Will this be the last tour?

[sjpdg]

Originally Posted by shackin'up

Ofcourse not. Mick, by the time he's blowing bubbles in a wheelchair, will rip us off anytime, in a heartbeat.

What's with the anti-Mick hostility?? He's not the only person who puts a FM tour together. If Lindsey and Stevie didn't want to do it, they could have opted out. They are adults for ****'s sake!!! It's not like Mick's holding a gun to their heads!! John doesn't have to do it either, he could tell Mick to "**** off" any time he wanted. Mick wouldn't take it personally, they've been friends too long. If anything is a rip off, then I'd say this tour is a rip off by the whole band!! "Unleashed" my ass!! It's the Tusk tour revisited with a couple of solo songs in there. That's far from "unleashed" in my book.

Why is it always Mick that gets blamed for this crap??!! Why not lay the blame at those who are out in the media talking ****?? Like "Mama" or what ever she's being called today?? She's out there talking about what a negative experience the SYW tour was and her and Lindsey not getting along, blah, blah,blah, blah, blah, drama queen, drama queen, drama queen!! If she's that unhappy, then why not just retire from FM and stay as a solo artist or go back to AZ and shut the hell up!!!!! I mean seriously!! IF indeed it's that bad, and not just another attempt at media hype, then why would you keep putting yourself in that situation??!! I say get a grip Stevie! Either leave the past behind you as far as Lindsey in concerned, or quit the band.

Sorry, not trying to get on a rant here, but holy **** I'm sick of this crap!! As much as I love her work with FM and as a solo artist, I'm just getting tired of the drama. Playing the blame game all the time just gets really freakin' old after a while.

Mick's a businessman. He has multiple ventures going on. His wine, FM, Island Rumours Band, Mick Fleetwood Blues Band (Which totally freakin' ROCKS by the way!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), and other stuff I'm sure. Does he really need to tour with the drama of the Buckingham/Nicks duo? Not really!! He could cut it loose and be fine from a financial standpoint, I'm sure. Why blame him?

Just had to vent that out.

[wheart]

Originally Posted by sjpdg

What's with the anti-Mick hostility?? He's not the only person who puts a FM tour together. If Lindsey and Stevie didn't want to do it, they could have opted out. They are adults for ****'s sake!!! It's not like Mick's holding a gun to their heads!! John doesn't have to do it either, he could tell Mick to "**** off" any time he wanted. Mick wouldn't take it personally, they've been friends too long. If anything is a rip off, then I'd say this tour is a rip off by the whole band!! "Unleashed" my ass!! It's the Tusk tour revisited with a couple of solo songs in there. That's far from "unleashed" in my book.

Why is it always Mick that gets blamed for this crap??!! Why not lay the blame at those who are out in the media talking ****?? Like "Mama" or what ever she's being called today?? She's out there talking about what a negative experience the SYW tour was and her and Lindsey not getting along, blah, blah,blah, blah, blah, drama queen, drama queen, drama queen!! If she's that unhappy, then why not just retire from FM and stay as a solo artist or go back to AZ and shut the hell up!!!!! I mean seriously!! IF indeed it's that bad, and not just another attempt at media hype, then why would you keep putting yourself in that situation??!! I say get a grip Stevie! Either leave the past behind you as far as Lindsey in concerned, or quit the band.

Sorry, not trying to get on a rant here, but holy **** I'm sick of this crap!! As much as I love her work with FM and as a solo artist, I'm just getting tired of the drama. Playing the blame game all the time just gets really freakin' old after a while.

Mick's a businessman. He has multiple ventures going on. His wine, FM, Island Rumours Band, Mick Fleetwood Blues Band (Which totally freakin' ROCKS by the way!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), and other stuff I'm sure. Does he really need to tour with the drama of the Buckingham/Nicks duo? Not really!! He could cut it loose and be fine from a financial standpoint, I'm sure. Why blame him?

Just had to vent that out.

