Christine

[stefan]

What I liked the most about Christine was her voice together with LB. I think this will be missing on the new CD.
As a songwriter in my opinion she had really great material to offer on the one hand and on the other hand some of the (to me) most boring stuff also. I absolutely just can`t stand "Only over you" from Mirage for example. Or "Mystified" from Tango cowritten by LB. Or also her great hits, which I never liked as the ones always performed on the live shows- YMLF and SayYLMe. I would have appreciated to get some of her pre- Rumours stuff on the live shows, which was not played to often
And then again songs like "Dont stop", "hold me (great sounding with LB)" or some of her Tango tunes are really great in my opinion and also had huge commercial success. Especially the cowritten ones as "Little lies" or "Isn`t it midnight" but also "Everywhere" were very interesting. It somehow seems, that she had good ideas and probably needed a little input additionally to make a song work right. After Lindseys departure some of her songs were lacking of a certain spice. And the voice combination of these two simply was great. Something that is often left aside.
Which of the CMV songs and which era of her songwriting do you like the most?

[Cristian]

Needless to say, she's my favorite Fleetwood Mac member... of all the incarnations (see avatar there <--). I have to coincide with you, though, about "Only Over You" being an absolute "down" in her carrer.

Sometimes she just delivers some incredible words joined by impressive music, and then the arrangements convert the thing into a terrific song... I don't think she had too many "downs", though. She kept her style throughout the years and, turning herself from a blues songwriter, she became a very important pop referent. In the first era she kept ballancing the material from Danny Kirwan and Bob Welch with songs filled with sweetness ("Show Me A Smile") and even with tunes more close to blues or rock and roll ("Homeward Bound"). Then she and Bob Welch formed a songwriting team that apparently never existed according to Mick Fleetwood's site (he he) and, in at least two fantastic albums (Mystery To Me and Heroes Are Hard To Find), she composed some of her finest songs. "Why", my favorite of hers, comes from MTM, for instance. In the Rumours lineup she kept her ballancing work, dominating the White Album with her sweet pop/rock melodies ("Say You Love Me", "Over My Head") and in Rumours again she became the "sweet" part in an album filled with angry/acrimonious references from the other composers. "Brown Eyes" is my favorite song from Tusk... so sexy, so sweet, so powerful. Then you have "Hold Me", which is one of the most fantastic pop songs ever written; and in Tango there are two of the most remembered songs of the 80's: "Little Lies" and "Everywhere", with very interesting harmonies, arrangements and textures. In Behind The Mask she wrote the amazingly underrated title track, which I like very much; plus her collaboration with Billy Burnette ("Do You Know") is a very interesting ballad; and still, in Time, she delivered her swan song to the band: the sweet "All Over Again".

I think she has highlights in every incarnation of the band. She mantained herself with a permanent level of artistic integrity in spite of the huge changes of styles and musical influences, and delivered her songs all the same. I don't have a favorite Christine era, then. They are all my favorites.


Song Of The Moment - I'm So Afraid (Live, Sydney 1980)

[macfan 57]

Christine is also easily my favorite Fleetwood Mac member. I think she was the most consistent writer in the band. My favorites are "Songbird" and "Why" but I love all of her songwriting periods. I think her songs during the Bob Welch years are especially underrated-"Homeward Bound", "Spare Me A Little", "Did You Ever Love Me", "Why", "The Way That I Feel", "Prove Your Love", "Come A Little Bit Closer". These are all hidden gems. She just kept getting even better during the Buckingham/Nicks years. "Over My Head", "Say You Love Me", "Warm Ways", "Songbird", "Oh Daddy", "You Make Loving Fun", "Think About Me", "Brown Eyes", Never Make Me Cry", "Hold Me", "Wish You Were Here", "Little Lies", "Everywhere", "Mystified" are all terrific. I agree that Christine and Lindsey worked great together, in my opinion better than Lindsey and Stevie together. The Tango In The Night album is really a Lindsey/Christine album. Even after Lindsey left, she still kept writing great songs-"Behind The Mask", "Love Shines", "Heart Of Stone" and "All Over Again", which was her goodbye to Fleetwood Mac.

Because of her personality, she is extremely underrated. But she wrote as many hit singles as Stevie and Lindsey did combined. And, I don't find any of her songs boring in any way. To me, this new album will not seem like a Fleetwood Mac album without Christine.

[seteca]

You Make Loving Fun, Mystified, Isn't It Midnight, Oh Daddy, Everywhere...come to mind as some of my favs. I don't really have a favourite Christine era....she was always great. So easy to listen to.:cool:

:wavey: :wavey: :wavey:

[joe]

I agree that Christine's stuff pre-1975 is very underrated. I love EVERY song of hers from that era.

I'd have to say it's my favorite period of Christine. I'm not too fond of "everywhere" though...never really cared for it...actually, i heard the demo of it about 15 years ago on a radio show about FM and i taped it but it's gone. I've never come across it since. It was a real simple keyboard part with a little guitar part weaving in and out. It was very nice.

I guess i'm not ecstatic about "Only Over You" or "Wish You Were Here" either. Everything else is ok...Her songs seemed to get a little bit of a jump during Tango and Behind the Mask which was cool.

I really hope she comes out with an album soon. It'll be nice to hear some new stuff.

[The Tower]

"Over an Over" and "You Make Loving Fun"

'nuff said.

