ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Dec 15, 2017 7:48:51 GMT -5
Mystery to Me (1973) Summary: Largely an improvement on Penguin, but this is quite scattered. How do "Keep On Going" and "Forever" fit in to this? It seems like the band was casting about to see what would stick. Meanwhile, the Welch and CMvC core songs are good, just increasingly hard to believe this is the same band. Speaking of which, did JMcV get jealous that the best bass in the band was performed by Welch and not him? Because he really stepped up on this album. Or maybe they just got new producers who decided to make him audible? At any rate, maybe we've reached a point where I can stop remarking on it. Recorded in a rush in 1973, when Fleetwood Mac was a band on the make, hot off their biggest-selling album ( Penguin) but having fired one of their new lead singer/songwriters because he didn’t mesh. Mystery to Me is an enigma, a varied, tuneful, and groovy album which is missing the X-factor needed to make a great album, or a great phenomenon. But they sure as hell were trying, and anyone with an ear for post-Beatles eclectic rock should like this record. Bob Welch would later refer to Mystery to Me as his Rumours. He had only written a total of seven songs for the previous three albums combined, but he came up with eight tracks for the new release. These songs ranged from his favored sci-fi and conspiratorial topics to pie-eyed love songs, from conventional rock to oddball parodies. With Christine McVie’s four songs, the band finally had a full-length album of punchy, well-paced rock. You want driving blues rock? Welch gives you “The City” and “Miles Away,” two propulsive tracks with dueling guitars and rumbling bass. Prefer sensual ballads? There’s the romantic “Emerald Eyes” and the supernatural FM favorite “Hypnotized.” Have a taste for goofy experimentation? Enjoy yourself some “Forever” and “Somebody.” Add a respectable rearrangement of “For Your Love” and a dramatic orchestrated acoustic blues in “Keep On Going” (sung by Christine) and you’re hearing a young singer-songwriter seizing the spotlight he is being offered. This album confused me the first few times I heard it. Some of its greatest joys come from left field. “Forever” is a tune I long dismissed, but over time it has become a favorite. That silly Casio rhythm track, nowhere near as cool as Sly Stone on “Family Affair,” guides a lead vocal which can only be described as “10 times as dorky as Buddy Holly.” But when the harmonies start repeating “forever and ever” and the guitars trickle down and Welch warbles “That’s the way I feel,” its silliness is endearing. A slicker version of this is on the album opener “Emerald Eyes,” when the vocals harmonize “easy” down, down, down as a guitar plays Indian raga curlicues. Aside from Welch’s unsure vocals, the main thing I object to is the lack of clarity in his conspiracy theories. “There’s too much Warhol hanging off the walls…” – I don’t know what he’s driving at. He’s like a paranoid who buttonholes you at a party, and he never answers a question squarely. Does he hate cities? Does he think progress is evil? “There’s a place down in Mexico where a man can fly over mountains and fields…” Am I supposed to buy into this? I just want to dig the drum riff and the guitar riffing. The music sounds so swell. Christine does her bit on the album, four solid songs. “Believe Me” starts with a piano flourish, centers on hot country guitar picking, and ends with some lovely echoing guitar and piano (with Mick’s pounding drums). “Just Crazy Love” is more girl-group rock, “The Way I Feel” is a dynamic ballad played with just a piano and a Spanish guitar. The album-closing “Why?” is a gorgeous construction, one of Christine’s most (you could say “few”) emotional moments. Bob Weston opens with an extended bluesy slide guitar solo (he would always think he should have gotten a chunk of royalties for his contribution, and he’s right) before Christine’s plain piano-driven melody. There’s a seriousness in the unresolved endings to the first and third lines of each verse (“It’s all over” and “morning sun”), and the string section interplay with the guitars is beautiful, especially after the second verse. The lyrics search for resolve after a broken romance, but then the harmonies kick in on the last vulnerable verse. “Why do people give up?/Why is it all wrong?/Why don’t you love me?/Why can’t you just be strong?,” then, finally, “Why don’t you love me?” The guitars roll along with the strings until the final chords. It’s a fan favorite, and it must be a band favorite, too: it closes the four-CD anthology, The Chain. The band hit the road near the end of 1973, making a bit of a splash on "The Midnight Special," but then Bob Weston was caught sleeping with Jenny Boyd (sister of Patti Boyd – get thee to Google now if you don’t know her story). Jenny Boyd was also Mrs. Mick Fleetwood. After trying to carry on for a while, Fleetwood had Weston fired and he shut down the tour. The band’s manager, Clifford Davis, found another band to pose as Fleetwood Mac to play the remaining dates. Naturally, lawsuits ensued. Any momentum the band had built since releasing Penguin earlier in the year was lost. Meanwhile, in California…: In early 1973, as Fleetwood Mac was recording Mystery to Me, a pretty girl with a guy’s name and her boyfriend with a girl’s name posed topless on their debut album. It didn’t make any commercial impact at the time, but today there are many frustrated fans waiting for its ever-promised re-release. Next, On "As the Band Turns": A bruised and battered Fleetwood Mac, now down to four people, relocates from England to LA to record their next album. Bonus Cuts: Here's the band's appearance on "The Midnight Special": www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MUxCzEhLQY Here's a cut from Buckingham/Nicks: www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrMyQ60dUic
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Dec 16, 2017 21:09:18 GMT -5
Heroes Are Hard to Find (1974) Pre-Existing PrejudicesFuuuuuuck, it's bound to happen at least once per discography review: I go to look up lyrics or something and use the tab I writing in. At least I only have to back-track two songs. Any as I was saying, schtupping the drummer's wife, man - that's another band member down. Which means a foursome for the first time in a while, and only one guitarist. This could be quite interesting. Also @archieleach, do you mind hiding videos behind links instead of embeds so the page loads faster? Songs"Heroes Are Hard to Find" - Hey, horns on a CMcV track, that's one way to replace a guitar. I like it, and at least this time there's a credited arranger if not performers. (Hey, someone in a YouTube comment says that was CMcV playing the flute a few albums ago?) Now that the band is in California I feel comfortable calling this California sound. "Coming Home" - Weird guitar and drum warbling. Welch is going for that stormy foreboding thing again, and it doesn't fit after the brighter opening. "Angel" - Quick fade in on an in-progress bluesy rock - what is this, Peter Green era? No, it's very much Welch. This is an OK song. They just layered guitars, so it's no big departure. "Bermuda Triangle" - Fleetwood taps some bongo. Welch's conspiracy theory is presented so straightforwardly it's ridiculous. Not bad musicality though. "Bermuda triangle, man, it's easy to believe" (it's not). "Come a Little Bit Closer" - CMcV piano recital intro. Once the song really starts it's a nice mix, maybe a little much. CMcV really sounds like an early 70s singer-songwriter, that is the only description. I like that guest slide guitar. "She's Changing Me" - I like the line "here she comes, and they call her the sweet omega". Still like the guest slide guitar. Horns too. It's nice and positive. "Bad Loser" - Drum n' bass time, and the first appearance of JMcV on this album after he seemed to wake up in the past year or two. CMcV is singing ruefully, but I wish it was a little meaner to go with this great and worried instrumental performance. "Silver Heels" - It really is like they put tracks chronologically with their recording, and JMcV just wasn't around until now. This is a cool little song. Nice lyrics (if I could sing like Paul McCartney or get funky like Etta James), clapping breakdown, washy guitar. The end of this song is a change-up, something I don't think this band has done up to now. "Prove Your Love" - Stop making me bring it up, JMcV, the audience is getting annoyed. Piano ballad with strings, but it's got a little picking and a little organ to get me along. "Born Enchanter" - A little fancy play on the keys, some cowbell, some bass, and it's sort of a smooth funk here. Bluesy guitar wail, faded vocals. Nice. "Safe Harbour" - Kettle drums and cymbal crash for dramatic flair, swan song of the Bob Welch era. Good night sweet prince. Summary: Uh, maybe this is my favorite Fleetwood Mac album to date? I dunno, it's not something I need to put on, but it certainly is giving me the most trouble in picking out a favorite song (in a good way) with two strong contenders from CMcV and three from Welch. I can't find much in the way of miss-steps, aside from "Bermuda Triangle" lyrics just being entirely too silly and "Coming Home" being out-of-place. Consistent, that's what this record is. Reliable. Solid. Now my man Bob Welch is quitting, and I'm taking a break from this discography review for Christmas. See you all in two weeks, when according to YouTube Stevie Nicks will have ruined all things once right in this world. Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Album : Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Dave Walker, Bob Weston Favorite Overall Song: "Bad Loser" (C. McVie) and it was a very tough call. I'll give it to her in case her songwriting gets overwhelmed by B&N from here. Favorite New-to-me Song: all new Credited writers of favorite songs Christine McVie - 2 Bob Welch - 3 Danny Kirwan - 1 1/3 (third fractions are from 3 writers of "Station Man") Jeremy Spencer - 1/3 John McVie - 1/3 Peter Green - 1 1/2 (half fractions are from "Rollin' Man") C.G. Adams - 1/2
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Dec 20, 2017 8:00:36 GMT -5
Heroes Are Hard to Find (1974) Summary: Uh, maybe this is my favorite Fleetwood Mac album to date? I dunno, it's not something I need to put on, but it certainly is giving me the most trouble in picking out a favorite song (in a good way) with two strong contenders from CMcV and three from Welch. I can't find much in the way of miss-steps, aside from "Bermuda Triangle" lyrics just being entirely too silly and "Coming Home" being out-of-place. Consistent, that's what this record is. Reliable. Solid. Now my man Bob Welch is quitting, and I'm taking a break from this discography review for Christmas. See you all in two weeks, when according to YouTube Stevie Nicks will have ruined all things once right in this world. Bob Welch convinced the rest of Fleetwood Mac to move from the UK to LA for the recording of their follow-up to Mystery to Me. After the torturous events of the previous tour and its aftermath, it’s understandable why the band needed a change of scenery. The resulting album, Heroes Are Hard to Find, is another step away from the blues-driven roots of the band. Welch’s was the sole guitar player in the group at this time, and his style had a lighter tone with R&B and jazz leanings, less assertive than his former bandmates Kirwan and Weston. More importantly, the California ethos was infecting the band as harmonies became fuller and melodies became more distinctive. Not everybody liked the changes. Critic Robert Christgau called the album “their worst yet,” and to this day many criticize the use of horn sections and synthesized strings. Christine’s title track and album-opener is often knocked for being an over-eager attempt at a hit single – it flopped, missing the charts all together. I love it. Mick kicks it off by crisply smacking his high-hat and snare, and we’re off on a bubbling groove. The horns are arguably overly cute, but the song is a funny response to Smokey Robinson’s “Shop Around.” While Smokey’s mother tells him that he should play the field and not settle for anything less than Miss Right, Christine is the advisor who tells a young woman “when he says hello, don’t forget they’re all the same,” and “don’t get carried away, because he’s only telling you lies.” In the end, however, “you’ve got to pity him and try to understand.” It’s the purest example of Christine’s cynical view of romance. Some also knock her “Come a Little Bit Closer” as an over-orchestrated attempt at a big ballad. Apparently these listeners immune to the classy piano opening which builds to meet the legendary Sneaky Pete Kleinhow’s swooping pedal steel line, Fleetwood’s pounding drums, the rising orchestra, and Christine’s opening line, “I’m dancing to the music of a simple melody/And I wonder if you’re thinking of a single memory…” As music, it’s a grand gesture. As a story, Christine sings of dancing in a crowd and thinking of somebody else, a lost distant love – it’s a psychologically rich setting. “Everything good, everything golden…now it’s all just a sweet memory.” Sneaky Pete plays a sparkling solo. Christine’s “Prove Your Love” is much leaner. It’s a loose, easy shuffle with flowing, wordless vocal hook. The instrumental break is one of my favorite moments, featuring a simple improvisation on an electric piano as an orchestra lurks in the background. The orchestra disappears only to come back for a sudden crescendo out of nowhere at the end. The strings may be as affected as the horns on the title track, but it doesn’t ruin an otherwise tasteful song which is unusual in its spare arrangement. Christine’s four songs show her range as a musician and songwriter. Her fourth song, “Bad Loser,” belongs with Welch’s contributions in regards to production. Where Mystery to Me had the impressive muscle of a full band playing “The City” and “Miles Away” mostly live in the studio, the bluesy “Bad Loser” and other Heroes tracks show the band constructing an atmosphere using over-dubbing. Throughout the album Welch uses phase-shifters, reverb, and other guitar effects to create a washing, turbulent depth. “Bad Loser” sports layered percussion, a prominent bass line, a chorus of backing vocals, and Welch’s lead guitar lines, which insinuate where other guitarists declare. Welch’s “Coming Home” brings similar production to a unique song construction. It’s all atmosphere in the beginning, building as some low, creepy voice mumbles something about “reason to destroy.” He plays jazzy octave guitar as a melody starts to take shape, then he sings one verse while the threatening atmosphere continues then fades around him. “Angel” is a more conventional song structure, but it retains the guitar wash in the background. The album