The Soundstage Sessions: Reviews
 

I'm making this post so all of The Soundstage Sessions reviews can be compiled into this one thread as they come in.


Album: Stevie Nicks, The Soundstage Sessions, (Reprise)

Reviewed by Simon Price

Sunday, 22 March 2009

Stevie Nicks' voice is one of the musical wonders of the world – she's almost alone in making the concept of adult oriented rock seem enticing and not a soul-crushing bore – so any opportunity to hear it in full flight, such as this televised concert, is welcome.

Though slightly ravaged, her voice remains a miraculous thing, able to make even a Dave Matthews Band song tolerable ("Crash"). Nicks's stripped-down versions of Fleetwood Mac's "Landslide" and "Sara" are things of traffic-stopping beauty.

Pick of the album: Where everyone would love to drown: 'Sara'

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-en...e-1651513.html

Stevie Nicks, rocking it her way

Stevie Nicks is on the road in the US with Fleetwood Mac. She's also got a new album and DVD due out at the end of this month. The DVD is Live In Chicago and from it comes The Soundstage Sessions album -- ten tracks from the concert which have had additional arrangements and vocals added in Nashville. Both are released March 31st.



Ten tracks on the album proper. Amazon will offer one bonus track ("Enchanted") and iTunes will offer two bonus tracks ("Gold Dust Woman" and "Edge of Seventeen").



Stevie's released only one solo studio album this decade (Trouble in Shangri-La). She's also released a studio album with Fleetwood Mac (Say You Will). So for Nicks fans (and we are), this new live release is of huge interest.



And if it interests you, you may want to check out the single Amazon is offering as a download currently, Stevie performing her "Landslide" and Dave Matthews' "Crash Into Me." You can purchase either for ninety-nine cents or both for $1.89.



"Crash Into Me" is a five minute and thirty-three seconds live track that Stevie owns from the moment she tosses "You've got your ball, you've got your chains" up and to the back of her throat. She could have sang the entire song that way and we (and many others would have loved it) but she brings it down lower and manages to honor the original while owning her cover.

The music in her version makes clear the debt Dave Matthews owes to Tom Petty ("Free Falling"). Three minutes the backup vocals come in and that's a Stevie hallmark. It's been a hallmark of many a great singer, interplay with backup vocalists, but you clink and they're on tour and on album with nothing but their own multi-tracked vocals.



Stevie was a Mamas and Papas fan as a young girl and her love of vocals (plural) and the elements they can create in harmony and counter-point has led to some of her finest work ("Nightbird," for example). Between her lead vocals, the backing vocals, the guitar playing and some amazing drum work, "Crash Into Me" is a must-have for any Stevie fan.



And "Landslide?"



This Stevie Nicks song first appears on Fleetwood Mac's 1975 self-titled album. Along with "Rhiannon" (also written and sung by Nicks) and "Say You Love Me" (written and sung by Christine McVie), it would become a big hit for the group and enter their canon. 1980's Fleetwood Mac Live and 1997's The Dance feature the song. (As do various best-ofs, anthologies and greatest hits put out by the Mac.)



She's reconfigured this song. It's nothing like the intense revitalization she gave "Rhiannon" for her three-disc, boxed set Enchanted but it's still fairly amazing. You'll enjoy the song throughout, she's doing a softer vocal on the verses and there's a wonderful backing joining her for the chorus. But it's at 2 minutes and fifty-three seconds that you especially want to start paying attention. From that moment on to the end, you'll be cursing your bad luck that you didn't see this performed live. (But you can purchase the DVD.)



Stevie Nicks is a one of a kind original. As such, she was relentlessly attacked by male rock critics at the start of her career. Why didn't she do it that way, why didn't she record something more like . . . She rocked it on her own terms and, in doing so, became one of rock's most distinctive and memorable artists. The bulk of male rock critics faves and raves from 1975 to 1979 are forgotten today -- and for good reason. Stevie's a living testament to the strength needed to be a real artist and, listening to her, you never forget it. She rocked it on her own terms and she had the last laugh. Listening to her, you never forget that either. (March 31st, you do not want to miss the live version of "Sara.")

http://thirdestatesundayreview.blogs...t-her-way.html

These are wonderful. Im glad these reviewers enjoyed soundstage as much as i did.:thumbsup: Thanks for sharing!

