill's soul. Bill presents himself as a stereotype; a gun-toting misanthrope. Reality is far more complicated. Bill is highly cultured, and he's an incurable romantic who always believed in true love yet endured a life without it. Bill’s kindred spirit is a woman, Linda Ronstadt, singing this song. If I didn't know better I'd think I'd watched a brilliant Jane Austen adaptation set to breathtaking vocals; Ronstadt's pure voice recorded 53 years ago, long before Auto-Tune. This is the most beautiful love story I've seen in years with the most perfect theme song by Ronstadt yet it's a bottle-episode from a series about a zombie apocalypse! How crazy is that? That remarkable Linda Ronstadt song, so full of longing, perfectly embodies the story. This deserves all the awards; it’s a masterpiece, thanks for making it possible.
I was in the navy boot camp in San Diego, Ca in Aug 1970 for training. There was a small radio in our barracks tuned in with local radio station and holy cow, kept playing this song every hour or so. Joined the navy from the Philippines and never heard of Linda Ronstadt until then. Fifty years later, this song is still on top of my favorites. Cheers
I'm sitting here typing through the waterworks this song is bringing out in me. I lost the love of my life unexpectedly last September and this song brings out the longing and pain I feel due to her absence. I've been a fan of Linda since I was 12 in the 1970s. She's truly one of the great American singers of not just her generation but I think of the past century. What I always loved about Linda was that she was about the music, not about showcasing her vocal talents like it is with some of today's diva's.
The lyrics cut through my soul. This song defined a 4 yr relationship I had. Sob. I'm fine. Love a 70s scoop. I hope it's not a long, long time before you bring your show back to Carmel IN. Brava
Well done! Norbert Putnam did the arrangement and was the conductor on "Long Long Time". Also Weldon Myrick is playing a lap steel guitar, which is different from a regular steel guitar. That's why it has more of a plucking (or plinking) sound than a regular steel guitar.
I've been performing this song for 153 -- no, sorry, 154 -- years now, seems like. After watching this, I realize I've never performed it the way it should be. Thank you for this superlative analysis and appreciation. Love listening to you and Christine Pedi on On Broadway, by the way.
That last verse reminds me of Sara Bareille's lyric "Nothing could be worse than the risk of losing what I don't have now" which I also find beautifully devasting.
The sheer and ingenious combination of her voice and the music literally has me crying every time I hear it. I don't care where I am or who I'm with. And I can relate.
I learned so much from your deconstruction of this amazing song that was sung by one of my favorite voices, Ms Linda. 💕 Thank you for giving us this perspective. 💓
Seth, I LOVE how you delved into this song. What is SO amazing is Linda is still so young when she recorded this; before she developed her 'full' voice which we all experienced in the 80's and 90's. How about a special Grammy for Linda and Gary Wright just for this musical experience.... so remarkable, and at the time, unheralded!
We can never thank you enough for the song recommendation Seth! Not only did you give them the title of the episode; the lyrics perfectly describe Bill's situation when we hear him playing it for Frank, as well as what we can expect with Joel and Ellie's relationship when we hear it again as they drive away.
I absolutely LOOOOOVE a deceptive cadence!!!! I grew up loving 80’s/90’s country and then Broadway (crazy leap- right?!🤪) and the one in this song is DELICIOUS!!! ❤️🫶🏼🥰
I've loved this song since youth, and am now even more enamored with it! Thanks for a deeper understanding of the genius writing, production and performance of this great piece sung by the incredible Linda Ronstadt.
Fantastic look at Linda Ronstadt and this great song! I have never heard a steel guitar sound like that, though. I think you were right the first time! I really think it has to be a harpsichord or a clavinet set for a harpsichord sound. But I've just spent the last 30 minutes trying to verify the personnel and instrumentation on the track and have had no luck. But here is a link to what Weldon Myrick sounded like, with his classic pedal steel guitar sound. It is nothing like the sound on "Long, Long Time." ua-cam.com/video/6cV5uptpPGQ/v-deo.html
I also agree. I love Seth’s deconstructions and always learn something new musically from them. But having grown up in Hawaii, where ‘steel’ guitar is an intrinsic element of Hawaiian music, I am pretty sure that what is identified as steel guitar in the analysis is, in fact, a harpsichord or electronic keyboard of some sort. Perhaps Seth can reach out to Ms. Ronstadt for clarification?