closer, “Safe Harbour,” is all atmosphere, two chords repeating leisurely until Welch sings two brief lines to close out. Welch’s four remaining tracks show his more extroverted side. “She’s Changing Me” is light pop, a mid-tempo feel good track with subtle key changes. There’s a bit of kitchen-sink in the production – Sneaky Pete’s volume pedal on his steel guitar, some (possibly synthesized) horns – but it’s done gently, almost bashfully. “Silver Heels” points the way to Welch’s later solo heyday, with its distorted guitar smoothly layered underneath the music where it won’t threaten. The lyrics are charming – “Hi, Four Eyes!” the girl says to our hero, who wishes he could “sing like Paul McCartney, get funky like Etta James,” but not if it changes the girl. (This song’s lyrics about silver heels and fox furs brings to mind the cover of Welch’s second solo album, Two Hearts.) “Born Enchanter” annoys plenty of people, probably because of Welch’s effete falsetto, but I hear a band jamming with confidence. The first 20 seconds of the track are tight, and Christine is especially impressive on this track. The Welch song which usually gets the most attention from this album is “Bermuda Triangle.” Some uncharitably characterize it as a attempt at cashing in on the success of “Hypnotized,” but Welch’s interest in the other-worldly was already well-documented. Although the vague suspicions of the opening lyrics put me off (ex., “The Air Force won’t let on”), once John McVie’s bass starts lurking, I’m hooked. The recitation of coastal cities is a funny spin on James Brown’s “Night Train,” or Chuck Berry’s “Sweet Little Sixteen,” but Welch gets oddly specific when he includes “Bloomington, and Delaware.” An acoustic guitar lead adds to its low-key, moody fun. Despite the lack of a strong single, the album became Fleetwood Mac’s first Top 40 effort. All in all, it’s enjoyable, middle-of-the-road AOR rock music of its era. A few of the tracks are very close in style to what would strike gold the next year. However, the jarring stylistic change between the first two cuts show why the band couldn’t sustain itself. Welch was getting dissatisfied. The Ballad of Bob Welch – Welch would go on to a heavier sound with the band Paris before having a few solo hits. I saw him in concert in 1979, a time which he would say was the happiest music-making time of his life. You can read all about it in the following extensive 1999 interview, where he talks about his time with Fleetwood Mac and his other work. (This is where he says that Christine McVie played a Mellotron flute part on “Ghost”). He seems like a good guy who sometimes has a hard time keeping his emotions in check – a typical creative guy, in other words. His comments about the personalities within the band are priceless, but he always gives credit to good musicianship. He was the driving force in bringing the band from Peter Green’s shadow to the doorstep of mega-stardom. Although his end was sad, it was a conscious decision on his part to avoid causing suffering to his family. RIP and thank you, Bob Welch. www.fleetwoodmac.net/penguin/qa/bobwelch_qa1.htm Shopping for Studios – Mick Fleetwood went shopping for a place to record the band’s next album. He stepped into Sound City, where producer Keith Olson played a track which showed the full range of the studio’s capabilities, from voice recording to acoustic and electric guitars, from orchestration to mixing. The track he played was “Frozen Love,” by Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. Fleetwood booked the studio and took down the name of the couple. When Welch left the band a couple of weeks later, Fleetwood called the couple and enlisted them in the band. They never auditioned, unless you count the track Fleetwood heard that day. Next chapter: An modestly successful group wins the lottery. Bonus tracks: One foot in the bluesy past, with Bob Welch's guitar wash, and one foot in the pop future, with orchestrated vocals - Christine's "Bad Loser": www.youtube.com/watch?v=SS7LyemqaCI The light at the edge of the wilderness - Buckingham/Nicks's "Frozen Love": www.youtube.com/watch?v=m94Xpx91w2E P.S. The album covers accompanying these two tracks also hint at a new direction for the band.
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Dec 29, 2017 17:26:16 GMT -5
Fleetwood Mac (1975) Pre-Existing PrejudicesWith a new line up, it must be time for a new self-titled album. Here we are, the Buckingham-Nicks era, i.e. the moment that all things good were ruined by some woman named Stevie according to any YouTube comment I've come across in listening to FM albums up to now. For this one I had to read a bit of Wikipedia backstory after my man Bob Welch departed:HA HA HA! The least notable multi-album member of the band to date felt the need to mark his territory? How about when Bob Welch played the bass? Well I hope JMcV responded by playing the hell out of it the way he rarely has before. Also of note: this will be the first album where I recognize a track. The namesakes are on the cover art; odd but far from weird by this band's standards. Songs "Monday Morning" - Hey, I know this one! And I can hear the bass. Pretty good song. Lite rock, but a fine guitar solo. The drums are more notable than I remember, not heavy but rapid. "Warm Ways" - Sleepy, a little smoky. Nice guitar meandering. CMcV's voice sounds smoother than in the past. "Blue Letter" - The Buckingham-Nicks vocals jump out more here, what I think of when I think of this band. It's easy and brisk and a bit countrified. The keyboard contribution is light but it's there; every other element has a strong presence. "Rhiannon" - The big one. The guitar intro to this is so cool. Nicks' voice is such a shock to the system from everything else we've heard from this band. What a dark sound, with sexy guitar plus little touches that really fill out the sound. So is this about witchcraft and flying or what? Nice keyboards paired with guitar on the fade-out. "Over My Head" - A slow fade-in was the right choice to ease back to light rock after that monster. This sounds more like CMcV's usual voice. I like the very small backing vocal. Hey, bongo taps, good to hear those again. The band really sounds put-together. "Crystal" - Sounds barely there. It grows a bit, but it's still very quiet. This is almost a lullaby. I like that tiny keyboard work, like the world's softest solo. Once again, this is a very solid band, miles ahead of the old disjointed bluesy days. "Say You Love Me" - Banjo time! This is such good song. Man I could sing aloud right here in the office where I am doing this instead of work. Yeah, I always though the line was "ooo-wee until the sun comes up" which is a bit more suggestive than the real thing. The additional backing vocals really make this chorus come alive. Ringing guitar solo layered with rhythm and echoing electric, good stuff. "Landslide" - Oh it's this. I didn't notice it in the track list; I guess I always assumed it was from later in the band or even a Nicks solo song? It just sounds like the voice of an older person. Well I like it. I'm pretty sure I put it on a depressing music playlist at some point in college. The acoustic fits well, the solo is a nice accent. "World Turning" - Slow fade in on guitar and cymbal with another countrified sound. What's it building to? I really want to know. Pause and a little stomp. Fleetwood keeps adding energy, then once the beat kicks in it all just smolders. I want this thing to explode, but instead it just fades out and I feel kind of cheated by all that promise. "Sugar Daddy" - Ballpark organ from CMcV with just a bit of 70s guitar wakka. A nice piece. "I'm So Afraid" - A closing bit of darkness with bass rumble and smoky guitar. I feel the ghost of Bob Welch upon this track. I am impressed with Buckingham's stylistic range. Summary: This was quite a record. The band seemed a little uncertain on the first couple tracks, but they really came together so well. It had a complete sound that the early days never achieved and was only approached late in Bob Welch's run. Also you know I was paying attention, and JMcV's bass was usually best on Buckingham and Nicks tracks, but he really did play well throughout. I do kind of think that the Stevie Nicks songs are comparatively out of place, she's just not as well integrated as the rest. But that's kind of the nature of those songs, and "Rhiannon" would not be the same without those wispy backing vocals. There wasn't a bad track in the lot; many of them would win the favorite spot on most previous albums. Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Album : Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Dave Walker, Bob Weston, Bob Welch Favorite Overall Song: "Say You Love Me" (C. McVie). Gotta go with the banjo. Are you happy now, Nicks-haters? Favorite New-to-me Song: "Blue Letter" but there were a number of close contenders. I'm in an upbeat mood. Credited writers of favorite songs Christine McVie - 3 Bob Welch - 3 Danny Kirwan - 1 1/3 (third fractions are from 3 writers of "Station Man") Jeremy Spencer - 1/3 John McVie - 1/3 Peter Green - 1 1/2 (half fractions are from "Rollin' Man") C.G. Adams - 1/2
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Jan 4, 2018 23:23:51 GMT -5
Fleetwood Mac (1975) Summary: This was quite a record. Miraculous. 40 years since I first heard this record, soon after buying "Rumours" but having previously made a friend in my new school by saying I loved "Rhiannon," "Over My Head," and "Say That You Love Me," I listen to this now and still hear something unique to the thousand-plus records I've acquired since. This is a debut record. I know, Fleetwood and the McVies had been around the block a time or a hundred, and new kids Buckingham and Nicks had paid their dues on the recording and concert circuit, but this record is so fresh, so unpretentious, so unaffected. They sound natural, like this is the way their music was always meant to be made, like it's being birthed for us. Listen to Christine's voice. It's free and light - hell, it sounds 10 years younger than she ever did before. Compare "Over My Head" to "Homeward Bound" from Bare Trees. Christine's voice is unforced, with no throatiness, no hoarseness, just a warm murmur - "...But it sure feels nice..." She rolls through "Say That You Love Me" unhurried, "Warm Ways" is lush and full without any orchestration - much as I love the earlier "Why?" and "Come a Little Bit Closer," "Warm Ways" sounds like how good sex should be, no big dramatic production, just a warm voice and a warm feel. "Sugar Daddy" is a fun daydream. "Over My Head" may be best example of the miracle of this album, a song so lean and bare, so wispy, they almost left it off the album, because it was just too easy. They tacked on a couple of light guitar overdubs for the album, then, when it was selected for the single, they over-dressed it with a few more guitar strums. "Over My Head" is more an idea for a song than a real song, and it's perfect. Listen to Stevie Nicks. She only sings lead on two songs. Back before "Landslide" was the go-to song for sensitive high-school and college girls, it was a pretty, intimate, and revealing folk song. It wasn't meant for adolescent me, but boy, "Rhiannon" was. Listen to the growling, whispering gurgle in the second verse - "like a cat in the dark..." She's hinting at stuff sensual, but just shy of threatening. Her backing vocals cut through the rest of the time, especially on her own "Crystal," given to boyfriend Lindsey to sing, but unlike other chick singers, you know she was the coolest. She wasn't overshadowing the others...yet. And listen to Lindsey Buckingham. Catch him at this moment before his neuroses started taking over. Was there ever a more natural sensitive, feminine rock singer? On "Crystal" he is totally unguarded, naked, and to use that word again, unaffected. This is hard for a man, or for anyone, really, to do. He sings straight and gentle in natural voice. He's there on the other songs as well, but take a listen to "Crystal" and tell me, has any guy ever sounded so emotionally open and vulnerable, with no showbiz? For that matter, how many girls have? The sound of the album is dry, production-talk for "reverb free." Within the next couple of years bands like Boston and Journey would put that lumpy, thundering, indistinct sound of a concert hall on your turntable by caking layers of reverb on everything. Fleetwood Mac is not a "living room" record like Tapestry, per se, but the sound isn't coming from a distant stage in front of you. It's intimate, it's in your head, like Rubber Soul. Try to imagine the band performing these tracks and you see images of blankets and lamps, or of bottles and ashtrays, or whatever your living space looks like. It's my choice for the greatest California rock album, tuneful yet rocking. This album also helped teach me how to play lead guitar. It's one of the few records where I played along with every single track - "Blue Letter" and "Sugar Daddy" have perfectly succinct, tuneful leads which I learned note-for-note, a rarity for an improvisor like me. My band played "I'm So Afraid" and "Monday Morning" live. By almost every band's standards, this album was a monster, selling multiple millions. It started off selling slow, like you would expect from a band which sold a quarter million every year and which has changed its lineup once again by adding some young kids to the front line. But once "Rhiannon" hit as the second single (after "Over My Head") they were in a different realm. In the wake of what followed, this smooth, even but intimate album has become undervalued, maybe even by the band. In concert, "Rhiannon," "I'm So Afraid," and "World Turning" have become extended and inflated showcases for Stevie, Lindsey, and Mick, respectively. These songs are impressive in concert, but on record they are better than impressive, they are expressive. If the album is a miracle, "Rhiannon" and its rumbling bass, crisp rumbling drums, clear water guitars and sprinkling keyboard is pure magic, focused and intense but somehow soothing. You can't recreate these sounds and these feelings in concert. If you only know "I'm So Afraid" from its current dramatic live arrangement, the original version's haunting gentleness might be disappointing at first. It might take a while to realize that it expresses the ache the rest of the album hints at. Most of all, the record sounds natural. If it lacks the urgency of the later Fleetwood Mac albums, that might be because the new kids were still strangers to the pros who hired them. One imagines it being recorded quickly, almost spontaneously, with nobody wanting to invade the others' space. I'm almost disappointed in the upcoming deluxe release with the usual early takes - the album sound inarguable in the originally released form. Sometimes, this is my favorite record by what is sometimes my favorite band.