Soundstage Review - The Independent UK
 

See link on the Independents review of Soundstage in the UK -

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-en...e-1651513.html

Also this week on BBC Radio 2 Soundstage is the Album of the week and this morning they played Standback and it sounded really rocking. Great to hear Stevie on the radio.:woohoo:

Soundstage Album of the Week BBC Radio 2
 

Yesterday they played Landslide from Soundstage and it sounded so good, and at the end the DJ was chatting to another DJ about Stevie and one of them commented on what an amazing life Stevie has had, and then they went on to talk about Rumours and Dreams and they seemed to think that Dreams was written by Stevie and Lindsey!

Today they played Sarah from Soundstage - I love that version.

Sooooooo good to hear Stevie on BBC Radio:]

California Chronicle, March 27, 2009

http://www.californiachronicle.com/a...s/yb/128130591

STEVIE NICKS

Live In Chicago **

Still giving it plenty with the hippy scarves and flouncy dresses, erstwhile Fleetwood Mac chanteuse Nicks turns in a fairly sterile show without her mega-platinum selling famous bandmates. Her brand of easy-listening FM rock fails to stir much excitement and the highpoints of this rather thin package (no extras at all) are Mac's Rumours-era hits.

Well, that probably has some truth in it.

That's what I'm sayin'... just because his name isn't on it, doesn't mean his signature isn't all over it... along with many, many others... musically speaking of course, the lyrics are all hers.

"All over it" is a bit of a stretch. The version sans him on the rumors re-issue is Basically exactly the same, only no guitar.

Ok. I hear ya.

Does he mean guys like Ken Tucker, John Swenson, Bob Hilburn, Steve Morse, Dennis Hunt, Timothy White, & Howard Cohen?

This is from the Common Ills blog, March 31, 2009

http://thecommonills.blogdrive.com/a...-2009_o-0.html


Stevie Nicks, rocking it her way

Stevie Nicks is on the road in the US with Fleetwood Mac. She's also got a new album and DVD due out at the end of this month. The DVD is Live In Chicago and from it comes The Soundstage Sessions album -- ten tracks from the concert which have had additional arrangements and vocals added in Nashville. Both are released March 31st.

Ten tracks on the album proper. Amazon will offer one bonus track ("Enchanted") and iTunes will offer two bonus tracks ("Gold Dust Woman" and "Edge of Seventeen").

Stevie's released only one solo studio album this decade (Trouble in Shangri-La). She's also released a studio album with Fleetwood Mac (Say You Will). So for Nicks fans (and we are), this new live release is of huge interest.

And if it interests you, you may want to check out the single Amazon is offering as a download currently, Stevie performing her "Landslide" and Dave Matthews' "Crash Into Me." You can purchase either for ninety-nine cents or both for $1.89.

"Crash Into Me" is a five minute and thirty-three seconds live track that Stevie owns from the moment she tosses "You've got your ball, you've got your chains" up and to the back of her throat. She could have sang the entire song that way and we (and many others would have loved it) but she brings it down lower and manages to honor the original while owning her cover.

The music in her version makes clear the debt Dave Matthews owes to Tom Petty ("Free Falling"). Three minutes the backup vocals come in and that's a Stevie hallmark. It's been a hallmark of many a great singer, interplay with backup vocalists, but you clink and they're on tour and on album with nothing but their own multi-tracked vocals.

Stevie was a Mamas and Papas fan as a young girl and her love of vocals (plural) and the elements they can create in harmony and counter-point has led to some of her finest work ("Nightbird," for example). Between her lead vocals, the backing vocals, the guitar playing and some amazing drum work, "Crash Into Me" is a must-have for any Stevie fan.

And "Landslide?"

This Stevie Nicks song first appears on Fleetwood Mac's 1975 self-titled album. Along with "Rhiannon" (also written and sung by Nicks) and "Say You Love Me" (written and sung by Christine McVie), it would become a big hit for the group and enter their canon. 1980's Fleetwood Mac Live and 1997's The Dance feature the song. (As do various best-ofs, anthologies and greatest hits put out by the Mac.)

She's reconfigured this song. It's nothing like the intense revitalization she gave "Rhiannon" for her three-disc, boxed set Enchanted but it's still fairly amazing. You'll enjoy the song throughout, she's doing a softer vocal on the verses and there's a wonderful backing joining her for the chorus. But it's at 2 minutes and fifty-three seconds that you especially want to start paying attention. From that moment on to the end, you'll be cursing your bad luck that you didn't see this performed live. (But you can purchase the DVD.)

Stevie Nicks is a one of a kind original. As such, she was relentlessly attacked by male rock critics at the start of her career. Why didn't she do it that way, why didn't she record something more like . . . She rocked it on her own terms and, in doing so, became one of rock's most distinctive and memorable artists. The bulk of male rock critics faves and raves from 1975 to 1979 are forgotten today -- and for good reason. Stevie's a living testament to the strength needed to be a real artist and, listening to her, you never forget it. She rocked it on her own terms and she had the last laugh. Listening to her, you never forget that either. (March 31st, you do not want to miss the live version of "Sara.")

