‘When Will I Be Loved’ by Linda Ronstadt – Classic Hit or Miss

"When Will I Be Loved" is a classic popular song, written by Phil Everly of the Everly Brothers and a No. 8 hit single for that duo in the summer of 1960. The track had been recorded in 1959 while the Everly Brothers were contracted to Cadence Records; by 1960 they had moved to Warner Brothers and recording in a more mainstream pop/rock style than previously. The belated release by Cadence of "When Will I Be Loved" provided the Everly Brothers with a final rockabilly-style hit.

The song had its highest profile when Linda Ronstadt covered it on her album Heart Like A Wheel released by Capitol Records in November 1974; this version rearranges the verses of the Everly Brothers original, transposing the first and third verses. Capitol was unsure whether to release "When Will I Be Loved" or "You're No Good" as the lead single off Heart Like a Wheel, only deciding to issue "You're No Good" as a single a week after the album's release. "When Will I Be Loved" was issued as the second single in April 1975 to ascend to No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 that June of that year, as well No. 1 in Cash Box; Billboard did afford a No. 1 ranking to "When Will I Be Loved" on its C&W chart, where it was Ronstadt's first chart-topper.