Linda Ronstadt recalled being deeply affected by Miles Davis’s 1959 album *Kind of Blue*, saying it left her “blown away” when she first heard it. The record mattered to her because it expanded her understanding of musical expression and demonstrated how jazz could be both technically sophisticated and emotionally immediate.

Released by Columbia Records, *Kind of Blue* features Davis alongside musicians including John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley, Bill Evans, Paul Chambers and Jimmy Cobb. Often regarded as one of the most influential jazz albums ever made, it used modal improvisation and has remained a major commercial and cultural landmark.