[Posted by Third Estate Sunday Review at Sunday, March 22, 2009]

As Elaine observed last night, "In a world that offers increasingly little and a government that promised 'change' but delivered none, I'll place my bets on Stevie." Indeed. The DVD and CD are available in stores today, both can be downloaded as well and Kat says to check out the bargain for both (plus a litograph) offered at Stevie's website. "Would you swallow your pride, could you speak a little louder, and the wind became . . ." You don't want to miss the live version of "Sara."

New Haven Register, April 3, 2009

http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2...4091530339.txt

Stevie Nicks — “The Soundstage Sessions” (Reprise): Recorded in the fall of 2007 in front of a small, rapturous audience, the 10-song “The Soundstage Sessions” is Fleetwood mac frontwoman Stevie Nicks’ first solo live album. Those looking for something dazzling or overly memorable will be disappointed.

I love the reviews that blow her off and give no explanation as to why...

Wow! Stevie Nicks Is Back

Album: The Soundstage Sessions / Artist: Stevie Nicks / 10 tracks / Rock

Reviewed by Joe Montague

More than any other female vocalist, when I was in my teenage and university years, Stevie Nicks impacted my life, so imagine the tremendous adrenaline rush which I experienced when Nicks’ new CD The Soundstage Sessions arrived in the mail. Stevie Nicks’ familiar vibrato is still omni present, on this lush, beautifully orchestrated project, on which she penned all, but two of the ten tunes, the exceptions being the second track, Dave Matthews’, “Crash Into Me,” and the seventh track, Bonnie Raitt’s, “Circle Dance.” Some of the songs are older and more familiar, others less so.

The album opens with the hard hitting rock tune, “Stand Back,” before moving into a mellow, acoustic cover of, “Crash Into Me,” featuring the splendid guitar work of Waddy Wachtel, who also acted as the Musical Director for The Soundstage Sessions.

Down through the Fleetwood Mac years and on her previous solo projects, Stevie Nicks’ ability to infuse her vocals with passion, has been one of her greatest strengths, and that quality is evident once again in the songs from The Soundstage Sessions, a testament to an artist who still ‘gets it,’ and is not simply relying on the legend that she has become, as a result of past musical conquests. The third, fourth, and fifth tracks, in order, “Sara,” “If Anyone Falls In Love,” and “Landslide,” all evoke from the listener powerful emotional responses. Nicks captures so well that feeling of being overwhelmed by the passions of love, as she sings, “Drowning in the sea of love / Where everyone would love to drown,” and the heart wrenching, feeling of helplessness, when that love is lost, “And Now it’s gone / They say it doesn’t matter what for / When you build your house / Call me.” The backing vocals for, “Sara,” are provided by Jana Anderson, Sharon Celani and her sister-in-law Lori Nicks, and all three singers deliver beautifully.

The Soundstage Sessions was co-produced by Joe Thomas, Stevie Nicks and her longtime friend Waddy Wachtel, and the trio did an excellent job of enveloping Nicks’ vocals with sensitive instrumentation, particularly from Wachtel (guitar), percussionist Lenny Castro, bassist Al Ortiz, drummer Jimmy Paxson, guitarist Carlos Rios and keyboardist Darrell Smith, all of whom bring a gentle demeanor to songs such as, “Sara,” and “Landslide.” Pretty acoustic guitar introduces us to, “Landslide,” a song that reflects the passages of life and wonders out loud if the singer can handle the changes that come, as she grows older, and her relationships with others change. The strings arrangements for, “Landslide,” are breathtaking, and violinists, Guillaume Combet, Jennifer Cappelli, Carmen Llop-Kassinger and Christine Keiko Abe, along with violist Carol Cook and cellist Jocelyn Davis-Beck, are to be commended for turning in a spectacular performance throughout this CD. In Stevie Nicks’ vocals you hear complete vulnerability, a woman who is confident enough at this stage of her life, to open her heart and to share what she is feeling with those who listen to her music.

Another jewel from The Soundstage Sessions is the tune, “If Anyone Falls In Love,” a song that Nicks co-wrote with Sandy Stewart. There are several youtube clips of Nicks singing this song, some dating back to 1983 and yet, she has never sounded as emotive and vocally strong as she does with her The Soundstage Sessions rendition of, “If Anyone Falls In Love.” Nicks’s vocals soar, and she inspires the listener to sing along with her, and to make the words their own.

