Who do you think Stevie is talking about here?

[AliP]

Up Close with Stevie Nicks - 1994
(about the song "Love is Like a River")"That song is about one of the stranger male rock stars in the world today and even though he's just a pain in my neck for years when I think about him I have to laugh. And when I think about him I almost laugh so hard I'm going to cry because the good things about our relationship always remain to me and there were so many bad things about it and I was so miserable, so upset, and so heartbroken, but at the same time when I think about it, I think 'well, yeah, he used to call me wicked, I used to call him friend. He said that my life was hard to deal with...compared to what YOUR lifestyle? YOUR lifestyle? You're telling me that my lifestyle is completely crazy and screwed up? But what about YOU?' But see there is a double standard in rock and roll, it's not ok for me, it's perfectly perfect for all of them. So that's why when I write my songs I try to end up with hope because if I can't end up with hope then they'll kill me. Then I'm going to go down in the onslaught. So I try to reflect on that fact that, yes, when I look back on his and mine relationship I do have to smile to myself and go 'God, there were some such cool moments between him and me.' But I'll never ever do that again. They'll never be repeated, that was a first."


*************************
I don't know...maybe Prince or Joe Walsh??

[celestenadia]

So cyrptic as usual!:)
Maybe we'll find out in the AUTOBIOGRAPHY! :) (Yeah,RIGHT! ;)

[strandinthewind]

Joe Walsh - hand down :nod: :nod: :nod: Anyone who knows anything about him knows he is, to put it mildly, a little eccentric (think the bright blue clouds suit :laugh: ), to put it vividly, nuts :laugh: - and Stevie dated him for like five + years in the 80's and apparently was in love with him :cool:

The only other person I can think of that even remotely compares would be Prince, but to my knowledge, they never had anything but a friendship, but they were estranged for awhile - and, although in the song, she says she "used to call him friend," I get the sense that she is talking about a romantic relationship :shrug:

[dissention]

Joe Walsh? Heck no. It's all about Prince. Walsh and Stevie didn't break up because he thought her life was too wild, she left him because he didn't give her enough attention.

I think it's a dead giveaway that it's about Prince when she says "one of the stranger male rock stars." She used to call Prince a friend, he more than likely thought she was wicked when it came to how she lived her life (drugs, booze, etc.), and that's why they stopped being friends (the cough syrup incident :laugh: ). Yet she doesn't understand how he can be so judgemental about ehr life when he's just as wild as she is.

[Kelly]

Sounds like it's about Prince to me too. Do you guys think she ever hooked up with him? I know she has said they never slept together, (although he wanted to) but is she being up front about their friendship/relationship? The timeline of the mid eighties is a bit confusing to me and I am not sure even where he would fit in. Jimmy Iovine, (81/82) Kim Anderson, Joe Walsh (83/84), Les Dudek, Rupert Hine (86/87?)..not that he would really need to fit in anywhere...I don't think they had a "relationship" .
Slightly off topic but who, if anyone, did Stevie "date" during Rock a Little time? Her relationship with JW ended during the RAL sessions, Les Dudek helped her on RAL, but who else was there at that time?

[DrummerDeanna]

I don't know- Joe Walsh is, like Strand said, an eccentric fellow...he's the first one that popped into my mind with that quote....

[cliffdweller]

Nah! It's gotta be Prince. That's the first person I thought of.

[skcin]

Joe Walsh? Heck no. It's all about Prince. Walsh and Stevie didn't break up because he thought her life was too wild, she left him because he didn't give her enough attention.


:nod: :nod: :nod:

Paula

[LilyRose]

I was so miserable, so upset, and so heartbroken

Because she says this, it makes me think she's talking about Joe. I don't think Price ever broke her heart.

It is hard to know which one she's talking about, but I think b/c she's been so elusive about Joe in the past, she's talking about him.

Susie

[gldstwmn]

Up Close with Stevie Nicks - 1994
*************************
I don't know...maybe Prince or Joe Walsh??

I think it's either Henley (who had gotten himself into quite a bit of trouble there for a while, including the teenage girl in his bathtub incident) or Walsh.

[gldstwmn]

Sounds like it's about Prince to me too. Do you guys think she ever hooked up with him?

No. :lol: :lol:

[gldstwmn]

Joe Walsh - hand down :nod: :nod: :nod: Anyone who knows anything about him knows he is, to put it mildly, a little eccentric (think the bright blue clouds suit :laugh: ),

Ha! Which is exactly what he was wearing when I might him, except the suit coat was electric royal blue and brassy bleach blonde hair. What a trip. :lol:

[sparky]

I think it's got to be about that face-like-a-foot Joe Walsh.

Even in spite of all the innuendo and the "scandal" the pairing of her and Prince still inspires in people, I do not believe they ever had a relationship. A fling ? Maybe. Something substantial ? No way. Stevie has been fairly candid about who she has and has not been involved with. Unless she thought her parents would have a heart attack if they knew she dated a black man ( :lol: ), I doubt she would go to such lengths to deny dating him. Why bother ? It's not like we don't all know WAY too much about her romantic/sexual history than we should already.

