The End of Fleetwood Mac....as I see it.
 

I was never sure how the “Dance” of Fleetwood Mac would end (death of a band member, changes in the lineup ?) When Stevie chose not to record with the rest of the band on the 2017 album which would have been the new music that they would have performed on this tour was an obvious sign.
Christine is done performing live period. Kicking Lindsey out of the band is un speakable. Going out with this new lineup without new music speaks volumes. (Look at the history of the band) I will always be one of their biggest fans...I love all the music and cherish the memories of the tours I have seen. (Including all the solo stuff) I never would have thought in 1977 that I would get new music from “ them” in 2017. I don’t like how this all ends but it doesn’t change the way I feel when I hear this music. I hope for Lindsey’s return to his craft. I would welcome new studio material from any of them. I do believe the live curtain is about to close for Fleetwood Mac.

Perfectly said with the perfect tone. Overall Greatful or as I said about a year ago “half full.” They have a catalogue so great from 1967-1995 just as a band, the. If you include solo stuff it just gets better, that the way I’ve looked at it is anything post Dance has been gravy. I usually just go back to 2000 and think about how I thought TISL and SYW era had to be very close to the end of road. No way did I expect them to be this active at 70 plus. And I really can’t emphasize enough what an absolute miracle it is to have Christine touring and recording not just music but great music again with Fleetwood Mac Again.

The band has exceeded my expectations as far as impressing me far into their geriatric years as a live band and even with new music with LindseyÂ’s 3 albums, BuckVie and In Your Dreams/24 Karat Gold from Stevie.

But while I still see things very half full with the band in general and their overall legacy, IÂ’ve also come around to admitting this final chapter in the story has been terrible. While this new version of the band has the potential to had been great as seen in rare moments like Black Magic Woman, they chose to cut all the interesting songs and insist on keeping a lot of pathetic live versions of Fleetwood Mac songs that are never pathetic. This tourÂ’s Go Your Own Way is the worst And most anticlimactic song to any concert IÂ’ve ever been to. What a let down after a still epic Gold a Dust Woman.

So unless this version of the band has some great, really kick ass album to surprise us with that gets back to the bandÂ’s original blues sound in the vein of Black Magic Woman but with new songs (this would be right up 4/6th of the bandÂ’s alleys. And 5/6 when you count StevieÂ’s love of covering blues songs. Christine even makes the comment about loving hearing stevie sing the blues after sheÂ’s done with black Magic Woman.

If this fictional album comes to fruition, then IÂ’ll consider the band alive still. But if itÂ’s anything short of that, I really hope Fleetwood Mac stops after this fall. I would absolutely consider January 2018 to be the end of Fleetwood Mac if this tour is all the comes of it.

Lindsey not being in the band didn’t “have” to mean the end of the band. But their execution of releasing him and I’m reforming was terrible.


They are no longer better the sum of their parts. In fact itÂ’s the exact opposite. I believe theyÂ’re all still capable of doing good work separately but not as a group at the moment. Fleetwood Mac is where all of their creativity goes to die.


And despite coming around fully to this version of the band being an embarrassment IÂ’m still not entirely against things going down as they did. The Lindsey solo shows this past fall weÂ’re the best of his career and I donÂ’t see how he couldÂ’ve done those shows simultaneously as the Fleetwood Mac shows. We had the rumours 5 tour in 2014/2015, IÂ’m glad Lindsey's last tour before surgery was a solo one.

The curtain closed when Stevie refused to join the band to record an album and tour. The rest of the band regrouped for BuckVie which drove Stevie crazy where she then threw down the ultimate ultimatum.
I must admit, I admire the optimism of many on this board. But IMHO the Mac died well over a year ago.

I just posted in another section of the forum, but my thoughts exactly.

I'm out.

I'll continue to enjoy the music they've already released, but I refuse to support them via shows or any potential new music. They've become a bad cover band without Lindsey. It all just sounds phoned in. The musicians they added to replace Lindsey are not up to the task; good musicians in their own right, but they aren't part of the band and they never will be as far as I'm concerned.

Whether it was Stevie's call or somebody else's, it was a huge mistake and it will be a stain on their legacy. I went from being a big Stevie fan to disliking her a lot over this.

