Barrymore Theater, Madison WI 11/18

[michelej1]

77 Square, Madison.com

Concert review: Lindsey Buckingham goes his own way at the Barrymore Theatre

ANDY DOWNING | 77 Square | adowning@madison.com

Read more: http://host.madison.com/entertainmen...#ixzz2ChDLUdXr

Lindsey Buckingham paused near the onset of his concert at a crowded Barrymore Theatre to offer up a brief synopsis of his solo career.

The musician, whose songwriting and playing anchored classic 1970s and 1980s albums by Fleetwood Mac, said when he first started performing under his own name he’d regularly hit the road with a sprawling, 10-piece band. “Tonight,” he continued, “It appears to be just me.”

With neither a backing band or an opening act in sight, Sunday’s show hinged entirely on Buckingham’s abilities, and the guitarist gamely delivered in a sharp, 75-minute set that drew equally from his solo career and his time in Fleetwood Mac.

Switching between nearly a dozen guitars, Buckingham gradually stripped away the polished veneer from some of his best-known songs. “Come,” in turn, sounded downright acidic, with the singer growling his words atop a volley of jagged electric riffs. “I’m So Afraid” mined similarly murky territory, building to an explosive climax where Buckingham repeatedly punched the neck of his instrument, sending forth aftershocks of bristled guitar noise.

Even though the music occasionally veered into darker terrain, Buckingham maintained his dry sense of humor throughout. When one fan shouted “(Peter) Frampton has nothing on you!” the singer cooly replied, “I’d hope not.”

He also kicked off the encore with a knowing wink, opening with a tune (“Trouble”) whose first couplet could have doubled as a bit of running commentary. “I really should be saying goodnight,” he sang, “I really shouldn’t stay anymore.”

Though a workmanlike singer, Buckingham remains a virtuosic guitar player, and his skill set was on full display this night. His fingers remained in near-constant motion as he plucked out weightless notes that fluttered like airborne butterflies and snarling riffs that mimicked great, mythical beasts. On the instrumental “Stephanie,” the guitarist conjured chiming acoustic notes that somehow mirrored distant church bells, while “Not Too Late,” a song about refusing to give up on your dreams, swung from delicate acoustic picking to urgent strumming, like a quiet mountain creek morphing into a raging river.

“I’m not a young man,” he sang on the latter, “But I’m a child in my soul.”

Buckingham, looking spry even at 63, appeared to wholly embrace this concept, and he repeatedly spoke of a desire to take risks and continue to push his music forward. So while he could have coasted through by-the-numbers versions of his biggest hits, he instead upended them and attempted to draw out new emotional colors in the well-worn material. A raw-nerved take on Fleetwood Mac’s “Big Love,” for one, sounded far more hopeless than the original, and when Buckingham sang of waking up alone, his sense of solitude was palpable.

Even “Go Your Own Way,” perhaps Fleetwood Mac’s best known song, sounded somehow renewed in Buckingham’s hands, coming across less like a caustic breakup tune than a celebration of one man’s independence. You can indeed go your own way, and that’s exactly what Buckingham has done.

[michelej1]

Funny about the Peter Frampton response.

Michele