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Jan 6, 2018 16:14:02 GMT -5
Rumours (1977) Pre-Existing PrejudicesWell here we are, the monster. Fleetwood and Nicks are on the cover this time, so I assume the next one will just be Christine McVie standing by herself. Much like Prince's Purple Rain every track on this album is a link on Wikipedia, so I will probably recognize more songs that the big single even though I've never listened to the album. I look forward to reading about all the backstage drama that led to this record; my preconceived notion is that everybody was screwing the wrong person. Songs "Second Hand News" - I like the guitar-scraping intro; reminds me of Heart's "Barracuda". Buckingham scatting over this sort onomatopoeia-pop sound is good. What is that rumble pop anyway, a scrape or percussion? Neither McV seems to be present on this track. The various guitar works are really good in combination. "Dreams" - Billy Jean bass. Stevie Nicks has such an interestingly mature voice; or maybe it's just the melancholy. I guess this isn't synth but keyboard, whatever it is means so much to this track along with Fleetwood's drumming. This production is even better than last time, which was already better than before that. "Never Going Back Again" - The home guitar pickers must love this one. The guitars sound so close, while the vocals are studio-produced and higher up. "Don't Stop" - Ah, CMcV piano. Great song, it really makes you feel optimistic and hopeful. I'm pretty sure I never realized that was CMcV singing some along with Buckingham. "Go Your Own Way" - From the pantheon of great break-up songs. I can hear a little bass for a change. Man, the vocals really make this one; I think it's the way Buckingham echoes the song title a second time in the chorus, more raw and bitter. I don't think this band has ever used feedback in a song before like the squeals that sound around the edges. I forgot the way this song really builds with guitar and layering near the end; it is so, so good. "Songbird" - Cool off with a sad, dinky CMcV piano ballad. I read that the McVies just divorced before this album, which makes me sad. "The Chain" - I like a good stomp. This has that Nicks darkness, even though everyone got a credit. Big Buckingham countrified twang. The way Nicks echoes the chorus is amazing. I didn't remember the ghostly sighs over the latter chorus reps, they're a great addition. They gave JMcV a pity-credit for playing the world's simplest baseline on a monster hit, at least until past the three-minute mark. The dissolution late in the song is so emotional. "You Make Loving Fun" - Aw right, something funky! This is extremely unexpected. Oh my god, they even threw in a chime waterfall; that warms my Prince-loving heart. This is good, but this is one of those times when I think I higher-pitched singer would have worked better. The song is actually not as much fun as the title promises "I Don't Want to Know" - I like the Buckingham-Nicks paired vocals, but it would have been interesting to hear her by herself here. Maybe without Buckingham the song would have just sounded depressing. Handclaps are always welcome. "Oh Daddy" - CMcV accesses the darkest parts of herself; listen to those piano chords! JMcV does the most for any song on the album here. I feel like Metallica was listening to this song while recording some of their late 90s ballads. "Gold Dust Woman" - More cowbell. More Buckingham country twang. A soft bassline. Terrific lyrics, the best on the album besides "Go Your Own Way". I like Fleetwood's thumps. This get really woolly as it goes on, and that's fine. Summary: Great stuff all over. I'm not in love with every track, but the highs are very high. There's so much bitterness and sadness and strong emotion - this is not music for a sensitive person to listen to closely every day. The Buckingham-Nicks vocals make them one of the greatest duos of all time. Apparently JMcV and Fleetwood got a new producer to put more emphasis on themselves. Well, you can't tell. The production is more complex and generally better, but I don't hear extra emphasis on bass and percussion. I'm looking forward to what comes next, because the band just keeps getting better. Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Album : Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Dave Walker, Bob Weston, Bob Welch Favorite Overall Song: "Go Your Own Way" (Buckingham), but it was not easy to pick over "The Chain". You win again, Nicks-haters. Favorite New-to-me Song: "Never Going Back Again" Credited writers of favorite songs Lindsey Buckingham - 1 Christine McVie - 3 Bob Welch - 3 Danny Kirwan - 1 1/3 (third fractions are from 3 writers of "Station Man") Jeremy Spencer - 1/3 John McVie - 1/3 Peter Green - 1 1/2 (half fractions are from "Rollin' Man") C.G. Adams - 1/2
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Jan 10, 2018 7:48:03 GMT -5
Rumours (1977) Summary: Great stuff all over. I'm not in love with every track, but the highs are very high. There's so much bitterness and sadness and strong emotion - this is not music for a sensitive person to listen to closely every day. Rumours was a formative album for me. I formed a friendship with a high-school classmate by talking about my love for Fleetwood Mac’s earlier hits (he was surprised I knew about “Dreams,” which at that point was not yet a single but which was getting AOR radio play), and he turned me on to the entire post-Peter Green Mac discography, leading me to my first musical obsession. We would go on to form a band with him on bass, me on guitar and vocals. Rumours was the second album I ever bought (after Paul Simon’s There Goes Rhymin’ Simon), and we saw the band in concert the week “Dreams” went to Number One (Stevie Nicks told the Buffalo audience that she had written “Landslide” on a long-ago tour date in the city). I listened to the album a lot before maturing as a music listener. The record is ingrained in me, and it’s hard for me to hear it with fresh ears. It took a long time for me to understand how dense the production is on “Second Hand News,” with its Naugahyde chair percussion (I just looked it up) and the guitar layers on “Go Your Own Way” and “I Don’t Want to Know.” As someone whose previous favorites included Glen Campbell and Jim Croce and who had played classical guitar for a few years, I was attracted to the finger-picking in “Never Going Back Again,” “The Chain,” and “Gold Dust Woman.” On a basic level, the record had well-written and well-sung songs in a variety of styles, and it fit well in our family's collection of well-produced pop music such as the Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, and Mamas and Papas. That was the initial attraction, and now I hear the emotional edge in most of the songs. My dirty secret is it has never been an album that really captured my heart. At the time I first bought it I quickly expanded my education by picking up the Eagles, ELO, and George Harrison. The previous self-titled Fleetwood Mac album was the one I connected with. Even now, when I pair up the songs, I usually prefer the earlier album: Rhiannon > Dreams, Say That You Love Me > Don’t Stop, Crystal > Songbird, etc. “Go Your Own Way” is a thoroughly remarkable recording, “You Make Loving Fun” almost as good (although, as you point out, the vocal is somewhat less than exciting), and “The Chain” is a bold construction. Over time I’ve become more charitable towards “Don’t Stop,” but it still butts up against my dislike for motivational speaking. Lindsey Buckingham’s tinkering with the record’s legacy hasn’t helped. “Silver Springs” is a grand song, but it was left off the album and made the B-side to “Go Your Own Way.” A friend of mine once said he disliked the album’s sequencing (seriously, who would put a record’s climaxes as the 5th and 7th tracks?), and trying to fit in the explosion of bitterness that is "Silver Springs" ruins the record’s already cranky balance. Buckingham also has replaced the original mixes of several tacks – the doubling of the guitar lick at the end of “Second Hand News” always jars me out of my enjoyment. Frankly, it’s a record I often forget to play. Fleetwood Mac’s career has been interesting enough to provide a wide variety of enjoyment. Rumours gave the band a hard-earned moment in the cultural sun. Although they’ll never have things fall together so completely again, they’ve been able to capitalize on their great fortune and have continued to create magical moments. Sometimes, arguably better moments.
|
|
|
Post by Desert Dweller on Jan 10, 2018 22:50:41 GMT -5
I've tried to figure out where to sequence "Silver Springs" onto Rumours, but I've never come up with a good idea. I, too, hate the sequencing on the album, in general. I've tried to resequence the entire thing, but I can't figure out what I like the best. Edited to add: I really like the live version of "Silver Springs" that was performed in their big televised 1997 concert.
I really love both the self-titled album and Rumours.
"Go Your Own Way" is such a fantastic song. That is easily my favorite Fleetwood Mac song. The only song on Rumours I don't really like is "Oh Daddy". I just can't get into that one, for some reason. I really like Christine McV, though, otherwise. "The Chain" is probably my second favorite song. I also quite like "Second Hand News" and "Dreams".
From the previous album, my favorites are "Rhiannon", "Say You Love Me", "Landslide" and "I'm So Afraid".
I also love Fleetwood's drumming all over Rumours. That's some of the best drumming we hear from him in their entire catalog. His drumming absolutely MAKES "Go Your Own Way". The production on that album is so great. I, too, love all the layering.
I've seen Fleetwood Mac in concert a few times, and I've seen Stevie Nicks solo and Lindsey Buckingham solo. Seeing him do that finger picking live is so cool.
I love this combo of songwriting from Buckingham, Nicks and Christine McVie. I think they make a well rounded album. I like the way these albums slide through a few different styles of music.
I definitely prefer Rumours to the self-titled album. The emotional intensity in Rumours puts it over the edge. That is a terrific breakup album.
