[PenguinHead]

"Don't Stop" came close to #1. It's a song that definately has a universal appeal and message. Hold Me and Little Lies should have hit the top of the charts.

Regarding the live performance of Hold Me:

The first time I saw the band was on their Mirage Tour (which I consider one of their best, tightest tours...and it's their last tour with just the five of them.) I was wondering how they would pull of the harmonies of "Hold me...eeee." Instead of attempting that... they sang "Hold me...yeah!"

I think it's unfair to compare the studio versions to the live versions. The studio versions are painstakingly labored over, with multiple layers of instruments and vocals, in a controlled environment. When I see a band, I don't want to hear a carbon copy of the record. In Fleetwood Mac's case, that would never happen with just four instruments.


My enjoyment and interest in the live performances is seeing how they adapt the songs for a concert. For me it's not a matter of the live band trying to match the studio version. I tend to judge the live performance on its own merit. So I think "Hold Me" holds up! Sure, it's more raw, but I find it to be less lightweight and more rock and roll (than the studio version), especially the ending.

One thing that I think is killing the spontaneous raw nature of rock and roll concerts is this newfound, current generation expectation to hear perfect renditions of songs. As such, concerts are becoming less real and unique, and more planned and canned, safe and sound.

The pressure is on, and musicians, with more technology at hand, are bowing to it. How else do you explain Fleetwood Mac touring with TEN additional members? For me, the very live soul of the band has been gutted in order to placate a new MTV generation that has very different expectations. Unfornately, that is the nature of the current, septic corporate music industry.

Just listen to all the bootlegs of the Say You Will tour. They, for the most part, all sound the same. I prefer the uneven, but very real performances of the band circa 1975-1982. To borrow Lindsey's overused term, these are "organic" peformances where you can hear and single out every instrument and vocal line, for better or worse.