Which side reigns supreme? Rumours

[Montclare]

Onto Rumours. Which side do you think is better?

Side 1-
1. Second Hand News
2. Dreams
3. Never Going Back Again
4. Don't Stop
5. Go Your Own Way
6. Songbird

Side 2-
1. The Chain
2. You Make Loving Fun
3. I Don't Want to Know
4. Oh Daddy
5. Gold Dust Woman

[Montclare]

This one for me is a piece of cake. Side one hands down. Although I do absolutely love the Chain and GDW, side 1 has my three favorite FM songs (NGBA, SHN, and GYOW) and my favorite Christine song (Songbird).

[The Highwayman]

Side 1 by far. Side 2 completely lacks Lindsey songs (aside from his shared writing credit and lead vocal on 'The Chain') for one thing, and side 1 is just so perfect, especially when you add 'Silver Springs' on the remastered version, since 'The Chain' should still open the second side. I dunno.
Anyway, Side 1 has my 2nd favorite Fleetwood Mac song ('Dreams') and some of Lindsey's very best (SHN, NGBA, GYOW). Side 1 is where it seems like Stevie and Lindsey are having an argument across songs, while Christine takes the higher path of enlightenment ('Don't Stop', 'Songbird').

[gssmith]

Side 1 is more 70s California pop/rock.
Side 2 is more eccentric hypnotic kind of rock, it makes you want to light up a joint and dance with fairies.
But still, I can't vote.

Oh Daddy is one of my favorite Christine songs, but the expanded Rumours with incredible backing vocals with Stevie is far superior and haunting.

It's a shame Stevie always had the least amount of songs when hers were the best. No wonder she had to go solo on the side.

[The Highwayman]

It's a shame Stevie always had the least amount of songs when hers were the best. No wonder she had to go solo on the side.

Especially since Stevie is one of the most prolific songwriters of all-time, it's just a lot of what she's written have either never been recorded or released.
I mean, I bet there are, say, 15 poems in her journal right now that can easily be turned into great songs.

Stevie gets five songs on Tusk, since it was a double album, and until Say You Will, that was the most for her for a Fleetwood Mac album. But it means that her songs on Tusk are more consistently amazing than Christine's or Lindsey's, much as I love their songs on that album.

I'd argue no other member of a band had greatest cause to make a solo album than Stevie because there was so much to get out. I mean, some of Bella Donna's songs were newer, but some dated back to before even the white Fleetwood Mac album!

[The Juggler]

Side 1 definitely.
Had Oh Daddy been substituted by Silver Springs, maybe then I would change my mind. But Side 1 are all 10/10.

[louielouie2000]

Side 2 all the way. To me it's just meatier, whereas Side 1 has more of the pop radio material on it.

[teedeerocks]

Tough call -depends on my mood and its an all-around great record.But I'm gonna say side 2 for now b/c at this very moment I would listen to side 2 if I had the time.My answer will probably be different tomorrow of course......:laugh:

[Aussie W/Heart]

LOVE both, but going with side 2 as i played it more often.. GDW being my all time favorite song still after all these years.. lol :)

[LB Freakazoid]

What is this? Sophie's Choice? Ha!

I'll choose the CD.... and the side that plays the whole album....

[Andy Man]

Side 1 definitely.
Had Oh Daddy been substituted by Silver Springs, maybe then I would change my mind. But Side 1 are all 10/10.

I never quite got all the lack of love for "Oh Daddy." Granted, it is not the strongest track on the album - but it is still a very strong song! I was listening to Rumours the other day and actually really began to "listen" to "Oh Daddy." I was amazed at the instrumentation throughout the entire track - I think it's a such a mystical song with such a haunting melody and segues so effectively into "Gold Dust Woman."

Although I would have to say Side 1 for myself, I do so by the slightest margin. I think Side 2 is actually the more interesting out of the two. "Oh Daddy," "Gold Dust Woman," "You Make Loving Fun," "The Chain" are four songs where there is a lot going on...listen to the instrumentation in these tracks, the production, layering of vocals...certainly a different mood than on Side 1. "I Don't Want To Know" is almost a throwback to the first side, but then we plunge right into the darkness of the final two tracks. Honestly, one the best crafted and sequenced albums of all time.

[Keith]

and side 2 won. Truly a heads or tails decision.. tails won.

[jbrownsjr]

I love side 2 of this album. It's so intense, start to finish.

[Jezzup]

Tough choice but I'm going with side 2. The Chain is my favorite FM song so that gives it the slight edge.

[FuzzyPlum]

Um, a bit of technical assistance required here...

I voted side 1 but was wondering how I would have voted had Silver Springs been on side 2 in place of I Don't Want To Know.
I was thinking- it was always stated that Silver Springs didn't fit on the album despite being cut down heavily. I have no reason to disbelieve Mick or Lindsey or Ken or whoever else. However, Rumours is a fairly short album at 39 minutes. They may have had to play around with the running order but Silver Springs would have fitted easily, surely.

Can somebody explain please?

[The Highwayman]

Record albums up through the '80s could usually only hold roughly 40 minutes of music. As such, the 11-track Rumours isn't short for it's time period at all.

[FuzzyPlum]

Record albums up through the '80s could usually only hold roughly 40 minutes of music. As such, the 11-track Rumours isn't short for it's time period at all.

Well, no, they held more than that.
The White FM album was 42.12.
Hotel California was 43.28.

[The Highwayman]

Hence why I said "roughly" 40 minutes.

[FuzzyPlum]

Hence why I said "roughly" 40 minutes.

Okay, substitute 'fairly short' for 'relatively short'.
Though there are some shorter albums, a cursory look would suggest the vast majority are longer.

Anyway, the point is there seemed to have been plenty of space to substitute IDWK for Silver Springs (maybe even space for both).

[The Highwayman]

I suppose. But I love 'I Don't Want To Know'. To me, Rumours is a lesser album without it. But now, for me, Rumours is a lesser album without 'Silver Springs' since I'm so used to listening to the remastered CD with it on it. Here, now in 2015 there's no reason to ditch any great song on Rumours (ever song is great, of course) for 'Silver Springs' - it's already on the album now.

[FuzzyPlum]

I've been back and read up on what Ken said about Silver Springs in 'Making Rumours'. He says they were limited to 22 minutes per side. Any more would require a reduction in the volume.

Side 2 always had plenty of space to be able to add Silver Springs instead of I Don't Want to Know. This would have made much more sense to me. As much as I like IDWK it seems more of a B side than Silver Springs. The only problems with having SS in place of IDWK is that it would have made side 2 much longer than side 1 so they may have had to swap songs over to even it out.

In his book Ken challenges readers to try to fit all the songs on the album. I'm not saying this makes for a better album (side 1 would have been much, much stronger than side 2) but it is possible;

(using the timings listed in his book)

Second Hand News 2.43
Dreams 4.14
Don’t Stop 3.11
Go Your Own Way 3.38
Silver Springs 4.46
Songbird 3.20
21.52

The Chain 4.28
Never Going Back Again 2.02
You Make Loving Fun 3.31
I Don’t Wan't To Know 3.11
Oh Daddy 3.54
Gold Dust Woman 4.51
21.57

This also uses Silver Springs at 4 minutes 46 seconds long. There would be much more scope if the shorter 4.33 version were used.

[The Highwayman]

Hmm. Putting 'Never Going Back Again' on side 2 DOES give Lindsey a greatest presence on that side. At the same time, you could put 'Silver Springs' on side 2. Well, I guess there was room after all.