The album ends with a hauntingly beautiful vocal performance of the song, “Beauty And The Beast,” which is matched by the equally pretty orchestration, once again highlighting the strings section.

Although some of the tracks on this album will not be new to you, Stevie Nicks performs them on The Soundstage Sessions, in a way that you will not have heard them before; as she ranges from breathtaking, to powerfully emotive, and at other times she simply bares her soul.

Go out and buy this album, because it will be one of the better decisions that you made in 2009.

http://www.rivetingriffs.com/stevie_nicks.htm

Sarnia Observer

http://www.theobserver.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1519626

Stevie Nicks Live in Chicago Classic Rock

***1/2

Also available as a CD titled The Soundstage Sessions, Nicks' latest live DVD finds Fleetwood Mac's witchy woman in good spirits and fine form, braying her hits, Mac classics and cool covers for PBS cameras in the Windy City. The two-hour set also features plenty of between-song banter, guest spots from Vanessa Carlton, and all the shawls, feathers and top hats you could want.

Not a very nice one. I shot her an e-mail ;)

The Guardian, Observer/UK

http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/20.../14/popandrock

When a performer needs an album more than the listener, you know you're in for trouble. As Fleetwood Mac embark on the latest of their reincarnations with a 43-date tour across America and Canada and with plans to return to the studio later this year, Nicks pops her own money spinner on the merch stall. These 10 tracks recorded alongside her 2007 solo tour cover career highlights such as "Stand Back", "Sara" and "Landslide", but remain bewilderingly unchanged decades on. Even a cover of "Crash Into You" receives little interpretation from the Dave Matthews Band original. Only for diehard fans.

Daily O' Collegian (Oklahoma State University)

http://ocolly.com/2009/04/14/the-sou...ve-in-chicago/

By Valerie Hill
The Current Writer
Published: April 14, 2009

Hearing Stevie Nicks’s voice live once again makes it seem like the past 20 years have barely blown by.

With her latest releases, “The Soundstage Sessions” and “Live in Chicago,” Nicks gives her fans not only a CD but also a DVD of her performing classics and covers.

She breezes through Fleetwood Mac material, solo work and her own renditions of songs by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Led Zeppelin.

Nicks does her signature twirl around the stage and regales the audience with heart-touching and sometimes comical stories in between songs.

Nicks shows that musical talent and the ability to rock through an impressive, decade-spanning catalog of work does not lessen with age.

Like her songs, she is effortlessly relaxed and consistently enjoyable.

The condensed CD is perfect for carefree car rides after the last glimmer of dusk has finally disappeared behind the edge of the earth.

Final Say: 9.5 out of 10

Nicks still has what it takes to put on a killer live show, and her catalogue easily withstands the test of time.

This review appears on some sites that are selling the album, like CD Universe and J&R music:

Rock's original gold dust woman capped a return to the road in the '00s with this stunningly on-point live collection--her first. With tracks taken from a live set in Chicago in October 2007 and later bolstered by overdubs from a Nashville session (essentially studio strings and backing vocals), THE SOUNDSTAGE SESSIONS matches the energy of a hot live set with pristine studio touches. Nicks concentrates mostly on her solo material (there are only two Fleetwood Mac era songs here--none from RUMOURS) and sounds in fantastic voice (still husky and heavily vibratoed) as she digs into synthesizer rockers like "Stand Back" and "If Anyone Falls In Love." Other standouts include "Sorcerer" from TROUBLE IN SHANGRI-LA, "Circle Dance" a duet with Vanessa Carlton, and an orchestrally framed--and quite moving--version of her classic song "Landslide," alone worth the collection's sticker price.

Kilburn Times (UK)

http://www.kilburntimes.co.uk/conten...A52%3A30%3A827

by Tim Cole, April 15, 2009

Stevie Nicks latest release is remarkable for one particular track.

How many times have Fleetwood Mac put out an album including the beautifully crafted song Landslide? How many ways can it be recorded?

It was originally penned by Nicks for the bands eponymous album, the first on which she and then partner Lindsay Buckingham appeared, back in 1975.

After the personal ructions of Rumours and the studio trials of Tusk, when the band recorded their next album, Fleetwood Mac Live, on their 1980 world tour, there was a version which carried little of the weight and charm of the original.

The haunting feel of the studio version had not been translated to the stage.

As the band moved on through its many incarnations from the mid-80s to the mid-90s, without the presence of Buckingham, the track was a live staple.

But it was with the reunion of the Fleetwood/McVie/McVie/ Buckingham/Nicks line-up in 1997 for the intimate live album The Dance that the song found new life.

