I guess that if you believe that the subject of my current jottings is an American group; that guitarist Lindsay Buckingham is female and lead singer Stevie Nicks is a bloke then I suppose this review will mean very little to you. Fleetwood Mac has been there or thereabouts in the social fabric of my formative years since the late 1960s. My earliest recollections are of the instrumental “Albatross” and “The Green Manalishi”. Thirty five years later this huge, devotedly adored, supergroup with an even larger pantechnicon of interpersonal baggage have created a new album. Released in April 2003, this was their first studio album for fifteen years. I have waited for several months before committing my views to paper for a couple of reasons: firstly it is an album that takes more than a casual airing to appreciate and secondly the Mac are currently on tour.

Mac fans often divide into one of two camps – those that favour the lighter, harmonic, toe tapping, lighter rock of the album “Rumours”; and those who prefer the heavier, somewhat more discordant and (some would say) more avant garde “Tusk”. To put me into perspective I would count myself in the former group.

THE ALBUM

The following is the track listing of the album. My personal appreciation is given as a star rating out of five.

What’s The World Coming To (3:47) ****

The opener is a medium paced rocker introduced by Mick’s resonating drum beat and featuring Lindsey’s vocals and the others in background harmony. Can I detect hints of Jonathon King here (“Ev’ryone’s gone to the moon”)?
.
Murrow Turning Over In His Grave (4:11) **

A country style guitar opening soon degenerates into a phrenetic and unintelligible rant by Lindsey’s distorted voice. There are some good bass and drum riffs in the middle (they get the two stars!). This is such a messy track it should have been cut. After repeated listening it becomes annoying and a target for the “skip” button. I doubt it would have been considered for “Tusk”.

“Half-closed eyes and unconscious death
Do you feel the ooze as your brain drains out
From the pneumatic drills and sharpened knives?
Blood in the sky are you dead or alive?
All the restless people and the bitter green
Well, it takes the gold makes the spirit mean”

Edward R. Murrow (b. April 1908; d. April 1965) set the standard for television journalism in America which continues to influence and inspire television newsrooms today. He was responsible for bringing the great events of the country and the world into millions of homes, particularly during and immediately after World War II.

Illume (9-11) (4:50) ****

This is a Stevie Nicks composition. The song is dedicated to “Rudolph Guiliani, the Fire and Police Departments of New York City, the people of New York and to those who did not survive”. Stevie intones her litany against an incessant drum and bass rhythm. There are flutes and pan pipes in there somewhere too. Her voice becomes more powerful and therefore more effective as the track proceeds. The stereo engineering is quite startling through headphones.

Throw Down (4:08) ***

A fairly ordinary Stevie Nicks song with prominent jangling guitars and a background of synthesisers.

Miranda (4:17) *****

This track starts with a busy guitar riff and shuffling on the snare drum. Lindsey again uses the fuzz box. The verses lead into a fast stamping rhythm in the chorus. It’s a fun track.

I have given this track a “five” but this sound at least has been done before. I cannot help but call to mind a amusing video produced some years ago by Bryan Adams of his tribute song “Diana” to the Princess of Wales.

Red Rover (3:57) ***

Busy plucked strings introduce another Buckingham opus. His voice flies all over the place in another song where the lyrics present a test of understanding.

Say You Will (3:47) ***

I guess this track looks back to the more lyrical side of the Mac of old. Stevie in rather low key voice accompanied by a lush string backing. There are a few niggles with the lyric where there are more syllables in the refrain than beats in the bar causing her to stumble of the words “That kind of touch, electricity of love …”. Then what are those falsetto voices doing in the run out? It degenerates into a schoolgirl chorus – doesn’t work!

Peacekeeper (4:10) ***

It’s the “Peacekeeper” World Tour – the title taken from this track. Stevie backs Lindsey in this bouncy rocker.

Come (5:59) *****

A hint of Spanish guitar and breathy expectant vocals in the opening verse crash suddenly into the vibrant drum rolls and bass chords of a heavy chorus while Lindsey’s screaming guitar takes flight. This track would have been at home on “Tusk” but paradoxically it is one of the standout tracks here. I look forward to seeing Buckingham do this one “live”.

Smile At You (4:32) ****

Stevie is back with a fast paced song and puts more power into her voice.

