Enough Already!

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by The Tower

I have this odd feeling that Stevie does a lot of second guessing. Her set lists and vocal performances tend to stay safe and familiar, and I keep wondering to myself, "Where the hell does this concept come from??" Is it Stevie herself, or are there others involved who create these things? . . . .

I also think she is, for want of a better word, lazy. For example, when she and Waddy were talking about doing the song Bella Donna on, I think, the TISL tour - La Nicks responded that they rehearsed it, but they did not remember it being so hard to do live, so they dropped it. Well, hello, when you are one of the best paid and most experienced singers in the world, which she is -- sometimes you gotta work for it. I mean she sings in three part harmony all the time with the girls in other songs. What makes that song so different other than it takes concentration and effort to relearn it as opposed to the rote auto pilot parts on Rhiannnon, Dreams, etc.? I mean she NAILED the If Anyone Falls a capella ending three part harmonies in Vegas (chills on my arms during it) and those essentially are the same as the ones in Bella Donna, though admittedly there are more in the latter. Personally, though it requires more concentration to sing in a tight harmony vocal, it is easier because you have to concentrate - at least that is my experience.

To her credit, she makes millions a year doing what she is doing -- and not listening to my unsolicited advice

[Johnny Stew]

Originally Posted by David

Chris never generated expectations among her audience that she would sing, move or look like Stevie, so such expectations never influenced people.

My question wasn't in regards to whether audiences should have expected Christine to do anything "like" Stevie, per se, but whether Christine ever did anything that set her own particular bar higher. For those who attended shows, was a Christine McVie performance in 1997 any more or less dynamic than a Christine McVie performance in 1977? Or was it always a totally even keel?

Originally Posted by Jyqm

I don't think anyone has any expectations of Stevie that she didn't bring upon herself.

I guess that raises another question... did Stevie raise her personal bar to a point where she couldn't help but eventually fail to reach it? Obviously many in her audience are still expecting to see something like they saw 25 years ago, regardless of whether Stevie is physically or vocally up to that challenge.

You know how I feel about the latter discussion... I still think her early '80s to mid-'80s performances are something of an anomaly when compared to footage of her first few tours with FM, where she really only cut loose on one or two tunes, like "Rhiannon." I think her performances today are closer to those performances than anything.

Anyway, I'm hijacking the thread with all of these questions and ponderings.

[The Tower]

Originally Posted by Johnny Stew

I guess that raises another question... did Stevie raise her personal bar to a point where she couldn't help but eventually fail to reach it?

The answer is no.

Her personal bar hit a peak around Mirage/The Wild Heart. After that, she decided to lower things gradually for whatever reason. Getting rid of Jimmy Iovine, the whole Rock A Little tour mess, Tango in the Night ( ), and on down the line until the point where she considers a mediocre album like TISL to be her "masterpiece".

I think if she would have continued concentrating on her songwriting craft, instead of concentrating on her personal desires and drugs, she could have gone further. Mirage was the last gasp of her truly great songwriting- after that, she was "co-writing" material (meaning she had no musical ideas whatsoever, but preferred to caterwaul to others' submitted cassettes of 80's/90's synth-pop) and I feel her creative direction was gone.

[David]

Originally Posted by Johnny Stew

My question wasn't in regards to whether audiences should have expected Christine to do anything "like" Stevie, per se, but whether Christine ever did anything that set her own particular bar higher. For those who attended shows, was a Christine McVie performance in 1997 any more or less dynamic than a Christine McVie performance in 1977? Or was it always a totally even keel?

Oh. I'd say she's been consistent (i.e., consistently her same old self) throughout the various eras of her live career. Sure, sometimes there was a creaky night here & there, but that's not what we're talking about, I'm sure you'd agree. We're talking about much larger evolutions: macrocharacteristics.

You know how I feel about the latter discussion... I still think her early '80s to mid-'80s performances are something of an anomaly when compared to footage of her first few tours with FM, where she really only cut loose on one or two tunes, like "Rhiannon." I think her performances today are closer to those performances than anything.

Sorry, but I see practically no similarity in vocal delivery, movement or looks between 1975's Stevie & today's Stevie. The 1975 Stevie gives off a charismatic vibe--whether she's letting loose on "Rhiannon" or hanging way back on "Why"--that I feel is simply gone these days. It goes way beyond just those few numbers she Joplinated herself for.

[Johnny Stew]

Originally Posted by David

Sorry, but I see practically no similarity in vocal delivery, movement or looks between 1975's Stevie & today's Stevie....

I was meaning more in terms of movement, which I do think is similar in many ways (when she's wearing her boots, at least -- in the Reeboks, she looks weighted down). Obviously her voice has changed, and she's lost a lot of range -- though I think she's largely handled that in a dignified fashion. I also think she's still a very charismatic performer, but in a different way. I can easily see how that vibrant young woman from the '70s would have evolved into the stately middle-aged woman of today. She's just as beautiful and compelling now, in my opinion -- but in a different way.

Anyway, that's just my opinion. We all have varying perceptions and expectations and desires in regards to our favorite performers. I can't say my expectations for Stevie have always been fulfilled, but I'm largely satisfied... and I consider myself lucky in those regards.

[Jyqm]

Originally Posted by Johnny Stew

I guess that raises another question... did Stevie raise her personal bar to a point where she couldn't help but eventually fail to reach it? Obviously many in her audience are still expecting to see something like they saw 25 years ago, regardless of whether Stevie is physically or vocally up to that challenge.

I don't think anyone here is expecting Stevie to return to her late 70s/early 80s form. Nobody's being unreasonable. Actually, most of the complaints seem to be prhased along the lines of, "I know she doesn't have that much range now, but..." There are notes that she clearly is still capable of hitting, but she chooses not to.

[Johnny Stew]

Originally Posted by Jyqm

I don't think anyone here is expecting Stevie to return to her late 70s/early 80s form. Nobody's being unreasonable. Actually, most of the complaints seem to be prhased along the lines of, "I know she doesn't have that much range now, but..." There are notes that she clearly is still capable of hitting, but she chooses not to.

I didn't say anyone was necessarily being unreasonable. I'd like to see her hit some of those notes sometimes, too, since I feel that she can. I simply don't agree that it's out of laziness that she doesn't, and I can see why she would want to preserve her voice on a long tour. I can also see why she wouldn't want to revisit the days when she took vocal chances on stage, but critics wrote blistering reviews regarding the state of her voice when she failed to hit those notes.

Meanwhile, we've gone way off topic!