Rolling Stone: McVie comments on FM and Songbird

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by UnwindedDreams

Next week she'll say "What I meant was I miss the Lindsey from the 70s, not the current Lindsey

Don’t we all? Well, except maybe Elle.

[jbrownsjr]

Originally Posted by UnwindedDreams

Christine is probably getting a call from Sheryl Louis or Irving today.

Next week she'll say "What I meant was I miss the Lindsey from the 70s, not the current Lindsey... he was very mean"

What I meant to say was, "Lindsey was very toxic on the BuckVie tour, and he hit me and the other bandmembers and then I threw another drink at him!!"

"Sorry I mis-spoke before. "

[UnwindedDreams]

Originally Posted by jbrownsjr

What I meant to say was, "Lindsey was very toxic on the BuckVie tour, and he hit me and the other bandmembers and then I threw another drink at him!!"

"Sorry I mis-spoke before. "

I think Lindsey spoke the truth when he said Chris emailed him after the suit got settled saying that she had nothing to do with him being fired.
I get the sense from her and Mick they wish Lindsey never had to be fired. But I'm sure they had fun with Mike and Neil, and no drama backstage.

So after 2 years of lockdown, no grand return of FM but instead Stevie's out there doing the jukebox tour. How artistic.

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by jbrownsjr

What I meant to say was, "Lindsey was very toxic on the BuckVie tour, and he hit me and the other bandmembers and then I threw another drink at him!!"

"Sorry I mis-spoke before. "

There’s a reason Brett didn’t rejoin the tour.

[DownOnRodeo]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

Don’t we all? Well, except maybe Elle.

Current Lindsey (who like a fine wine has only improved over the years) has TWELVE fans, not just the amazing Elle, thank you very much.

[jbrownsjr]

Originally Posted by DownOnRodeo

Current Lindsey (who like a fine wine has only improved over the years) has TWELVE fans, not just the amazing Elle, thank you very much.

I love Elle more than current Lindsey... (Somehow, she'll privately give me sh** about it) But she's near and dear to me.

[aleuzzi]

Originally Posted by blinker12

^ Oh wow, that does make sense Re: the rights. So… does that mean that Stevie, for example, could not release another best-of that includes her most famous hits, because she sold off the rights?

But one other question, I thought these deals were for the writers’ entire catalogs?

Not always. In Christine’s case, two separate publishing houses bought the bulk of her work: Sony got first grab on her huge Mac hits; then Hipgnosis (sp?) bought the bulk of the remaining catalog, but still not all of it. And given the album’s focus on ITM, this compilation is probably tied to an outstanding contractual obligation she made with Sanctuary back in 2004. Whatever the case, SONGBIRD makes for an odd, B-grade compilation. Hardly the stuff of a swan song.

[aleuzzi]

Originally Posted by UnwindedDreams

Christine is probably getting a call from Sheryl Louis or Irving today.

Next week she'll say "What I meant was I miss the Lindsey from the 70s, not the current Lindsey... he was very mean"

Omg—he was the worst. He was even saying terrible things about Bob Dylan

[aleuzzi]

Originally Posted by jbrownsjr

I love Elle more than current Lindsey... (Somehow, she'll privately give me sh** about it) But she's near and dear to me.

We love Elle! She believes no one falls under a certain set of labels and she fights for the power of positive choice.

[jbrownsjr]

Originally Posted by aleuzzi

We love Elle! She believes no one falls under a certain set of labels and she fights for the power of positive choice.

Elle believes in cycles and demons, and facing those demons with circular profound chemistry.

[bombaysaffires]

Originally Posted by In Your Dreams

I debated dropping this here vs Christine’s board but thought this was appropriate:

Christine McVie On Her New Solo Collection ‘Songbird,’ Uncertain Future of Fleetwood Mac
Listen to her new version of the 1976 Fleetwood Mac classic “Songbird” where the original vocal track has been paired with a new string arrangement


Christine McVie has spent the vast majority of her professional career in Fleetwood Mac, but she did take a brief break in 1984 to record Christine McVie and followed it up 20 years later with In the Meantime. This solo material is largely unknown to the general public — especially in America — but she hopes to change that on June 24 with the release of Songbird (A Solo Collection). It’s a mixture of songs from her two solo albums plus a handful of unreleased songs, including “All You Gotta Do,” a duet with George Hawkins originally cut for In the Meantime.

Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham maintained active solo careers during their time in Fleetwood Mac, but McVie says she never really had that desire. “I’ve never felt like I was a solo artist,” McVie tells Rolling Stone from her London home. “I always liked to be part of a group. I also felt a little ill at ease doing a solo tour for that material. It just made me uneasy.”

For the new collection, McVie “went for my favorite songs that weren’t on Fleetwood Mac records,” working with producer Glyn Johns and redoing the tracks with extra instrumentation.

“The Challenge” from McVie’s self-titled 1984 album features backing vocals by Buckingham and guitar by Eric Clapton. “I clearly remember asking Eric to play on it,” McVie says. “And to my delight, he agreed. Like all of my songs, it’s about life and remorse and rejection.”

A majority of the Songbird (A Solo Collection) songs come from 2004’s In the Meantime. She released the album a few years after parting ways with Fleetwood Mac and retreating to her home in the English countryside. It peaked at #133 in the UK and didn’t even ding the U.S. charts. “I really like that record,” says McVie. “I think it wasn’t advertised as well as it could have been.”