Why don't you tell us how you really feel??
I do agree with a lot of what you said. For the first time, I'm growing tired of the SN/LB drama. Move on

[OldTimer]

Thanks for that, SJ!!! Like you, I'm amazed at the way Mick's the one who gets all the blame around here for everything with this drama-queen band.

It seems to be the Lindsey fans who have the most animosity towards Mick, and the reason seems fairly apparent --- Mick's making it loud and clear these days which guitarist he prefers working with --- and Linds comes in second.

EDIT: Of course I don't mean all Lindsey fans resent Mick for this reason. Just those persistent there-is-no-other-guitarist-on-the-face-of-the-earth Lindsey fans. You know who you are.

[David]

Originally Posted by sjpdg

It's the Tusk tour revisited with a couple of solo songs in there.

Oh, we wish it were the Tusk tour revisited!

Why is it always Mick that gets blamed for this crap??!! Why not lay the blame at those who are out in the media talking ****?? Like "Mama" or what ever she's being called today?? She's out there talking about what a negative experience the SYW tour was and her and Lindsey not getting along, blah, blah,blah, blah, blah, drama queen, drama queen, drama queen!! If she's that unhappy, then why not just retire from FM and stay as a solo artist or go back to AZ and shut the hell up!!!!! I mean seriously!! IF indeed it's that bad, and not just another attempt at media hype, then why would you keep putting yourself in that situation??!! I say get a grip Stevie! Either leave the past behind you as far as Lindsey in concerned, or quit the band.

Great post. I empathize with your frustration over the Mick Fleetwood bashing. I think Mick has always been an amazing drummer, especially for Fleetwood Mac's sound, & furthermore I think Mick's management of the band in the '70s played a big part in their artistry & integrity.

In later years, however, Mick made a number of bad artistic & financial decisions for the band (touring on an oldies bill, setting up a Web site ostensibly as a fan site but in reality a money-grabbing site, sponsoring or selling all manner of dumb gadgetry while linking Fleetwood Mac's name to these products, etc.). That's when the fan view of Mick as crass & clueless really started. That view is still widely held today, irrespective of what Mick is actually doing or not doing.

It's somewhat frustrating to me because it completely overshadows Mick's actual drumming, which isn't discussed at all anymore.

[michelej1]

Originally Posted by OldTimer

It seems to be the Lindsey fans who have the most animosity towards Mick, and the reason seems fairly apparent --- Mick's making it loud and clear these days which guitarist he prefers working with --- and Linds comes in second.

EDIT: Of course I don't mean all Lindsey fans resent Mick for this reason. Just those persistent there-is-no-other-guitarist-on-the-face-of-the-earth Lindsey fans. You know who you are.

Which Lindsey fans care what guitarist Mick prefers working with? Is this some contingent I don't know about? Where do they congregate? I want to go to there!

It never entered my mind to think about Mick's preferences. First of all, the way Mick has described his love for Peter Green in the past, I never thought that Lindsey was his favorite in the first place and if Mick likes Rick better than Lindsey, that doesn't really break my heart. Although I did think it was kind of sweet the way Mick started kissing Lindsey during the introductions on the SYW tour. It melted the cockles, but . . .

One recent reason I got fed up about Mick at the beginning of the tour after I spent $795 on a ticket (about $150 of which ended up being refunded), I got an email asking me if I wanted to pay $250 extra for a meet and greet with Mick. Now the meet and greet is now an option you can include when you buy the ticket. But back then, it wasn't. I bought the ticket first, felt that I had spent a fortune and then instead of getting a gracious "thank you" email, I was asked for $250 more to see Mick.

Of course, all I had to do was ignore the email, but I felt insulted that I even got it. I felt it was an attempt to get blood (blood money) from a rock. Now, I'm sure I'd have to pay a lot more for a meet and greet with Lindsey or Stevie, but they weren't offering. Mick was.