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Jan 21, 2018 18:46:24 GMT -5
Tusk (1979) Pre-Existing PrejudicesTusk! Is the reason everybody says Christine McVie got short shrift is because she wasn't on an album cover; when it was her turn, they just used a picture of a dog or whatever? Sorry, John got the weird album covers in the divorce. So this is a double album. I admit I balked because I've gotten used to these breezy, 40-minute affairs. Does this mean the band is going to be (even more) schizophrenic to be like the Beatles? Looks like I have to rely on the remastered version for this review. Songs "Over & Over" - Sad keys and a little western guitar. I would prefer a little pep right now after they recorded the world's best break-up album, but I can count peppy CMcV songs on one hand. Why did they make this the opener? It really drags in addition to being a drag. "The Ledge" - Now there we go, bass and weird hoe-down, this is where we should have started. HA! Buckingham is playing this bass himself (along with all the other instruments); JMcV you schmuck. "Think About Me" - We got electric CMcV trying to bring some energy. The guitars are singing pretty loudly. "Save Me a Place" - I'm starting to get a feel for where the title track came from. Interesting not-mandolin here. The chorus sounds off or something. Then it ends. Perhaps JMcV will have a moral victory in the tracks without him like this one being weird. "Sara" - Stevie Nicks pulls in with a sad track of her own (oooh, and she's playing piano instead of CMcV, what a monster!). This is OK, it's got a little bass. In an alternate universe, Stevie Nicks is the frontwoman for the Pretenders. I like the whispy back vocals, a Nicks hallmark. "What Makes You Think You're the One" - More kinda weirdo percussion, plus piano and other stuff. Buckingham makes it all sound fun for a change, though. "Storms" - Soft finger-picking and tambourine. Now appearing: Stevie Nicks and the Whispy Chorus. Nice organ. This one must get the lighters out live in concert. "That's All for Everyone" - Buckingham comes in in the middle of a pretty interesting little song. What is this, marimba? This is the back half of a real epic. "Not That Funny" - I bet it's not. What is going on with this song? Buckingham continues to lose his mind and do everything 30 degrees off. "You're here 'cause I say so"; is this band still in-fighting? Again, I can see the rise of the title track. "Sisters of the Moon" - Aww yeah, funk beat gave JMcV something to do. Throwback-kinda Nicks. She's been the real hero of Disk I. Really nice emotion in this guitar solo. Best of Disk I right here. DISK II "Angel" - More bass for Stevie just keeps me thinking Pretenders. Especially when she actually sings "no great pretender". Truthfully it's a bit samey with the previous track. "That's Enough for Me" - Buckingham song titles are just getting a bit on-the-nose, aren't they? This is a quick-picking hoe-down, and he's on all the instruments yet again. At least he can keep a beat. "Brown Eyes" - Credits say Peter Green on guitar; even CMcV is playing this game. Taps and quiet organ, a smokey affair. The sha-la-las are good. "Never Make Me Cry" - Someone needs a hug. OK actually this is a defiant-ish song but more like martyrdom and even softer than usual. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" - The whole band except Nicks is out to get me. This isn't bad, but it's more throwing instrumentation at the wall to cover for lack of a song beyond the title. "Honey Hi" - A little bongo bit and not utterly depressive CMcV, sounds like a throwback. "Beautiful Child" - This piano note is just annoying, and the song quickly descends to cloying, e.g. "I'm not a child anymore, I'm tall enough to reach for the stars". I'm sure this meant a lot to many adolescent girls at the time, so at least there's that. "Walk a Thin Line" - OK song. Fine percussion. But really I just want this sad-bastard album to end. "Tusk" - The drumline really is good. The whispery vocals and whatever the actual whispers are sound appropriately creepy, like a different album. The group vocals have appropriate nasty snap. I did not remember this break down in the middle; crazy. I always like horns, so great job USC band. Nutso. "Never Forget" - A CMcV song if it had come out in 1993. Summary: This was quite a slog. I couldn't take a full, single-disk album written by any of these people in this state. CMcV is too depressive, Buckingham is all over the place, Nicks has some good stuff but I guess my appetite for her is limited. Everything feels stretched out and sad and uggh. It's not even terribly experimental except for the title track! Imagine what a whole album of that would have sounded like. Sorry Lindsey Buckingham, stick to pop songs. Somebody get CMcV some amphetamines. Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Album : Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Dave Walker, Bob Weston, Bob Welch Favorite Overall Song: "Sisters of the Moon" (Nicks) Favorite New-to-me Song: "Sisters of the Moon" CNumber of times someone said "Tusk!" - 5 Credited writers of favorite songs Stevie Nicks - 1 Lindsey Buckingham - 1 Christine McVie - 3 Bob Welch - 3 Danny Kirwan - 1 1/3 (third fractions are from 3 writers of "Station Man") Jeremy Spencer - 1/3 John McVie - 1/3 Peter Green - 1 1/2 (half fractions are from "Rollin' Man") C.G. Adams - 1/2
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Jan 27, 2018 23:29:12 GMT -5
Tusk (1979) Summary: This was quite a slog. I cannot hear Tusk objectively. The album's release was hyped way beyond what you can probably imagine, and as a 17 year-old rabid fan of the group I was ready for it. For years I listed it as a favorite, but over time I thought of it as too slow, overlong, with not enough lyrical content. Its legacy wasn't helped by the various remixes appearing on the early CD versions - not just the edited "Sara," but remixes of "Brown Eyes" and "I Know I'm Not Wrong". Last year I heard the original mix, remastered for CD, and fell in love again. This album deconstructed rock, rock'n'roll, pop, and AOR long before the term "deconstructed" was thrown around in mixed company. On the first casual listen, the album opener "Over and Over" sounds like a typical slow piano ballad, but listen closer. The prominent instrumental sounds are bass and drums. The folk guitar barely registers, clicking faintly along with the rhythm section much like the Naugahyde chair on "Second Hand News." The keyboard offers icy touches above. Mostly, you hear echo. It's a radical choice to open a heavily-anticipated blockbuster with. When "The Ledge" hits, it's a shift in gears, but it's not much more outrageous. The twin secrets of this album are: 1) Even at its rawest, the sounds are richly recorded, and 2) It has a shockingly spare mix, especially considering its infamous cost. Only "Think About Me" is a traditionally dense pop song, and it's over-packed, in a great way. (I've always felt Lindsey's best harmony partner was Christine.) "Sisters Of the Moon" has the ever-popular "All Along the Watchtower" chord change played heavy, but with an electric keyboard providing most of the sound. I love the Buddy-Holly-having-a-breakdown "What Makes You Think You're the One," the pillow-soft folk guitars on "Storms," and the way vocals and mandolin sounds fade in-and-out through "Never Forget," overwhelming the distant slide guitar. I love the droning sherpa sounds of "I Walk a Thin Line," the various vocal lines coming together on "hold you again" on "Beautiful Child," and the ramshackle rattle of "I Know I'm Not Wrong." Most of all, I love the idea that anybody thought that the goofy title track had any chance of hitting the Top 10, but it did, and it lives on. It's a boondoggle, a folly, a work of beauty for it's own sake. It's irresponsibly luxurious. It's unlikely to be repeated soon. Bonus cuts: After this carefully-, perhaps overly-wrought extravaganza the band released a live album in order to claim its concert performance bona fides. Fleetwood Mac Live catches the band trying to come to terms with its new direction. At times they play the hits straight, at times they play them with a twist (the live "Over and Over" features the heavy-echoed Buckingham guitar sound he has used in recent years and is much better than the version on the new Deluxe version of Tusk), and at times songs are stretched out with great drama. The album is balanced between safe, exciting, and over-bearing. Here's their remake of the old Buckingham/Nicks song, Don't Let Me Down Again: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ggogb46e0EY
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Jan 28, 2018 22:31:05 GMT -5
Mirage (1982) Pre-Existing PrejudicesChristine McVie finally made a cover, but she had to share with neck-monster Stevie Nicks, the latter about to unhinge her jaw and devour the band forever. I read that Nicks was doing successful solo work before this record, so maybe that is why everyone hates her. I hope this record gets back to quality after I had to listen to Tusk. Songs "Love in Store" - JMcV plays the world's most complex bassline, eliminating all doubt as to who plays the bass in this band 90% of the time. I like this rare CMcV/Nicks vocal combination! Nice not-mandolin guitar too. "Can't Go Back" - Buckingham sounds for all the world like Micky Dolenz here. Pretty good pop instrumentation. "That's Alright" - Buckingham-style countrification but actually a Nicks song. Not bad. My thoughts are not very detailed on this record yet, but on the other hand that means I don't have negative to say. "Book of Love" - Oddly this song is not on YouTube at all, so to Spotify we go. Post-Welch FM actually doesn't have any full albums on YouTube yet, so to lousy Spotify we go. Okay, this song: a charming throwback. Soaring vocal harmony. The band really has gone back to basics, and that is a good thing. I would like a bit of darkness now after all this pop, please. "Gypsy" - I guess this was a hit, I've heard it. I miss dark Stevie Nicks. Some cool instrumentation. I guess this is a guitar going bum bum bum bum bum? Buckingham's guitar is a highlight of the fairly tame pop on this record. "Only Over You" - CMcV plays a CMcV sort of song: kind of hopeful, kind of regretful. I want some CMcV rock organ, man. "Empire State" - Well, this is a different sort of sound from the lap harp. This time Buckingham sounds like he's been listening to Queen albums, an impression that only intensifies when a bit of synthesizer sound appears. Well, I like it. Kind of weird, but better than his weird stuff on Tusk. "Straight Back" - Ah, perhaps a bit of a disco sound? Maybe more like mournful Stevie Nicks post-disco. At least it's a bit darker sound. This could have been really good, somehow, if it had more anger or bite or something. "Hold Me" - "Slip your hand inside my glove" - oh CMcV, you give me the vapors. Nice cowbell. A straightforward, pleasant pop song. Kind of starts running on fumes after a couple minutes, though, when everybody gets a little spotlight. "Oh Diane" - More throwback to...something. It's beach music, or maybe that's just in my mind after the "Hold Me" music video? Takes me way back to "Did You Ever Love Me" off Penguin, even if there's no steel drum. Should have left this half-formed song on the floor. "Eyes of the World" - Interesting little ditty sound here, I'm intrigued. Ah, a track for the home acoustic guitar enthusiast. Strange mix of stuff here, these upbeat drums, these chants of eyes-uh. "Wish You Were Here" - Oh that is a heavy piano; we're going out on a sad-sack CMcV ballad. More fine guitar licks over a plodding song. Summary: I'm calling this record an over-correction from Tusk. Buckingham still has an experimental streak, but this album is still too much safe and/or throwback pop. I want some danger and darkness! Stevie Nicks is too busy being an inspiration to be dark anymore. Though I had only ever heard one track from it and despite my familiarity with the big singles of the 70s, somehow I feel like this was half my concept for what Fleetwood Mac sounded like, the other half being a sunny California pop sound. Which is to say, OK-to-bland. Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Album : Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Dave Walker, Bob Weston, Bob Welch Favorite Overall Song: "Hold Me" (C. McVie, Robbie Patton). Tough call. There were a few OK songs, but nothing obviously great for me. Favorite New-to-me Song: "Hold Me" Well, this puts CMcV in the lead, doesn't it. Number of times someone said "Tusk!" - 0 Credited writers of favorite songs Stevie Nicks - 1 Lindsey Buckingham - 1 Christine McVie - 3 1/2 Bob Welch - 3 Danny Kirwan - 1 1/3 (third fractions are from 3 writers of "Station Man") Jeremy Spencer - 1/3 John McVie - 1/3 Peter Green - 1 1/2 (half fractions are from "Rollin' Man") C.G. Adams - 1/2 (half fraction is from "Rollin' Man") Robbie Patton - 1/2 (half fraction is from "Hold Me")
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Feb 3, 2018 19:00:31 GMT -5
Tango in the Night (1987) Pre-Existing PrejudicesUh, clearly the album covers got switched back in 1982: this a soft-focus vision of water like a mirage, and the bandmates dancing on a black background looks a lot more like a tango in the night. The decade since Rumours has seen a turn into experimentation followed by over-correction, with a side order of treading water. All of the talented members of the band put out solo albums along the way (guess who didn't?). Stevie Nicks in particular was having a lot of success, so I guess that's why she's bad. This is the biggest seller after Rumours, so I actually have fairly high expectations. Songs "Big Love" - Real 80s drums here. Buckingham's western guitar is kind of creatively integrated into a song that I can only pray was used for the TV drama of the same name. Nicks makes some little sex gasps and I guess Buckingham does too; ugh, they go on for the whole song. Fleetwood is at least keeping some good rhythm. "Seven Wonders" - Very 80s. Not post-70s 80s like last time, but real 80s. What a waste to hear Mick Fleetwood with echoing snares. Nicks sings a song that sounds like a rainbow on a Trapper Keeper. I guess that's the rest of the band on backing vocals, but I can't even tell. "Everywhere" - A synth made to sound like a chime waterfall. Oh hey, I didn't even know this song was FM! Oh man, this goes way deep into toddler memory. Well, the chorus has a nice cadence to it, I guess that's why it stuck. CMcV's synth is more subdued, as are the Nicks/Buckingham noises. "Caroline" - I like this percussion intro, but I feel like someone is playing a joke on me. JMcV's bassline is uncomplicated but solid. Buckingham makes one of the laziest songwriting rhymes in the very first two lines, lazy and crazy. It keeps going; the instrumentation is good and a little dark, but the lyrics are terrible. "Tango in the Night" - Chinese restaurant string strum and vocal echo. This song has some danger, great percussion all over - almost reminds me of the Handsome Family's "Far From Any Road". Buckingham really shows off holding these notes. "Mystified" - The band really broke out the rhyming dictionary for this album, huh. This is kind of CMcV treading more water, but it does have a few nice touches like Buckingham whispering echos in the back. "Little Lies" - Very soft 80s, but marimba is cool. More plinky and washy Asian sounds. This chorus though absolutely cannot be denied; CMcV gets louder and Nicks and Buckingham give twin echos. It's so strong it demolishes the verses of the song. It's a very CMcV sentiment, but this is another one of those times when she does it big. The co-writer doesn't even have a Wikipedia page; it's CMcV's husband. "Family Man" - The 80s keep on comin'. Sounds like Fine Young Cannibals. This echo of the title in the chorus using a ridiculous deep voice is even sillier than when Prince used to do it. Buckingham lays down some Spanish guitar complete with castanets. "Welcome to the Room... Sara" - Nicks sings about going to rehab for cocaine addiction. 80s pop. Try to appreciate the subtle bass and the bongos. "Isn't It Midnight" - Ha ha, Buckingham made an 80s rocker. What, again - just how many of the songs here have had echoed vocals? I wish I had been running a tally, but I'm not going back. This goes on way too long. "When I See You Again" - Slam the brakes on your IROC, this is the slowest Nicks song and slowest FM song since "Landslide". I completely zoned out... "You and I, Part II" - Until this woke me up. Faster tempo from the Casio, and let's face it, this is a very silly song. Fleetwood hammers the toms, CMcV tickles the synth chimes, Buckingham makes more breathy echos. Summary: When I picked Fleetwood Mac for review I thought I was getting an avatar of the 70s, but wow did they push the 80s as hard as anyone here. Having completed my Prince discography review, I say with authority that this album came out at least two years too late. The change in sound is enough to give you whiplash, but that's how this band has always been (except usually you have multiple albums over five years to ease in). Nicks sounds like the pop star she was then, older and rougher. CMcV has adapted to the 80s, but there's no doubt who wrote her songs. Buckingham adapted too, but he no longer sounds unique the way the others do. Where the heck can it go from here? Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Album : Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Dave Walker, Bob Weston, Bob Welch Favorite Overall Song: "Little Lies" (C. McVie, Eddy Quintela) Favorite New-to-me Song: "Tango in the Night" Number of times someone said "Tusk!" - 0 Credited writers of favorite songs Stevie Nicks - 1 Lindsey Buckingham - 1 Christine McVie - 4 Bob Welch - 3 Danny Kirwan - 1 1/3 (third fraction is from 3 writers of "Station Man") Jeremy Spencer - 1/3 (third fraction is from 3 writers of "Station Man") John McVie - 1/3 (third fraction is from 3 writers of "Station Man") Peter Green - 1 1/2 (half fraction is from "Rollin' Man") C.G. Adams - 1/2 (half fraction is from "Rollin' Man") Robbie Patton - 1/2 (half fraction is from "Hold Me") Eddy Quintela - 1/2 (half fraction is from "Little Lies")
