Hot L Baltimore

[Keith]

I haven't seen the band since the NYC Garden show in March, so you bet I'm excited about tonight's Baltimore show - especially with a 3rd row (and center) seat. It sounds like the band has improved considerably since March!

Hope to see some Ledgies at tonight's show - my experience with the Arena is how great the acoustics are at the venue, especially compared to DCs Verizon Center. I think it was built for concerts.... It should be a great crowd! I love me some Baltimore - went to Fells Point last Saturday just to hang out by the sea...or bay.

I think I watched Erin's Storms video from Milwaukee about 5 times this a.m. and it has only increased my excitement!

Now if I can only get good seats to NYC and Atlantic City.. talk about a Triple Crown!

Bring on Baltimore...

[JbbyStew86]

I havnt seen the band since opening night in Pittsburgh. Im sure the difference will be pretty evident. Really looking forward to the Mariner venue. I've heard great things about its acoustics. Verizon Center is usually terrible, but this one's supposedly good. I'm pretty pumped for the show, and am bringing a friend with zero interest in Fleetwood Mac. We'll see if its still that way in the morning...

[michelej1]

[This is a rehash of the first interview they did, but I thought I'd post anyway.]

Washington Times, June 10, 2009 by Andrew Leahey

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...es-hits/print/

When Fleetwood Mac visited the Washington area in early March, the iconic band took up residence at the Verizon Center for an energized, hit-filled evening. Three months later, the group is bringing its seasoned act to the 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore tonight. Fans can expect another round of classic songs and assorted solo performances, drummer Mick Fleetwood says.

"For the very first time, we're going out on the road without an album. I think we're going to make the audience identify with songs that they know. All the energy of the band is focused on that, because we don't have five or six songs off a new album that we would [otherwise] love to be playing."

Mr. Fleetwood, the only member to remain with Fleetwood Mac throughout its 42-year existence, has seen his share of drama. Personnel changes have plagued the group since 1967, when bass player John McVie replaced Bob Brunning shortly after the band's formation. A decade later, a tangled web of intraband relationships threatened to squash the group's mounting success. Such emotional turmoil helped spawn Fleetwood Mac's magnum opus, "Rumours," but it also contributed to a number of enduring conflicts among the musicians.

Guitarist Lindsey Buckingham doesn't shy away from his band's rocky past.

"We are a group of great contradictions," he says, "a group whose members don't necessarily have any business being in a band together because the range of sensibilities is disparate. But that's what makes Fleetwood Mac what it is. It's the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. It's the kind of energy that is created from that kind of contrast in personalities."

Stevie Nicks puts things more simply: "We've been apart for four years. Now we're back together, and we're having a blast. It's terrific."

Since the 1980s, both Ms. Nicks and Mr. Buckingham have augmented their work in Fleetwood Mac with successful solo careers. Although songs from their respective albums likely will pepper the Baltimore set list, the emphasis remains on Fleetwood Mac's own songbook.

Classic songs such as "Go Your Own Way" and "Dreams" are obligatory inclusions, although Mr. Fleetwood also notes the presence of lesser-known -- but equally moving -- material.

"As we go along, we are finding special songs that maybe aren't considered massive hits but are truly emotionally connected to Fleetwood Mac."

Included in the mix are several compositions by Christine McVie, who joined the band in 1970 and exited nearly 30 years later.

"I miss Christine every day because she was my best buddy," Ms. Nicks says. "There's not a day that goes by that I don't wish she'd call up and say, 'I'm back.' But she's not going to. We've all kind of accepted that now."

Ms. McVie's absence notwithstanding, the musicians remain in good spirits, often blowing kisses to one another while performing. The band that once urged listeners, "Don't stop thinking about tomorrow" seems to be following its own advice, having eschewed past transgressions in honor of a timeless, enduring catalog.

[Keith]

thanks for the article... I'm lovin' the Mac today..