@@grantmatthews3744 See Epet 513's comment below, confirming our suspicions. It says, in part: "Fyi, Song was arranged by Norman Putnam (who's also credited as harpsichord and bass player) and Elliot F. Mazer per Linda Ronstadt Greatest Hits." I have found general credits for the Greatest Hits album, but nothing track-specific. But the notes I found did list Norbert Putnam as playing harpsichord, and I'm sure that's what we're hearing on "Long, Long Time." 🙂
Bless you for recommending this song to Craig. You should know I've been listening to "Long Long Time" on repeat for this past week and have been crying my eyes out nonstop.
This is from Norbert Putnum the arranger for Long Long Time. We recorded the track with my bass and Pete Wades acoustic guitar as Linda did the vocal. We only did two or three takes. Later that afternoon I added violin, Buddy played two parts. We then added Weldon Myricks fuzz-cello steel guitar and I added the electronic harpsichord. I'm not really a keyboard guy . . but did the best I could. Ha!
Seth, I do appreciate you breaking this song down. I knew I was hearing something amazing lyrically and musically when I first heard the song when it first came out but besides the hauntingly beautiful and deep emotional sound I could never figure out why I was so intrigued with the song, and still am today. Thank you.
Interesting how each generation seems to have it's own version of love's heartbreak. Mine was "Long, Long Time", then came "I Will Survive", and now we have "Flowers". And we all seem to have grown stronger and more independent through the hurt. Beautiful analysis - loved it. Thank you.
I love this song. I first heard it when it was originally released. It is so sad that her Progressive supranuclear palsy (originally diagnosed as Parkinsons) stopped her singing.
I've watched this 6 times now and it keeps getting better. I know just enough music theory to know how good this guy is. Always loved Ronstadt, but now I know why.
I love your analysis! This song was pure genius! I graduated from high school in 1970 when this song came out. I hadn't heard it in years until it came up the other day and I remembered how well it spoke to the turbulent feelings I felt. Did it ever bring back memories! Linda Ronstadt was amazing with this song - very masterfully done (both you and her)!
Seth? Seth Rudeski? Does your genius, your humanity know no end? My beautiful friend…………..the world is a better place for your passion, musical knowledge, and humanity. I”m a 47 year old elementary school teacher/ mother of two teenagers. I have brought them up to be good people with a better than passing knowledge of musical theory and musical theater. They know the the musical classics, Folk Classics, and classics of the decades. I feel a bit of a failure as a mum that they had never heard this Linda Rondsadt classic ( which I remind perfectly from my upbringing for my hippie patents.) But when they heard it last Sunday, my son 18 and any daughter, 16, adjourned to the music room to master this song on their guitars. Thank you for breathing life into this beautiful ballad and making it parts of the musical conversation of today.. SETH,,,,,,,as a side note……..when I get home from work (teaching wonderful and weird 4th grade students), my kids always know when I am home when start singing your charming rendition of “Oh my feet, my poor poor feet…..” Thank you for being a part of our family! 😘
The record was produced by Elliot Mazer. I was hired to arrange and played the fender bass and the electric harpsichord. Pete Wade played the Finger style acoustic guitar, Buddy Spicker played the two violin parts and Weldon Myrick played a fuzz cello. The track was recorded with Linda's vocal, my bass and Pete's guitar. We did three takes. Later the same day we overdubbed the violins and Weldon's steel with my Harpsichord part. The record was recorded at 10AM on a Saturday morning at Woodland Sound Studio Nashville. NP
Thanks for the information and giving everyone who deserved it - credit.
thanks, you did an amazing job!
That’s great. The production and mix stood out to me right away. And as a bassist, love the tone and how it’s driving but back in the mix. Just curious if you went DI? (If you remember) - I’m always after those vintage tones :)
Thank you for your insight and contribution to music. I play bass and am learning to play this song because of The Last of Us. I have a Linda Ronstadt vinyl, and your name is in the credits for harpsichord and bass. I thought it was cool how one guy played both. Now seeing your comment in a UA-cam video about this masterpiece just warms my heart.
Thanks for this information. What a privilege to be part of this recording...
I have been so obsessed with this song, and Linda Ronstadt my entire life. Glad she and the song are getting some well deserved love.
