Stevie goes Solo

  I know I seem to always steer towards talking about Stevie Nicks, but it is only because she is just so gosh darn interesting! I just can't seem to help it!  Anyway, after completing the Tusk Tour, she was left with somewhat a confused feeling.  She had three great albums under her belt with Fleetwood Mac.  However, there were only so many songs that she could have on each Fleetwood Mac record.  You have to think, she wasn't the only songwriter in the band.  You had Christine McVie as well as Lindsey Buckingham writing songs for each album.  This might give you a better idea as to how limited Stevie's songs were for each album...

All of Nicks' songs will be in BOLD

Fleetwood Mac White Album (1975)
1.Monday Morning
2. Warm Ways
3. Rhiannon
4. Over my Head
5. Crystal (collaboration of both Nicks and Buckingham from Buckingham Nicks Record)
6. Say You Love Me
7. Landslide
8. World Turning
9 Sugar Daddy
10. I'm So Afraid
                                                                   (Total: 2 1/2)
Rumours Album (1977)
1. Second Hand News
2. Dreams
3 Never Going Back Again
4. Don't Stop
5. Go Your Own Way
6. Songbird
7 The Chain
8. You Make Loving Fun
9. I Don't Wanna Know
10. Oh Daddy
11. Gold Dust Woman
                                                  (Total: 3..thats a bit better...)
Tusk Album (1979)                                                                      
1. Over and Over
2. The Ledge
3. Think About Me
4. Save Me a Place
5 Sara
6.What Makes You Think You're the One?
7. Storms
8 That's All for Everyone
9. Not that Funny
10 Sister of the Moon
11. Angel
12. That's Enough for Me
13. Brown Eyes
14. Never Make Me Cry
15. I Know I'm Not Wrong
16. Honey Hi
17. Beautiful Child
18 Walk a Thin Line
19. Tusk
20. Never Forget
                                                                      (Total: 5...out of 20)

  Wow, even writing this myself just now, I never realized how limited Stevie Nicks' songs were on each album.  Think about it this way.  With all three albums combined together, there were a total of 41 songs.  Stevie Nicks got credit for writing 10 1/2 songs. 10 1/2 out of 40!  For the record, (pun) that isn't a lot for a successful songwriter. Stevie Nicks was (and still is to this day) a prolific songwriter meaning that she writes songs constantly.  Being able to only allow lets say, three songs on each album was simply not enough.  She needed another outlet for her songs and that is the reason as to why she started a solo career after the making of the Tusk album.

Here is a video that clearly explains Nicks' thought process as to why she started a solo career... (PS.  Try not to get distracted by the narrator's accent. It makes me laugh a little every time... )


So there you have it.  A brief reasoning as to why Stevie Nick's "left" Fleetwood Mac in 1981.  I put the word left in quotes because she never actually really left.  She would go back and forth between her solo work and her work with Fleetwood Mac.  She was constantly balanced between the two commitments and still does to this day.  She will record and album when Fleetwood Mac is in their "downtime" and then tour with that album within the same time period.  Once Fleetwood Mac decides to make another album, she is always there to rehearse and tour with the band.  Obviously, this process has worked because she has been successful with her solo work and Fleetwood Mac for over twenty years now.

  I wonder what the band members thought when she walked in the door informing them of her new idea to go solo.  Want to know what I heard?  I heard that when she finished making her Bella Donna album in 1981, she left a signed album for Lindsey Buckingham to have.  I think she left it somewhere outside the studio or his house.  Anyways, he never picked it up.  Can we blame him?  I mean if you put yourself in Lindsey's shoes then you could see as to why he was frustrated.  Think about it.  He was asked to join Fleetwood Mac in late 1974.  They never asked Stevie if she wanted to join.  They only needed a guitar player and they asked for him only.  Fleetwood Mac already had a female lead and that was Christine Mcvie.  It was Lindsey who suggested that they take his girlfriend into the band.  They become a huge success with Fleetwood Mac and Nicks' seems to be getting a bit more attention than Buckingham.  There were always ego struggles between the two band mates/lovers and it must have been hard simply as a man, to know that your ex girlfriend is getting all the attention on stage, and you are partially to blame.  His ego must have been shot.  He was ( and still is) an incredible guitar player who in my opinion didn't get enough recognition.  Stevie was the focal point, for she understandable had that amazing stage presence and voice.  She wore amazing clothing that screamed "Look at me!", and it must have driven Buckingham bananas!  To wrap it up, if this speculation is true that Buckingham somewhat snubbed Stevie and her new album...I can't really blame him.  Whether she meant the signed album to be a nice gesture or simply a big "In your face Buckingham!", I would have been peeved if I were in his boots.

