Say You Will sales ten years after release

[KarmaContestant]

Originally Posted by bethelblues

Looking back on this album, I think it could've been great, maybe even without Christine's participation. I know some say her presence was needed to bring balance to the different styles, reign in Lindsey's material and more esoteric choices.

Instead of 18 songs, there should have been 10 or 11, which would've made it more definitive and streamlined to listen to. Maybe a shorter run time would've helped it reach platinum status with better critical reviews?? Maybe then they could've gotten some Grammy traction?? I fully believe the order should have been changed up to make it seem a little more cohesive, and not the two separate solo records critique everyone seems to give. I'm sure some of you disagree but I would've preferred Thrown Down as the first track, since I love the opening guitar part/instrumental that builds over several bars. It also didn't help that Stevie wasn't happy with the production of her songs, one small public example we all have being the Thrown Down incident. But I have to agree, some of the production choices were odd, and not just for her songs. I can't listen to this version of Bleed to Love Her or Say Goodbye. The former is way over-produced and is missing the raw passion of The Dance performance, and why Lindsey sped up the latter one doesn't make any sense to me. It loses the power and time for the listener to comprehend the song's meaning and lyrics. Two goodbye tracks at the end only solidifies the disparity, that each songwriter needed their own ending to the album. I'm sure some of you have some opinions on the album too...overall, I see the potential is there, and I can definitely see why some say the work is underrated. I only wish in hindsight they had made a few different choices, as the reception might have been more positive and then we might've seen another album sooner.

Great points! One of the advantages to trimming SYW down to 10 or 11 songs would have been enough leftover songs to release a follow-up album the following year. The 7/8 songs, plus the extra two tracks from the Deluxe version of SYW.

Alternatively, we could have had singles with real b-sides, or a E.P in 2004 or 2005. Lots of options.

All in all, I like SYW, I think it's a strong album, and while it does indeed sound like two solo albums mashed together, I sort of like that it has a he-said she-said back and forth feel to it.

[mitzo]

I actually like the meshed solo project feel of SYW and the 18 tracks make it an extra juicy listen, to me. The downside is that it seems Lindsey had complete free reign to go nuts with things like Murrow and Red Rover and Come. Meanwhile, these are Stevie's best efforts in decades - why she bitches about Lindsey's production on the songs is a mystery to me, he coaxed out some remarkable vocals and made real sonic gems out of virtually all of them. In contrast to the ragged, often drab production on most of TISL.
I love every Stevie track on here, even Silver Girl.

So anyway, yeah, how many units sold?

[bluefox4000]

I remember Seeing the run time and that making it almost DOA to me. I hate super CD cramming run times. I love music.....but I don't have the patience for anything over 45 mins.....i'm serious. Maybe 50 Mins, but that's pushing it. you better have strong materiel. I have tons of playlists of my versions of albums, lol

Again I don't why it comes across so strongly as a non group effort but boy is the feeling there

Mic

[Jondalar]

This thead has made me break out Say You Will

[MikeVielhaber]

Originally Posted by KarmaContestant

Great points! One of the advantages to trimming SYW down to 10 or 11 songs would have been enough leftover songs to release a follow-up album the following year. The 7/8 songs, plus the extra two tracks from the Deluxe version of SYW.

Alternatively, we could have had singles with real b-sides, or a E.P in 2004 or 2005. Lots of options.

All in all, I like SYW, I think it's a strong album, and while it does indeed sound like two solo albums mashed together, I sort of like that it has a he-said she-said back and forth feel to it.

I get why some would say Lindsey's tracks sound like a solo album....because they were recorded with that intent and Stevie was shoe horned in after the fact. Most of them any way. But Stevie's songs were recorded for Fleetwood Mac (and some even written with the band in mind) and arranged and produced by Lindsey. What did they have to sound like to not sound like a solo project?

[kak125]

ahh i have been listening to say you will like crazy the past few months. its still one of my favorite cd's and i pretty much love all the songs on it. i think its just as amazing today as it was 10 years ago.

[KarmaContestant]

Originally Posted by MikeVielhaber

What did they have to sound like to not sound like a solo project?

Great question, and one I'm not sure I really have an answer for. In my opinion, *not* all of the tracks sound like solo songs, most notably Steal Your Heart Away, Bleed To Love Her, Peacekeeper, Miranda, What's The World Coming To, Say Goodbye, Goodbye Baby, Thrown Down, Not Make Believe, Silver Girl, Say You Will, Illume, Smile At You and Destiny Rules. That's a lot, actually, and they all sound very much at home on a Fleetwood Mac album.

I think the most notable "solo" sounding songs are the rest: Murrow, Come, Red Rover, Running Through The Garden and Everybody Finds Out. Perhaps it's just that these songs stand out so much from their album-mates that they overshadow the "Fleetwood Mac sound" of the other tracks.

Christine offered a lot of temperance between the quirky and mystical of Lindsey and Stevie, respectively; temperance that is missing from SYW.

Again, this is just my opinion.

[bethelblues]

To be honest, I don't think Stevie has been able to capture mystical the way she used to. In a few tracks on this album and In Your Dreams, she often comes off more kitsch, riffing on and attempting to recreate her older work. I think, for instance, the album cover for In Your Dreams may speak to my point.