I'm also obsessed with Linda there are some cds that she put out in the latter part of her career that if you don't have them you should check out Frenesi an orchestra style Cuban album this is not one of the Mexican ones Winter Light where she does several genres of music on one cd and Hummin to Myself a jazz cd that she did for the legendary Verve record label this is not one of the Nelson Riddle sessions this is Linda with about four or five superb jazz musicians and finally a cd entitled We Ran a slightly dark pop rock cd I'm not a Linda Ronstadt fan I'm a Linda Ronstadt FANATIC!!!
I like her but damn! All she did was cover songs.. The majority of her songs weren't hers 😅
cant believe it was you who recommended this song!!! you’re the reason millions of people sobbed last sunday lol
good joke
Great comments, but that is not a steel guitar. She has steel guitar on some of her more country songs, but this ounds like a harpsichord.
Very nice, less of a "deconstruction" than a tribute. I only discovered this gorgeous thing in my old age but think i'm going to love it for . . .
A superb deconstruction of one of the greatest songs ever written and sung (by Linda). Thank you Seth for adding colour, wisdom and insight to something already beyond sublime
Yay for Linda ! I was here 80s wardrobe stylist ❤️ Best boss ever.
She had a great wardrobe for the Mad Love and Get Closer tours, that's for sure!
@@ez8546 I did Get Closer and Nelson Riddle.
I've only heard good stories about Linda I've never heard about her being a difficult DIVA
@Genevieve Schorr I always heard from people that worked with her that she was very professional but very personable at the same time how was your experience with her
Authentic heartbreak in RONSTADT's pipes. Especially when she sang live. Robust power and unadorned sorrow. A songwriter's champion and the musicians- the good, the bad and the very very stoned were devoted to her. Linda never bathed in her own reflection - her voice was the beauty. Good lord that voice... Thank you Seth, for your gallant assist in exposing this performance.
And now her Parkinson's robbing her of that voice--the heartbreak really is for a long, long time.
Linda received her first grammy nomination for pop female vocal for this haunting and beautiful song
I love the way Linda sings her heart out
On one of the Stone Poneys albums in the list of musicians and the instruments they play it says “Linda Ronstadt: pain and suffering.” And her voice is the ultimate instrument of those emotions.
@curtisshaw9317 What an erudite and deeply honest tribute to Linda. You’ve encapsulated her essence beautifully.
Yes, thanks much to you Seth, for highlighting this long-ago gem, and breaking it down…anew
My mother wore out three 8-track tapes with this song on it. She wore her hair like Dolly and drove a silver Trans-am and drank like a fish. The year was 1978 and this is and will always be my song to my mother. She despised me for being and at 59 with a lot of hard work I can say it was her loss and yes it has been and will always be a long, long time.
🕊💜☮🤍
This makes me sad. Sad that, as a music lover with no knowledge of the mechanics behind the music, I can never appreciate a song the way Seth can. Unless, of course, he makes more of these videos, which open a whole new world of understanding for me. Please make more, Seth!
Seth is a friggen genius
If you put “Seth Rudetsky deconstructs” into the search for UA-cam, you will find a few similar videos he did for the Playbill channel. I agree that these are great videos, and hope he will make more on this channel.
Rubbish, music makes people feel, irrespective of their understanding of the mechanics.
I adore Linda and have everything she's recorded I understand how you feel about the music I'm also very much into what's behind the music or the mechanics as you call it.good music is like good food when you know the manner in which its prepared and the ingredients you not only.enjoy it you appreciate it
@bojack40 music does make people feel but when you know the details you can appreciate it more the same way if you eat a delicious healthy gourmet meal your knowledge of the preparation and the ingredients at least for me make it a much more enjoyable experience to each his own everyone is different
I was a teenager when this song first came out - a socially awkward, emotionally wounded boy who was living through that same scenario. The song perfectly expressed what I was feeling. It broke my heart, but at the same time, it was good to hear it said so beautifully by someone else and know that I wasn't alone. Ms. Ronstadt will never know it, but that song helped me cope when nothing else could. God bless her!
I totally feel the same way that Linda Ronstadt helped me survive my adolescence because it was a dark time and thank God her voice reached me, because I heard her empathy and understanding, and I was consoled by it
I am a huge Linda Ronstadt fan, and this was my favorite of her songs. I can't listen to it without crying because at the time it came out, I was in just such a relationship. He finally told me he loved me while he was telling me I wasn't good enough for him and his family would never accept me. I mourned for years over him, but years later, when he finally wanted me, I didn't want him anymore. This is the saddest song on earth, it's the death of hope, of the belief in love.
