Linda Ronstadt: Tumbling Dice 'Live' Atlanta December 1, 1977 (My "Stereo Studio Sound" Re-Edit)

Linda Ronstadt: Tumbling Dice 'Live' Atlanta December 1, 1977 (My "Stereo Studio Sound" Re-Edit)Show more

Ronstadt told Pop Matters how she came to cover “Tumbling Dice.” “The Rolling Stones were staying out in Malibu for a while,” she recalled. “Ronnie Wood had a place. Mick taught it to me. I felt like I could sing ‘Tumbling Dice’ because I really identified with the lyrics.”

Ronstadt changed the opening lines of the song for her cover version. The Rolling Stones’ version begins with “Women think I’m tasty /but they’re always tryin’ to waste me/make me burn the candle right down.” Ronstadt’s version opens with the lines “People try to rape me/always think I’m crazy/make me burn the candle right down.” She revealed she changed the lyrics to reflect issues that often accompany fame. “When you’re exposed to a wide segment of the public, somebody’s trying to violate you in some way, but it was nothing like it is now with internet trolls,” Ronstadt said.

Ronstadt released her version of the song in 1978. It peaked at No. 32 on the Billboard Hot 100 and stayed on the chart for eight weeks. On the other hand, The Official Charts Company says her version of the song didn’t chart in the U.K. Although Ronstadt’s version of “Tumbling Dice” was not quite as successful as The Rolling Stones’, it still found an audience in the United States.