The lone Fleetwood Mac song on the record is her 1976 ballad “Songbird,” and it’s a new rendition that pairs her original vocal track with a new string arrangement by composer and arranger Vince Mendoza.

Fleetwood Mac have been completely inactive since the conclusion of their 2018/19 world tour. It was their first outing since their bitter split with Buckingham, when he was replaced by Crowded House frontman Neil Finn and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell. “Those guys were great,” McVie says. “We have a great time with them, but we’ve kind of broke up now, so I hardly ever see them.”

“I don’t communicate with Stevie [Nicks] very much either,” she says. “When we were on the last tour, we did a lot. We always sat next to each other on the plane and we got on really well. But since the band broke up, I’ve not been speaking to her at all.”

Does she mean to say that Fleetwood Mac no longer exists? “Well, not as we know it,” McVie says. “I don’t know. It’s impossible to say. We might get back together, but I just couldn’t say for sure.”

Mick Fleetwood has been open about his hopes to see the Rumours-lineup come back together for a grand farewell tour, but McVie is highly dubious. “I don’t feel physically up for it,” she says. “I’m in quite bad health. I’ve got a chronic back problem which debilitates me. I stand up to play the piano, so I don’t know if I could actually physically do it. What’s that saying? The mind is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

In theory, McVie could sit at the keyboard to make it easier for her to get through a show, but she says that wouldn’t work in practice. “I couldn’t sit at the rig I play,” she says. “You have to stand up to play the piano and the Hammond Organ is beneath that, so it’s a bit difficult to think about sitting down and doing it. Anyway, I wouldn’t want to do that.”

According to McVie, bassist John McVie is in a similar predicament. “I don’t think John’s up for another tour,” she says. “He’s got health issues, so I don’t know if he would be up for it. You’d have to ask him.”



If a tour does somehow happen, McVie hopes that they’ll find a way to bring Buckingham back into the fold. “I’d always want Lindsey back,” she says. “He’s the best. Neil and Mike were such a cheerful couple, but Lindsey was missed.”

“But I’m getting a bit long in the teeth here,” she continues. “I’m quite happy being at home. I don’t know if I ever want to tour again. It’s bloody hard work.”

This may disappoint Fleetwood Mac’s legions of fans, not to mention some of her own bandmates, but they’ll be relieved to know she’s not closing the door on a tour completely. “I really can’t say for sure,” she says, “because I could be wrong. So I’ll just leave it open and say that we might.”

Originally Posted by blinker12

^ Oh wow, that does make sense Re: the rights. So… does that mean that Stevie, for example, could not release another best-of that includes her most famous hits, because she sold off the rights?

But one other question, I thought these deals were for the writers’ entire catalogs?

Stevie didn't sell 100% of her publishing rights (covering how songs can be used and by whom etc). She sold I believe it's 80% but has retained 20% stake.

IIRC the others all sold 100%.

Publishers rights are different to songwriter royalties... the writer still gets paid royalties anytime the song is used by anyone.

And either Warner's or the band (Warners I think??) owns the rights to the actual recordings (the masters) made by the band and thus how those can be used, repackaged, remastered, resold, etc.

Maybe Michelle or someone else with better legal knowledge can clarify publishing rights vs owning the masters/rights to the original recordings. My understanding is publishing rights covers how a song can be used (ie re recorded) for commercial use or by another artist etc. Not the rights to the already recorded versions by the band. Warners/FM (not sure who nowadays) owns those. I welcome more info.....

[John Run]

Artists / Writers still have access to their own songs when they sell the rights. What they lose is future royalty earnings and refusal rights. Every time the song is played on the radio, used in a movie, a commercial - those fees and royalties go to the new rights holder. Refusal - An example - a politician wants to use Don't Stop in a campaign ad, the artist / writer can't stop it. Same thing if Don't Stop is used in a porn film.

FYI - Lindsey did sell 100% of his publishing and writers rights to his catalog and 50% of his unreleased catalog. However, he kept 100% of his artist and producer rights and royalties. Not a bad deal for $90 million.

[aleuzzi]

Originally Posted by John Run

Artists / Writers still have access to their own songs when they sell the rights. What they lose is future royalty earnings and refusal rights. Every time the song is played on the radio, used in a movie, a commercial - those fees and royalties go to the new rights holder. Refusal - An example - a politician wants to use Don't Stop in a campaign ad, the artist / writer can't stop it. Same thing if Don't Stop is used in a porn film.

FYI - Lindsey did sell 100% of his publishing and writers rights to his catalog and 50% of his unreleased catalog. However, he kept 100% of his artist and producer rights and royalties. Not a bad deal for $90 million.

Thank you for this information. Knowing this only makes Christine’s song selection on SONGBIRD seem even more baffling.

[John Run]

My guess is the Meantime songs are still 100% Christine's, so she gets maximum return there. Songbird was probably a concession to need to have Christine signature song on the album, but they wanted to stay away from the big hits that get big download / stream numbers still in their original versions, such as Don't Stop, Everywhere and Little Lies.

[Macfan4life]

Originally Posted by John Run

My guess is the Meantime songs are still 100% Christine's, so she gets maximum return there. Songbird was probably a concession to need to have Christine signature song on the album, but they wanted to stay away from the big hits that get big download / stream numbers still in their original versions, such as Don't Stop, Everywhere and Little Lies.

And maybe they own the music to Songbird which gives the reason for this odd elevator music backing track
They only let her use the vocal part otherwise she would have to pay or give royalties

The orchestra track to Beauty and the Beast would have worked better than this oddity.