Quote:
Originally Posted by louielouie2000
Tusk contains the best material of Stevie's career, period. Sara, Storms, Sisters of the Moon, Beautiful Child... these songs are a tour de force of what Stevie is capable of. These songs are finest songwriting, singing, and harmonizing she ever put on tape. They show the flexibity of the styles she can pull off, too- rock, ballads, folk, and pop.
Regarding a second album... that's when it gets a bit harder for me. My instinct is to go for Rumours. Gold Dust Woman might just be Stevie's best recorded song. Dreams is probably her finest pop song, too. I Don't Wanna know is a flawless little song, very catchy... but it's a duet, and kinda unremarkable, IMO. Rumours is such an obvious, easy, thoughtless choice... which is why I wrestle with choosing it.
Instead, I contemplate supplanting Rumours with Say You Will. Hear me out. I think Illume is one of the most artistically neat songs of Stevie's career. I think it's every bit as good as Straight Back, and possibly in the echelon of Sisters Of The Moon & Gold Dust Woman. I feel Destiny Rules is right up there with Gypsy. If I hadn't heard the original demos of Smile At You, I'd probably feel as strongly about it as well. Plus, Say You Will contains some great rock songs like Running Through The Garden & Everybody Finds Out. Say You Will is a great little pop song. There's a wide variety of material on Say You Will that showcases that Stevie is still a very capable artist.
So I guess I won't be voting in this poll until I can decide what my second album choice will be. The sheer perfection of Rumours is undeniable, but the grittiness of Say You Well tugs at my heart strings.  |
I really appreciated reading your post. Tusk may include Stevie's best songs: the immaculately produced Sara and the singular Beautiful Child being the standouts from the studio recording for me. As you said, it taps into so many different genres: folk, country, pop, rock. I agree, tour de force, and it should rank Stevie among the greatest singer-songwriters to emerge in the last 40 years. A wonderful accomplishment.
I disagree regarding your second selection. I have to go with Rumours for reasons you mention. Gold Dust Woman may be Stevie's greatest song. I'm obsessed with it, the guitar sounds, the rock authenticity it gave the band, the psychedelic flavor. For me, it's not only one of the band's most iconic songs, but also one of their greatest. And I agree with your reading of Dreams, too. It's a perfect pop song; but the thing is, it should not be relegated to just pop. In a way, it captures the lost blues band essence of Fleetwood Mac in the guitar sounds, as well as the glorious sound of the three lead singers together in the chorus, something that hasn't been heard since The Dance (Christine is hugely important to this song, as well as Lindsey--and I love that about it!!). I Don't Want to Know may be unremarkable, but Stevie also made a significant contribution with The Chain, one of the band's greatest songs. Though credited to all five members, the lyrics are definitely Stevie's and give so much power to the song, as she is by far the best lyricist of Fleetwood Mac. Silver Springs then seals the deal. If Stevie had more pull in the band at that point, before they all realized how important her presence was, there is NO WAY it would've been cut from the album.
It's hard for me to put Say You Will in this category, since none of the songs can really hold their own against the classics, a good problem many great artists face: the constant comparison to their most iconic work. Stevie tries to recapture some of the mysticism and magic of the earlier songs, and sometimes that comes off as forced, and borderline kitsch. I think Thrown Down is her best song on the album, which you didn't mention, though I think as a few people have said on here, the lyric choices are definitely questionable, even with Stevie being "the poet that she is."
So for me, it's clearly Tusk and Rumours. But special nods to Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac for Rhiannon, Landslide, and Crystal (I wonder if Stevie was forced to have Lindsey sing it back in 1975, but no qualms there...I'm curious if there is a recording that exists of her singing it from that era. Of the two recordings I know that exist, I prefer Lindsey's to Stevie's Practical Magic version), and to Mirage for one of the strongest studio recordings and best FM music video in Gypsy. Edit: Also I love Fireflies, thank God that was released on a live album...maybe that's a song that could make a return and retain the classic Mac sound on a new, proper studio album?? hmmm