Running Through The Garden (4:33) ***

“Until she herself became the deadliest poison. As she grew older…”. The pace has slowed somewhat and a string accompaniment has appeared. The power level has dropped and there is a minor vibrato in Stevie’s voice now. With the pedestrian lyrics this is a transient song.

Silver Girl (3:59) ***

The pace has slowed even further. The power level in the voice has dropped even more. The lyrics feel tired – but there again Stevie has revisited this theme (Silver Springs, Gold Dust Woman) many times before. This is a very ordinary offering. Perhaps it would have been more prudent to mix the order of songs differently. By this third track the lack of a “Christine” was palpable.

Steal Your Heart Away (3:33) ****

A jingling power ballad from Lindsey Buckingham – shades of ELO or Moody Blues in their heyday.

Bleed To Love Her (4:05) *****

It has been said that the album has a long gestation period. This track gives credence to that view. It was first introduced (as a new song) during “The Dance” tour. It is another of the standout tracks with a great melody and backing but it is interesting to compare it back to back with the 1997 live performance (which of course also features Christine McVie prominently on keyboards and backing vocals). Although a strong and creditable performance, the earlier and live version is better.

Everybody Finds Out (4:28) ***

Oh dear – Stevie has found Lindsey’s fuzzbox! The vocal effects are somewhat on the croaky side in this fast paced track laced with latin-sounding dance rhythms. The stereo engineering is also disturbing over headphones.

Destiny Rules (4:26) ***

Stevie again moves through a medium paced ballad with a thumping drum line. The chorus and much of the verse lyrics are repeats of “Illume” – or is it the other way around?

Say Goodbye (3:24) ****

Lindsey plays in with another busy acoustic guitar refrain with breathy vocals. It’s a pleasant song which improves with play and threatens to land a hook on you. This sounds so much like Noel Harrison or Michel Legrand (“Windmills Of Your Mind”)

Goodbye Baby (3:50) ***

This, the closing song, is the slowest and huskiest of Stevie’s output.

There are two versions of this album. Mine is the American “enhanced” version released on the Reprise label which includes a second multimedia CD.

There are four bonus music tracks on this second CD.

Love Minus Zero / No Limit (4:11) ****

This is Lindsey’s take on an old Bob Dylan song. He sings it solo with a quite light jaunty vocal and jangling guitar backing rather reminiscent of The Byrds. I have no idea of the vintage of this particular recording (and there is none given) but it is a very pleasant treat. If it is contemporary, I’m really surprised it wasn’t chosen in favour of some of those that made the album proper.

Not Make Believe (4:29) **

The second addition is a Stevie offering. It is a rather workmanlike and pedestrian ballad that I found quickly forgettable.

Peacekeeper **** and Say You Will ***

These two tracks were recorded live during a series of interviews conducted for broadcast over the internet by AOL. The former is quite an eye-opener especially when compared with the studio version. It feels much more dynamic and gives a good indication that the Mac can still “hack it” live. This version of Say You Will is also of interest as it is taken in a much lower key that the album track leaving Stevie plumbing the lower registers at times.

There are also a number of video extracts that can be assessed using the CD in a computer. Entitled “Watch The Making Of…” we are treated to short films of the band rehearsing five tracks including two different takes of Say You Will. It’s a rather curious mixture of images. Some are filmed in what looks like someone’s front living room with Mike wearing his blue jumper tapping away on the drum kit. There are shots of Stevie in specs sitting in a chair in front of the microphone. Lindsey looks as if he is in a caravan for his contributions.

The enhanced version comes in a heavy cardboard board book. The insert lists the lyrics to the songs and there are a number of photographs of the band.

Fleetwood Mac in this incarnation are Lindsay Buckingham (vocal, lead guitar, keyboards), Stevie Nicks (vocals, keyboard), John McVie (bass), Mick Fleetwood (Drums). Although officially absent, Christine McVie is listed in the credits as an “additional performer”. I have been unable to ascertain where she appears. Also listed is Sheryl Crowe. Apparently she provided background vocals on “Silver Girl” and played guitar on “Say You Will”.

SAY YOU WILL: Fleetwood Mac (2003).
Standard: WEA records Amazon £9.99
Enhanced: WEA records Amazon £19.99

CONCLUSION.