I'm at my flat, prepping for the show.. got the "Rumours" playing on vinyl.. "..take a listen to your spirit..it's crying out loud.." pulling out the Crystal Visions tee...

you know.. I love listening to the vinyl Rumours. The new and improved remasterd version that came out while back on CD just misses the groove. It's because of "Silver Springs" It doesn't belong on Rumours.. I've listened to this album a thousand times back in the day.. flipping to side 2.. and love it just as is.. it's "Songbird" into "The Chain." and I love me some Silver Springs..

ah.. seeing my favorite band tonight..

[DigYourGrave]

Oh you lucky things..
So jealous.
This has been a very disappointing day for me, in regards to tickets and such.

Have a blast though!

[Dreams22]

I can't wait till tonight! I was playing "Rumours" on vinyl too today, LOL. I'm taking a friend/co-worker a long with me. I told her I was seeing The Mac on Saturday in AC and she asked if I had an extra ticket...I said I only got one for that show. She asked if they were coming around again and I said Baltimore Wednesday and she said "We're going"...I'm not gonna argue! So we hopped online and got tix LOL...can't wait to see them again. The show in Philly was awesome back in April

[BLY]

I'm so excited about the show tonight. Keith I'm glad to hear your making the trip from DC.

[Livia]

Keith! LOL over your thread title, I loved that show!

[Keith]

me, too.. Livia

well well well

just got back from Baltimore and another great show by the band -they have definitely improved from last March.

no Silver Springs tonight.. but maybe they read my comment earlier about how it didn't belong on Rumours and said "no Silver Springs for Keith"" Sorry Baltimore it that's the case..

Had 3rd row - Torri scored a seat next to m
ine, but it didn't matter. Right before the band came on security let like the first 10 rows go up front. Torri and I both ended slighty to the right of Stevie's microphone.. and of course, there is Lindsey sweating all over everyone.. who were going wild for him. He does earn his applause.

Stevie oh Stevie.. the most beautiful Storms I've ever heard. they way you sang it. I adored it. My favorite of the night, by far. It was a moment I had with my girl..

oh, and Christine is missed. The cab driver taking me to the train station askd if they played Over My Head. He was like, how can they not play their best song.

then, at the station waiting for the train, this young guy asked me if i've seen Fleetwood Mac before and if they ever did "You Make Loving Fun" It was is favorite song. Yes, Chris.. you are missed.

And love the ending to Gold Dust.. wow. cool Stevie.

Terrific night out with my band.. I think I'm doing it again tonight in NYC...

[Dreams22]

The show was great tonight...definitly better then when I saw them in Philly back in April. LOVED "Gold Dust Woman" and Stevie really twirled during "Stand Back". You're right, "Storms" was soooo good tonight!! I was disapointed they didn't do "Silver Springs" tonight...it's my favorite Mac song. Granted, I agree it doesn't belong on the reissued Rumours album, but still, lol.

I can't wait till Saturday when they come to AC...going to be another great show!

[DavidMn]

A little birdie(Torri) told me that they didnt do SS again either. I hope that doesnt mean Stevie is ill again. I will say that she sounded GREAT in Milwaukee.

[Torri]

Keith...always great to share a show with you...deja vu Camden '98 ...and wow...you're powerful...no Silver Springs...lol...I'm loving the GDW ending...low Stevie growl...very sexy ...hope to see you tonight...and you, too, Regina!

Torri

[michelej1]

Baltimore Sun, Chris Kaltenbach's thoughts, June 11, 2009:

http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/ente...ood_mac_a.html

Fleetwood Mac played an energetic two-hour-plus set of their greatest hits at the 1st Mariner Arena Wednesday night, clearly revelling in their status as elder rock statesmen with a boatload of crowd-pleasing standards to play for their fans.

With Lindsay Buckingham playing the role of guitar god to the hilt and Stevie Nicks basking in her role as spiritual muse, the band relied almost exclusively on songs from their monster-selling Fleetwood Mac (1975) and Rumours (1977) albums.