It’s amazing how a song thats over 50 years old can catch people’s attention again especially those under 20. This song deserves it.
I've always loved this song and would listen to it for hours without stopping. The reason for this was Linda's performance. No one could ever do it better. Not ever.
I have loved this song for years too and was playing it obsessively just last night, driving my husband nuts. I wanted to hear all the different versions. He doesn’t like to repeat songs.. I’m still listening to it today 😄
@@krasnoz6 Try listening to Mindy McCready’s version. She did a great job on it.
A hauntingly beautiful beautifully sung song. I’m glad Linda’s voice recorded this and not any other because this song needed to sound exactly like this.
Another piece of this for me, as a straight guy about her age: Willie Nelson said, "There are two kinds of men in this world. Those with a crush on Linda Ronstadt and those who never heard of her." The idea that somebody could resist her breaks my brain!
I had a crush on you sugar pie ..all day long..you caught my eye..
Slight correction - "those who never met her."
@@MizCriz46 A web search shows my version several times, but not yours. And mine makes more sense: I never met LR,, but I certainly had a crush on her!
OMG Seth, I was RAISED on this song! I’ve loved it since the age of six. And… “Deceptive Cadence!?!” There’s a NAME for that? Who KNEW!? You‘ve done a real mitzvah in explaining it & naming it. What a gift to finally be able to put a legit music term to that one turn in the song I’ve always been obsessed with, but didn’t have words for. I think Deceptive Cadence should be renamed in your honor as “DeSETHptive Cadence.”
PS You should’ve TOTALLY been allowed to be sassy in the Conservatory!
MARY!!!! This is such an amazing post!!! Thank you!! I love the re-naming idea!!! AND Nicole Parker thinks “Deceptive Cadence” should also be a Drag name!
You can be sassy all you want...but then you would never learn anything...
What’s most amazing about Linda’s performance is that she can make us believe there is actually a straight male who is NOT attracted to her! Pure artistry ❤
Ha, that's the truth. Most young Boomer and Generation X men consider Linda their first crush. Remember when Obama said he had a crush on her? She's awesome then and now. Brilliant woman
Gawd I was infatuated with her! But as much as I tried, she never loved me back. (But I really did have a serious crush on her 😊)
It’s Friday night in a frigid NYC weather, home from work and happy.
Then I watched this deconstruction and now, I’m sad and heart broken in gloomy and cold NYC weather.
Thank you Seth.
This song has always given me goosebumps for its beauty and anguish. Thanks so much for educating me on how technically brilliant it is.
Linda Ronstadt is truly the most brilliant American vocalist
I adore Linda I've always felt she was a bit underrated it took them forever to put her in the rock and roll hall of fame I'll never understand that
the song (and album) was produced by Elliot Mazer, who was recommended to Linda by Janis Joplin
Seth, YOU are what the world needs right now. Thank you for your humor, sensitivity and sharing your knowledge. Can't get enough.
Fyi, Song was arranged by Norman Putnam (who's also credited as harpsichord and bass player) and Elliot F. Mazer per Linda Ronstadt Greatest Hits.
@Epet 513, Thank you for the clarification. #SITHCoreFam.
Thank you Epet, I played the bass as well as the harpsichord and Buddy Spicher played the two violin parts with Weldon Myrick's fuzz cello part on the steel guitar. Norbert Putnam
@@norbertputnam598 Cool!
Seth---I believe that is a harpsichord in "Long, Long Time." I wish I could tell all of you what it was like to hear Linda sing this live back in the 70s. It was often the only time when she would strap on a guitar and play. But her voice used to slice through you at the end. I think I matured emotionally every time I heard this song or saw her sing it live. One of the ten greatest ballads of the entire rock era. In 1996, Linda did a sort of retrospective tour , and at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby, PA she sang Long, Long Time live for the first time in decades.
It was a steel guitar. It was played by Weldon Myrick
@@rhymeswithorange6092 I found the liner notes to the album, and it says harpsichord played by Norbert Putnam.
@@rhymeswithorange6092 It clearly is a harpsichord.
@@rhymeswithorange6092 There is also a harpsichord, which was played by Norbert Putnam. But apparently the steel pedal player played it through some kind of fuzz box. Anyway, in that section, it sounds more like harpsichord.