That just rubbed me the wrong way and it did enhance my perception that Mick is mercenary. Plus, he's always in the news with some new business launching. A business that ultimately fails, which, in my mind, increases his need for FM cash. His auctions, restaurant. The latest legal malpractice suit. The wine hasn't failed yet. Maybe it's profitable, but him showing up regularly at Costco to help sell the wine doesn't make me think he's not money grubbing.

Michele

[jbrownsjr]

Originally Posted by David

Oh, we wish it were the Tusk tour revisited!

Great post. I empathize with your frustration over the Mick Fleetwood bashing. I think Mick has always been an amazing drummer, especially for Fleetwood Mac's sound, & furthermore I think Mick's management of the band in the '70s played a big part in their artistry & integrity.

In later years, however, Mick made a number of bad artistic & financial decisions for the band (touring on an oldies bill, setting up a Web site ostensibly as a fan site but in reality a money-grabbing site, sponsoring or selling all manner of dumb gadgetry while linking Fleetwood Mac's name to these products, etc.). That's when the fan view of Mick as crass & clueless really started. That view is still widely held today, irrespective of what Mick is actually doing or not doing.

It's somewhat frustrating to me because it completely overshadows Mick's actual drumming, which isn't discussed at all anymore.

nobody shuffles better than Mick in my opinion...

[shackin'up]

Originally Posted by sjpdg

What's with the anti-Mick hostility??

I love Mick I own all his soloalbums and every frikkin mac album that was ever released.

so calm down.

I was joking with funny imagerie.

And I don't count myself under the "there's only one guitarist on the face of the earth"-lindseyfans because I 'm simply not among them. Green was a better guitarplayer. But Rick Vito is something else. A pefect bluesplayer but not one with a "hey it's vito!"-sound. He just resembles the great players from the past.

[Nico]

Originally Posted by sjpdg

What's with the anti-Mick hostility?? He's not the only person who puts a FM tour together. If Lindsey and Stevie didn't want to do it, they could have opted out. They are adults for ****'s sake!!! It's not like Mick's holding a gun to their heads!! John doesn't have to do it either, he could tell Mick to "**** off" any time he wanted. Mick wouldn't take it personally, they've been friends too long. If anything is a rip off, then I'd say this tour is a rip off by the whole band!! "Unleashed" my ass!! It's the Tusk tour revisited with a couple of solo songs in there. That's far from "unleashed" in my book.

Why is it always Mick that gets blamed for this crap??!! Why not lay the blame at those who are out in the media talking ****?? Like "Mama" or what ever she's being called today?? She's out there talking about what a negative experience the SYW tour was and her and Lindsey not getting along, blah, blah,blah, blah, blah, drama queen, drama queen, drama queen!! If she's that unhappy, then why not just retire from FM and stay as a solo artist or go back to AZ and shut the hell up!!!!! I mean seriously!! IF indeed it's that bad, and not just another attempt at media hype, then why would you keep putting yourself in that situation??!! I say get a grip Stevie! Either leave the past behind you as far as Lindsey in concerned, or quit the band.

Sorry, not trying to get on a rant here, but holy **** I'm sick of this crap!! As much as I love her work with FM and as a solo artist, I'm just getting tired of the drama. Playing the blame game all the time just gets really freakin' old after a while.

Mick's a businessman. He has multiple ventures going on. His wine, FM, Island Rumours Band, Mick Fleetwood Blues Band (Which totally freakin' ROCKS by the way!!!!!!!!!!!!!!), and other stuff I'm sure. Does he really need to tour with the drama of the Buckingham/Nicks duo? Not really!! He could cut it loose and be fine from a financial standpoint, I'm sure. Why blame him?

Just had to vent that out.

Thanks for speaking your mind. Would you mind posting a link to the interview/video where Mick talks about his preference in terms of guitar players...I'm interested! Actually, I like Rick Vito a great deal and find it utterly ridiculous that people could have animosity towards Mick because of who he prefers. I'm one of those Lindsey fans who does think his guitar playing is one of the most breathtaking sounds ever, but I also like Mick. He's strange and sort of uncouth, but that's part of the appeal.