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Feb 7, 2018 6:42:32 GMT -5
Mirage (1982) Summary: I'm calling this record an over-correction from Tusk... Which is to say, OK-to-bland. It’s not good enough to just release good music once you become a phenomenon. The record industry turned to Fleetwood Mac to rescue it after the crazy success of Rumours, a ludicrous idea considering the plethora of blockbusters during the late 70s. The band released Tusk in response, an album which was ambitious, pretentious, over-thought, under-written, over-long, under-developed, lush, raw, very expensive, and somewhat profitable. Tusk was their effort to change the conversation. Well, the conversation didn’t really change. To this day, when that album's follow-up Mirage is discussed, it is considered in relation to both Rumours and Tusk. The conventional wisdom is that it’s a retreat to the earlier album’s tuneful hit-making, and it was greeted with a huge sigh of relief by the industry. But anyone who thinks this is an attempted repeat of Rumours is too busy thinking about financials to hear the music. Mirage is no Rumours rehash. Mirage has some of the most beautiful recordings you will ever hear. The choruses of “It’s All Right,” the bridge of “Wish You Were Here,” the harmonies on “Hold Me,” the entirety of “Love In Store” and “Gypsy” – there are aural gifts that keep giving, and giving. Tusk took pristine recordings and mixed them in unconventional ways. With Mirage, the sounds are balanced just as you would expect a professional hit-making producer to do it. The album is a pleasure to listen to, pure ear candy. What’s missing are the blues and folk roots which came together on the first two albums with Buckingham and Nicks. With the exception of the country harmonies of “It’s All Right” and the cleaned-up gentle blues of the coda to “Wish You Were Here,” the only genre here is a new Fleetwood Mac pop. At least they kept the basic sound bed warm and organic. It’s a nice genre of music, but there is little urgency in the album. Of course, considering all the solo projects the band members were releasing (Buckingham, Nicks, and Mick Fleetwood the year before, Buckingham, Nicks, and Christine McVie the year after) it’s a wonder they had enough material at all. In fact, they kind of didn’t. I’ll forgive Lindsey’s slight “Diane” and “Empire State,” but Stevie’s “Straight Back” is a wandering, tuneless pile of clichés, the first embarrassment their classic line-up put out. However, she also gets credit for “Gypsy,” which has its own cliché or two but has an extended bridge which modulates and climbs – a lovely piece of writing, performance, and production. Fleetwood adds a quirky little fill in the middle of the last verse to remind us he’s around, and Lindsey’s closing guitar is sparking and perfect. “Eyes of the World” is another gem, a goofy, stomping protest with intricately arranged guitar and vocals. Mirage is fine professional music making worth your consumer dollar. It hit #1 on the charts, beating Tusk’s #4, but its two million units sold were only half of its predecessor’s. The album is enjoyable, if safe. Why we expect pop stars to be spilling their guts all the time is a question for a different day. [Re-written and late after my original version was accidentally deleted.]
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Feb 7, 2018 7:12:33 GMT -5
Tango in the Night (1987) Summary: ...I say with authority that this album came out at least two years too late... Where the heck can it go from here? In my world as a Fleetwood Mac devotee, Tango in the Night is a middling album, no better than what they put out with Bob Welch. The highs are typically terrific – “Little Lies” is great through-and-through, “Big Love” is as strange a single release as “Tusk,” and a few other tracks have the eccentric charm we expect. Some of these tracks, however, can only be described as weak – “Family Man,” "Caroline," “When I See You Again,” and “Welcome to the Room, Sara.” Maybe it’s all about where my mind was at when the record came out. All the albums through Tusk have a specific place in my music development, and Mirage was sweet enough to just dig as a fan. But I was an under-employed college graduate saving up for grad school when Tango dropped, and my love for blues, folk-rock, and soul was in full bloom. I was enough of a fan to also buy the singles for the sake of the B-sides, but the record didn’t connect the way my growing Richard Thompson collection did (he’ll make another appearance later). A few notes: - Both grunts on “Big Love” are Lindsey’s. Interpret that as you like. - In concert, Lindsey plays “Big Love” as a solo acoustic piece. It’s showy, exciting, and completely different from the studio version. - One of the B-sides was the gentle “You and I, Part 1,” which is included on the expanded rerelease. - Buckingham has gone on to recycle many of the production tricks and guitar riffs from this album on later releases. - You might assume the Fleetwood Mac story fades now. If you know what’s good for you, you won’t give up yet. This is a perfect time for some bonus tracks to show what our heroes did with their fame and fortune. First up, Stevie Nicks and Prince collaborated and somehow were able to bring out the best in each other on 1983's "Stand Back": www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VU-42MGKb0 From 1981, a track from Mick Fleetwood's The Visitor. He visited Ghana and recorded tracks with African acts. Sometimes the locals backed the visitors, sometimes the visitors provided support. It's interesting for anyone intrigued by how the later Graceland could have turned out differently. Here's Mick and Peter Greenbaum re-doing "Rattlesnake Shake": www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlM3ouArMz4 Probably the solo Buckingham album which has most fulfilled his particular quirky vision is 1992's Out of the Cradle. Here he is showing his advanced finger-picking style: www.youtube.com/watch?v=w216q-HU-GA&list=PLQPDjoCkOrJtgTzSM7lfYRCJ4DBH38ZKb&index=1 Christine McVie had some hits from her self-titled 1984 album. It's OK. "Love Will Show Us How" may be the most exciting song, and the video is an amusing time capsule: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ncm86nApw0o Next, uncharted territory for me - two albums I have only heard selections from.
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Feb 7, 2018 7:47:29 GMT -5
"Stand Back" - Big beat, synth rumble + video game synth - it's got those Prince bones all right, and it lends a bit of danger in a way that Nicks has needed from Tusk onward. Then we get to the chorus, and hey I know this song! Nicks does sing with some passion. Prince picks in the bridge. Pretty great!
|
|
|
Post by Desert Dweller on Feb 11, 2018 1:49:10 GMT -5
A few notes: - Both grunts on “Big Love” are Lindsey’s. Interpret that as you like. - In concert, Lindsey plays “Big Love” as a solo acoustic piece. It’s showy, exciting, and completely different from the studio version. Seeing Lindsey play this live, solo, is a fantastic concert experience. I cannot even listen to the studio version on the Fleetwood Mac album. The solo version is thrilling. I saw him play this at a very small venue where I was in about the 10th row. Close enough to see his fingers working the guitar. Amazing. Edit: I defy anyone to tell me this solo version does not crush the group album version:
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Feb 11, 2018 14:42:07 GMT -5
Behind the Mask (1990) Pre-Existing PrejudicesBuckingham is gone. He's been mostly off the rails as a songwriter for years, but there's no denying that his playing was great. Two new guys are in, and neither of them is Bob Welch or even Peter Green. It's 1990 now, and the band is officially Old as Hell. This will probably suck, because if there was a good CMcV song here it probably would have been a recognizable single. Still, it leaves open the possibility of the rare Nicks/CMcV collaboration. Songs "Skies the Limit" - Plinks, strings, synth, CMcV. This title bothers the hell out of me; the idiom is "sky's the limit", the song even says the not-contraction version. This is rather adult contemporary toothlessness. It does have the double lady vocals at least. "Love Is Dangerous" - 90s honky-tonk, which I admit I am not utterly against. There are far worse people to imitate than Stevie Ray Vaughn. Nicks' vocals are pretty toned down. It's nice to hear her rock a little on a FM album after all this time, but this song needs a bit more personality, and it's hard not to imagine Buckingham as the male lead instead of this guy Rick Vito. "In the Back of My Mind" - Devil voice effect is a new one. Surely someone bristled at the two new guys coming in and being weird by themselves. I actually like this electronic bubble with Terminator drums; the track appears to be 7 damn minutes long, so it would be nice if an actual song materializes here. Guitar shows up to jam just as I was despairing, and the vocals start. Bass actually plays a part, and this is not bad. Nicks ought to be listed as one of the great back-up singers. CMcV being here is oddly unexpected given how all this started. This is actually kind of a brilliant mix. "Do You Know" - Hit the brakes, because it's ballad time. Many chime waterfalls and bongo. This is utter ignorable. Moreso than FM of the past few albums, all these songs really feel like duets except maybe the lead track. Perhaps because the men don't have a strong enough voice on their own? "Save Me" - Echo snare. Sounds slightly like a speeded up "Little Lies" in places. I wish the bass had been this prominent on better albums. This is okay, there's a bit of synth in the back that I like, and it's got another electric bluesy guitar solo. "Affairs of the Heart" - Oh Stevie, you were doing so well before now. This sounds like any other adult contemporary from the first notes, or from the title for that matter. It doesn't even get any cool guitar. "When the Sun Goes Down" - Ah hmmm, a little rockabilly. With a (faux) accordion! This is a good little song with some good little guitar. "Behind the Mask" - Ah-ha, Buckingham sneaks onto the album with the guitar on this track. It's a dark sound for CMcV, and it suits her so much better than ballads. Middle-of-the-road CMcV is just inferior to full dark or full pop CMcV. Good picking, good cymbal sweeps. Monk ahhhs in the back. If only this album consisted of songs like this, "In the Back of My Mind", and "Love is Dangerous". "Stand on the Rock" - Yup, back to 90s adult blues-rock with bass. Obviously it's another one of those New Guy songs, and it's pretty good. New guy Vito does all the lifting himself. This even has a little breakdown! Very of its time, but it's the sound of my youth so OK. "Hard Feelings" - Other New Guy is trying to sound like Michael Stipe filtered through late Beatles, but it's acceptable. As a bitter ballad, at least it's better than Stevie Nicks regressing to pop star. "Freedom" - Western Nicks. Unlike "Love is Dangerous" she's all by herself and it's fine. Better than fine, even. "When It Comes to Love" - That kick drum, bass, and Western guitar seem like they're preparing to give cover for something. It's another dark sound. Other new guy Burnette is doing his Michael Stipe sound again. Almost Spanish guitar picking. These guys are getting on just fine without Buckingham. "The Second Time" - Closing Nicks guitar ballad. Nothing more need be said. Summary: Much to my surprise, I mostly liked this album just as much or more as any FM since Rumours. It's nice to have JMcV's bass play a part, as if he were in this band for over twenty years. The new guys add some fine guitar. Most importantly, this record brought back the darkness that I have largely missed since Rumours both for CMcV and Stevie Nicks, even if it lapsed significantly for both of them. So it really has three sounds: new takes on old dark FM, middle-aged blues rock that was big at the time, and water-treading for the respective veterans. Not a bad track record! Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Album : Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Dave Walker, Bob Weston, Bob Welch Favorite Overall Song: "In the Back of My Mind" (Burnette, Malloy), for being both good and the best synthesis of this iteration of FM Favorite New-to-me Song: "In the Back of My Mind" Number of times someone said "Tusk!" - 0 Credited writers of favorite songs Billy Burnette - 1/2 David Malloy - 1/2 Stevie Nicks - 1 Lindsey Buckingham - 1 Christine McVie - 4 Bob Welch - 3 Danny Kirwan - 1 1/3 (third fraction is from 3 writers of "Station Man") Jeremy Spencer - 1/3 (third fraction is from 3 writers of "Station Man") John McVie - 1/3 (third fraction is from 3 writers of "Station Man") Peter Green - 1 1/2 (half fraction is from "Rollin' Man") C.G. Adams - 1/2 (half fraction is from "Rollin' Man") Robbie Patton - 1/2 (half fraction is from "Hold Me") Eddy Quintela - 1/2 (half fraction is from "Little Lies")
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Feb 16, 2018 23:48:26 GMT -5
Behind the Mask (1990) Summary: Much to my surprise, I mostly liked this album just as much or more as any FM since Rumours. When Lindsey Buckingham left Fleetwood Mac, they lost a singer, a guitarist, a songwriter, and a producer. They replaced the first three positions with two guys, and the last position with a third guy, Greg Ladanyi. While ganews remarks fondly about the sound of his youth, I hear the synthesized sheen that completely scared me away from the radio. Ladanyi had a number of high-profile productions during the era, but with the exception of Don Henley's fine early solo albums, most of them are not remembered well. I did not mind his work on Christine McVie's solo album - the instrumental break on "Love's Got a Hold On Me" was pretty - but Behind the Mask starts right out with the echo, bells, and sheen that made me nuts at the time. It's light-years from the organic sound Fleetwood Mac produced up through Mirage. Frankly, I had other stuff going on in my life and this record slipped by. For one thing, I totally misinterpreted the album cover, thinking Stevie Nicks had been replaced. No, this is a clever dramatic mock-up of the group as if posed by actors - today I think it's a groovy idea deserving of the awards it received. I liked the preceding single, "As Long As You Follow," but I assumed the nervous energy was gone. Hearing it now, I see you are right, this record is pretty fair 1990 pop. The new guys had an impressive pedigree. Rick Vito is best known for his dramatic slide guitar on Bob Seger's "Like a Rock" (although he is not to be confused with Richie Zito, session guitarist and producer). Billy Burnette was not just the son, nephew, and cousin of Dorsey, Johnny, and Rocky Burnette respectively (you should look them up) but he was an established song writer. So although the band had lost their quirky genius, they now had quality journeymen in front, just like the old days. If only their voices had a bit more character. "Skies the Limit" is as annoyingly perky and ungrammatical as you say, and although "Save Me" has an interesting verse, its clunky chorus fails in the mission to recreate "Little Lies." "Love is Dangerous" has good momentum, and "In the Back of My Mind" is evocative once it gets past the over-long intro. I especially like the Christine McVie stanza dropped in for a change of pace in the middle of the latter song. As someone who prefers slippery to obvious, "Hard Feelings" works better than "Stand On the Rock" for me. But there's a certain lack of crazy that we expect from our heroes on this record. The most significant development on the album, in my mind, is Stevie Nicks' efforts to stay in the real world. Maybe rehab had brought her back to earth - she sounds a bit humble, although her nasal growl comes through effectively in the background of some songs (I like "Affairs of the Heart" more than you). But since I never heard this record, I wasn't prepared for what would come in the future. Final verdict - this is good enough. Worthy of a few plays.