Till next time...
JDSkills

Mick and Stevie Affair....SAY WHAT?!?!?

  I'm about to drop a BOMB on you.  Steve Nicks and drummer Mick Fleetwood had an affair back on the last leg of the 'Rumours Tour".  That's right, even these two got at it! I know, I was just as shocked as you when I first found out.  When I look at these two I just don't "see" them together.  I always thought the couples were Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham and Christine and John McVie.  Those were the couples in the band and that was IT!  Seriously, sometimes you take a step back and look at all the relationships within the band and think "Man, that is a band of incest right there".  Well, it was bound to happen right?  I mean you put rock stars on the road for over a year and its almost a guarantee that a new love affair/fling/experience is going to arise as a result.
  When I first was informed of the love affair, I couldn't believe my ears.  However, I had to be blind to not know that the affair was already well out in the open. There are plenty of texts and interviews out there of Stevie and Mick being fully open about their affair, but like most of you reading, I too was once a Fleetwood Mac Rookie.  I didn't know the inside scoop on the relationship drama.  In other words, I didn't know half of what comprises the band Fleetwood Mac.

  So me, being the little snoop that I am, wanted to find evidence that these two got their "Mac" on.  (haha pun intended!)  I scouted out through my folder of vintage tour footage and found some awesome videos from The Rumours Tour.  I fast forwarded to the last leg of the tour which was in 1977-1978.  These videos are probably my favorites because you actually  get a glimpse as to what touring with the band was actually like.  The footage was done by some unknown film-maker who was simply just a friend of Mick Fleetwood himself.  He tagged along on the tour simply filming as everyone went about their business.  The footage is much like that of a home video.  Very real, very raw, and a GOLDMINE to snoops like me looking for an affair in the works!  Now, I obviously wasn't scouting out for intimate things-that's just a little freaky- but I wanted to catch hints and inklings of this shocking affair.  Low and behold, I found a few clips with Stevie and Mick acting a little more "close" than usual. 



Catch it at mark 1:18.  TUSH GRAB!


Mick creeps in on Stevie doing her makeup at 22 seconds and Stevie could very well just be goofing around and giving Micks make-up a touch up....or we can think of it the "snoop/fun" way and think she is coming up with any excuse just to get her hands on him!  She also seems to be very giggly and smiley when he comes into the picture...

Seriously, I only have two videos that I could find on YouTube.com that come from that footage which is torture for me since I know that there is much more out there! If I can figure out how to upload the footage that I have, then I sure will!  There are little glances, looks, talks that happen that seem to verify that this love affair was indeed happening.  I love it when I find little mischievous tid bits like that!  It makes being a Mac fan all the more fun!  It may not all be accurate, but that's the fun in speculating!  Lets speculate for a few more minutes.  Now knowing that there was a fling between Nicks and Fleetwood puts a whole new meaning to these following pictures.  What do you think?

This comes from the 1977 cover of "Rolling Stone Magazine"  The picture illustrates the different relationships within the band.

  So its sweet isn't it?  Two people who don't seem to fit the "mold" of a perfect couple suddenly do.  They had a lively passionate romance, however there was a down-side.  The sad part about this love game was the fact that he was married at the time to London-based model Jenny Boyd and had two little girls. I guess that's  the sad risk of having a rock star as your husband.  He is gone for months at a time and even when he isn't on tour, he is in the studio recording for his next album.  I am in no way excusing Mick of his actions, but at the same time I need to ask Jenny "What did you expect?" Marrying a famous rock star has its consequences and unfortunately, the risk outweighed the marriage this time around.
There you have it Macsters. Mick Fleetwood. Stevie Nicks.  Love Affair.  I think the short romance was a bit "out there" but as a result, we the listeners received great music!  This song that I will leave you with was written by Stevie Nicks and it was about Mick Fleetwood.  The song was called Sara.  "Why the name Sara?" you may ask.  Well lets add a bit more drama to the already chaotic mix shall we?  Sara Recor was a model and one of Stevie Nicks' closest friends.  Recor and Fleetwood started a relationship whilst he was still being involved with Nicks.  Recor claims otherwise and said that she and Mick started their relationship after he and Nicks called it quits.  Regardless, the two fell in love and eventually married in the late seventies. You may think that Nicks would have been livid with the fact that Sara and Mick started something together, but the truth is that Nicks was more upset with Fleetwood than Recor.  In fact, Sara Recor was actually in the room with Nicks when she wrote the song!  Wow...Stevie sure was an understanding friend.

   I'll let you all escape the drama by simply listening to the beautiful song Sara which is off of the 1979 album Tusk...

