Stevie's EO17 Flub Inspires Faith

[michelej1]

American Catholic Blog
http://blog.americancatholic.org/2012/08/music-with-a-message/

Music With a Message

Posted by Tammy Monjaras on Aug 11, 2012 in Entertainment, Featured, Inspiration | 0 comments

I love classic rock and roll. One of my favorite artists is Stevie Nicks, with and without Fleetwood Mac.

Recently I went to an outdoor concert to watch her perform live. Packed in with 14,000 other people, I waited in anticipation, knowing she would deliver not only great music but great entertainment. The beginning of the concert started off perfect, with her singing many of her famous songs. The crowd sang every word with her.

The band was playing the intro for “Edge of Seventeen.” My friends and I were standing up clapping and dancing; ready to “rock out” to one of our favorite songs. When it came time for Stevie to start the first words to the song ‘Just like a white winged dove . . . sings a song,” she missed her intro! The crowd went quiet, the band started the intro again and she missed the intro again! Stevie rushed to catch up to the band and when she was caught up it was amazing. She sang with more heart, more soul than I have ever seen her perform before. When the song was over the crowd went wild.

After that moment the concert was almost magical. Stevie Nicks never apologized for her error. She corrected her mistake and then gave the crowd all of what she had to offer as an artist. Sure there were some folks in the crowd that said as a professional and as many times as she has sung “Edge of Seventeen” there was no excuse for the mistake. I say, sure she stumbled, but look how great she recovered!

As one verse in the song says
“And so with the slow graceful flow of age
I went forth with an age old desire to please.”

When I was recounting this story with a friend, I was touched with the memory of how one person could stumble in front of thousands and yet recover so well. I can only pray that when I falter in my simple life that I can recover, especially in God’s eyes.

Psalm 59:16
But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.

[michelej1]

I'm glad he saw her that night and not the one with the ****** pineapples.

Michele

[StevieNicksfann]

Which show was this where she flubbed?

[michelej1]

Which show was this where she flubbed?

I wondered that too. What outdoor show did she do in front of 14,000 people?

Michele

[AliceLover]

I wondered that too. What outdoor show did she do in front of 14,000 people?

Michele

Wasn't the Cincinatti stop on the H&S tour outside? Maybe it was Pittsburgh? One of them was outside, I know I saw footage on youtube of an outdoor H&S show.

[skuncles]

Very odd that she would flub Edge Of Seventeen since the intro is Waddy's repeated guitar riff which he keeps playing until Stevie sings the first line. Not really sure how she can miss the intro since she determines when the song starts??? It's not like most songs which have distinct musical cue that signals the start of the first line.

[DashingDan]

Very odd that she would flub Edge Of Seventeen since the intro is Waddy's repeated guitar riff which he keeps playing until Stevie sings the first line. Not really sure how she can miss the intro since she determines when the song starts??? It's not like most songs which have distinct musical cue that signals the start of the first line.

It is a little tricky. There's a kick drum on the 'One-and', and the 'three-and'. I don't think you can jump in anywhere.

[MikeInNV]

I can't believe no Ledgie mentioned this.

[skuncles]

It is a little tricky. There's a kick drum on the 'One-and', and the 'three-and'. I don't think you can jump in anywhere.

On the studio version there's a distinct point where it starts (if I'm paying attention I can start exactly when Stevie does). But on the live version it's a very subtle cue that it would never be noticed unless Sharon and Lori caught it and started without her. The great thing about singing live is you can usually cover a mistake very easily. When I saw Fleetwood Mac in '97 Stevie skipped the second verse in Stand Back, she realized it almost immediately and without missing a beat she finished what she was singing then turned around, signaled to Mick and Lindsey and picked up the verse. Then there's the 1983 Oklahoma show that was a mess for many reasons, but she started Leather & Lace by singing Don's part, she stopped it and said "Don's not here, let's try that again....".
My point is I'd love to see the footage of her missing the intro to Edge because that's a tough one to noticeably miss her cue on.

[skuncles]

I can't believe no Ledgie mentioned this.

The website this article is from has a contact page that is based out of Ohio, so anyone at the Ohio show should be able to tell us how this flub went down.

[michelej1]

The website this article is from has a contact page that is based out of Ohio, so anyone at the Ohio show should be able to tell us how this flub went down.

Maybe it didn't happen at all and the guy was just confused.

Michele

[MikeInNV]

Maybe it didn't happen at all and the guy was just confused.

I thought about that possibility too. I remember a review of one of the European Unleashed dates, and the writer was getting on Stevie about missing her cue to re-enter the stage for "Stand Back," when in fact the keyboards went out so there was no cue to miss. She had to wait for the problem to be fixed.

[WildHearted]

Maybe it didn't happen at all and the guy was just confused.

Michele

I was thinking the same thing... especially because of the long intro for that song and all.

[jalfim1]

it was the cinci show. she flubbed the first cue on edge, gave the crowd a little oops face then started again. she seemed to be rushing through her set that night and was the first night where she didn't come out during rod's set. it was also the same show where she mentioned that whenever she played in cinci she always had a day or two to spend in town but couldn't this time through "for reasons i can't tell you about".

[CADreaming]

I've only seen her live a few times in the last 4 years but Edge is always off about half a beat until she gets through the first line. I don't know why it's so hard unless she cannot hear the beat, but she always waits for Waddy to nod at her to start but if she misses the cue by even a second, it's noticeable until they catch up with her. It's distracting to me because I like to sing along and you can't when they're off.

In Nashville it was way off - enough for Rod's fans to notice. I looked at my friend and was like wth?! She agreed it was pretty screwed up that night. I remember the sound was bad too - the mix was off & Stevie's mic wasn't turned on quick enough in two songs.

[StandbackStevie]

that is alright if she makes a mistake once in a while it happens we are human, I noticed this too on this tour, She has been saying God Bless to you all everyone in the audience never heard her say that before, which I though was so cool of her to say that she can saying thing really and I am tuned into it.:thumbsup:

[UndoingTheLaces]

I love when performers make mistakes because it makes them more human to me. I think that's why I like a lot of the more classic bands way more than the pop artists of today. Everything is so pristine and mechanically perfect that it often looses some soul.

I think my favorite Stevie flub of all was one of the few live recordings of I Can't Wait. She starts with the third line instead of the first but her recovery is made of awesomeness. She sings "Sometimes she wakes up (and you can tell she catches it right away because she stumbles for a split second) and sometimes when she's only dreaming... then when she REALLY wakes up she says that she still believes him". It was brilliant. I don't remember which show it was, though.

There's a moment in the studio recording of edge right after the wail where I always lose the beat. The guitar goes down a key or a note or whatever and somehow my mind fails to catch the down beat and when they come back into the chorus it always sounds like they're singing on the wrong beat to me, but I know it's just me. No Questions Asked always messed with me like that too because the keyboard starts with the guitar but the guitar has a few notes before the beat and it always throws me off.