[no_spoken_word]

I don't think it's about Prince. Does anyone have that Details article from 1994? She talks about her history with Prince; the recording of Stand Back and when she freaked out at the premiere of Purple Rain, then the incident with the cough syrup, but I think that's all there was between them.

Oh jeez, anybody have that article?

[amber]

I think it's either Henley (who had gotten himself into quite a bit of trouble there for a while, including the teenage girl in his bathtub incident) or Walsh.
I thought of Henley, too...but would he be described as one of the more strange male rock stars? Although i think he's probably really strange, he doesn't necessarily seem as strange as some others.
And, it's possible that although Stevie has been forthcoming with her main relationships, where she dated someone who wasn't with someone else, or whatever, it's still possible that there may be a lot of people we don't know about...or at least some...you know, more clandestine relationships?
Amber

[DrummerDeanna]

I don't think it's about Prince. Does anyone have that Details article from 1994? She talks about her history with Prince; the recording of Stand Back and when she freaked out at the premiere of Purple Rain, then the incident with the cough syrup, but I think that's all there was between them.

Oh jeez, anybody have that article?

Alright - I gotta admit here - I don't know the details of Stevie and Prince....cough syrup episode??? Purple Rain Premire....someone enlighten me please...I'd love to know about those two things...

[DeeGeMe]

I gotta go with Walsh here. We know he was one of the three great loves of her life. We know that her breakup with him was painful and that she wrote a lot of songs about him. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know he's ugly as the day is long, but a lot here fits. He is strange. He is eccentric. He used to travel with a chainsaw, the better to trash hotel rooms with. The Eagles hired a bodyguard to protect him---from himself when they were on the road.

[gldstwmn]

I gotta go with Walsh here. We know he was one of the three great loves of her life. We know that her breakup with him was painful and that she wrote a lot of songs about him. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know he's ugly as the day is long, but a lot here fits. He is strange. He is eccentric. He used to travel with a chainsaw, the better to trash hotel rooms with.

Oh God. I forgot about that. He was banned from The Brown Palace Hotel here for destroying antique stained glass windows and his room, I believe.

[AliP]

Alright - I gotta admit here - I don't know the details of Stevie and Prince....cough syrup episode??? Purple Rain Premire....someone enlighten me please...I'd love to know about those two things...

I don't have the entire article, but here is the quote.

Details Magazine - August 1994
(a story about Prince)"I was sick, and Prince brought some cough syrup up to my hotel room. He was sweet-he walked around the room folding things, fluffing pillows, tidying up in general. Then he gave me a spoon of it himself. But when I asked for another spoonful he changed-he said, 'I didn't come all the way up here just to get you hooked on another substance!" Then he left.(Do you still see him?) No. I was at the premiere of Purple Rain, and in the scene where he slaps Apollonia I freaked and had to go sit in the bathroom. Afterward I went back to see him, and when he asked why I'd left, I had to tell him, 'When you popped Apollonia, it kinda popped my brain.' He looked at me like it just killed him. We've never spoken since. (sighs) It’s a shame, really ... we were alike in so many ways."

[SuzeQuze]

Joe Walsh? Heck no. It's all about Prince. Walsh and Stevie didn't break up because he thought her life was too wild, she left him because he didn't give her enough attention.

I think it's a dead giveaway that it's about Prince when she says "one of the stranger male rock stars." She used to call Prince a friend, he more than likely thought she was wicked when it came to how she lived her life (drugs, booze, etc.), and that's why they stopped being friends (the cough syrup incident :laugh: ). Yet she doesn't understand how he can be so judgemental about ehr life when he's just as wild as she is.

My gut feeling on this is that it is about Prince too. I see how Joe kind of fits but "stranger male rock stars <b>today</b>" makes me think of Prince since he is more modern. Plus we know that he criticized her lifestyle. I kind of doubt Joe ever questioned it. When would he have had the presence of mind to?

As an aside, I saw Joe when he was on a solo tour at some point in the early 90s at a small venue, I think it was the Palladium in RI. It was not his best performance. He drank champagne from the bottle the whole night. He was very scruffy looking with crazy white hair everywhere and messy, shapeless clothes. He looked like a bum. He also had a blow up doll up there! He was largely incoherrent. So when hell froze over, and I saw him a few years later with the Eagles, the cleanup seemed miraculous! It was awesome.

[amber]

Plus, doesn't she say somewhere in Love is Like a Rivah "he was just like me"?