So, now that we’ve got here was it all worth it? It has to be said that this album has met with mixed reviews since it was first launched and many of those reviewers have commented that it need time to appreciate. It is certainly a heavyweight – even in its unenhanced form – with eighteen songs and a playing time in excess of one hour fifteen minutes. “Say You Will” has been described as the natural successor to the legacy of Fleetwood Mac. “Rumours” it is not. There are flashes of brilliance but in form it veers towards “Tusk” if anything. It would probably have appealed to me more just a couple of tracks shorter and if the order and mix of songs had been different. The Stevie songs do seem to pile up on you towards the end which can leave you feeling weary. It is not an album to sit and listen to through and through.

What is immediately apparent is that the driving rhythm section that has typified Fleetwood Mac since its inception is still there, unflagging in the guise of Mick and John. (They gave the group its name in the first place after all). I am not the first, and certainly won’t be the last to lament the disappearance of Christine McVie from the line up. Her absence is plainly apparent to anyone who has heard anything of the Mac in the past. She is a delightful songwriter in her own right and her presence was a perfect counterbalance to Stevie Nicks.

Groups get older, voices and styles change and mature. I do have concerns for Stevie Nicks’ voice (bless her – she’s still beautiful at 55) on a number of the tracks. It is unfortunate that the alluring little girl lost sound of many youthful female singers turns either to a sultry sexy or a croaky crone as they get older. I’m afraid that at times she veers towards the latter – particularly in the slower and lower register numbers. Her voice does better suit the more pacy, more powerful vocal tracks. Lindsey on the other hand is better when the driven edge is removed from his performance. Watching him in close up in full flow can be a quite painful experience. He remains brilliant with the guitar.

Fleetwood Mac has always had the reputation of being at its best in live performance. Anyone who has seen the video or DVD of “The Dance” cannot doubt that they can still turn out a bravura performance. I have to admit that at times Christine McVie did look plainly uncomfortable during that concert and looked as if she would have been more at home making jam for the WVS. It is no surprise that she does not want to do this anymore. There was some talk initially that her place was being offered to Sheryl Crowe but nothing transpired. Stevie Nicks had provided guest vocals on her album “C’Mon, C’Mon”.

They are currently on tour in the USA and will be in Britain for the first time in twenty years in November. I have my tickets for the Newcastle concert safely stored away. My spies in America are already raving about their performances saying that they rate with the best that the Mac has done. Obviously they are playing a mixture of old and new stuff and if they maintain their current play list there are only six (out of 22) songs from this new album.

[POSTSCRIPT: A LITTLE HISTORY

You may not realise it but Fleetwood Mac shares its heritage with the “arch-root” of all serious British rock – John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers. In 1966 the then guitarist Eric Clapton left to be replaced by Peter Green. Already in the group were Mike Fleetwood (drums) and John McVie (bass). Green wrote an instrumental which he called “Fleetwood Mac”. When Clapton returned to the Bluesbreakers in 1967, Green left the band and joined up with Fleetwood with McVie. Their initial name was “Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac”. John started dating the lead singer of “Chicken Shack”, Christine Perfect and they subsequently married. Over the next few years there were several changes of personnel and problems with copyright, title ownership and legal suits. By 1974 Peter Green had gone and Mick, John and Christine settled in America also having won their right to the name of the group. Prior to a countrywide tour they needed to record a new album. They were impressed by a pair of west coast country rock artists – Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham – who were invited to join them. The first collaborative album was entitled “Fleetwood Mac” (sometimes known as the White album. This was followed in 1977 by “Rumours” which was to become one of the biggest selling albums of all time.

Even at the height of their popularity their private lives were enmeshed in a web of divorce, infidelity, alcohol, drugs, acrimony and self-doubt. This era is detailed very frankly and candidly in a video recording by the group which was released in 1997 (“Greatest Records In Rock History: Fleetwood Mac – Rumours” DVD video GDVD007: Amazon.co.uk £14.39). A further darker and heavier album “Tusk” appeared in 1979. They toured in the early 1980s but then the group split. They got together for a single performance in honour of the inauguration of Bill Clinton who had used their song “Don’t Stop” as a campaign anthem. They then reunited for an American tour in 1997 which led to the release of a live album of their standards “The Dance”.]