Well, this IS the Rumours board

[wondergirl9847]

Hehe. Thought I'd discuss the actual Rumours album for once. GYOW came on the radio today and dammit, YES, I did headbang to it. <--- Me. LOL Anyways, it occurred to me that this album was WAY ahead of it's time in terms of its sound. When disco was ruling the airways, (I'm assuming as I was only 1 when the album came out. LOL) there was this album, Rumours, sounding like something from another world, I can imagine.

You have SHN, which sounds kinda country influenced a bit, going into the megahit Dreams sounding like, just that...a dream. GYOW, like I said, is this headbanging song that grabs you and doesn't let go. NGBA is a frickin masterpiece in terms of guitarwork and his vocal, pickin' that ain't been heard from any other. Don't Stop is a tad gospelish (hard to explain it) and you Christine's playing sounds so...well...Wild West saloon-ish. Songbird is this soft, tender ballad. The Chain, a rocker that sneaks up on you and EXPLODES towards the end...another headbanging moment. YMLF is this sexy song with a great groove to it. IDWK is a country bumpkin's dream. LMAO!! It's terrific harmonies and typical Buckingham Nicks. Oh Daddy is kinda creepy and dark which links well with another dark tune, GDW, ending the album perfectly.

I cannot get over how awesome this album is, it's perfection from beginning to end. Why, I'd venture to say....it's classic.

What about you folks older than me, did you hear Rumours and go "Wow, this is fresh and unique!"?

[DownOnRodeo]

One often wonders - what would Rumours 2 have been like? (Although I often think of TITN as the belated Rumours 2.)

Such premier music was achieved by the 'Rumours team' that you can only wonder what might have transpired had Lindsey not been so determined/intrigued to cut off the 'team' and go in with pretty much just him and the band thereafter. Full circle, it's paid off with SYW! And it's been a journey of discovery for Lindsey since the Rumours turning point, and we've followed him along (well, retropsectively for many of us). I think there's so many bands that stay fast to the MOR, bent on replicating the first thing that makes it big for them, that we should all be thankful (well, we are thankful) for Lindsey that he appreciated Rumours for what it was - great music - but was ready to turn to new challenges and approaches, despite the effect of 'sabotaging' the Fleetwood Mac machine.

But again - one can only muse at what Rumours 2 might have been. 11 tracks from Tusk, with some less avant garde Lindsey ones substituted in, and all approached in the 'movie-making' manner.

Makes you wonder...

[face of glass]

Originally posted by wondergirl9847
Anyways, it occurred to me that this album was WAY ahead of it's time in terms of its sound. When disco was ruling the airways, (I'm assuming as I was only 1 when the album came out. LOL) there was this album, Rumours, sounding like something from another world, I can imagine.

There was an audience for this kind of stuff. I think a lot of people who listened to FM at the time also listened to the Eagles and Steely Dan and thought those all three are nice, “easy-listening� bands. Of course they were wrong about the Dan and the Mac. The album doesn’t really sound like it’s following any current trend. It established a trend itself. There’s no obvious disco influences although the album supposedly starts like it was influenced by this latest trend, and “You Make Lovin’ Fun� isn’t that convincing as a funk song. Neither is it influenced by the burning punk/new wave ambitions. It’s just an album that happened to be made by five musicians (and two engineers/producers) who enjoyed playing together, before the success hit the fan.

What the punks who laughed at this album and said it was AOR personified failed to see, was the lyrics and the passion that was evident in the delivery. In the end something like “Gold Dust Woman� made “White Riot� seem tame.

The band achieves diversity and a sound of its own on this album. Something like “Warm Ways� could have been done by a pre-Rumours line-up, and the White Album didn’t have the production polish this one has. The success was deserved, and never again would it be equalled.

Some people have claimed that Rumours actually spoiled the band, to the point where its success affected the music too much. I don’t entirely agree with the claim, but that can be left for another time. However, one should consider the fact that if there’s going to be anything left of rock’n’roll in a hundred years’ time, it will only be the most successful artists. People will probably remember the Beatles and The Dark Side Of The Moon, just like they will only remember a few jazz and classical artists. Fleetwood Mac earned their place in history with this album. I don’t think that the band would be remembered outside connoisseur circles, no matter how great work they have done outside Rumours and no matter who has played in the band.

Originally posted by DownOnRodeo
But again - one can only muse at what Rumours 2 might have been. 11 tracks from Tusk, with some less avant garde Lindsey ones substituted in, and all approached in the 'movie-making' manner.