[LukeA]

Originally Posted by David

In later years, however, Mick made a number of bad artistic & financial decisions for the band (touring on an oldies bill, setting up a Web site ostensibly as a fan site but in reality a money-grabbing site, sponsoring or selling all manner of dumb gadgetry while linking Fleetwood Mac's name to these products, etc.). That's when the fan view of Mick as crass & clueless really started. That view is still widely held today, irrespective of what Mick is actually doing or not doing.

And, to think- even before all of that, the man managed to file for bankruptcy on two different occasions years apart. Quite a feat.

[sjpdg]

Originally Posted by Nico

Thanks for speaking your mind. Would you mind posting a link to the interview/video where Mick talks about his preference in terms of guitar players...I'm interested! Actually, I like Rick Vito a great deal and find it utterly ridiculous that people could have animosity towards Mick because of who he prefers. I'm one of those Lindsey fans who does think his guitar playing is one of the most breathtaking sounds ever, but I also like Mick. He's strange and sort of uncouth, but that's part of the appeal.

I actually didn't make any statements about Mick liking Rick over Lindsey, so I don't have any links to anywhere Mick made any statement like that. That was somebody else. Sorry.

I don't have any issue with Lindsey at all. I think he's a fantastic guitar player. His and Rick's styles are totally different and I like them both. This for me isn't about who's the better guitar player or performer. It's about bashing a guy and laying blame at is feet for something that he does not have 100% control over. He's part of a band and if the rest of the band doesn't want to tour then he can't force them.

Basically I just took exception to a comment by another member saying Mick was the one trying to rip us all off on this tour. I didn't think it was fair, had seen several other posts by other people laying some of this type of thing on Mick and decided to speak my mind.

[sjpdg]

Originally Posted by shackin'up

I love Mick I own all his soloalbums and every frikkin mac album that was ever released.

so calm down.

I was joking with funny imagerie.

And I don't count myself under the "there's only one guitarist on the face of the earth"-lindseyfans because I 'm simply not among them. Green was a better guitarplayer. But Rick Vito is something else. A pefect bluesplayer but not one with a "hey it's vito!"-sound. He just resembles the great players from the past.

In the words of Steve Martin, "Well excuuuuuuuuuuuuussseeee meeeeeeeeee!!!!!!"

I just didn't think it was fair to say Mick was trying to rip us off with this tour since he's not the only one that can get a Mac tour together. I understand you were kidding, no problem.
I'm not one of those "this guitarist is better than that one" either. Each has their own style and way of doing things, relating to the audience and so on. Each has put their own mark on FM and made it what it was at that time.

As far as Rick is concerned, I hear Peter and a latin influence as well, with some island flair now that he's in Hawaii.

[sjpdg]

Originally Posted by David

Oh, we wish it were the Tusk tour revisited!

Great post. I empathize with your frustration over the Mick Fleetwood bashing. I think Mick has always been an amazing drummer, especially for Fleetwood Mac's sound, & furthermore I think Mick's management of the band in the '70s played a big part in their artistry & integrity.

In later years, however, Mick made a number of bad artistic & financial decisions for the band (touring on an oldies bill, setting up a Web site ostensibly as a fan site but in reality a money-grabbing site, sponsoring or selling all manner of dumb gadgetry while linking Fleetwood Mac's name to these products, etc.). That's when the fan view of Mick as crass & clueless really started. That view is still widely held today, irrespective of what Mick is actually doing or not doing.

It's somewhat frustrating to me because it completely overshadows Mick's actual drumming, which isn't discussed at all anymore.

No doubt that Mick is not without "sin" or blame in one area or another. I'm not trying to put the guy up for sainthood by anymeans. He's made some very poor business decisions and personal decisions over the years, but who hasn't, right?

I'd agree that he may have left the impression of "it's all about the money" with some fans, but I honestly don't think that's really him. I will say I don't know him personally, so I could be 100% wrong on that too.

