That’s a pretty flimsy excuse considering on the current FM tour there’s no LB or his backing tracks - so what’s the excuse for her frailness now?

He was so making sure she can shine on BuckVie tour and was covering for any problems she may have had. Now when he’s not there, she’s getting slammed.

You may not like the backing tracks and that’s a fair complaint, but blaming LB for everything and anything that’s been going on for decades is getting old. He’s not there now so it’s time to stop blaming him for bands problems that are now so obvious and laid bare in recent European reviews.

Great post!

I wasn’t aware the band was using backing tracks now. Not interested in their new configuration beyond an occasional morbid curiosity. I did see some vids of Christine on tour with them now and she seems far less tentative and frail than she did on the Buckvie tour. Her voice is pretty weak but she’s kept her phrasing. And she is clearly playing the keys very well on several tracks—something she did not do on the BuckVie tour. Hence my speculation about the pre-recorded tracks.

But I’m an LB fan. So I’m assuming your comment “it’s time to stop blaming him...” was addressed to the general public and not to me in particular. If it was the latter, you’re off base.

I love the Rumours 5. And I could forgive them a lot. A LOT. The drama, the BS, the fake love story (that I don't think too many people actually bought?) the lies, etc. But they crossed the line this time. That CBS interview needs to go down as the biggest load of horse sh*t ever. I would love to bend Anthony Mason's ear on that.
There was never a question as to whether or not I would see this current configuration. I wouldn't. I have a ton of respect for Mike Campbell. I saw TPH the July before TP passed away at Forest Hills in NY--Would say the best venue ever to see a concert and I would pay top dollar to see the Rumours 5 play there. I put that concert in my top 5 concerts of all time. But Mike Campbell is not FM. I have respect for Neil Finn as a musician and an artist, but I am not New Wave fan, and to me, CH is New Wave. I saw the videos of GYOW and SHN and he admirably tried to do what LB did, but he couldn't. NF does not belong in a band like FM. He just doesn't.
Christine coming back to FM in 2014/15 was a dream come true. And I loved her until she went all "Benedict Arnold" so this is really tough for me to say, but Christine's voice is shot. Just shot. Like ears bleeding. I don't understand the notion "she's a great studio singer". Does that mean once all the technology in the studio manipulates her voice so it's palpable to the human ear, she's great? FM is a live concert nostalgia act. That's all they do, all they will ever do ever more. If she can't sing unless someone is manipulating her vocals to unrealistic like levels, she shouldn't be there.
Mick is a total buffoon and I actually believe would do ANYTHING for a buck. And as time goes on, I am more convinced John McVie might be a hologram. Honestly, the only person in the band who has held up, and whose voice has matured in a way that, listening to her earlier stuff makes sense, is Stevie. And factoring in studio "manipulation" She sounded fairly consistent on this tour.
FM has truly become Stevie's backing band.

What really boggled my mind in seeing the instagram posts from London and people hash tagging lindsey and not Neil or Mike, there really are so many people that have no idea he wasn't going to be there.

It’s really not as straightforward as that. Christine’s voice is weak and she’s old. Hearing her live IS disappointing, but entirely expected for someone her age. But I’ve watched a lot of clips and her tone is still there, as is her phrasing and timing. She can’t sing in arenas or even smaller theatres . She simply doesn’t have the power or the stamina. That’s sad.

But being a studio vocalist isn’t just about relying on studio machinery. All of the FM singers (and many more in the business) use the machinery. But none of that machinery would matter if the singer doesn’t still have their tone and phrasing. When people (like me) say Christine is a good studio singer, they mean she can do as many takes as she needs in a chamber like setting that allows her to annunciate without having to shout to be heard. Many great singers in rock were essentially studio singers and not as effective live. (Diana Ross and Olivia Newton John are examples.) When Christine sings on record she sounds like she always has. So, I still say she’s a great studio singer. Her voice has its same warmth and I get the same emotional response from a song like say, “Red Sun” that I get from “Over My Head.” The voice still sounds intact. If she needs some gadgetry to help her along, I’ll take it because no one else sounds like her and I still long for music from her.

For what it’s worth, her voice was really shot during the Mirage tour. And there’s a 1977 bootleg of her singing YMLF where she sounds like a dying whale. Other times, she was spot on. And some of the clips from the current tour show her occasionally rising to an acceptable standard, so her on-again/off-again difficulty with live shows has been around for a loooooooong time.

I agree with 95% of your post, EXCEPT $tevie's voice being the only one that's "still there". THAT'S because $he reduced her singing range to 3-4 notes, TWO DECADES AGO. She plays it safe, staying in her tiny window. So yeah, I guess she could be perceived as "sounding better", because she takes no chances. Christine and Lindsey TRY for the original notes. Goat Mama just bleats and bleats the same notes, over and over.

It's sad that it's all come to this. They really should hang it up. :distress:

Know what? They did, the minute they fired Lindsey.

I'm with you on this.

That makes three of us. :D

Love coming here to trash this pathetic cover band :nod::laugh:

Hi-I thought I responded here earlier and realized I didn't. Thank you for sharing your perspective on what you meant on Studio musicians. It makes sense. I think she actually sounded the best during The Dance. I was so happy to have her back during OWTS, but there were some blips. I think the energy made up for the blips. I miss the dynamic of the Rumours 5. Full disclosure I didn't attend any of these shows, but the videos I've seen--its the dynamic and energy missing (IMO) perhaps that's what Christine is lacking?

I have this sense that Fleetwood Mac is currently a sort of marketing branch of the Stevie Nicks solo corporation. Everything last year — the "Ellen" appearance, the few print interviews, the tour itself, all of which she's clearly the only star of — all felt like laying the ground for the rock and roll hall of fame award. I think Fleetwood Mac is now officially a Stevie Nicks™ Production.

I agree. Dick Fleetwood is ALL about the money, and knows the old goat is his meal ticket! Money hungry stupid old bastard!:lol:

perfectly stated.

Great post.

As long as Lindsey is not in the band, I won't support them.

I'll still listen to old music and reminisce, but I have no desire to attend a FM show without Lindsey nor will I buy any new material they produce (if they ever do). I've watched a few YouTube videos of the new band and they're cringeworthy; they're like a bad cover band; they've lost their spark.

We finally had the Rumours band back together again, with a chance of getting new music, and they ruin it with their egos.