Quote:
Originally Posted by David
I don’t think more albums and tours would have had any commercial effect on Lindsey’s achievement. He could have put two albums out for every one of Stevie’s and still not have built an audience to rival hers. He simply does not have the mass appeal that she does. He functions best on every level as a personal, idiosyncratic musical voice with quirky aural references to pop, doo wop, jazz, roots, garage, alternative, Tin Pan Alley, and all sorts of styles that allow him to multitrack inventively and core into solitary, self-referential emotional states — none of which exactly makes for across-the-board appeal or casual listening. He has more in common with David Lynch and Eraserhead than just the hair.
The Macsters used to talk about how weird it was that they were all in the same band. Well, Lindsey is the weirdest of all: an abstruse contemporary artist in a workaday touring band with mega sales. That the blend created some great albums and exciting shows is really a miracle.
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Lindsey really is an oddball. Ironically, that sensibility lifts the "workaday" setting, infuses the music with a quirky, eccentric character that distinguishes it from countless other bands. FM has always relied on their lead guitarists to shape their sound. In 1972, for example, it was Kirwan whose ache and sting made good music great (a paraphrase of Bud Scoppa's Rolling Stone review).
The core trio--Fleetwood and the McVies--belong together naturally. A once-married stolid duo and their crazy-eyed buddy. Together, they have created a sturdy, dependable musical bed for their axe men.
Stevie is just as out-of-place among the core trio as Buckingham. And I would argue more so. Listen to how comfortable and logical he sounds with Fleetwood and the McVies on Buckingham /McVie. The relationship he has with the rhythm section, and the fruitful creative partnership he has with Christine are very real and believable. By contrast, all of Stevie's songs from 1975 onward, perhaps with the exception of "Dreams" and "Gypsy," no matter how good the material and the performances, sound inserted. Granted, I love her contributions, but they are weirder alongside Christine and Lindsey's material than either of theirs with each other.