JDSkills

"All I ever wanted, was to know that you were dreaming..." -SN

Hiatus for the Weekend...

Another busy weekend Macsters!  (PS-thats what I will be calling all of you- Macsters....get it?)  With that said, I'm going to be taking a break on the weekend.  Here is something to give you a dose of " Mac Fill" until I get back...

  Its the girls of the Mac (Christine and Stevie) having some fun in between recording the Tusk album.  I love Fleetwood Mac funny clips! 3:05- "NO CLICK!"   Ahhh its a hoot. -Enjoy! :)





I'll give you your fill when I get back!

JDSkills

The Ever-so Tribal Tusk Album

    We've spoken a lot about Fleetwood Mac's successful Rumours Album.  But what happened after that?  Where did the successful five some go from there?   You would think selling over 8 million copies of your album would be a blessing for a band, but is it really?  Sometimes when a band makes a really great and memorable album, they then can't find a way to top that success and that is when they become "stuck" and simply drop off the face of the earth.  If anything, Fleetwood Mac wanted to make an album that wasn't a "Rumours 2" so to speak. 
    So after a short break, their following album entitled Tusk was made and let me tell you, the sound is far different from the Rumours album.  All members of the band were involved with their vocal arrangements and instrumental work on previous albums, but this time around was a bit different.  Lindsey Buckingham seemed to take control of the somewhat tribal sound of the Tusk album. The thing about Buckingham was that he had (and still does to this day have) a goal in mind when making an album.  He, just like any other serious recording artist, never wants to make two albums that sound the same.  Every band needs that type of band mate.  A band needs to have a creative leader.  Sure, Mick Fleetwood is considered the Big Daddy of Fleetwood Mac, but he only has an instrumental ear.  Buckingham however has an ear for both vocal harmonies as well as music combined for he sings and plays lead guitar.  He has personal experience. Take a look at this short clip that explains the making of the Tusk album...


    If I could describe the Tusk album in three words it would be...hmmm...tribal,experimental,abstract.  Before the recording of the album, Buckingham informed Fleetwood of an idea that he had for the album.  He proposed recording a few tracks by himself before re-joining the band in studio.  There were definitely mixed emotions among band members to this proposition.  Mick Fleetwood's concern was the fact that his drums may not match the recording of Buckingham's vocals or guitar.  Fleetwood thought it would be better suited for the band if they were all in one room recording the album.  The recording was quite difficult in the studio for in the 1970's, studios were poorly built.  A lot of artists had trouble getting an ambiance or echo on their tracks.  The walls and floor were carpeted resulting in poor, flat sound.  These rooms were like a recording artists' nightmare.  Buckingham would actually record much of the album's material in a bathroom in order to gain a fuller sound.  Here is a current video from 2007 describing Buckingham's slightly absurd/OCD-ish ways to record the Tusk album.  Needless to say...fellow band members sometimes thought he was losing his mind..Stevie Nicks humorously interprets what Lindsey was like mixing the Tusk album..



  I have mixed feelings towards this.  I mean I definitely see where Fleetwood is coming from.  If I were a drummer ( the essential "heartbeat" of the band's music) I would feel more comfortable having every single one of my band mates in the same studio and recording together.  However, I can also see where Buckingham is coming from. He wanted to take a completely different approach to the album.  He wanted to explore and go back to his creative roots that he had before he joined Fleetwood Mac. Everyone was looking at the making of this new album in a different way and all of those ideas are reflected in the sound of the album. 

  A lot of people hate the sound of Tusk.  What's JDSkills opinion of this you might ask?
Well here it is...


 I LOVE THE TUSK ALBUM!  Yeah, its a little quirky and weird but that's why I love it!  I loved the Rumours album (who doesn't?) but Tusk is so unique and different.  This is when Stevie Nicks got to write songs that were more loose and less commercial.  Lindsey Buckingham cut the Afro off his head and to top it off, he cut his pop-rock sound and geared towards the punk sound.  Christine McVie is probably the only vocalist who seemed to sound the same.  That's one thing that is different about Christine compared to Nicks.  When McVie knows that an album needs to be recorded then she starts writing songs.  Nicks on the other hand is constantly writing songs, giving a variety of different arrangements to choose from.  Regardless, both musicians are excellent in their own right.  It seemed as though each member from the band came back from the Rumours tour with a different way at looking at music.  There was obviously still that raw tension and chemistry within the band.  Actually, little tid bit- Midway through the Rumours Tour Mick Fleetwood and Stevie Nicks had a fling. *Gasp* Yeah, I know right?  I wonder what Buckingham had to say about that?  Anyways, we will talk a bit more about that later...