Linda can sing anything! Beautiful.
So so glad the end of the song was addressed. Even as a kid and heard this song for the time, somehow I knew of longing and yearning for an unrequited love. And even though at the time I wasn’t equipped with the vocabulary to express how I felt about the end of the song; I can say now the way it ends on that chord is genius because the whole song is about longing. And the thing about longing is that there is No Closure. There never will be. There is no closure to the last chord. That’s longing. Yet somehow as young as I was I understood that.
How profound
Yes, you did because on an emotional level, children can understand very deep things. They may not have the words for it, but what hits us at the heart, feeling or gut level is understood, young, or old. It’s understood as important, even sacred, and I appreciate your contribution. as a young child I also understood these things and I think also, if you developed a deep empathy as a child, I think you’re more likely to feel and effected by such emotions at deeper levels, for good, and for bad.
I adore this song . And adore Linda Ronstadt. Thank you for your observations. She was such a talented singer. Such a shame she was robbed of her voice. Thank goodness we have her recordings.
As a gay man, this song resonates so deep for me. Falling for the straight guy who can never/will never reciprocate. Yet you allow yourself to live in the fantasy; create scenarios and conjure visions of a great romance, but it's all in vain. And each time you do, it only hurts more. Ugh, such a devastatingly beautiful song!
I'm doing this right now! Well, we're both straight but still devastating. I'm cursed with a very creative fantasy imagination. The great romance that might have been never will. Came here to cry and feel sorry for myself. Sometimes that's all there is to do.
I hear you. I’ve been there and am desperately trying not to repeat old behaviours again.
It was kind of weird for a 15-year-old boy to listen to Linda Ronstadt albums by himself in his bedroom, but I did for several years, and she probably helped me keep my sanity. Somehow I felt like she knew my sadness and my torment and my loneliness, and I could feel hers and I could cry. Linda Ronstadt has been walking with me in my life since I was 12 years old. I appreciate her so much.
I imagine myself driving away far, far away after realizing it'll never come true. And this song is playing on the radio, and it's sunset outside. 😢
This is a thoroughly delightful analysis of a truly unbelievable song. Thank you for helping millions of us rediscover it!
Thank you Seth. You are a riot, but for real, I have loved this song ever since it first came out. It struck a chord with the devastating loneliness I was destined to live with and not understanding why. I know now.
I've followed Linda all these years and admired all the exceptional work she has accomplished, An American Tale, Casciones me Padre, ect.
Her voice is gone now, yet she continues to be gracious and oh so sweet. A lovely human being🙂
Linda’s voice brings out emotion of the lyrics in such a beautiful way. Silk Purse was the first album by her that I bought because I’d heard her sing Long Long Time on a television show in 1970. I appreciate and love her early music which had a country feel to it. Simple yet beautiful melodies with her gorgeous vocals on top of it.
I’m obsessed with you and now obsessed with this song since “Last of Us.” So well written and performed. 😢❤
Seth, you continue to amaze me with your detailed and educational deconstructions. I have loved this song for years-now I love it more. Thank you!!
I remember when this came out. I was very young, very much in love with a wrong, bad man and the song devastated me. I couldn't listen to it without sobbing my wounded soul to destruction. This is what I thought love was. I am so, SO glad I know differently now. But Linda Ronstadt had my heart. That was it. She still does because she sings these songs with her whole being.
Love your detailed breakdown, energy, backstory and education of the song. Loved the format. Please do more of these in the future. Thank you.
I've loved this piece for a long,long time(no pun intended). It has a wonderful melody and the strings are just beautiful. And lastly,Ronstadt's voice is incomparable. Grazie mille Seth for doing your usual great job deconstructing and explaining the many facets of the song.Thanks for sharing it.
Seth, I want to tell you how much I appreciate your "deconstructing" these pieces of music. I'm a singer, but seem to always learn something new every time I tune in. Wonderful insights. Thanks.
I'm a long-time Linda fan, but you brought an amazing perspective to the song that I never even thought about. As a non-musician, I feel these things from a song, but I don't know why the music does it, and now, for this song, I know. And the ending that never ends is really the best part. Thank you for pointing it out.
I've been a Linda Ronstadt fan for fifty six years. I can sing everything she ever sang. She's my favorite and long, long time is one of my favorites.