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Feb 19, 2018 13:59:47 GMT -5
Time (1995) Pre-Existing PrejudicesJesus, more departed bandmembers to chronicle. FM has swapped yet another guitarist; maybe they felt the middle age piling up on those 1990 blues-rock tracks and wanted to water down Billy Burnette. Stevie Nicks is out, which is actually a shame because she was getting half-good again. And the band just can't get rid of Lindsey Buckingham - he snuck in a guitar part last time, and he pops up in a backing vocal here. Surely no one needed the money anymore, so why bother? This didn't even chart. It will probably suck but who knows anything anymore. Songs "Talkin' to My Heart" - New woman to replace Nicks's vocals. Why does this band even exist? This is quite generic. I bet it got placed on the soundtrack for a 2002 rom-com. "Hollywood (Some Other Kind of Town)" - What is CMcV doing to her keyboards for this Billy Joel shit. Her voice is regular old CMcV, but after that opener (which I anticipate will be the tone of the whole album) this feels like a 70s time warp. The track stretches so the guys can play guitar. "Blow by Blow" - Guitar stride with cowbell and some synth. Not even trying to sound like FM (who are the backup singers?) but not bad as 1987 rock goes. This needs the synth turned up a bit, but the guitar is OK and I can almost hear bass sometimes. "Winds of Change" - Not-Stevie Nicks does a credible impression not of the voice but of the style, not the good dark stuff but the pop, so no thanks. "I Do" - More Billy Joel keys from CMcV. I like how she sings "the seasons come and go, but nothing will ever change" immediately after songs about seasons and the the wind changing things. All these songs go on too long. "Nothing Without You" - Not-Stevie Nicks has something of a career, so good for her, but these songs don't sound like anything. They're not bad, they just completely blend together for me. It's that Melissa Etheridge sound - not bad, probably a good concert to go with your 47-year-old friends, but give me some bitchin' guitar or something to set it apart. "Dreamin' the Dream" - Not-SN is named Bekka Bramlett. This song is a quiet ballad, which at least makes it different. "Sooner or Later" - Sadly this is not English Beat. It's CMcV being a bit melancholy again. It's amazing how far she has taken this schtick. "I Wonder Why" - I guess Rick Vito was the more talented one; this blues-rock is watered-down indeed. This track does a good job with Bramlett's backing vocals, one of the things here that actually recalls old FM. "Nights in Estoril" - Keys and cymbal washes: it sounds like a song titled "Nights in [something]". This is okay. "I Got It In for You" - A little 90s honky-tonk like the last album, not bad. "All Over Again" - Regretful but not actually regrettable synth ballad. "It's time to say goodbye"; "Let's stop before it's too late". Just...come on, CMcV, this is too much "These Strange Times" - Fleetwood wants to remind everybody that he's an artist, man, he's only done the rest of this album for the $. In fairness, it does sound like something pre-Buckingham/Nicks FM would have put out. Summary: I find nothing in this album to hate - I just don't care, and that is almost worse. Also this is somehow the longest FM album to date. Look at how the acts for my previous discography reviews kept trying new things late into their careers. What is this band doing different? As expected, the question is why "Fleetwood Mac" exists in 1995. I hope those Stevie Nicks haters appreciate what a gap she left in this band (of course they do not). Probably fans complained about this being a showcase for young Bekka Bramlett coming out of nowhere into a high-profile band - but isn't that the whole point of FM's existence as a band past 1970 or so? Mick Fleetwood is almost as much a non-entity as JMcV here until his tacked-on ridiculousness. Everything about this record says The End. Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Album : Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Dave Walker, Bob Weston, Bob Welch, Stevie Nicks, Rick Vito Favorite Overall Song: "Blow by Blow" (Mason, the latest new guitarist) may only technically be FM, but it was the best here. Favorite New-to-me Song: "Blow by Blow" Number of times someone said "Tusk!" - 0 Credited writers of favorite songs Billy Burnette - 1/2 David Malloy - 1/2 Stevie Nicks - 1 Lindsey Buckingham - 1 Christine McVie - 4 Bob Welch - 3 Danny Kirwan - 1 1/3 Jeremy Spencer - 1/3 John McVie - 1/3 Peter Green - 1 1/2 C.G. Adams - 1/2 Robbie Patton - 1/2 Eddy Quintela - 1/2
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Feb 21, 2018 7:59:56 GMT -5
Time (1995) Summary: I find nothing in this album to hate - I just don't care, and that is almost worse...Everything about this record says The End. So let’s talk about Dave Mason. Back in 1967, young Stevie Winwood wrapped up his career as an R&B-belting wunderkind with the Spencer Davis Group (“Gimme Some Lovin’”, “I’m a Man”). He found a commune in England’s Berkshire and invited jazz drummer Dave Cappaldi, woodwind player Chris Wood, and multi-instrumentalist Dave Mason. Winwood handled the keyboards, while he and Mason shared guitar and bass duties (Mason also had an arsenal of stringed instruments, including a sitar). They dubbed themselves Traffic, and they would all share writing credits – at least that was Winwood’s idea, since he couldn’t write lyrics worth a damn. Mason was having none of that. He wrote a few ditties (including the early single “Hole in My Shoe”), recorded a scorching guitar lead for “Mr. Fantasy,” then bolted. Their first psychedelic album was released in the UK as Mr. Fantasy, then reconfigured for the U.S. market as Heaven is in Your Mind – Mason didn’t even appear on the cover of the U.S. version. The first album was successful enough that the band asked Mason to come back. For the band’s self-titled second album, Mason wrote and sang a few songs in his newly gruff voice, the best being “You Can All Join In” and “Feelin’ Alright.” The latter of these was covered plenty of time by rock and soul acts, most famously by Joe Cocker. Mason quit the band again, and although he would tour with them, he never would return as a songwriter. Then Mason found himself at Jimi Hendrix’s side, recording the ringing folk guitar on “All Around the Watchtower” (although he had a hard time getting the cadence right, and it’s unclear how much of this really was Hendrix as well). Then Mason took up with Americans Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett, whose tambourine-shaking gospel-style large-band rock band Delaney & Bonnie and Friends would have a huge impact on early 70s rock. Mason toured with them, appearing on their On Tour with Eric Clapton, and wrote their single “Only You Know and I Know,” which also featured Clapton. At this point the band split, tiring of the lead couple’s abusive relationship. With Mason and Clapton, the backing band appeared on George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass. I’m unclear how much Mason appeared on the band's other recordings, such as Joe Cocker’s early albums, Leon Russell’s early albums, and Clapton’s debut solo album. (Derek and the Dominoes also evolved from this group of musicians.) Mason recorded a well-received solo album, Alone Together, which includes his own version of “Only You Know and I Know.” He then rehashed his ideas and songs on a string of 70s releases. In 1977 he had a Top 20 hit with Jim Krueger’s “We Just Disagree,” a smooth, beautifully-produced but mostly tuneless song which continues to play wherever canned goods are sold. I confess I like it. Dave Mason is the ultimate journeyman, on the fringes of some significant moments in rock history but never really enjoying his own fame and glory. From what I’ve learned about your taste in eclectic, well-performed music, ganews , if you have any interest in late-60s psychedelic rock you should pick up those first two Traffic albums (make sure you get the U.S. Heaven is in Your Mind, which is in glorious stereo). But he never was a great talent, and by the time he hooked up with Fleetwood Mac his best days were 20 years behind him. As far as Bekka Bramlett is concerned, Mason probably saw her as a child with her parents. You can hear Bekka’s parents in her voice, although stylistically she also resembles 80s alt-rock figure Maria McKee. The thing is, the Fleetwood Mac of the early- and mid-70s featured journeymen middling talents who were on their way up, not on their way down. I wrote all this about Dave Mason because there really isn’t much to say about Time. Mason contributes two songs. One is my favorite from the album, “I Wonder Why,” which reminds me enough of Alone Together’s ballads (seek out “World in Changes” if you’re curious). Bekka’s “Dreamin’ the Dream” has a pretty melody. Christine puts out some nice chord changes, but I think the success of her mildly jazzy “Little Lies” went to her head. Several reviews ago I compared her ability to write compact simply-constructed songs to Tom Petty. Christine’s contributions to Time just drift along. All this pleasantness does nothing to give her songs any weight or urgency - I'll give "Hollywood" an up vote for pairing its sunny and shifty melody and chords ironically against lyrics wishing for the changing seasons of Old England. The songs on this album that do try to bring urgency are just butt-ugly. The swing which was the hallmark of Fleetwood’s drumming through Tango in the Night has disappeared, and there’s no production gloss to hide its absence. It is possible there's a hidden concept regarding the passage of time within the lyrics, but that might just be an accident borne of the band members' advancing age. Then there’s “These Strange Days.” I like this more than most reviewers do. It has an unusual sound, and I would applaud its use in a car commercial. The lyrics questioning the existence of God don’t do anything for me, but I am touched by Mick Fleetwood’s thoughts on Peter Green. The opening lyrics refer to Green’s early classic song “Man of the World” as Fleetwood remembers the troubles his former band-mate went through. The final words of this track – “I wish I was in love” – are the same words Green ended his song with. It seems heartfelt, and its spacious, contemplative feeling is not much different from Pink Floyd’s great “Shine On You Crazy Diamond,” a similar meditation on a past friend. I don’t begrudge a band for trying to collect a paycheck. Most people who have tasted success and glory don’t wanted to lose it forever. Time isn’t much of an album, but it’s not a disgrace. It’s just the most pointless, and therefore, worst studio album this band of misfits ever released. This was no way to resurrect a great band.
