[michelej1]

Not much new to report this time around, but I thought the Without You intro was especially endearing. I will post photos later.

Stevie welcomed us and said, San Jose, Los Angeles, Anaheim, this is the
3rd in a series of shows that they consider to be home town. Orange County is just 30 minutes away. Oh really, Stevie? The only way you can get from Anaheim to West Los Angeles in 30 minutes is by helicopter, especially during rush hour.

At first I thought Lindsey's t-shirt just looked blue under the lights, but it really is blue. Yay.

During Rhiannon, I noticed John and Lindsey looking at each other, smiling and mouthing words. So, this continues to go on, even though they don't make physical contact any longer during the set.

Tonight, before Not That Funny Lindsey decides to explain his unheard of axiom even further. "if something works, run it into the ground and then move on" which means 'if you identify a formula use it up and find something else.' Uh, I have to quibble with that because Rumours wasn't a "formula" at the time. It happened organically. Since it's success, yes I guess the attempts to copy it have been formulaic, but the whole point is that the record company did not want you to move on and find something else. They wanted you to try to recreate Rumours. You abandoned the formula instead. So . . . why not take a burned bridge back to idiom school.

Stevie again says that the last time they have done SOTM on stage was in 1981.

For Without Love, Stevie says this story changes every night because when you start remembering the past, you begin to remember details that have nothing to do with the point of your story and they actually interfere with the point of your story. But to try to make this long story short, she says that there was this poem, written by moi. About 4 years later they were going to use it for Buckingham Nicks II, after Polydor pulled the plug on Buckingham Nicks I [which I think begs the question why Polydor was even interested in II, if one tanked, but that's a story for the next tour], but then someone snuck in and stole their demo. Lindsey points to Mick as the culprit, the thief. Mick makes a cross with his drum sticks and looks guilty.

Stevie says that whoever stole the demo put it back and they didn't know it was gone, but she also explicitly explains that she doesn't have the demo anymore. She seems to be trying to clarify my question, which was why they no longer have the original demo and I suppose that's clear as mud, now.

She looks over to Lindsey and says she knows he is bored of this story. He demurs and says he's not bored. He loves this story. Anyway, her friend found the song on Youtube in 2010 and she asked Lindsey if he remembered the song and he said he did. She said, they should do it then and he said ok.

She says it's the kind of sound that attracted Mick to them, but she said that Lindsey reminded her, on stage, in front of 16,000 people (16,000 Stevie? What venue was that?) that Mick was never attracted to them. He was looking for a lead guitar player and nowhere in his ad for a "lead guitar player" were the words "and his girlfriend" included.

Then, Lindsey goes up to his mic and Stevie, now used to the interruption, tells him to go on and tell the story. He says that he just wants to say that what FM didn't realize was that they needed a brilliant singer as well. She thanks him for saying that.

So, she says Mick let her join the group and so did Chris -- but Chris is only here in spirit, she explains. Then, I think Stevie does mention John McVie, but Lindsey goes over to her mic and puts his arm around her and says, "don't forget John McVie." Stevie says, of course, John McVie. They all turn towards John.

She says that this is the honest truth. When they got the call from Mick and she went out and bought all of the FM albums and listened to them she said, "what a great bass player." She again swears this is the truth -- though neither I nor John have ever heard her say such a thing in the last 38 years. John bows his head in thanks. Yeah Stevie, if you'd flattered him that way in 1975 maybe he would have let you put another song on the album in place of Crystal!

Anyway, I loved that little interlude and especially liked the mention of Christine.

For Gypsy, the back screen is back and Stevie points to the little girls on it for the "if I were a child" part of the song.

No dedications for Big Love this time. Lindsey just says it's a song that accurately described the person he was at the time, but it has transitioned as he has become a different man today and it shows the power of change.

Stevie dedicates Landslide to her cousin Sue and Sue's family who is also Stevie's family. She's dedicating the song to her because she never sees Sue anymore, except at concerts. But even then she doesn't see her -- because it's dark. [Oh my goodness, she is so hilarious].

One of the things I love most about I'm So Afraid is the build. The song is unfamiliar and it starts off slow, so you can sense people are a little relaxed at the beginning, looking around, rustling. But then the intensity increases. The laconic mood breaks with a stir as people realize, this stuff just got real! By the time Lindsey crosses the stage and goes deep into his solo, people are riveted on him. Quiet in places, drawn in and breathless, but then frenzied and excited. When Lindsey goes crazy, tearing at the neck of his guitar, the crowd is going crazy too.

He's playing, we're listening, but we're all on the roller coaster together, moving up gradually and then racing forward. It's not just the solo that leaves such a mark. It's the journey to its peak. The long ride we take and the curves it makes until we get to the end with a sweating, panting Lindsey bent over center stage -- that's all part of the thrill.

After Lindsey gets up from letting the audience strum his guitar during GYOW he almost trips over his amplifier cord. Crisis averted.

For the band introductions, Mick says that it was 2 weeks ago that he noticed that Lindsey doesn't leave the stage the way "us bunch" do. Gotta lay off the wine, dude.

Mick says that John has been on his right hand side "forever and forever" and is his partner in crime [where've I heard that before?]

At the end of the night, Mick brings his daughters Ruby and Tessa out. He says it's the last time they'll get to join him until a little later in the tour, so he thought he'd smuggle them on. He calls them beautiful and kisses each, allowing one to hold his flat top hat as he pops it open.

Then, it's over and I head back home thinking what a whole lotta trouble ensued when Fleetwood Mac hired that "lead guitarist -- and his girfriend."

Michele