German interview

[elle]

translated with google translate so take the wording with a grain of salt -

http://neuh.com/lindsey-buckingham-u...f-solo-pfaden/

Buckingham / McVie of Fleetwood Mac: "We used to be a musical soap opera"
BY ANDREAS RENNER | 28 JUNE 2017 | TOP TOPIC
Buckingham / McVie from "Fleetwood Mac" released a duet album. But the band remains the "mother ship" for the musician family.

Buckingham / McVie of Fleetwood Mac: "We used to be a musical soap opera"
With Lindsey Buckingham and Christine McVie, two of the most creative heads of "Fleetwood Mac" released a duet album. But the band continues to be the "mother ship" for the chronically dysfunctional but still very successful musician family.

They released a duet album under their name Buckingham / McVie, featuring Mick Fleetwood and John McVie, but not Steve Nicks. Have "Fleetwood Mac" once again a sense of crisis?

Christine McVie: No, Stevie was on a solo tour for many months. This is the case with us. In addition to the mother ship "Fleetwood Mac", we also have other side projects at the start. Mick plays in a blues band in Hawaii, Lindsey also released solo albums. This duet album was not planned at all, it was more of a mood.

Lindsey Buckingham: Christine was kicked back three years ago after taking a break for almost 16 years. When she came back on board, we did not know exactly whether the musical and creative chemistry between us still fit. I honestly had my doubts. I do not know any other band where someone was so long gone and then pushed again. Mick and I thought it would be a good idea to invite Christine to the studio to see what's going on. We deliberately booked the "Village Studio" in Los Angeles, where we recorded a lot of the Fleetwood Mac album "Tusk". It was about creating a sense of familiarity for Christine after 16 years of abstinence. And it worked: We quickly found out that the chemistry between us is better than ever before. She surprised us very positively. Christine and I then experimented on it. We just let it run and somehow realized that a duet album should be the logical consequence.

Christine McVie: Yes, we can still (laughs).

What motivated you to turn back the quiet country life in England after sixteen years, and return to the great music stage, Mrs. McVie?

Christine McVie: The truth is: life in the country in the complete loneliness has ended up pretty badly. It was not as romantic as I had imagined. Without going too deeply into detail: I could finally free myself from this dilemma only with the help of a friendly psychologist. I suddenly developed Flugangst and could not travel anymore. And I finally realized more and more that I missed my musical family "Fleetwood Mac" and the music in general. At first, I finally fought the panic attacks while flying and then I called Mick Fleetwood and asked if I could come back on board with the band. I was accepted with open arms and I am very happy about it.

Did the long break change you as a songwriter?

Christine McVie : Not necessarily. I still have a very special affection for loved ones in different forms. The song "Carnival Begin" about is a love song to "Fleetwood Mac" and describes how I am again part of the music circus. And the song "Game of Pretend" is dedicated to the psychologist, who led me back into the light from the darkness. And he helped me put an end to the pretense. I've talked for too long that I do not need the music any more. That was a mistake. And I corrected that.

Lindsey Buckingham: We are very glad that Christine is again a fixed part of "Fleetwood Mac". Not only as a musician she played an important role in the band but was and is a perfect buffer between Stevie and me. We are two quite polarizing types, because Christian's pronounced empathy often works wonders.

Do not the egos become smaller with increasing age?

Lindsey Buckingham: We are a group of musicians who should not be together in a band, but somehow they have landed in a band and have managed to stay together.

Christine McVie : The egos are still there, but you can not do anything about it. Apart from my ex-husband John McVie, our bassist. For him, Egos seem to be a foreign word, he is just a dear person.

Lindsey Buckingham: We will probably never be able to completely eliminate the animosities, egos and dramas. But one thing connects us today more than ever before: love. It is the glue that keeps us together. We are like a dysfunctional family that gets into the hair at every family meeting. But in the end, blood is thicker than water. This is the formula that still holds Fleetwood Mac together after so many years.

They released the album "Rumours", which until today is one of the most successful in the history of music. The recordings in the studio should have been nearly unbearable due to personal differences within the band?

Lindsey Buckingham: That was a rather impossible situation. Christine and John were freshly divorced and did not talk to each other. Stevie and I had separated just before the recording and talked only the most necessary. And Mick also had private problems in marriage. Actually, we could never have gone to the studio to record this album. Heartache, drama and plenty of ego attacks were predetermined. We have challenged the fate back then and somehow I believe it was our destiny. The fact that we had robbed each other of the last nerves, hurt us and fought somehow to make this album, has paid off in retrospect. We still live today.

Christine McVie : It is already remarkable that we still have such a strong connection today and work so well on stage.

Lindsey Buckingham: If someone had told me that 40 years later we still exist as a band and ironically earn more money than ever before, I would have thought it completely crazy. We would never have thought this possible. Many bands, who have been successful with their music 30 or 40 years ago, no longer have a common thread. With us it is different. When we give concerts there are three generations of fans in the audience. Our music still connects us and the fans. We probably did something right, that's a good feeling.

Christine McVie : We definitely have a greater appreciation for each other than before. I've finally learned my lesson and will be a part of "Fleetwood Mac" as long as the band exists.

They have lived life as rockstars in all facets after the famous motto "Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll". Are you creating music today without drugs?

Lindsey Buckingham: Life is my drug today . Many songwriters, who were active in the 1970s and 1980s, still maintain this clichéd life of a rock star. They think you have to take certain substances and drink a lot of alcohol in order to be able to live out a certain level of creativity and unconventional artist life. I know today that you can live quite stinknormal and still be a creative artist. I became a family father very late in life, with 51. This has changed my life completely. You see his children grow up and the marriage with the woman grow. This gives me as a songwriter completely new perspectives. Previously, my lyrics were much more cynical, poetic and negative. At the time of "Rumours", we have all written only Love-Hate songs about ourselves. As a band, we were a kind of musical soap opera. But that made us at that time. From the heartache, many classics have emerged such as "You Can Go Your Own Way". Today, I prefer to write songs like "Love Is Here To Stay," a love song to my wife. I'm simply more grounded today compared to the crazy times when we were all still unhappily linked or separated.

The last Fleetwood Mac-album "Say You Will" was released in 2003. Are there plans for new music from the band?

Lindsey Buckingham: Hard to say, right now we have no concrete plans. We are a band full of surprises. But I'm also very happy with the fact that I can play with Fleetwood Mac on the big stage and can always try out other projects like the duet album with Christine. In the summer we go on a small tour through the USA.

Christine McVie : I'd like it. This is a dream of mine. But "Fleetwood Mac" has its own rules. We are planning a great tour for the coming year and in July we are going to play two festivals in New York and Los Angeles. Even if we do not record new songs, it's just terribly fun to play with the band. Or solo with Lindsey.

[vivfox]

Originally Posted by elle

translated with google translate so take the wording with a grain of salt - musician family.

It was about creating a sense of familiarity for Christine after 16 years of abstinence.

This was my favorite google translated mistake. LOL


That was a good interview.

[tango87]

I love this! Possibly my favourite interview for a long time. I think we should put all of their interviews through Google translate, they would be a lot more fun.

My favourite parts:

'Christine McVie: Yes, we can still (laughs).' - we can still what?

'I suddenly developed Flugangst and could not travel anymore.' - she should use this word all the time!

'I know today that you can live quite stinknormal and still be a creative artist.' - I hate to think what this means...

Despite this, I did actually learn something from this - that 'Game of Pretend' was written to her psychologist. It really makes sense.