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Feb 25, 2018 17:31:08 GMT -5
Say You Will (2003) Pre-Existing PrejudicesItem 1: here we are at the end. Item 2: this album is long as hell. Item 3: Christine McVie is gone! Well, she does appear on a few tracks, but there are no songs written by her. After all this time, this explains why her picture isn't included in the group shot on the Wikipedia page. I guess she really was as done as her last track on Time sounded. Meanwhile Buckingham and Nicks are back on board, along with a shitload of session people. Even among all those they didn't manage to drag in any of the new blood from the past two albums, pushing my missing-in-action list onto a second line even with a wide-screen monitor. JMcV is credited with "black keys" in addition to bass, because he wasn't good enough to play a whole keyboard in CMcV's absence. Is there any way this album becomes notable for something beside the personnel? Songs "What's the World Coming To?" - Buckingham's voice sounds weird. Nicks is in the back. I'm not finding a lot to say. These lyrics sound like CMcV. "Murrow Turning Over in His Grave" - Little western finger picking and weird organ, not bad. I can't make out the lyrics really, but I assume this is political, which makes me wonder when this was recorded. Post-1996? This is dark and weird and pretty good and the guitars really screech and distort. It feels way longer than it is. "Illume (9-11)" - Ooh, dark Stevie Nicks? This is good. I wish she had done more of this in the 80s. Solid instrumentation. Nice to hear Fleetwood sounding like he cares again, and JMcV's bass is audible. Spoken word dates this, but eh. It also feels longer than it is with the repetition. "Thrown Down" - Nicks continues to be accompanied by Buckingham picking. This is a bit of ballad story song, but it's more depressive and less pop. Someone's doing a pretty good job on keyboards. "Miranda" - This album is really becoming a showcase for Buckingham's playing, if not his singing (though this track is better for him). More cowbell! Another really solid song here. More excellent noodling. Song doesn't overstay either. "Red Rover" - Interesting stringed instrumentation here. Some haunting vocal harmonies. How do so many of these songs sound like six minutes instead of four? "Say You Will" - This would be the pop single, I can tell immediately. Too bad, because it's the least interesting track here since Buckingham's opener. That's selling a bit short; this commits no grievous sins and sounds better than plenty of Nicks' post- Rumours pop. Well, it does commit the sin of using a children's choir to sing about dancing. "Peacekeeper" - Oh actually this was released as a single before "Say You Will". It's a real Buckingham/Nicks duet. It's OK. Got some flute action or something. Lyrics are a bit ageing-boomer. "Come" - Must be a Prince cover. This has a whispery mystery, but it's going on too long. Suddenly it farts its way into a soaring stomper with distorted vocals, but then quiets right back down into its hole. I think I would like the two faces of this song to in fact be different songs. The distorted stomper is very interesting to be, completely outside the wheelhouse. And bass and rock organ. Remove the whisper stuff as more than a bare intro and outro and this would be awesome. "Smile at You" - My god, this instrumentation sounds like nothing so much as an acoustic cover of the music from "Troubled Souls", which is awesome. I have to call my mother, she loved that damn game. This is that good dark Nicks shit, really good. Great vocals. Nicks and Buckingham soar while apparently-not-CMcV (Nicks?) sings. "Running Through the Garden" - Hmmm, what is Nicks up to. This is a bit ballad, a bit rocker. It's a little more urgent than her common pop. JMcV's bassline moves things along. Buckingham noodles the outro. "Silver Girl" - Sleepy time? Nicks must be filling that CMcV void. Ya know, it's pretty much the same thing except less keyboard-focused. "Steal Your Heart Away" - Gonna want that cowbell. More okay pop. Someone added some bass for some reason but I didn't notice. "Bleed to Love Her" - It's got that real 90s sound of a 70s artist here, to my ears. Remember Billy Joel's "In the Middle of the Night"? "Everybody Finds Out" - Well hello, up-tempo pop with distorted Nicks vocals! JMcV playing bass, Fleetwood on the damned bongos and smashing snare! Buckingham with a jealous edge in his backing vocals! Kick-ass. "Destiny Rules" - Western picking for Nicks vocals. "Say Goodbye" - Buckingham whispers goodbye to the band with fast picking and Nicks backing. "Goodbye Baby" - And finally Nicks says goodbye with a pop lullaby. Too bad CMcV's "All Over Again" isn't on here for the triumvirate. Summary: Never ever did I expect this to be one of Fleetwood Mac's best albums. This, this must be the reason that the superfans hate Nicks and love CMcV: Nicks was able to put out a lot of pop junk and make a ton of money, but if she wanted to she was capable of serving well as both "Stevie Nicks" and "Christine McVie". That and how dare they make an album without the longest-serving songwriter. I think I will have more to say about CMcV in next week's wrap-up. Anyway, surprisingly little Boomer wankery like you hear in the new releases of some pop artists who were big in the 60s and 70s. There's even room for a bit of new sound. I really am blown away by this record. Jesus, imagine if they had released this instead of Tusk. Nicks has some habits, but she makes a lot of good music here. Buckingham hasn't been this good in decades. Albums like this are what make a Discography Review worthwhile. Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Album : Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Dave Walker, Bob Weston, Bob Welch, Rick Vito, Billy Burnette, Bekka Bramlett, Dave Mason Favorite Overall Song: "Smile at You" (Nicks), but it damn well could have been her "Everybody Finds Out". Favorite New-to-me Song: "Smile at You" Number of times someone said "Tusk!" - 0 Credited writers of favorite songs Billy Burnette - 1/2 David Malloy - 1/2 Stevie Nicks - 2 Lindsey Buckingham - 1 Christine McVie - 4 Bob Welch - 3 Danny Kirwan - 1 1/3 Jeremy Spencer - 1/3 John McVie - 1/3 Peter Green - 1 1/2 C.G. Adams - 1/2 Robbie Patton - 1/2 Eddy Quintela - 1/2
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Mar 4, 2018 1:25:43 GMT -5
Say You Will (2003) Summary: Never ever did I expect this to be one of Fleetwood Mac's best albums. Mick Jagger never cared much for Exile on Main Street. John Lennon said that Sgt. Pepper was only an average Beatles album. Pete Townshend spent a chunk of his post-Who career trying to complete his Lifehouse project, which was originally released in an aborted form as Who’s Next. Lindsey Buckingham did a good job of scuttling Say You Will’s reputation during the album’s press tour. He made it clear that he envisioned a solo album, but the record company insisted on a Fleetwood Mac release. Buckingham wanted his songs and those of Stevie Nicks to have separate discs of a 2-CD collection. The singles weren’t very successful, but the band mounted a large, profitable tour. The band did little to dispel the idea that this whole project was a gigantic sell-out, and the reviewers played into the anti-hype. They said the album’s too long, that without Christine McVie the group’s chemistry was off, that the band was out of touch with the newer music styles and forms. Don’t believe the album’s lukewarm reputation. Say You Will is a straight-up great album rich with melodies, musical styles, performances, and, for the first time in the group’s history, strong lyrics that are explicitly revealing while still being evocative and emotional. There’s a dramatic arc, and its first three songs depict a world in turmoil. “What’s the World Coming To” once again opens the album with Buddy Holly-esque bounce, only instead of having its mind on sex like earlier first tracks like “Monday Morning” and “Second Hand News,” it shows Buckingham feeling put-down and oppressed by societal pressures. The theme is continued on the lyrics of “Morrow Turning Over In His Grave,” which scolds the press for being worried about tabloid issues instead of more important matters. The kitchen-sink production seems a bit overdone for a reiteration of Don Henley’s “Dirty Laundry” themes, but then the music takes a dark turn. The beat gets heavy and the guitar builds, and screams. We hear radio transmissions with people’s cries getting mixed in, and although we may not get it the first time, this is 9/11, much as Hendrix’s “Star-Spangled Banner” portrayed Vietnam. Nicks’ “Ilume (9-11)” follows with a meditation. She gazes out from her skyscraper and admires the city she loves, which looks “like a diamond snake against a black sky.” The folk guitar and drum machines snap into an insistent rhythm as she remembers that day when she saw “things that legends are made of.” Her most chilling line is repeated several times: “I cannot pretend that the heartache fades away.” These opening songs create the urgent setting for the remaining songs. With Nicks’ “Thrown Down” we are introduced to a romantic relationship. A man returns to pledge himself to a woman once again, but the pledge is aggressive, “thrown down like a barricade.” The music has the chiming synth and guitar lines the band took up on Mirage. Buckingham’s “Miranda” is a goosed-up folk song with a tough acoustic guitar line, pounding drums, and a wild psychedelic electric lead guitar, while his “Red Rover” has a heavily echoed and processed folk guitar pattern backed by an intricate vocal arrangement. Both songs are about women who sleep around, and the care he shows in the characters seems insincere. Miranda’s pain “is part of her charm,” and the guys checking in on Rover creepily chant “we’ve come to take you over.” Nicks replies with the folk-pop “Say You Will,” where she offers to heals the wounds by dancing with the guy. Her monotone singing keeps us at a distance, bolstering the idea that she knows she has the upper hand in the relationship. With “Peacekeeper” Buckingham plots his takeover of the woman’s affections. The music is tightly-controlled, just like the man who is waiting for the dead of night. His patience doesn’t last long. Buckingham’s “Come” starts with the man whispering come-ons like “can you feel the fever?” until Mick Fleetwood and John McVie launch into a thundering blues progression, reminding us that these are the same guys who played “The Green Manalishi” a third of a century before. During the 70s punk bands rebelled against lead guitar wankery; in this case, the long, showy guitar part basically depicts masturbation (watch the live performance of the song and see for yourself – it’s hilarious). Buckingham ends the song with his nastiest moment: “Think of me, sweet darling, every time you don’t come.” As intense as “Come” is, Stevie Nicks one-ups him on the withering “Smile At You.” “Go on save yourself, leave the key here” she commands over a ticking rhythm guitar. The vocal chorus taunts “I should have turned away and ran as fast as I can,” and the music drops to silence as Nicks spits out, “My first mistake was to smile at you.” The song fades on an instrumental high, with McVie’s elastic fretless bass, Fleetwood's bongo taps, and Buckingham’s cool acoustic blues picking. This is the first of a remarkable string of Nicks songs where she examines the question of whether she’s become emotionally hard and remote. “Running Through the Garden” is a propulsive, folk-pop dance song where she describes herself as toxic and fatal, imprisoned in her garden. “Silver Girl” is a gentle lilting tribute to Sheryl Crow, who guests on the track, but Nicks clearly wrote it with both eyes in the mirror as she sings about a woman successful in a man’s world: “Shadow moves across her face/You cannot see her soul/Unless she lets you…” she sings over a spare backing similar to “Dreams.” After a couple of solid melancholy ballads from Buckingham (“Never Steal Your Heart Away” and “Bleed to Love Her,” which the band previously recorded on the live album The Dance), Nicks sings her most scathing self-assessment, “Everybody Finds Out.” It reflects on a true-life period of her life, when she had an affair with her best friend’s husband while the friend was dying of cancer. “You can’t have him, I do have him most of the time,” she growls. “Love that starts in the darkness doesn’t do well in the light…She spends every day waiting for the day when everybody finds out.” The music drives hard and there’s a synth string break down at the climax of this exciting track. The album’s key song, “Destiny Rules,” opens with a tough acoustic folk guitar riff and Nicks back to full-on mocking mode. “Maybe we were together in a different life…maybe your arms are not supposed to go around me.” Her voice is nasal and hard as she thinks about a couple’s time together, and she sounds tired of it all with her dry delivery – “When I see you again, as I always do…” But then Nicks does something I don’t remember ever hearing on a song before, and if you are interested in buying the record you should skip to the next paragraph now, because there’s a SPOILER on this record. After two verses, she starts singing about the city she loves, and you realize this is the same lyric she sang on the third song of the album. Was this the song she was writing that fateful day? Or is she merely considering this torrid love affair in light of 9/11? Either way, it changes the complexion of the song, and the album. END SPOILER. “The spirits are ruthless with the paths they chose/It’s like being together is just following the rules/No one’s a fool.” This line from “Destiny Rules” is Nicks’ great gesture of empathy and forgiveness on an album where Buckingham repeatedly insinuates she’s a slut. The song which started out so sarcastic opens up and sounds friendlier during the fade out. The album closes with Buckingham’s “Goodbye to You,” which features his finest finger-picking and is just stunning on every level, and Nick’s “Goodbye Baby,” which has her most delicate singing. Why did Buckingham undermine the record’s reputation? I’m tempted to say it’s because he tried to do some epic self-flagellation and anger in the style of John Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band, but Nicks out-classed him with her own more revealing self-examination. If you believe the making-of-the-album video documentary Destiny Rules (available on YouTube) the record meant a lot to him and was cathartic. It also brought out his most embarrassing, infantile behavior. That this rough emotional territory would be handled more skillfully by his love object/rival only amplifies the torturous theme of the album itself. It’s like a cross between Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, Blue, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolff, and The War of the Roses (the album cover pose is a variation of the death scene of the latter movie). Say You Will is a freaking masterpiece.
|
|
|
Post by Desert Dweller on Mar 4, 2018 4:33:35 GMT -5
Can't really add much to that! Yeah, it's a good album. I quite like it.