My prediction, assuming Lindsey gets his voice back, is that he'll release a few albums that will be well-received. I won't be surprised if he teams up with some younger artists/bands and continues to push forward creatively. Having Fleetwood Mac behind him must be a huge relief now that some time has passed.
I would love to see another tour - maybe an acoustic/small theater run.

As for the rest of them, I've lost interest.

So much negativity. I get it - I miss Lindsey too. But I went to the Baltimore show a) despite the negativity from some posts on here and b) a need for a mood boost from my favorite band. It sounds like Christine's voice and playing were weak during the European leg, but they were lovely in Baltimore. I think they had too many dates, and that would be the same even with Lindsey. If they had done something like two shows every other week, that would've been much more helpful to preserving Christine's performance skills as someone who is turning 76 in a couple weeks.

I do wonder if this awful breakup played a role on Lindsey's health - it probably did. I wish Stevie would come back down to Earth and realize that she wouldn't even have been in the band with Lindsey's refusal to join without her. Finn and Campbell have done very well in a situation they didn't create. Not wanting to play under the banner of one of the biggest bands ever would be a very strange choice.

It would be nice to see one more album from the Rumours 5 with no tour - a la Steely Dan - or even an album with the current six, with Lindsey featured on guitar and vocals (if possible).

I don't see them doing an album and will Mike and Neil wait 3 years and tour again with Fleetwood Mac? Maybe Neil, but not Mike, I see him moving on to other things.

I think this may be the end for them. I wonder what Stevie will do? Another album would be nice, but I doubt it. Will see a tour for sure.

I can’t see Mike or Neil hanging around after this tour has ended.
They have made a nice sum of money to go towards one of their own projects.

What will Fmac do ?....not a lot.
Tour again in 2 years time...can’t see that happening, they really will be dinosaurs.

So yes this is the end...
Great great band in their prime.
Stupid people in their old age.

Agreed.

I can't help but wonder what the situation would be right now if Stevie had agreed to work on the Buck/Vie album (and therefore be a proper Fleetwood Mac album). Would they still have imploded from the friction? Would they actually still be touring now as the R5? We'll never know.

Once they kicked LB out, my support for the band in the present ended as I just have no desire to support or experience this incarnation. I did love LB's fall tour and am so glad I was able to experience it given his current health situation.

Every now and then a FM song pops up on shuffle or on my SiriusXM stations. I usually listen but it's not the same. There's a bitterness there. Such a shame considering they have been such a huge part of my life.... They've corrupted their own legacy.

Again, I wonder what if Stevie had swallowed her pride and agreed to give a few days of her time to Buck/Vie... makes you wonder what things would be like today. Could still be a hot mess just via another path. Or we could have had one last great FM album on which to hang our hats as fans.

If FM #14 record something, I'll buy it as I'm a bit of a completist. I do honestly think that a Finn/Chris collaboration could be interesting- there's quite a bit of talent there. Rows and splits have always been integral to a fissiparious entity like this band, but I suspect it might be one twist too far and leave a sour taste in the ear, if I'm not mixing things up too much. I won't go see them play, though if they tour again. The Wembley gigs seem such a cynical cash-grab to me.It's telling that even though the Ledge itself feels as if it is dying, no UK ledgie has come here to report that they went as far as I can tell.

When a song comes on when I'm in a public place, I listen. I might even strain to hear it, but it makes me sad. As you said, it's certainly not the same and I just feel torn up about Christine. I've known what Mick and Stevie were for a long time now. I once loved Stevie. I don't think I've ever loved Mick. Maybe I liked him but didn't love him. Maybe I loved him and didn't like him, but I NEVER respected him. At any rate, it's easy to simply despise Mick and Stevie as the inevitable conclusion of the path I've been on.

But with Christine I just tear up and I hear her voice over a speaker and it makes me yearn. I can't believe it has ended like this. Honestly, this is a much more painful ending than Sonny Bono skiing into a tree after I'd been a fan of his since childhood.