[strandinthewind]

Sighs - you never wanna do any research :rolleyes: :wavey:

Love Is Like a River
- written by Stevie Nicks
- appears on Street Angel (1994)
Lyrics

You used to call me wicked
I used to call you friend
They say your life is wild
Compared to what...lifestyle
You must have many things...to remember
Cause nothing else in your life has really changed
Everything is almost...like it was before
And I don't want to do this...anymore


CHORUS:
When you lose your sight (Love is like a river)
And there's nothing to see (Love is like a river)
She was just like me (Love is like a river)
And suddenly...the day comes


Some call it love...
Some say they're above that
Well I believed in love...
I called it worth it


CHORUS:
Some call me...all the time (Love is like a river)
Well love is like a river (Love is like a river)
And when you lose your sight
And suddenly...the day comes


(SOLO)


Everything all around me is electric now
But I haven't burned a candle in a real long time
And only when your heart says it's over does it die
Well love is like a river...running...
Straight back to the sea


Some call it love...
Some say they're above it...(above that)
Well I believed in love...
I called it worth it...(worth it)...


CHORUS:
Well some call me all the time
(Love is like a river)
I say you can't stay home and give up the fight
(Love is like a river)
I think you're uptight lady...ooh, out of sight
That's just what I wanted to hear...ooh, out of sight
You know you can't stay home
In the middle of the night
Love is like a river
You can't say no in the middle of the night
(Love is like a river)
I think you're uptight lady...ooh, out of sight
And you can't say no in the middle of the night
Love is like a river
Well I think you're uptight lady...uptight lady...
Ooh, out of sight...out of sight, baby

(kudos to the Nicksfix where I cut it)

[strandinthewind]

I think the above lyrics are about a love affair. I cannot believe that she talks about not being able to say no in the middle night to just a friend - that line screams of sex to me. But, who can say for sure!!!! :cool:

[amber]

Sighs - you never wanna do any research :rolleyes: :wavey:


She was just like me (Love is like a river)

This is what i was talking about. And i didn't research because it was an idle conversation in which i thought i already knew the lyric. And there is nothing much that i "never" do. And don't provide it if your going to grumble about it every time...Especially if there's no love implied :laugh: It's not like i specifically asked you, Strandie, to provide me with the lyric...and by the way, I just "researched" the words to a song called "she" by Charles Aznavour which was #1 in UK on the day i was born. And yes, on this board, I often figure that someone else will easily know the answer to some query i may have, and gladly jot it down if they feel like it because a lot of people know more than me, and this is a conversational board. :nod: :wavey:

[strandinthewind]

This is what i was talking about. And i didn't research because it was an idle conversation in which i thought i already knew the lyric. And there is nothing much that i "never" do. And don't provide it if your going to grumble about it every time...Especially if there's no love implied :laugh: It's not like i specifically asked you, Strandie, to provide me with the lyric...and by the way, I just "researched" the words to a song called "she" by Charles Aznavour which was #1 in UK on the day i was born. And yes, on this board, I often figure that someone else will easily know the answer to some query i may have, and gladly jot it down if they feel like it because a lot of people know more than me, and this is a conversational board. :nod: :wavey:

well, if ya can do it there :shrug: :wavey:

[amber]

well, if ya can do it there :shrug: :wavey:
well, i thought i had it right, and also, i am at work, and only you seem to be the one who is all ":rolleyes: :distress:" at me, other people just answer if they know, or, i guess ignore me if they don't. I mean, i understand what you're saying, but seriously, you don't have to tell me if it's that much trouble, or whatever...I mean, do you like telling me answers while complaining about my lack of research? I don't really get it :shrug: And you said before it wasn't done with love, and trying to make me a better person and all that, so why even bother? For fun? It doesn't really seem fun to you :shrug: I mean, I love ya, strandie, but....I mean, obviously, you can say whatever you want, but i'll probably say this same thing every time, with slight variance depending on the situation...But either way the basic message from me will be "feel free not to answer me if you're going to b**** about it" :laugh: :xoxo:
Amberguesa

[gldstwmn]

As an aside, I saw Joe when he was on a solo tour at some point in the early 90s at a small venue, I think it was the Palladium in RI. It was not his best performance. He drank champagne from the bottle the whole night. He was very scruffy looking with crazy white hair everywhere and messy, shapeless clothes. He looked like a bum. He also had a blow up doll up there! He was largely incoherrent. So when hell froze over, and I saw him a few years later with the Eagles, the cleanup seemed miraculous! It was awesome.

Anyone remember the Letterman appearance when he was drunk off his ass? I'm surprised Dave let him come out. Dave handled him with kid gloves and they got through it. Corbin Bernson came out and told Joe what a big fan he was, etc. I don't even know if he played anything that night. He's incredibly talented but he sure was a mess for a while.

[bwboy]

I find it interesting that we fans often assume a Stevie song is written about a specific or particular person or event, when Stevie has mentioned in various liner notes, etc that that's not always the case. Look at Sara, apparently written about Mick Fleetwood and her relationship with Don Henley, or Edge of 17, written about the deaths of her uncle and John Lennon. So with Love is Like a River, it seems obvious she's probably singing about her relationships with both Joe Walsh AND Prince and maybe even others.