Fleetwood Mac Is Back!! (And Better Than Ever!)

I am a longtime Fleetwood Mac fan. I got hooked on the Rumors album, and after that I got my hands on anything and everything Fleetwood Mac. I got everything new as soon as it hit the shelves and I also went backwards. I bought Mystery To Me, Bare Trees, Live In Chicago etc. I also bought Buckingham / Nicks. What I discovered was Fleetwood Mac rocked from the get go. I loved it all.

I first got to see Fleetwood Mac perform live on the Tusk Tour at the Capital Center in Largo, MD. It is a huge arena, with awful accoustics but it was general admission seating and we were on the floor up close to the stage. I was 17 years old then and on my boyfriend's shoulders. I am almost certain you can see us in the video performance of that tour.

The Tusk Tour was awesome. Fleetwood Mac was the first group I had ever seen who I thought sounded 10 times better in concert then on their studio tapes. I was so happy when Fleetwood Mac Live came out. It is by far my favorite Fleetwood Mac album. I loved the energy of Lindsey Buckingham singing Oh, Well. He did that song much better then Peter Green ever did.

Anyways, over time and marriage and children and responsibilities I fell out of touch with the band I had loved so much. I bought their albums but didn't follow them closely anymore.

Then for my 20 year wedding anniversary (I married the guy who's shoulders I was on during the Tusk concert) my husband surprised me with tickets to the Say You Will concert. They were playing in St Paul on our anniversary. I was excited to go but gasped when I saw he paid almost $300 for 2 tickets, so I walked in there somewhat hesitantly.

The show opened with The Chain and quite honestly I thought it sounded awful. I was so disappointed. Stevie Nicks sounded awful on that song as did the rest of them. The music was distorted and I was regretting walking in the door.

Dreams wasn't much better, Eyes of the World was okay... then came Peacekeeper... It was much better... Then came Second Hand News... Oh yeahhhhhhhh... from that point on the concerted kicked booty... I was on my feet for the rest of the show. Lindsey rocked the house down that night and Stevie sounded better then ever on Landslide, Silver Springs, Gold Dust Woman, Rhiannon and all the rest. One of the many highlights of the show was World Turning. They took one of my least favorite songs and transformed it into the ultimate Jam. Mick was awesome. It was so cool to see him take center stage the way he did (but I would of rather watched him beating that conga drum longer rather then his vest.)

There was only one song I wished they had played and didn't and that was Oh, Well. I also wish Stevie had sang with Lindsey on Big Love. Other then that the only thing missing was Christine. While the rest of them did an outstanding job making up for her absence it was still deeply felt by me.

I walked into that arena with doubts and reservations ($300 is a lot of money for us and I could think of 100 better ways to spend it.) I walked out thinking that concert was worth every penny he paid. I felt young and alive and revived.

This review I just wrote didn't come close to doing this concert justice. The energy flowed straight from the stage and into my soul.

FWM if you read this... Pleaseeeeeeee record this concert for release... and thank you for making this 40 year old woman feel young and alive again.

God Bless you all...

Unbelievable!!!