   Here are a few clips of the band actually mixing and recording the Tusk album...Enjoy!


Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham recording one of my personal favorites from the album-Nicks' song, Angel. Also, a little bit of footage at the end to show Buckingham's mixing techniques.



Poor Stevie living in a mans world!  She totally is making sense and they just make fun of her.  Don't worry Stevie!  I understand what you were trying to say...


A little background on Christine McVie as well as her recording "Make me Cry". Such a calm cool chick...reflects in her music!

More posts on Tusk to come later!

Till then...
JDSkills

Kate Hudson Channels Stevie

  Kate Hudson sings Silver Springs on The Rachel Zoe Project (love that show).  If there was ever to be a film on Fleetwood Mac, Hudson should be in the lineup for possible actresses for Nicks. Ah! (light bulb*) and Rachel Zoe could do costume design!  I think we have the making of an epic film here...

JDSkills

Demo or Album?

    Do you ever wonder what goes into the making of a song?  I sure do.  Whenever I am listening to the finished album cut of a song, I always wonder..."What does the demo sound like?"  I always seem to like the rough cuts more than the clean ones.  To me, they sound more authentic and raw.  I like to hear what could have been in the song. You can hear vocals and instruments that never made the finished product and in all actuality, those extra bits made the song that much better.  When I listen to demos, I make sure to listen to them the whole way through.  Especially with a band like Fleetwood Mac, you always seem to hear tid-bits of interesting lyrics that give a better explanation to the song.  Like I stated before, when listening to a Fleetwood Mac song, particularly from the Rumours era, it is like reading their diary.  Within these demos are extra "pieces of the puzzle" that allow the listeners to experience what they were feeling at that very moment.  Its like being a fly on the wall so to speak...(the one time when I would love to be an insect).
  Lots of times in demo, you will get longer tracks for they simply did not have room to fit them on an album.  A classic example of this would be when Stevie Nicks was denied to have her beautiful song, Silver Springs on the 1976 Rumours album. The song was recorded and then at the last second, she was told it would not make the album for it was too long. The song was replaced with a shorter upbeat song of Nicks' called I Don't Want to Know.-an awesome diddy might I add...
Thankfully, Silver Springs was finally released 25 years later on the Rumours expansion CD, but until then very few were exposed to album version of the song. 

    Alright so I'm a demo girl but who knows, you guys might like the finished product of a song better than the demo!  We all have our differences...

You guys listen to these next few vids and you make the call.  Demo or Album?  ( Stevie Nicks has many demos, so I just focused on her songs.  When I find more from Christine and Lindsey I will be sure to post them!)

Silver Springs Demo 1976 Rumours

Silver Springs1976- Sold now on: Rumours Expansion CD ( The recording that was cut at the last minute.  This was the final cut)



Gypsy Demo 1983


Gypsy on 1983 Mirage Album

  So those are a few comparisons of a demo versus and album track...



 Now here are some songs that resurfaced a good twenty-plus years after they were first recorded.  The first song is a song of Nicks' If you Ever Did Believe  The song was written for the Rumours album and once again...a beautiful song that never made the cut.  It resurfaced when Stevie Nicks and Sheryl Crowe re-recorded this song in order for it to be in the 1998 film Practical Magic starring Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock.  Take a listen...

1976" Rumours-to be" Version (Demo-take)If You Ever Did Believe



1998 Music Video to Film Practical Magic Re-recorded If You Ever Did Believe


...And remember that other song that was supposed to be on Rumours? I wrote about it to you earlier, but it is the song Planets of the Universe. Its a haunting song that never made the album but it finally found its was out to the public when Stevie Nicks re-recorded it for her 2003 Trouble in Shagri-La Album. Check out the differences in these two versions...

1976 "Rumours to be" Version Planets of the Universe


2003 Trouble in Shangri-La Album: Stevie Nicks solo



And might I add that all four versions (both new and old) are in my currently Ipod-and I hope they will be in yours too!
I hope the next time you listen to an album version of a song, you will think of the process that went into making that recording what it is today. Who knows, maybe there are more songs out there that we have yet to hear. All we need to do is wait twenty plus years...

...But I bet it will be worth the wait.

JDSkills

Happy Birthday Lindsey!

Happy Birthday to Lindsey Buckingham who turned 61 today!



This video wasn't made by me.  It was made by a youtube fan named Jackie.  She has some great rare videos on her youtube channel.(biglindseyfan77) -Check em out!  The song is live from Buckingham's "Gift of Screws" Tour in 2008.  Saw him live plenty of times on this tour and he was awesome.  Once again, Happy Birthday Lindsey!

JDSkills