With an emotional performance of the song followed by the words 'Thank you Lindsay,' and 'Thank you Stevie' all the rifts in the act's most successful line-up seemed to have been publicly healed.

For their 2004 tour the feeling was even stronger and the presence of the track on the Live in Boston DVD and CD is a true highlight.

Now the band are touring stateside and performing the track again.

But just when you thought it couldn't get any better... out comes Nicks' new album, The Soundstage Sessions, with a remarkable studio recording.

The difference in the vocal are clear and the tone of the guitar is miles away from Buckingham's original or his recent live performances.

But the genius lies in Nicks' decision to bring an orchestra in half way through the song - and have the guitar break played by a violin. Very brave and very clever.

There is much more to enjoy on the album including excellent new versions of Stand Back and Sara, the Bonnie Raitt track Circle Dance and Dave Matthews' Crash Into Me.

The accompanying DVD also contains a reworking of Rhiannon, the other best-loved track from the Fleetwood Mac album, and her other signature tunes, Dreams and Gold Dust Woman.

But this is a disc that is genuinely worth buying for one song - a track that tells the story of Nicks' life and times in Fleetwood Mac.

The Soundstage Sessions album and Live In Chicago DVD are out now on Reprise Records.

Edge, New England, April 14, 2009

http://www.edgenewengland.com/index....3=dvd&id=89198


Both as a solo artist and as a member of Fleetwood Mac, Stevie Nicks has earned her reputation as a legendary rock and roll diva. Now, the gold dust woman secures that legacy with Stevie Nicks: Live in Chicago.

"This is the first time since 1985 that I have had one of my live shows filmed and recorded," said Nicks, noting that she spent three years perfecting the show since it opened in Las Vegas in October 2007.

Nick’s first solo project was the 1981 multi-platinum hit, "Bella Donna." In the nearly 30 years since, she has churned out hit after hit, the best of which she performs on this DVD.

She opens strong with, "Stand Back," and moves on to a beautiful rendition of "Enchanted." Nicks has a natural rapport with the audience as she shares the stories behind her songs, from the off-the-cuff remark about love that inspired "If Anyone Falls in Love," to the dark time that evoked "Sorcerer."

The mood is haunting as Nicks, clad in a top hat and black shawl, launches into "Rhiannon." Should one question whether Nicks is truly the queen of rock, her passionate performance of "Gold Dust Woman," from the Fleetwood Mac breakout album Rumours, puts all doubts to rest. Her voice soars on "Sara" and "Landslide," sung in memory of her father. Calling it, "the meanest song I’ve ever written," she tears into "Fall From Grace." Nicks even dons the rouched lace to rock "Edge of Seventeen."

She also tackles several covers, including the Dave Matthews hit, "Crash Into Me," Tom Petty’s, "I Need to Know," and a no-holds-barred finale of Led Zeppelin’s, "Rock and Roll." Nicks brings Vanessa Carlton onstage for her song, "The One," and later, Bonnie Raitt’s "The Circle Dance."

Nicks’ battle with drug addiction may be in the past, but her high drama still has the ability to transport one back to the hedonistic days of rock and roll. "Stevie Nicks: Live in Chicago" is a flawless presentation of treasured classics.

St. Petersburg Times, Tampabay.com, April 19, 2009

http://www.tampabay.com/features/mus...icle992336.ece

Stevie Nicks

Album: The Soundstage Sessions (Reprise)

In stores: Now

Why we care: Bob Dylan, John Fogerty, Bruce Springsteen: Even when they were young, their voices sounded shot — great, but weary and kaput. The rare lady in that craggy company is Stephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks, the mystic Fleetwood Mac twirler who had a sweet solo career, too. On her first live album, the 60-year-old puts new spin on old gems plus adds a swell cover of Dave Matthews' Crash Into Me. And yes, she still sounds beautifully broken.

Why we like it: She keeps Stand Back as a cheezy disco-synth dancer, but gives Landslide Nashville strings and wisened gravitas.

Reminds us of: Although I've seen AC/DC live, Nicks remains my all-time loudest concert.