The result was an evening that seemed strangely stuck in time, but in the best of ways. The fans ate it up, and didn't even seem to mind it when the band dragged out two of the hoariest '70s concert cliches, the extended (and defiantly excessive) guitar and drum solos.

Opening with "Monday Morning," from Fleetwood Mac, the band quickly set the evening's tone. Buckingham played shamelessly to the crowd, pointing, cajoling, jumping up and down, making like a whirling dervish able to lay down some fairly vicious guitar licks, yet never removing the leather jacket, no matter how much the sweat came pouring down ...

Nicks, meanwhile, swayed gently on the other side of the stage, adding harmonies and putting out the same mystical hippie aesthetic that made her a charming anomaly even 30 years ago. When Nicks took over the lead vocals for her "Dreams," the crowd greeted her like an old friend.

Drummer Mick Fleetwood, meanwhile, hammered-away with his bat-size drumsticks. Melodically, the sound they made was a little heavy sometimes, but Fleetwood's never been known for his subtlety. Bassist John McVie, meanwhile, unobtrusively went about his business, rarely calling attention to himself, content simply to drive the evening's beat like nobody's business.

The set included a fascinating take on "Tusk," with Fleetwood's incessantly propulsive downbeat making up for the USC marching band that wasn't there. Although she also wasn't there, Christine McVie was hardly absent, thanks to hard-edged renditions (maybe harder-edged than McVie would have liked) of two of her best songs, "Say You Love Me" and the encore of the challengingly optimistic "Don't Stop."

Buckingham, meanwhile, tore through a version of "Go Your Own Way" (from Rumours) that suggested the hurt feelings in the song haven't entirely gone away -- one reason why it was no nice to see him and Nicks embrace so warmly at one point. Maybe, like the band members said in interviews leading up to the current tour, these shows really are all about celebrating a legacy, and leaving past frictions behind.

Fleetwood Mac, Buckingham admitted during one of the show's many spoken introductions, has had a "complex and convoluted emotional history. But in the long run, it worked to our benefit."

The band's miscues were few, and easily overlooked. As befits performers moving past 60, the energy level wavered at times.

Fleetwood couldn't keep up the same manic beat that fueled "Go Your Own Way" on record -- even though Buckingham's guitar didn't seem to notice its absence. That made the song sound peculiarly schizophrenic, as though it didn't really know which pace to follow. And Nicks started off slowly, rarely even attempting the sustained pitch that once punctuated her best songs. Still, her voice warmed as the evening proceeded, and when, toward the end of the set, she finally appeared wearing her trademark black top hat, the evening's welcome nostalgia trip was complete.

[Dreams22]

2 short videos I took at the show

"Stand Back"



"Landslide"

[michelej1]

The Examiner, June 11, 2009, by Gloria Dietz

http://www.examiner.com/x-4019-Balti...c-packed-night
Fleetwood Mac brought energy and top notch talent to a music packed night...

Fleetwood Mac unleashed their hits at 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore last night with the energy of musicians half their age. This was the first tour the Mac has done where they were not promoting a new album. However, several of the songs in the set were tracks that have not been done in many years, or one’s that have never been done at all. “Monday Morning” was a great opener that really set the stage for the night. Lindsey pulled the “full band” version of “Go Insane” from his solo work that was a real crowd pleaser.

Stevie Nicks performed “Storms” from the 1979 Tusk album. This was the first time she ever did this on any tour. Lindsey and Stevie did a nice duet paying tribute to Christine McVie’s 1975 single “Say You Love Me”. Christine left the band after the Dance Tour in 1997/1998. Lindsey brought Peter Green’s “Oh Well” back to the set. He has not performed this since the early 80’s. This was a great show that included all the classics that have been staples in their shows for over thirty years. Let’s hope Fleetwood Mac gets back into the studio to add to their catalogue.

Bill Yoegel, one of the biggest Fleetwood Mac fans from Harford County, hasn't missed a concert tour in 30 years. His wife, Julie, said they played for 2 1/2 hours straight with no break and were excellent.