[bluefox4000]

Originally Posted by bethelblues

To be honest, I don't think Stevie has been able to capture mystical the way she used to. In a few tracks on this album and In Your Dreams, she often comes off more kitsch, riffing on and attempting to recreate her older work. I think, for instance, the album cover for In Your Dreams may speak to my point.

For a wonderful album, IMO...that cover nearly made me vomit. Awfully over the top. I'm Stevie...magical.....Did I mention I'm Stevie.....Nicks

Mick

[RockawayBlind]

Originally Posted by KarmaContestant

Great question, and one I'm not sure I really have an answer for. In my opinion, *not* all of the tracks sound like solo songs, most notably Steal Your Heart Away, Bleed To Love Her, Peacekeeper, Miranda, What's The World Coming To, Say Goodbye, Goodbye Baby, Thrown Down, Not Make Believe, Silver Girl, Say You Will, Illume, Smile At You and Destiny Rules. That's a lot, actually, and they all sound very much at home on a Fleetwood Mac album.

In truth, all of the songs could have sounded like they belonged on a FM album, but the production was uneven. Stevie's songs, with a couple of exceptions, were produced to be commercial and, in my humble opinion, rather pedestrian in a few cases. Lindsey's songs were mixed and produced with a different mentality, so they didn't mesh too well. Some of Lindsey's choices were odd, too. For instance, Come, Murrow and Say Goodbye would have worked better on a solo project.

Say You Will has some real flashes of brilliance but it lacks cohesion and suffers from poor quality in some of Stevie's songs. Garden and Silver Girl are atrocious, and should have been dropped.

[vivfox]

Originally Posted by bethelblues

Instead of 18 songs, there should have been 10 or 11, which would've made it more definitive and streamlined to listen to. Maybe a shorter run time would've helped it reach platinum status

A lot of the fans feel this way but I am thrilled with the amount of songs they gave us. I'd be thrilled with a five album pack of songs from them released at the same time. There is something on there to appeal to all our taste buds. Silver Hurl is the only song I'm not fond of.
To make an album go platinum, the correct song has to be a single. Not since the Tango album have FM or Warner Bros. figured out which song(s) that would be. They should poll us first.

I also wanted to say that I am thrilled with you as a new member. I love reading your opinions on everything Fleetwood Mac.

[bethelblues]

Originally Posted by bluefox4000

For a wonderful album, IMO...that cover nearly made me vomit. Awfully over the top. I'm Stevie...magical.....Did I mention I'm Stevie.....Nicks

Mick

Honestly though, maybe the album cover had more of an impact in the low sales than Stevie may think. When I saw it, I was like barf....that quality is always there, it's ingrained, she doesn't need to hit us over the head with it. It spoke more to the style of a much younger artist and I thought it was corny. I would've gone with a more artistic cover, some kind of collage or montage maybe of her different dreams together: the moonlight, Italy, the ocean, a road trip. Anyway, we're just speaking to the mystical element and how in recent years it may sometimes come off as kitsch when Stevie tries to recreate it and goes over the top.

[bethelblues]

Originally Posted by vivfox

A lot of the fans feel this way but I am thrilled with the amount of songs they gave us. I'd be thrilled with a five album pack of songs from them released at the same time. There is something on there to appeal to all our taste buds. Silver Hurl is the only song I'm not fond of.
To make an album go platinum, the correct song has to be a single. Not since the Tango album have FM or Warner Bros. figured out which song(s) that would be. They should poll us first.

I also wanted to say that I am thrilled with you as a new member. I love reading your opinions on everything Fleetwood Mac.

I wonder, on this record, what do you think the right single would've been? Say You Will probably got the most playtime, right? But Peacekeeper did chart on the hot 100.

Thanks for the comment. I was compelled to post after I saw the show in New York. I wish Fleetwood Mac listened more to the fans as bands like the Stones have done. It is disappointing that they aren't run as efficiently as they could be, taking full advantage of more than just one of their great albums and their various sounds. There's so much there...maybe if some of us have good ideas, it'll get back to them.

Two such ideas of mine: 1. Cut a new album, dialogue it with Rumours as a view of their relationships many years later, about change and reunion, coming back together...2. Bring back Fireflies (I love the lyrics of the fireflies drawn to the light, all together), and put all effort into getting Christine back onboard.

[michelej1]

Originally Posted by MikeVielhaber

I get why some would say Lindsey's tracks sound like a solo album....because they were recorded with that intent and Stevie was shoe horned in after the fact. Most of them any way. But Stevie's songs were recorded for Fleetwood Mac (and some even written with the band in mind) and arranged and produced by Lindsey. What did they have to sound like to not sound like a solo project?

Good point. Stevie wrote four new songs for FM and as for Lindsey, even though BTLH and SYHA were solo songs, they were going to be solo songs with Christine, Mick and John on them so . . . pretty Macky in my book. That's six tracks down and 12 (yikes) to go.

But really, I think it's very popular to say that SYW was just two solo albums slapped together, but I don't think it's true fundamentally.

Michele

[vivfox]

Originally Posted by bethelblues

I wonder, on this record, what do you think the right single would've been? Say You Will probably got the most playtime, right? But Peacekeeper did chart on the hot 100.

First of all the album should have been titled: Steal Your Heart Away or just Steal Your Heart. Say You Will is not a phrase people say.

A good lead single could have been Everybody Finds Out, Running Through the Garden, Steal Your Heart Away or Murrow.