Download these: Crash Into Me and Sara

Grade: B

Here is the iTunes review:

Drawn from a 2007 PBS TV performance, "The Soundstage Sessions" finds Stevie Nicks reconsidering her song catalog with reflective, insightful spirit. Arena rock overkill and diva dramatics are largely absent; these tines are handled with affections and subtlety, revealing fresh colors. Nicks' husky vocals are as seductive as ever, especially when applied to mystically tingled material like "Sorcerer" and "Circle Dance". Tender versions of "Landslide" and "Beauty and the Beast" achieve a poignant blend of fragility and resolve; the rockers - especially "Fall From Grace" - are muscular without being overbearing. Nicks glides effortlessly above the synthesizer-driven "Stand Back" and "If Anyone Falls In Love", wraps herself in the sultry airs for the pulsating "How Still My Love", and infuses Dave Matthews' "Crash Into Me" with her own special brand of conflicted desire. Rather than simply running through her obvious hits, Nicks chooses songs for their flow and substance on this outstanding set.

I finally picked up the DVD at Real Groovy here in Wellington. Watched it tonight, and it was fairly enjoyable. I thought she was sexier than ever on "How Still My Love"...especially at the end.

Houston's OutSmart Magazine, May 2009

http://www.outsmartmagazine.com/cms-...ut+Shorts.html

Stevie Nicks
The Soundstage Sessions

The years can't diminish the former Fleetwood Mac frontdiva's talent, as she proves with this collection of her finest hits. Recorded in 2007 at Chicago, with an accompanying DVD, this CD marks Nicks' first solo live outing. The lush version of “Landslide” is absolutely transporting. Reprise Records (warnerbrothersrecords.com).

The Ottawa Express: http://www.ottawaxpress.ca/music/spi...iIDDisque=5351

April 23rd, 2009
Stevie Nicks - (Reprise/Warner)

The Soundstage Sessions
Bugs Burnett

Fleetwood Mac high priestess Stevie Nicks always brought a folk and country sensibility to her rock'n'roll, and this 10-track selection of some of her best and biggest, recorded live in Chicago for her 2007 PBS Soundstage performance, includes Sara, Landslide, Rhiannon and a speedy hard-rocking version of Stand Back. Her vocals are quite good - Stevie still hits all the high notes - especially on the sweeping ballad Beauty and the Beast, complete with string section.

Hey every0ne....was at my brother's house on Sunday and he saved me the "Entertainment" section of the paper from the week before. I looked through and under album reviews is "The Soundstage Sessions"!

Music Reviews
By Steve Daly
St. Petersberg Times

"The Soundstage Sessions" (Reprise) Stevie Nicks

WHY WE CARE: Bob Dylan, John Fogerty, Bruce Springsteen: Even when they were young, their voices sounded great, but weary & kaput. The rare lady in that craggy company is Stephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks, the mystic Fleetwood Mac twirler who had a sweet solo career, too. On her first live album, the 60-year-old puts new spin on old gems plus adds a swell cover of Dave Matthews' "Crash Into Me."

WHY WE LIKE IT: She keeps "Stand Back" as a cheezy disco-synth dancer, but gives "Landslide Nashville" strings and gravitas.

GRADE: B

Arkansas Democrat & Gazette, May 17, 2009

http://www.nwanews.com/adg/Style/259889/

PHILIP MARTIN Stevie Nicks The Soundstage Sessions Reprise BHow to categorize Stevie Nicks? Back in the day, she (with and without Fleetwood Mac) was a fanciful rock star. Now her music dwells in the realm of nostalgia and easy listening.

The 10 songs here (mostly her classics recorded for the Live in Chicago DVD) are lush orchestral stuff - danceable and soft on the ears, but ultimately uninteresting. She revisits hits such as "Stand Back," "Rhiannon" and "Landslide" with mostly predictable results, although "Stand Back" sounds best when Nicks stands back and lets guitarist Carlos Rios into the spotlight.

STEVIE NICKS THE SOUNDSTAGE SESSIONS
If you are looking for new Stevie Nicks on this new Stevie Nicks CD, you won't exactly find it. And if you are looking for live music on this live Stevie Nicks CD, you won't exactly find that either. But then again, you'll find both. What????
"The Soundstage Sessions" CD is comprised of ten songs that were lifted from the LIVE IN CHICAGO DVD (released simultaneously). However, on the CD, the songs were worked over in Nashville and all semblance of live performance has vanished...no applause, no audience noise, no "THANK YOU CHICAGO"s, no flaws. It's disconcerting at first if you don't know this. I kept thinking why would Stevie go into the studio to re-record these songs. Now we all know. Stevie said that she wanted everything on this to sound perfect and it pretty much does.
Stevie co-mingles songs from her Fleetwood Mac repertoire as well as her solo ventures. "Stand Back" is here as is "If Anyone Falls" representing her work outside of the band. , And I was delighted to be reminded about "Sorcerer", a song co-produced by Sheryl Crow from the 2001 LP TROUBLE IN SHANGRI-LA. It's a great folky haunting taunt that should've had more lasting power. The lovely "Sara" is included (and is also in the set list on the current Fleetwood Mac tour). An orchestral version of "Landslide" is also found on this "live" set. Speaking of "live", she performed the Dave Matthews song "Crash" on her last solo tour and it shows up here too. She's been wanting to record this song for the last ten years and now she finally has.
She still looks fairy tale princess beautiful....all gossamer and lace and shawls and plumage. The hair still cascades in a blinding blonding.She still commands the big girl boots. The pictures included in the package all reflect her ethereal timelessness. And in her liner notes, she gives thanks to her long time best friend Waddy Wachtel who is her musical director and guitarist for many years now.
For the Stevie Nicks collector and fan who MUST HAVE EVERYTHING, you will need to get this as it's just different enough from her studio efforts and just different enough from her live efforts too.