Oh how I love this. Seth, you are truly a-MAH-zing!
Linda Rondstadt has a voice with TEARS in it! A musical genius imo
I'm so glad you brought up "What a Fool Believes" because it has such a similar message. I love Linda, I love this song. What was so amazing is she writes in her autobiography how she thought her voice wasn't so great when she sang this song, how much she had to learn. One of my all time favorite artists and my favorite female pop singer.
Yes! It is *exactly* that scenario. I thought of it the moment he talked about the "you never knew I existed" sentiment in the lyric.
"on my own' from les miserable captures this sentiment complete with third verse climax and acceptance. "Without him, I feel his arms around me." Eponine knows the drill but she doesn't have much else to look forward to. She prefers to live with the fantasy.
Always my favorite Linda Ronstadt song. She was not always vulnerable but in this she sure was.
What an amazing song! Linda is such incredible interpreter.
You made me love this song even more.
Brilliant discussion of a consummate performance. Love your passion…and hers
I keep coming back to this because I love this song so much and Linda's voice is devastating on it. What puts it over the top is your spot on analysis of it. You break it down in a way that makes me appreciate it even more. Well done, Sir!
Great stuff, Seth, thank you! you added a whole new dimension to an old song we’ve all loved for decades
This was definitely on my sad gay boy playlist as a kid. Except we didn't have playlists back then, so it was just me manually playing it over and over on a record player.
So *you're* the one! The culprit of our heartbreak for the last week! Thank you so much, sir! :)
This was a marvelous breakdown - it actually put a voice to all the elements of this song that I’ve always appreciated but could never define (I’m not a musician). This song has literally haunted me since 1971. I was only 10 at the time but it turned into a premonition of something that I would later go through at 45. The song is masterful and her performance is LEGENDARY. God how I miss Linda Ronstadt
her rawk belting is legendary - watch her in the Chuck Berry movie murder “Back in the USA”
And how is it that I’d never heard of Seth? What a breath of fresh air
Norbert Putnam was the arranger and conductor on that song, Nobody's from the same album is also Gary White. Amazing stuff.
Thank you for suggesting this song for the last of us, because this is just the perfect song for that episode. I wouldn't know this amazingly heartbreaking song if not for your suggestion to the creator of the show
I need this guy in every aspect of my life. Therapist, life coach, etc.
:)
Get in line....LMAO
Thank you for this video, I'm 52 and heard this sad song all my life, i'm still obsessed with Linda Ronstadt. Her voice and gift are rare. This is my breakup song, but she never had the relationship in this song that I've had. Pure emotion.
Glad this tune is getting the love, and doubly glad it brought me to this channel!
those breaths though, That perfectly controlled breath. Those LONG LONG lines...
"I never drew..one response from you..."
Gorgeous instrumentals in this song.
I taught myself to sing listening to alot of Ronstadt.
Great, great vocals, learned and inherent.
Man, this is the best analysis video I have seen. You do a great job of explaining why Linda's performance of this song is so emotionally powerful.
I remember hearing this song on the radio when I was 10 years old. I remember exactly where I was and I just stopped in my tracks and listened. I didn’t know exactly what was being said but knew enough to know she was talking about being in love with someone who basically didn’t know she even existed. The way she described things and just the emotions was overwhelming. I instantly fell in love with the song and her way of delivering it. It’s is still my favorite Linda Ronstadt song and definitely one of my top songs of all time and I’m almost 66. It’s just such a beautiful song verbally, emotionally and musically.
I finally located the person responsible for me bawling over a song about unrequited love! Linda Ronstadt's brilliant performance is revelatory. I heard Craig Mazin say how his brilliant friend Seth Rudetsky (You!) gave him "Long Long Time". "Long Long Time" is amazingly written/performed; full of longing it's Bill's story before Frank. Bill can't stand Frank playing it, not just badly, but like a jaunty jig. Bill's "No, No, Not This Song" tells us so much. A Linda Ronstadt song about unrequited love is precious to Bill; Bill doesn't need the book when he plays/sings, he knows it by heart. Frank's subtle facial expressions speak volumes; he sees into Bill's soul. Bill presents himself as a stereotype; a gun-toting misanthrope. Reality is far more complicated. Bill is highly cultured, and he's an incurable romantic who always believed in true love yet endured a life without it. Bill’s kindred spirit is a woman, Linda Ronstadt, singing this song. If I didn't know better I'd think I'd watched a brilliant Jane Austen adaptation set to breathtaking vocals; Ronstadt's pure voice recorded 53 years ago, long before Auto-Tune. This is the most beautiful love story I've seen in years with the most perfect theme song by Ronstadt yet it's a bottle-episode from a series about a zombie apocalypse! How crazy is that? That remarkable Linda Ronstadt song, so full of longing, perfectly embodies the story. This deserves all the awards; it’s a masterpiece, thanks for making it possible.
