Originally Posted by Netter75
From what information we currently have, Stevie's a complete diva who can't seem to compromise and just get along with Lindsey and used her importance to the bands success as leverage to evict him. Mick is greedy and just follows the money and the McVie's are towing the company line as usual. They did Lindsey dirty on that one.
So I'd be riding the hate train that most of the remaining members of this forum are cruising on except for two things:
1. I don't know any of them, so I'm not very invested in their interpersonal struggles except how it's reflected in the music. I was never under the impression that their relationships went further than co-workers with patchy histories, that their stage act was anything more than an act, or that any of them were especially altruistic people. Therefore I don't feel especially betrayed by any of their behavior. This is why I'm not filled with seething rage like others, and I wouldn't be if Stevie or Christine were ousted in the same way.
2. This is gonna sound bad, but its just my opinion. I'm really not that big a fan of Lindsey's in the first place. That being said, He's an amazing guitar player (I love listening to tracks he guests on and recognizing his distinctive playing style), I acknowledge that his production is the entire reason Rumours, Tusk, Mirage, and Tango were as succesful as they were, that Stevie's demos in the 70s were perfectly realized by him, etc. I also love everything he did prior to 1979 (Frozen Love, Without a Leg to Stand On, Crystal, Monday Morning, I'm So Afraid Live, GYOW, etc).
The problem is that he starts to lose me on a lot of "Tusk" outside of the title song. I'm trying to get into it but it's difficult. His vocals past this point don't do a whole lot for me either. He sounds fine when he's singing loud and confidently (Big Love, WTWCT, Peacekeeper, Doing What I Can, On With the Show) but I can't stand those whispery vocals he uses so often (they RUIN "game of pretend" for me). It sounds like a completely different artist than the one from Rumours and I just can't adapt to it like I can with Stevie and Christine. Can't stand much from his first two solo albums either besides the lead singles. Out of the Cradle is much more listenable. I also think he kind of went off the deep end with his production technique since Tango. I think a lot of Say You Will or Buckingham McVie would have been better if they were produced by someone else. The songs sound really hollow, cold and synthesized. You listen to the TISGL version of Thrown Down, and while the guitar playing is not as good/distinct and the vocals are worse, I prefer the warmer production style of the 2001 version of the song. It's not all bad, there's great songs on those albums, but still.
This is the main reason why I'm not as bummed about his firing as I would have been if Stevie or Christine had been. Call me a filthy casual fan or whatever, but I'd rather hear Second Hand News, Go Your Own Way, and Monday Morning in concert than the acoustic Big Love, I Know I'm Not Wrong, or Not That Funny. I am quite sad that I'll never get to see his amazing guitar playing though.
Summary: Lindsey's firing has little to no impact on me at all, so I haven't given up on listening to their music and have not considered doing so.
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