http://www.wmgk.com/DJs/DebbiCalton/...-SESSIONS.aspx

I really like this review.:nod::thumbsup: thanks for sharing.

Boston Herald, The Edge, June 5, 2009

http://www.bostonherald.com/entertai...Gotta_love_it/

The latest from the dreamy Fleetwood Mac songstress and solo star is a combination CD/DVD recorded live in Chicago that proves the rock goddess has plenty of mojo left. The solo and Mac hits are here, along with some unexpected gems such as duets “The One” and “Circle Dance” with Vanessa Carlton. Stevie can still rock and twirl with the best of them.

- LAUREN CARTER

Fort Smith Southwest Times Record Online, June 26, 2009

http://www.swtimes.com/articles/2009...s062609_02.txt

Nicks Nixes Critics

Routinely criticized for her lowering vocal pitch and alleged inconsistent stage presence, rock gypsy Steve Nicks has bounced back in recent months.

The 61-year-old vocalist and songwriter is impressing on Fleetwood Mac’s current “Unleashed Tour” — she and guitar guru Lindsey Buckingham were the uncontested highlights of the group’s Tulsa show on May 3 — and she’s equally inspired on her new solo concert DVD, “Live in Chicago.” Of course Nicks’ solo guitarist, Waddy Wachtel, isn’t Buckingham on six strings (really, which living guitarist is?), but he makes an efficient bandleader and noble instrumentalist.

More impressive throughout the DVD is Nicks, who seems to be happy to inject added passion into her 1983 solo smash, “Stand Back,” and then turning around and doing a near-great tribute to Dave Matthews Band by reinterpreting their “Crash Into Me.” This seamless switch proves that Nicks is more versatile than much of the world thinks.

she and guitar guru Lindsey Buckingham were the uncontested highlights of the group’s Tulsa show on May 3 —

Gosh, how relieved Stevie and Lindsey must be that their drummer and bassist weren't the highlights of the concert!

I disagree that it was uncontested. John was changing his vest every other song, raising his guitar over his head and yelling like a banshee, trying to compete with them.

Michele

Popmatters , by Christian John Wikane

http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/...tage-sessions/

Stevie Nicks
The Soundstage Sessions
(Reprise)

I miss new albums by Stevie Nicks. Tearing the plastic off a Stevie Nicks record that contains completely unknown material is a thrill that listeners have only truly experienced six times since her 1981 solo debut, Bella Donna. Compilations occasionally fill those long gaps with a new song here and there, but they do not summon the same charge as a whole set of songs that Nicks is introducing for the first time.

Scanning the track list of The Soundstage Sessions, portions of a concert Nicks recorded in October 2007 for the PBS Soundstage program, there are eight titles familiar to anyone with a cursory knowledge of Nicks or Fleetwood Mac, plus a cover of “Crash” by Dave Matthews Band and Bonnie Raitt’s “Circle Dance”, which Nicks sings with Vanessa Carlton (a misstep). How does it all add up?

First, irrespective of current record sales, Nicks has every reason to record a new album. She has a wealth of material and her voice remains a uniquely expressive instrument. Whatever the record label prognosticators may argue, there is a demand for a Stevie Nicks album that doesn’t include “Stand Back” or “Landslide” for the umpteenth time. The Soundstage Sessions has both but, to its credit, it also includes gems like “How Still My Love” and “Fall From Grace”, songs that have not yet been tossed into the compilation spin cycle. Disregarding the missed opportunity of a new Stevie Nicks album, The Soundstage Sessions is mostly satisfying. Nicks sounds damn good on all of these tracks, even if the world did not necessarily need another version of “Landslide”.