Also want to say that I won tickets to a concert on this tour. I took my dad. It was fantastic. My dad particularly loved it. I loved going to concerts with him. Fleetwood Mac is the rare "classic rock" band that I introduced him to. It was always the other way around. But, he was in the army during the years when Buckingham/Nicks first joined, so he missed the biggest mainstream success they had. When he got out of the army, he switched over to country music. It wasn't until he got a CD player in the *2000s* that I was able to introduce him to Fleetwood Mac.
Man, it was awesome to win tickets to that concert and be able to take him.
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Mar 4, 2018 7:41:39 GMT -5
Can't really add much to that! Yeah, it's a good album. I quite like it. Also want to say that I won tickets to a concert on this tour. I took my dad. It was fantastic. My dad particularly loved it. I loved going to concerts with him. Fleetwood Mac is the rare "classic rock" band that I introduced him to. It was always the other way around. But, he was in the army during the years when Buckingham/Nicks first joined, so he missed the biggest mainstream success they had. When he got out of the army, he switched over to country music. It wasn't until he got a CD player in the *2000s* that I was able to introduce him to Fleetwood Mac. Man, it was awesome to win tickets to that concert and be able to take him. I took my mom to see that tour! She was 65 years old, and she loved it. The "Live in Boston" DVD collection captures the entire show, and the only thing wrong with it is Buckingham goes on too long with the solos near the end ("I'm So Afraid," "Go Your Own Way"). I really loved the part when they put a small drum kit out front for Fleetwood and they all played in a tight circle. And yes, the whole talking drum vest routine is on there.
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Mar 4, 2018 19:15:33 GMT -5
Welp, that's it. That's the end. There will never be another one; even Metallica could theoretically produce an album in another eight years, but the ever-shifting entity known as "Fleetwood Mac" never will. So what have I learned on my winter vacation, seeing as I started this thing without particularly liking the band? Wikipedia defines Fleetwood Mac as "a British-American rock band, formed in London in 1967". I suppose I have gained new appreciation for this collection of stars, egotists, writers, and journeymen. I think I can say what works and what doesn't. I know I like them best when they're dark, bitter, jealous, paranoid, or otherwise unhappy. Exactly one song comes to mind that is none of those things, and that is "Say You Love Me" by that ol' hoss Christine McVie. When the band was on, they were really good. Otherwise, to me the albums were collections of song with maybe a few highlights. More than anything else, it's hard to classify Fleetwood Mac at all. They went through every lineup permutation, even producing one of their best albums without the longest-serving songwriter. And yet I will nobly attempt to rank the albums. Sorry, no extra credit if the best singles didn't appear on the original release, them's the breaks. 1. Rumours (1977) 2. Fleetwood Mac (aka The White Album) (1975) 3. Say You Will (2003) 4. Behind the Mask (1990) 5. Heroes Are Hard to Find (1974) 6. Tango in the Night (1987) 7. Kiln House (1970) -------- 8. Fleetwood Mac (1968) 9. Bare Trees (1972) 10. Future Games (1971) 11. Mystery to Me (1973) 12. Mirage (1982) 13. Tusk (1979) 14. Penguin (1973) 15. Time (1995) 16. Then Play On (1969) -------- 17. Mr. Wonderful (1968) And there it is. In a giant double-finger to Peter Green, none of his albums made the top tier. It's sort of a disappointing finish for my man Bob Welch, who held this band together for years but managed to get only one album in the top tier. And it's surprising that wacky ol' Jeremy Spencer managed to crack the top with his fun novelty homage album (on which he did not employ his annoying tic of saying yaaaaaaah). No one came out smelling like an absolute rose. One you get below that top tier, rankings are a bit mixed an changeable with my mood. Hey, at least the band only produced one complete stinker that was obviously the bottom of the pile. Since this band is all about the songwriters, how did that ranking come out? Remember, these are tallies of credited writers on album-favorite songs: Christine McVie - 4 Bob Welch - 3 Stevie Nicks - 2 Lindsey Buckingham - 1 Peter Green - 1 1/2 Danny Kirwan - 1 1/3 C.G. Adams - 1/2 Robbie Patton - 1/2 Eddy Quintela - 1/2 Billy Burnette - 1/2 David Malloy - 1/2 Jeremy Spencer - 1/3 John McVie - 1/3 It's no surprise that the songwriter with the longest tenure comes out on top. Bob Welch shows how valuable he was; the band never would have survived to the Buckingham/Nicks era without him. Speaking of whom, if this were some kind of quality tally where each song got an up or down vote things might look different, but this is the way it is. Frankly, a certain somebody better be glad I'm not ranking band members by their value to the band. John McVie, I'm talking about John McVie here. People have been joking on Ringo Starr for fifty years, but I'll take him any day over my favorite butt-monkey JMcV. Never forget the shit he tried to give Buckingham after Bob Welch had already played the best bass on a FM album. And those stupid album covers; at least Mystery to Me and Mr. Wonderful are worse than Penguin. I'm glad I listened. I'm still unlikely to throw on some FM, but I'm richer for having listened to their best stuff. In conclusion, Fleetwood Mac is a land of contrasts. Tune in next time when, after a break, I review the solo discography of... Michael Jackson.
|
|
|
Post by Jean Luc de Lemur on Mar 12, 2018 0:46:02 GMT -5
Also:
The T.I. Music Board “The box is there for a reason: to keep ball-men like you inside it.”
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Mar 31, 2018 8:43:25 GMT -5
I suppose I have gained new appreciation for this collection of stars, egotists, writers, and journeymen....When the band was on, they were really good. Otherwise, to me the albums were collections of song with maybe a few highlights. In 2003, a friend of mine who was connected to a large media empire gave me the opportunity to interview one of my musical heroes, Richard Thompson. By that time I had collected close to 20 albums he had made solo, with his ex-wife Linda, and with the band Fairport Convention. I admired his unique guitar artistry and his dark, literary worldview. I'd seen him in two memorable concerts, one a solo acoustic gig at a small outdoor venue where the concession stands offered nasi goreng (my favorite dish), the other a full-band gig in a small club with his son singing Linda's parts - we sat about 10 feet from him. I prepared for the interview by ordering his newest release, Old Kit Bag. Since Amazon offered free shipping on orders of $25 or more, I also ordered Say You Will, which, despite liking the advance single "Peacemaker," I didn't have high expectations for based on the band members' increasing move away from their rootsy beginnings. Tango In the Night was much more synthesized and artificial-sounding than anything which had come before, and Nicks' and Buckingham's solo work continued further down their their respective eccentric, and frequently annoying, paths. But something happened while I was boning up for the Thompson interview - I played the Fleetwood Mac disc and found myself first fascinated, then moved. In the next week or so I listened to both discs several times with the kind of single-minded focus I used to have when I was in high school. Although I was faithful and true to Thompson right up to the interview, afterwards I admitted to myself that Say You Will was that rare thing - a contemporary album that turned me on. Fleetwood Mac has been one of the two great musical gifts to me in my life (the other being those guys from Liverpool). Fleetwood Mac entered my life with a few great AM hits - "Over My Head," "Rhiannon," and "Say That You Love Me." Stevie and Chrissie were perhaps the last of the post-Woodstock earthy/sexy chicks that I longed for; Chrissie warm and breathy, Stevie cool and gurgling. From there the band presented the keys to numerous areas of my musical development - among the first records I purchased, the first band I for which I acquired most of their catalog, the band I learned to play lead guitar to, the first two concerts I went to, the first time I ever experienced an album at its world-wide premiere, the first band I followed as it began its descent from the heights of success. But Say You Will may be the greatest gift they gave, the feeling that even past 40 years of age I could be surprised and delighted by new music. So much of my enjoyment of this band's career has less with the exemplary quality of the music than the fact that they were there, in my life, at the right time. But why Fleetwood Mac? Besides the interesting - and often disturbing - personal history of the band and its players, it's the style of music. It's that usually laid-back mix of pop, folk, blues, and rock mixed with catchy melodies, occasional memorable lyrics, attractive production, and professional musicianship. As a style, it hits all of my hot buttons, even better than the Beatles. There is a genre missing from that description which, oddly, may be the most apt. Fleetwood Mac is a white soul group. More than anything, it's the groove and the emotion which make the records work. The lyrics can evaporate under a magnifying glass, but they set the mood so well that the details don't matter. Also, there is the feeling of the songwriters and players all being given a supportive environment to work out their passions. It makes sense that the band was a romantic round-robin. They were so different from each other, but they shared the greatest struggles and the greatest successes. Perhaps most intriguingly, because they have a sprawling catalog and have had lots of success without having the critical cache of other bands, you can still find surprises when you dig. For years, "Silver Springs" was the track us obsessives would name as the secret classic which the world needed to know. With its live rendition on The Dance, the song became a hit some 20 years after we celebrated it. But on that same album, there is a lovely, heartfelt track which is little noted. Stevie Nicks began her career as a folky Janis Joplin-wannabee, and she turned her interest in transformation into a witchy persona. Entering middle-age, she became intensely introspective, questioning her decision to discard a personal life - in particular, motherhood - for life as an icon. On "Sweet Girl" she sings about the choices she made: I want to fly through the world in a golden ball Many of the cities I never saw at all Sometimes I feel like I was always on call Sometime even I am allowed to fall
And the band plays, sweetly. Songs like this are why I love Fleetwood Mac. [ ganews , I just want to thank you for hanging in through the entire catalog. I saw early on that, although there are areas where the band was never going to connect with you - my taste for straight white blues and middle-of-the-road balladry is clearly not shared! - your impulses were usually parallel to mine. My personal life has been trying throughout your investigation, and I was grateful to have something fun to write about during this time. Unfortunately, other events stole my attention beginning with the Rumours album, and I couldn't look at Tusk as closely as I wanted to. I've been wanting to write about Say You Will for a long time, and fortunately it came up just before my career took an intense turn. So thanks for seeing this conversation to its end, and thank you for speaking in favor of that last, great album. AL]
|
|
|
Post by ganews on Mar 23, 2021 16:40:38 GMT -5
For whatever reason I was looking at the Wikipedia page for Tango In the Night, and the first line of the " history" section really summed up John McVie for me:
|
|
ArchieLeach
AV Clubber
I talk too much, I worry me to death
Posts: 289
|
Post by ArchieLeach on Apr 18, 2021 22:27:49 GMT -5
For whatever reason I was looking at the Wikipedia page for Tango In the Night, and the first line of the " history" section really summed up John McVie for me: Dude! You're still slagging John McVie! Me, a committed Fleetwood Mac fan, I shelled out the cash for the remastered box set of their "lost" years, and I'm delighted. These records, which meant so much to me in younger days, sound better than ever, and Mr. McVie's bass especially shines.
Really, you can spare a little bit of your time. Take 40 minutes to listen to Bare Trees again. Turn the volume up a little and you'll hear John working his magic.
|
|