Quote:
Originally Posted by David
I know Then Play On gets the biggest share of love from the pre-Welch era (followed perhaps by Dog and Dustbin). But my favorite from that time is English Rose, a mongrel album that just keeps dumping great material on you, even though it doesn't all (and isn't meant to) hang together sonically. Maybe that's its power: it's a shimmery kaleidoscope of slow blues, burning blues, pumping blues, and Moody Blues (Kirwan's Something Inside of Me) that fills your ears with variety and passion. It feels like the soundtrack to a gritty Sixties documentary.
I'd also have to dump my favorite Welch-era album, Penguin, on my top list. Most everyone says they love all of Mystery to Me; well, I love all of Penguin, especially Did You Ever Love Me, which, had it been recorded for the 1975 album, would have been an even bigger hit than Say You Love Me in Fleetwood Mac's catalog.
|
I LOVE English Rose. The four Kirwan tunes, Albatross, Black Magic Woman, and the best Green from Mr. Wonderful--this is a potent compilation for American consumption. Even the four Spencer tunes (all but one pretty much identical) aren't too hard to bear given the variety of the other numbers. This album, along with the Greatest Hits one from 1971 (all the Green hits, some Spencer, and Kirwan's Dragonfly) are ideal starting points for anyone wanting to know about the first era of the band.
I too prefer Penguin over MTM. The recording feels airier, spacier, like Future Games. "Night Watch" is mysterious and cool, and all of Christine's songs here land very well. It's all over the place in terms of styles, but I like that. I could even stomach the Walker songs if there were one more song each by Welch and McVie. One detraction--nothing Welch does on it compares to "Miles Away," imo.