The set opens energetically with “Stand Back”, where Nicks stridently attacks the words. However many thousands of times she’s sung this song, she treats it in a fresh way here, combining her phrasing on the original recording with some inflections known only to a live audience. Under the musical direction of renowned guitarist Waddy Wachtel, the attributes of the original synthesizer melody line featured on The Wild Heart (1983) are also intact, maintaining a charming early-’80s quality.

Just as compelling, but in a completely different milieu, is “Sara”. The 1979 version off Fleetwood Mac’s Tusk was macerated in an ethereal atmosphere, which is not a quality that is easily translated live. The band trades tropospheric ambience for earthy, acoustic warmth. Nicks conveys both the romance and ache in the 30-year-old song lyrics with deeper, more resonant vocal textures than her younger self. “All I ever wanted was to know that you were dreaming,” she sings, soaring above the extended arrangement. The set of lyrics following that line, which were barely audible as the song faded on Tusk, are consummated here, telling the whole story of “Sara”. The Soundstage Sessions is essential listening if only for this one especially notable ingredient. It induces goosebumps.

Digging deep into her library of songs, Nicks updates “How Still My Love” with a similarly bravura performance. Despite appearing on Bella Donna, “How Still My Love” was only recently incorporated back into her concert sets. The live reworking actually improves upon the song’s more familiar incarnation and suits Nicks better now than 28 years ago. The song runs twice the length of the studio version, giving the intensity more space to build. The duskiness of the track mirrors the huskiness in her voice and climaxes when she unleashes a guttural belt midway through the song.

Guttural through and through, “Fall From Grace” casts Stevie Nicks in a voltaic light. She is at her rock-and-roll best. On the showstopper from Trouble in Shangri-La (2001), Nicks flawlessly transports the searing fervency of the album version to the stage and breathlessly keeps pace with the band. Her performance gives ample proof that some of Nicks’ best songs never made it to the radio, and it should convince the powers at Reprise that investing in a new album could yield more such modern classics.

180 degrees removed from the unhinged virtues of “Fall From Grace” is a faithful restating of “Beauty and the Beast”, which closed The Wild Heart. Lost in the rapture of her lyrics, Nicks captivates for seven minutes. Accompanied by just strings, piano, and her background vocalists, she draws strength from private, unseen sources. She dubs her performance “the Witherspoon vocal” after a woman who attended the recording of the song in Nashville (apparently not on the same occasion as the rest of The Soundstage Sessions). Whatever the root of inspiration, it elevates Nicks to a whole other plateau of singing.

Performances like “Beauty and the Beast” render The Soundstage Sessions a collection of mostly well-executed selections. It may not be the long-overdue studio album listeners are awaiting, but it attests, with potent conviction, to the powerful, enduring presence of Stevie Nicks.

Marcia Barrett: My six best albums

Marcia Barrett, 69, was a singer with Boney M whose hits include Daddy Cool, Ma Baker and Rasputin. Her memoir Forward: My Life With And Without Boney M (Constable, £20) is out now.

MILES DAVIS: Decoy (Import)

Beautiful, relaxing music. I’m lucky my husband Marcus likes this too. It’s good in the background when you’re talking with your love. I got into jazz when I met Marcus, who is a musician. He took me to Ronnie Scott’s when I was ill [with cancer] in 1998. It was so nice.

KENNY ROGERS: The Heart Of The Matter (Import)

This is 100 per cent love songs and he’s got a fantastic voice. He did one called Lady, not on this album, which we waltzed to at our wedding in 1984.

I don’t like sad songs where tears are rolling down my cheeks. I want to feel good where my heart is full. Kenny does that to me.

BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS: Natty Dread (Universal/Island)

The highest craftsmanship of pure reggae. It includes one of my favourite songs, No Woman, No Cry which Boney M covered. I still tour with the Boney M songs and I sing it every night which always goes down really well. It is very moving and being a Jamaican I understand all the patois. I left Jamaica at 13 but you don’t forget your roots.

STEVIE NICKS: The Soundstage Sessions (Warner) A songstress who knows how to portray the lovely songs she sings – she’s cool, to the point, quite sexy.

I find her fascinating, with that unusual voice.

THE KINKS: You Really Got Me – The Best Of (Sanctuary)

When I was at school, these guys came along singing You Really Got Me. It was different, cheeky with Cockney accents. They were fantastic. Enjoyable pop songs that take me down the memory lane of enjoyable school days. Anything British back then was my bag.

JOSé FELICIANO: The Album (Black Line)

Maximum enjoyment. I love the rhythmic Latin style. Anything for dancing. You can have it down low when you’re having supper then it can lead you into anything, especially after a cocktail!


https://www.express.co.uk/entertainm...b-marley-kinks