This is all so true. It feels very weird that I cannot, in good conscience, support the band. This is the first tour I've missed since the 1980s. The thing that is so hard to comprehend is the sold-out crowds. I can't support the band because of their unconscionable treatment of Lindsey, but I also think it's really creepy and weird that they're dragging Neil Finn and Mike Campbell around. I missed Lindsey when Rick and Billy were in the band, but I didn't feel utter disdain and embarrassment for them. I even went to see them on tour back then, and I own the TITN video. But THIS incarnation just feels like a crotchety, past-their-prime gaggle of old codgers/hucksters who need to pack it in. I wouldn't feel this way if Lindsey were with them because it'd be our old band touring. But this...they just seem like a bunch of corny hacks. It sounds stupid, I know, but I really miss loving them. They've been a huge part of my life. I'm grateful for the like-minded people here on The Ledge.

Agreed.... This is unfortunately the state of the digital world we live in now... most shows for any known act "sell out" immediately from bots who buy up all the tickets then try to re-sell them for profit on various outlets. The result is (even more) expensive tickets for those who actually want to see the show, and then half-empty arenas when you get to that "sold out" show because most don't re-sell. It's a sham and a shame on many levels. Even if the artist(s) make the money from those initially sold bot tickets, it has to be deflating to see half-empty venues night after night while you're on the stage. It's a chronic problem (and very frustrating when trying to purchase tickets, like I was for the Black Keys a few weeks back).

But yes, it's hard to believe these FM shows have "sold out," I completely agree.

Everyone is old or older, but Neil has the strongest voice of the three - I don't think his vocals have fallen off at all. As I said, more sporadic concerts lets Christine recover and shine as she did in Baltimore. I think Stevie would have eaten some crow if she went in the studio with Christine and Lindsey - the album was well-received without her, and a strong two or three songs from her to add to their 10 would've made it skyrocket, undoubtedly.

Despite this being an unpopular opinion, I would have loved to have seen another record with the Time group (removing These Strange Times from a final cut), or Danny getting to play with them again before he passed.

I'd have loved to have seen more from the Love Shines band. Just Mick, John, Chris and Billy. But yes you are right, the Time band didn't get a fair shot. Feel sorry for Bekka B.

So well said. I NEVER thought Christine would EVER come back. The fact that we had all 5 fireflies in the palm of our hands for even just a brief time was such an amazing thing. This last tour was so disappointing. I've just been waiting for it to be over so we can "move on."

I liked Mick and admired his skills as a drummer but I never respected him because of the way he constantly whores himself out and or the FM brand for a buck. Plus all the affairs etc and they way he treated certain members of FM and or the behind the scenes crew . I will never understand why he is such a POS to just about everyone at some point in life.

I was a huge SN fan but in recent years I was getting tired of the endless GH tours, lack of new product and some of her rambling speeches or set list promises that never came to pass. I lost allot of respect for her because of the double standard. She can delay albums and tours but HE can't. She has become very narcissistic especially with Tom's Death making it all about her and her grief. Sadly no one has the balls to tell her to get a life or grow up etc.

Christine really disappointed me as I thought she would have more balls to stand up to SN and not allow this sham of a tour to happen. As I have said before no one except die hard fans will even remember this lineup and tour. It will be largely forgotten like the 88-95 era is / was.

“Fleetwood Mac [had planned to go out this year but now] is going out next year.... I kind of put them on hold.... I toured last year–off and on all last year–and did lots and lots of press. And then I decided to take this year also to tour all summer.... And so it did not make Fleetwood Mac happy but I said to them, ‘I’m taking 2012 for In Your Dreams. I’m sorry. And if you can’t understand that in your heart–how important this is to me–then I’m sorry, but I’m doing it, and I will see you in 2013.'”–Stevie Nicks 2012

"This team wanted to get out on the road, and one of the members did not want to go out on the road for a year.” “We just couldn’t agree and, you know, when you’re in a band it’s a team. I mean, I have a solo career and I love my solo career. And I’m the boss, absolutely – but I’m not the boss in this band.”–Stevie Nicks 2018

Thanks for posting that. Funny thing is some of her cult like members think because she is the draw she has the right to dictate when they will or wont tour or make new music. At some point though you have to say do we need the money that badly or are we willing to make new music and or tour without her instead of waiting for her constantly year after year.