As I posted on The Ledge "Rumours" page, I received free tickets to this show from a coworker. They ended up being really good seats. 1st level, 12 rows up on the left side of the stage, about 50 yards out. A great vantage point. And the Xcel Center is amazing. We do it up proper here in MN! Alright, here's my song by song review, I'll try not to be too wordy ;-).
1. The Chain - Standard stuff, nothing too different or exciting, but I just love this song, so it was cool. The bass drum intro always gets people going.
2. Dreams - They need to remove this from the setlist, as Stevie is not too into this song anymore.
3. Eyes of the World - It was cool hearing this song live, as it had been removed from the set by the time they got here in '97. Great playing by LB, but it seemed like a lot of people were unfamiliar with it.
4. Peacekeeper - I love this song, and it was performed well, much better than on any of the TV appearances they did. Plus, "Only kill" is the only line that should be used. Good crowd reaction.
5. Second Hand News - I love this song, and I love hearing it live. Stevie smiled through the whole thing, and it really seemed to kick the show into high gear.
6. Say You Will - I like this song a lot, and it's much better with the harder guitar. I liked the end acapella harmony, too, cool touch.
7. Never Going Back Again - This was awesome. LB went back to the original key it was written in, rather than the lower ones he's used since the Rumours tour. And the country drums and bass, and harmony between SN and LB added a whole new element. One of my favorites of the night.
8. Rhiannon - Tons better than "The Dance." It rocked harder, the way it's supposed to, and Stevie was much more into it. I still miss LB's end solo, though.
9. Come - This is where the all out adoration of Mr. Buckingham began. Unbelievable solo, and he got a huge standing ovation at the end. Funny that Stevie leaves the stage for this one ;-).
10. Gypsy - I always get a little bored with this one, but the old vdieo playing in the background at the end was a cool touch.
11. Big Love - Great, as usual, although LB messed up the lines a little, but I don't think many people noticed. How does he play that fast?!? Standing O again.
12. Landslide - The lighters were breaking out for this one. Good times, and the moment between SN and LB seemed less forced than 5 years ago.
13. Say Goodbye - Really good, and I love what SN's harmonies have added to this song. Better than on SYW.
14. What's the World Coming To - Good stuff, but it seemed like a lot of people took a break for this one.
15. Beautiful Child (first performance) - I loved hearing this live for the first time. It was absolutely gorgeous.
16. Gold Dust Woman - Again, much better than on "The Dance." Such a cool song.
17. I'm So Afraid - Good solo, but not as good as when I saw them in '97. Still, it was enough to get another standing O.
18. Silver Springs - One of the greatest crimes in rock history was this being left off Rumours. Great performance, and SN and LB were singing straight at each other. Oh the tension! ;-)
19. Tusk - It loses a little bit without the Trojans, but the engery of everyone makes up for it. LB was stalking Stevie around the stage at the end, it was pretty funny.
20. Stand Back - Good performance, I wish LB had a little more to do on this one.
21. Go Your Own Way - This rocked! It's my favorite song, and they did it justice. LB had a little bit of a hard time hitting the high notes on the chorus, but the end solo more than made up for it. He even let a few folks in the front strum his guitar. Cool touch. Huge ovation.
Encore:
22. World Turning - I love this song live, and Stevie fills in more than adequately for Christine. The drum solo went on a little to long, but I love when Mick kicks back into the song after the solo. Always puts a pep in my step. Big ovation.
23. Don't Stop - My least favorite Rumours tune, should've been left off the set, but they gave it some energy that it lacked in '97.
2nd Encore:
24. Goodbye, Baby - Very lovely, well done, but I wish they would've finished with more of a rocker. Oh well. Huge ovation, very loud. MN loves FM!
So, overall thoughts.... much better than '97. No offense to Christine, but I think her leaving was addition by subtraction. She simply was not into it on The Dance. At the show I saw in Mpls., she looked like there were about a 100 things she would've rather been doing. Stevie and Lindsey's vocals were both better than '97, too. Stevie's is back to having that girlish quality, and Lindsey's seemed a lot clearer and higher, like it used to be. In other words, it's a good time to be Mac fan, and let's hope a new album comes in the next couple years!

Mind blowing concert

It's hard to describe a performance that leaves you speechless. This concert was 10 times better than The Dance. Lindsay Buckingham is the greatest guitar player on the planet right now. His performance was incredible, as he swung both arms simultaneously as he ripped on his guitar. From the opening "boom, boom, boom" of The Chain, till Stevies sweet voice killing the mike on her last song, I was in awe. The concert lasted for 3 hours, but it felt like 10 minutes. Never before have I enjoyed the music of Fleetwood Mac as I did that night. I'm So Afraid was incredible, and Go Your Own Way got everyone out of their seats. When Stevie finally started spinning around, the energy in the whole arena exploded. Simply put, I knew this was going to be the greatest concert of my life, however I did not expect it to be this amazing. I'm still shook.

Every song a gem!

The Chain
Dreams
Eyes of the World
Peacemaker
Second Hand News
Say You Will
Never Going Back Again
Rhiannon
Come
Gypsy
Big Love
Landslide
Say Goodbye
What's the World Coming To
Beautiful Child (first performance)
Gold Dust Woman
I'm So Afraid
Silver Spring
Tusk
Stand Back
Go Your Own Way

Encore:
World Turning
Don't Stop

2nd Encore:
Goodbye, Baby


Okay, who's a better guitarist than Lindsey?! I can't think of anyone right now. What a great show and a great set. And Stevie's voice is immaculate. Mick is as terrific as ever on drums and John is rock solid on bass. They don't need the other musicians and backup singers (in fact, I think FM is better without them). I miss Christine; her upbeat pop songs have always been a good counterbalance to the dark Lindsey and Stevie songs. In any event, four out of five Fleetwood Mac ain't bad!

If I'm not mistaken, the performance of Beautiful Child (from Tusk) was a concert debut.