I was in the navy boot camp in San Diego, Ca in Aug 1970 for training. There was a small radio in our barracks tuned in with local radio station and holy cow, kept playing this song every hour or so. Joined the navy from the Philippines and never heard of Linda Ronstadt until then. Fifty years later, this song is still on top of my favorites. Cheers
I'm sitting here typing through the waterworks this song is bringing out in me. I lost the love of my life unexpectedly last September and this song brings out the longing and pain I feel due to her absence. I've been a fan of Linda since I was 12 in the 1970s. She's truly one of the great American singers of not just her generation but I think of the past century. What I always loved about Linda was that she was about the music, not about showcasing her vocal talents like it is with some of today's diva's.
The lyrics cut through my soul. This song defined a 4 yr relationship I had. Sob. I'm fine. Love a 70s scoop. I hope it's not a long, long time before you bring your show back to Carmel IN. Brava
Well done! Norbert Putnam did the arrangement and was the conductor on "Long Long Time". Also Weldon Myrick is playing a lap steel guitar, which is different from a regular steel guitar. That's why it has more of a plucking (or plinking) sound than a regular steel guitar.
I'd love to sing this live, but I can't get through it without crying.
I've been performing this song for 153 -- no, sorry, 154 -- years now, seems like. After watching this, I realize I've never performed it the way it should be. Thank you for this superlative analysis and appreciation. Love listening to you and Christine Pedi on On Broadway, by the way.
That last verse reminds me of Sara Bareille's lyric "Nothing could be worse than the risk of losing what I don't have now" which I also find beautifully devasting.
The sheer and ingenious combination of her voice and the music literally has me crying every time I hear it. I don't care where I am or who I'm with. And I can relate.
Love her. She is the best. She literally did her career her way. She never let the doubters win. 🎈
I learned so much from your deconstruction of this amazing song that was sung by one of my favorite voices, Ms Linda. 💕 Thank you for giving us this perspective. 💓
Seth, I LOVE how you delved into this song. What is SO amazing is Linda is still so young when she recorded this; before she developed her 'full' voice which we all experienced in the 80's and 90's. How about a special Grammy for Linda and Gary Wright just for this musical experience.... so remarkable, and at the time, unheralded!
Seth, thank you so much for this deconstruct of 'Long Long Time', great song, and you're pretty great too.
We can never thank you enough for the song recommendation Seth!
Not only did you give them the title of the episode; the lyrics perfectly describe Bill's situation when we hear him playing it for Frank, as well as what we can expect with Joel and Ellie's relationship when we hear it again as they drive away.
Wow…I'm hearing this song for the first time. Oh God, you made me cry.
You're brilliant Sir! I've always loved that song. 😢
I absolutely LOOOOOVE a deceptive cadence!!!! I grew up loving 80’s/90’s country and then Broadway (crazy leap- right?!🤪) and the one in this song is DELICIOUS!!! ❤️🫶🏼🥰
Best analysis of this song ever. Your analysis is as striking as the song itself.👏
Linda Ronstadt has been one of my all time favorite artists. I absolutely love how you define the song's lyrics and music. So refreshing. Thank you!
Éponine in a cowgirl hat. 😭
Seth, as always, priceless. 💙
I've loved this song since youth, and am now even more enamored with it! Thanks for a deeper understanding of the genius writing, production and performance of this great piece sung by the incredible Linda Ronstadt.
Fantastic look at Linda Ronstadt and this great song! I have never heard a steel guitar sound like that, though. I think you were right the first time! I really think it has to be a harpsichord or a clavinet set for a harpsichord sound. But I've just spent the last 30 minutes trying to verify the personnel and instrumentation on the track and have had no luck. But here is a link to what Weldon Myrick sounded like, with his classic pedal steel guitar sound. It is nothing like the sound on "Long, Long Time." ua-cam.com/video/6cV5uptpPGQ/v-deo.html
I agree. It sounds more like a harpsichord (or an electronic keyboard that is set to harpsichord) than a steel guitar.