As far as his linking the FM name to things he's promoted, good or bad, that's the nature of the beast when you are a celebrity with a mega-huge band. His name will always be associated with FM, no matter what he does. If he's promoting something, someone is going to say something about FM. It can't be avoided, whether he wants FM associated to it or not.

He's an awesome drummer!!! I used all my FM cd's and Mick's solo stuff that I had at that time to teach myself to play drums years ago. I think all this "it's Mick's fault" nonsense does overshadow him as a drummer and as the guy who's actually kept the band going over it's whole history. It's too bad that so much of the focus is always put on Lindsey and Stevie and their drama instead of the whole band dynamic and how all four of these people (five when Chris was still involved) have been able to work through (to an extent) their interpersonal problems and keep together as a viable band. I also just think it's high time Stevie (and to a much lesser extent Lindsey), just let go of the past and move forward.

[sjpdg]

Here's a little "conspiracy theory" that popped into my twisted little head about a month or so ago. It goes something like this:

The "Unleashed" tour ends and at the final show, Lindsey announces that Fleetwood Mac is basically ending. He and Stevie are going on with their solo careers, but they will no longer record or perform as a part of FM. We as fans shed numerous tears, are very upset but eventually we learn to live with it.

Mick and John go back to Maui and Mick performs off and on with his "Island Rumours Band" with Rick. They take about a 6 month hiatus and then Mick announces that the MFBB will be launching another tour in support of a new studio album. The album is another reinterpretation of classic PG, JS and DK Mac songs, along with original material from Rick. (possible title for the cd: "Still Blue") The album of course, having been recorded during the "hiatus".

The MFBB set off on their world tour, hitting large clubs and classic blues joints througout the US and perhaps even chart a single. At various gigs, John shows up and plays as a "guest appearance". Once the tour hits the UK, Christine plays several gigs within a short travel distance of her home so she can sleep in her own bed at night.

After this tour, John realizes how much he has missed playing the classic Mac with Mick and Rick, and joins the MFBB as a permanent member. At this point, Mick realizes the ridiculousness of pretense and he, John and Rick announce that they have reformed Fleetwood Mac as a blues band, going back to its roots and will continue to record and perform as FM.

Those of us that are fans of FM from the PG days are ecstatic and line up for every tour until both Mick, John and Rick can't even walk, let alone perform. Their last album "Blue Always" goes multiplatinum and everyone ends their days happy.

Just a conspiracy theory that will probably never happen. I just thought it was a funny idea that I'd share with the rest of the group. Enjoy!!

[mottabam]

I've seen Fleetwood Mac on every tour since Mirage, including many of the "Time" line-up performances and can only hope for 1 more time around. Over ten years ago now I was so thrilled to see them back together for The Dance Tour. Stevie performed especially well on the MTV/DVD performance. The energy and emotion was fantastic and indeed the Mac was Back. Then nearly six years of nothing till SYW. Then pretty much another 6 years for the current tour. The band is awesome however Stevie, for whatever reason, seems somewhat sedated, tired or just not into it, although she does shine on several songs. Mick, Lindsey, and John surely seem to be having a great time on stage and giving 100% plus throughout the show. If there is a farewell tour or a new album tour I hope Stevie is in better spirits on stage. Having Christine drop in on a few shows would be great as well, even if for only 1 or 2 songs. Reasonably priced tickets would be nice but just as unlikely.

[David]

Originally Posted by mottabam

I've seen Fleetwood Mac on every tour since Mirage, including many of the "Time" line-up performances and can only hope for 1 more time around.

Is this Brian Motta?

The band is awesome however Stevie, for whatever reason, seems somewhat sedated, tired or just not into it, although she does shine on several songs. Mick, Lindsey, and John surely seem to be having a great time on stage and giving 100% plus throughout the show. If there is a farewell tour or a new album tour I hope Stevie is in better spirits on stage. Having Christine drop in on a few shows would be great as well, even if for only 1 or 2 songs.

One is reminded of the 1990 tour, throughout much of which Stevie was lethargic, too. Not even a surprise appearance by Lindsey Buckingham at the last two shows generated any pep in her.