Alternate Line Ups thread

[jaycee]

Mick, John, Christine, and Lindsey for me. Simply because Christine and Lindsey each wrote more songs than Stevie in the Rumours line-up era. That, and you can't replace Lindsey!
Even so, it's like splitting hairs to choose between Stevie and Christine... ahh, the torture!

[Angel69]

I love SYW. Still do. Is it perfect? No. But it still shows them off to be a band that is musically very experimental. That's the thing with Fleetwood Mac. They always get sorta pigeon holed into being a soft rock band. But their music runs the gamut....hell I would even go as far as saying some of the live stuff borders on metal. When you attend a show by them you could have say Over And Over and then you get the truely overpowering The Chain.

Live boots from say Rumours on through now show that this band is very versatile, which is something that I feel gets lost when your hearing their songs on the radio.

I do like and love some of the stuff recorded before the addition of Lindsey and Stevie, however it's the 5 fireflies that I love the most. Passion, drama and excellent musicianship and presentation add up to a most wonderful collage of dynamics.

Even now that they are in their 60's they still put forth amazing shows. Always perfect? No. The MSG show from June 09 was amazing. The show opener from Pittsburg so so. Nerves? Quite possibly. They are the one band that I always go to for listening pleasure above all others. Been a fan since 1977 and my interest in them has never waned......."we just refuse to go way".

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by roomsonfire21

Lindsay


I have the feeling though that if christine had stayed, many of stevies songs would have been taken off, which would not be fair.

Firstly, LindsEy!

Yeah, I couldn't have listened to SYW, without Silver Girl, or Illume.

[vivfox]

How about Mick, Christine, Lindsey, Stevie? Hire a new bass player. Yeah you'll miss John on his solo on The Chain but other than that anyone can play his parts.

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

She really was THE SOUND of FM. The Great Unifier!

And I agree that there were a few solid songs on SYW. It would've been a MUCH stronger album, if they'd cut it in half! I love WTWCT, Steal Your Heart Away, Miranda, Thrown Down....

But stuff like Come and Murrow???? C'mon, those belonged on a solo album, not a FM album!

I agree completely. Oddly, though, Down On Rodeo would've been way better on a Fleetwood Mac album.

I think they COULD'VE released a great album without Christine. But damn, there's a lot of throw away crap and stuff better suited to their solo outings. Less is more sometimes.

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by roomsonfire21

I loved Say You Will personally. It had an updated and contemporary feel, yet retained much of the mac sound. Lindsay had some brilliant songs (come has to be one of FM's heaviest songs), and Stevie really stepped up to the plate to deliver a bunch of great songs! I have the feeling though that if christine had stayed, many of stevies songs would have been taken off, which would not be fair

I wasn't too happy with a lot of Stevie's stuff. Thrown Down, Smile At You, Goodbye Baby, and Say You Will were great. Destiny Rules and Running Through The Garden were okay. The rest did nothing for me.

To be fair, the same is true with a lot of Lindsey's stuff AND, for that matter, In The Meantime had a few skippers.

Bottom line, the whole Fleetwood Mac through Tusk days are long behind them.

[louielouie2000]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

I wasn't too happy with a lot of Stevie's stuff. Thrown Down, Smile At You, Goodbye Baby, and Say You Will were great. Destiny Rules and Running Through The Garden were okay. The rest did nothing for me.

To be fair, the same is true with a lot of Lindsey's stuff AND, for that matter, In The Meantime had a few skippers.

Bottom line, the whole Fleetwood Mac through Tusk days are long behind them.

Between Trouble In Shangri La, Say You Will, In The Meantime, Under The Skin, & Gift Of Screws there was some formidable material. 2-3 really strong Mac albums could have been made by picking out all the good stuff. I think the individual songwriters are all still writing and creating high quality music... but they just don't work together very well after all these years. And when they work apart, they tend to let their standards slip some with regards to filler. There was most certainly filler on Say You Will too... but again, that goes back to egos not allowing close working relationships, and to Lindsey's insistence on a double album at all costs.

I say all of this because I feel the band still has the potential to release really great material. They just let other crap trip them up.

[vivfox]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

Bottom line, the whole Fleetwood Mac through Tusk days are long behind them.

In most cases this is true for most bands. The first 3 albums are usually the best. Record Companies know this too and that's why they own the artists in the beginnings of their careers.

[vivfox]

Originally Posted by louielouie2000

they tend to let their standards slip some with regards to filler. There was most certainly filler on Say You Will. Egos, not allowing close working relationships, and to Lindsey's insistence on a double album at all costs.

Filler is a matter of opinion. I am so glad SYW was a double album. I like every song on there except Silver Girl and was thrilled to get all that new music in one sitting.