I also agree. I love Seth’s deconstructions and always learn something new musically from them. But having grown up in Hawaii, where ‘steel’ guitar is an intrinsic element of Hawaiian music, I am pretty sure that what is identified as steel guitar in the analysis is, in fact, a harpsichord or electronic keyboard of some sort. Perhaps Seth can reach out to Ms. Ronstadt for clarification?
@@grantmatthews3744 See Epet 513's comment below, confirming our suspicions. It says, in part: "Fyi, Song was arranged by Norman Putnam (who's also credited as harpsichord and bass player) and Elliot F. Mazer per Linda Ronstadt Greatest Hits." I have found general credits for the Greatest Hits album, but nothing track-specific. But the notes I found did list Norbert Putnam as playing harpsichord, and I'm sure that's what we're hearing on "Long, Long Time." 🙂
Bless you for recommending this song to Craig. You should know I've been listening to "Long Long Time" on repeat for this past week and have been crying my eyes out nonstop.
This is from Norbert Putnum the arranger for Long Long Time. We recorded the track with my bass and Pete Wades acoustic guitar as Linda did the vocal. We only did two or three takes. Later that afternoon I added violin, Buddy played two parts. We then added Weldon Myricks fuzz-cello steel guitar and I added the electronic harpsichord. I'm not really a keyboard guy . . but did the best I could. Ha!
I just want to say that your manic enthusiasm is contagious. Thanks for this.
I have loved Linda Ronstadt for a long long time. I loved this deconstruction. I'm thrilled the young people are finding out who she is.
Seth, I do appreciate you breaking this song down. I knew I was hearing something amazing lyrically and musically when I first heard the song when it first came out but besides the hauntingly beautiful and deep emotional sound I could never figure out why I was so intrigued with the song, and still am today. Thank you.
Interesting how each generation seems to have it's own version of love's heartbreak. Mine was "Long, Long Time", then came "I Will Survive", and now we have "Flowers". And we all seem to have grown stronger and more independent through the hurt. Beautiful analysis - loved it. Thank you.
I love this song. I first heard it when it was originally released. It is so sad that her Progressive supranuclear palsy (originally diagnosed as Parkinsons) stopped her singing.
Long Long Time is this year's Running Up That Hill.
OMG! I always loved this song. Thanks for the analysis.
I've watched this 6 times now and it keeps getting better. I know just enough music theory to know how good this guy is. Always loved Ronstadt, but now I know why.
I'm so happy you did thisssssss!!!! It's a gorgeous song.
I love your analysis! This song was pure genius! I graduated from high school in 1970 when this song came out. I hadn't heard it in years until it came up the other day and I remembered how well it spoke to the turbulent feelings I felt. Did it ever bring back memories! Linda Ronstadt was amazing with this song - very masterfully done (both you and her)!
YES PLEASE KEEP BRINGING BACK DECONSTRUCTIONS😩😩😫😫😍😍😍♥️♥️♥️
And Brava YET again to you, Seth!
The cry in Linda’s voice just guts me. Same deal in her cover of Desperado.
Also "Love Has No Pride", "Try Me Again", "Simple Man, Simple Dreams", "Sorrow Lives Here" & "Down So Low".
The Eagles gave her the song Desperado as a gift....very nice gift!
Seth? Seth Rudeski? Does your genius, your humanity know no end? My beautiful friend…………..the world is a better place for your passion, musical knowledge, and humanity. I”m a 47 year old elementary school teacher/ mother of two teenagers. I have brought them up to be good people with a better than passing knowledge of musical theory and musical theater. They know the the musical classics, Folk Classics, and classics of the decades. I feel a bit of a failure as a mum that they had never heard this Linda Rondsadt classic ( which I remind perfectly from my upbringing for my hippie patents.) But when they heard it last Sunday, my son 18 and any daughter, 16, adjourned to the music room to master this song on their guitars. Thank you for breathing life into this beautiful ballad and making it parts of the musical conversation of today..
SETH,,,,,,,as a side note……..when I get home from work (teaching wonderful and weird 4th grade students), my kids always know when I am home when start singing your charming rendition of “Oh my feet, my poor poor feet…..”
Thank you for being a part of our family! 😘