Exactly. No way would Lindsey have been inspired to do so many tracks at one time if they were going to do a Rumours II. He would have concentrated on three or four of his own. What would there have been left for Lindsey if he had followed the rules? More “I’m So Afraids� night after night? He didn’t want to do the usual ‘70s rock excesses and I honour him for that. He chose his road, he wanted to stay outside the classic rock medium, but he didn’t want to join the new wavers either. He stayed somewhere in between, retaining the extremely honed sound but always adding an experimental edge to his work. Because he chose to keep the classic rock style and the new wave quirks, his solo career suffered. He fell in between two target groups. The others thought he was a weird punk, the others thought he was a corporate rock sell-out. But in my eyes, he’s always retained his artistic integrity. That “Red Rover� and “Murrow� are both in my LB top 5 songs, only emphasizes this.

[strandinthewind]

I think LB and others in the band said "Mirage" was an effort to get back to the traditional "FM sound," which I always thought meant getting back to the Rumors sound.

[dissention]

I love Rumours, but who doesn't?

Second Hand News- the BEST album opener EVER. And I think it's Lindsey's best song on the album, too. Love Stevie's vocals. And it kinda sounds like he's singing "I'm just sittin' here nuuuuuuuuuuude...YEAH!"

Dreams- What can I say?

GYOW- Love Lindsey's voice on this one for some reason. I just really dig it, even though it sounds like his BVDs are on too tight.

NGBA- Love this song, but it's missing Stevie and Chris. I just love it on this tour with Stevie harmonizing with him.

Don't Stop- Not my fave, but it's a classic. The Dance version spoiled me, though; I never listen to the album version, only the Dance.

Songbird- Love it, but I prefer the extended version. I miss it in concert. But I still love Goodbye Baby!

The Chain- Killer vocals from Chris in the background. John's bass lines are classic in this song.

YMLF- Actually my least fave on the record, but I dig the harmonies.

IDWK- Much better than the original Silver Springs!! Lindsey and Stevie sound so good together on this song that it kills me!!

Oh Daddy- My favorite Chris song ever. I just adore it for some reason. Very creepy and dark, though!

GDW- Beautiful vocals and I love the howling towards the end. The one I have is the one where the glass shatters; that's the only version to listen to, IMO!

[seteca]

The greatest album in the history of music. Timeless, flawless, absolutely amazing, PERFECT.



And if you don't love me now, you will never love me again. I can still hear you saying you would never break the chain.

[MacMan]

All I remember about the time when Rumours first came out was I remember vividly the DAY I heard Second Hand News... I was completely taken and have been ever since by this band... That's going on 26 years now, that's a long bloody time! Couldn't even imagine life without them... Can you?

[darklinensuit]

I miss the days when the public had the taste to put albums like Rumours and Bella Donna at number one.

- Jake

[xdreamsunwindx]

Well, I wasn't born untill way after Rumours was released, I was born a few years after it was reissued on CD... lol

Anyways...

Rumours is basically a flawless album. The only song I do not like is Never Goin' Back Again. Other than that, the whole thing is perfect. Oh Daddy is most likely my favorite song, period. It's just so... eerie. Love, love, LOVE the organ, the harmonies, and Chris' vocals on that were beautiful. Go Your Own Way is my favorite Lindsey song, it's timeless. I never get sick of it. Gold Dust Woman is my favorite Stevie song as well, and I especially love it on this tour, now that her voice is raspier and whatnot. Rumours is my second favorite Mac album, and my number one is Mirage... I'm not kidding, either.

[face of glass]

Originally posted by dissention
Oh Daddy- My favorite Chris song ever. I just adore it for some reason. Very creepy and dark, though![/B]

I and Stevie agree with this.

Originally posted by strandinthewind
I think LB and others in the band said "Mirage" was an effort to get back to the traditional "FM sound," which I always thought meant getting back to the Rumors sound.

I can understand that, after all Lindsey wasn’t happy with the album afterwards. But I still think that’s an exaggeration. “Hold Me�, the album’s first single is still very unusual and goofy. “Gypsy� expanded on “Dreams�, but it was an important expansion, after all this is the prototype for “Destiny Rules� and “Thrown Down�. And I think Lindsey’s material doesn’t follow the examples of “Second Hand News�, “I’m So Afraid�, “Never Going Back Again� or “Go Your Own Way�. He wanted to use the ‘50s sound and there exactly wasn’t a ‘50s revival going on. He left off “Goodbye Angel�, because the picking on it would’ve been interpreted as a new way of doing “Never Going Back Again�. So, in the end I think Mirage is a compromise between the sound ideals of Rumours and Tusk. And that I can also state of everything Lindsey has done afterwards.