There was a great post in the Fleetwood Mac news and reviews Facebook page before they were deleted and the person was spot on. They were referencing the comments about this being a new band and such and responding that the 88- 95 era produced no big hit albums and or songs that became set list staples etc and that in the end this current lineup would end up crashing and burning just like that era from 88 -95 ended up doing. All they have done with this current tour is sell a decent amount of tickets (Just like they did in 87, 90) and that's about it. No new music but allot of shameless interviews throwing Lindsey under the bus time and again when he was the one who saved them many times from being a joke. They used him for years for their success and now that they don't need him they just toss him aside like trash. I just love Mick's comment about being Lindsey being more respectful of his music in FM.

If anyone should be respectful of FM it should be him. He had turned FM into a sad pathetic lounge act more than once and the brand is tarnished. I don't care how many tickets you sell on a tour. The fact that for the past 15+ years FM has been largely a nostalgia act resting on the past vs making new music is something that real fans don't take lightly. I truly wonder what he's gonna do when after this tour he is broke again and needs more money?

Probably try to swindle his way into drumming for a Crowded House reunion or something Finn related. Absent that, the old snake will have no problem trying to get in contact with Buckingham at some point.

You’d think his BFF Stephanie would put him in her solo band. But....she is the boss there so pretty much 0% chance of that.

And let's not forget, Mick's puppet master, SN, would also be happy being in a pathetic lounge act. In the famous Dance-era interview (where LB kisses her on the head in the middle of it), Lindsey is asked about how they joined FM and is explaining that after the failure of the BN album they were on the "road to Palooka-ville" (which they had to explain to Christine) and they could well have ended up playing steakhouses and such which he was not going to do and Stevie interjects "And his girlfriend who would have been perfectly happy playing steakhouses".

I think this says everything about their perspectives on what defines success. For Stevie it has always been and will always be about money (except for maybe, maaaayyyybeee a short period in the mid 70s when she seemed to truly want to be recognized as a writer). Then she got kinda famous, was the "it" girl of the moment, and, horror of all horrors, began dating Don Henley and hanging out with the Eagles. She once said that Don taught her 'how to be a rock star', and to me that was a terrible thing. The Eagles were known for being pompous, entitled, arrogant assholes, and some of that clearly rubbed off. The whole "I demand the presidential suite" and all that other bs was modeled for her as how rock stars should act, and she's never let it go. (With Azoff as her manager, this would have been further reinforced).

It's never been about integrity for her, about artistic legacy, it was about fame, the rock and roll lifestyle, and the external, visible trappings of being #1, whatever that might take. (Success to her was the power to demand the presidential suite, success to him was the power to define his own music. She would hand over control of what her music was to producers/executives who would turn it into the latest fad (synthesizer dance music, anyone?) if it meant she got the cover of Rolling Stone and private jets). She along with Mick would sell out anyone or anything to be on the top of the heap (record sales, ticket sales, awards, etc etc). She likes to portray herself as a "girl's girl" but she was a real bitch about other female performers whom she saw as competition. Her recent comments about not taking advice well from female professionals (managers, etc) says volumes about her. She likes girl pals who worship her and kiss her ass and do errands for her. She sees real power as a man thing and will use her wiles to attach herself to powerful men who can help her achieve her goal of being #1.

I think she knows LB knows her for who she really is, and that he is probably truly the only person left in the world who would ever tell her 'no' or give her less than ass-kissing feedback (Bob Dylan, anyone?). Of course he was also a total cruel asshole to her when he lost his control over her, but he also was someone who saw and believed in her talent, and wanted to help her refine it to its highest possibility (and still wants that for her songs, despite himself). It seems certain no one around her ever tells her she's less than fantastic. Her mother might have been the only other person, and she's now gone.

With absolutely no one left to contradict her or check her greedy impulses, this is what you get.

There has been a significant change in Stevie’s behavior and general ability to be a complete ass since her mother’s passing. It truly impacted her in a very negative way. I think her parents kept her, to some minimal degree, grounded.

It would have been interesting, but I'd have been glad to have seen another record with the Behind the Mask lineup instead of the Time lineup.

If it's true that Christine's Time songs were recorded separately from the full band and all guitar parts on these were played by session musician Michael Thompson, then this lineup was not enough strong to survive.