:D :D :D

[chiliD]

For me:

Morning Rain
Homeward Bound
Dissatisfied
Remember Me
Believe Me
Why
Heroes Are Hard To Find
Bad Loser

and ALL of her 1984 solo album.


I think my only Christine favorites from the "wonder years" are:

Isn't It Midnight
Mystified
Brown Eyes

[Jen77]

:wavey:

I LOVE Christine!! There isn't one song i don't like that she has written...

My two absolute favorites are Why and Oh Daddy.

Jen:nod:

[chiliD]

There isn't one song i don't like that she has written...


Yeah, same for me, but those I listed are my faves of hers.

[becca]

I'll be the one then to say then that Only Over You is a real favorite of mine, but maybe because I like singing it myself. I liked The Mirage album a lot when it was new out and some of it really brings back specific personal flashes from then. I didn't really play Wish You Were Here back then for some reason but I have come to really love that one since I got the CD. I think I like Christine's songs so much because they are singable for me, from the early ones to the later ones. I can sing Stevie best when I first wake up and am raspy maybe. :^) Christine is more interesting in her phrasing; those little surprises but which fit perfectly. I kind of relate her to Karen Carpenter sometimes actually in how she approaches her songs. It sounds effortless but there is a lot of intelligence or talent in how it's done.

[Phil]

How diplomatic these Christine fans are - all these platitudes concerning the "Perfect" one's rather modest merits: "so easy to listen to"; "very relaxing"; "she had good ideas" etc...
How about insanely boring; uninspired; uninvolving; undemanding; dull; tedious; mind numbing; treacherously bad? This woman knows no bounds when it comes to contrived; trite; formulaic; made-to-order; dial-a-hit; by-numbers dross.
Funnily enough, I'm actually quite fond of the ol' girl and shall miss her presence oh so very much. Goodbye darlin' - missing you already!

[joe]

Originally posted by Phil
Funnily enough, I'm actually quite fond of the ol' girl and shall miss her presence oh so very much. Goodbye darlin' - missing you already!

what do you like about her?

[estranged4life]

has the best female singing voice in all of music...Forget all those mindless,talentless & brainless corporate drivel "divas" on the "Gawd-Awful" radio, Christine McVie has the talent & skill that they will NEVER have in an "eon"...Brian "Chrissey Hynde Rules!!!" J.

ps-I agree, I have yet to hear 1 song Christine has written or sung that I didnt like...I can't even say that about Stevie.

[CarneVaca]

Originally posted by Phil
How diplomatic these Christine fans are - all these platitudes concerning the "Perfect" one's rather modest merits: "so easy to listen to"; "very relaxing"; "she had good ideas" etc...
How about insanely boring; uninspired; uninvolving; undemanding; dull; tedious; mind numbing; treacherously bad? This woman knows no bounds when it comes to contrived; trite; formulaic; made-to-order; dial-a-hit; by-numbers dross.
Funnily enough, I'm actually quite fond of the ol' girl and shall miss her presence oh so very much. Goodbye darlin' - missing you already!

Ah, Phil, and with that, I hand to you the Most Outspoken Member of The Ledge baton. Speak your mind, my friend. It might not make you popular, but it will cleanse your soul.

Your assessment, though short on diplomacy, [yeah, yeah, it's like the pot calling the kettle scorched!] is long on accuracy. The reason Christine doesn't ignite the passions of this Ledge gang the way Lindsey and Stevie do [Can you imagine getting away with the kind of blunt remarks you just made if they had been directed at Stevie? Why, you'd be crucified, vilified, emulsified...well, you get the message.] is because she is rather bland. Her music often was uninteresting, and her lyrics cliche. But, man, when she writes a catchy song, she sure does it right. I'm thinking of "Over My Head," "Don't Stop," "You Make Loving Fun," "Little Lies," "Why" and "Everywhere," none of which have lyrics to write home about but they sure stick to ya. And of course "Songbird" is her masterpiece.

I like Christine's stuff well enough, but she is not the reason I became a big Fleetwood Mac fan. The reason was Stevie, then Lindsey, and now primarily Lindsey. I wouldn't buy a Christine solo album, but there's only very few of her songs I skip when I listen to Fleetwood Mac.

[nae]

My favorite Christine song is Why? & I must say that even though she isn't my fav. member of the Mac, I certainly don't think of her as boring. I have the feeling that I'm going to miss her alot on the upcoming tour, just as I did Lindsey during his little hiatus.

Nae

[Phil]

Yes one may choose to ignore or bury the truth buy hey, I ain't buying it! Of course, it is the Stevie/Lindsey combo that I dig but to be honest with you, I do concede that Christine has made a significant contribution to both the Mac and music in general.

There is no denying that many of her songs are classics ('I'd Rather Go Blind"; virtually everything from 1971 to 1974; "Warm Ways"; "Over My Head"; "Songbird"; "You Make Lovin' Fun"; "Oh Daddy"; "Brown Eyes"; "Never Make Me Cry"; "Honey Hi") but alas, she just ain't been stokin' my fire for way too long!

What of substance has Christine offered forth in the last twenty years I ask you? There may have been a few passable toons along the way but nothing to compare with her best work. The most problematic aspect of her work, in my opinion, is that she insists on mining the cliched, unadventurous facets of pop and this eventually (if not immediately) disengages the listener.

I also recognise that Stevie has had her less than stellar moments along the way but when you consider the proliferation of her work as opposed to the dearth of new material from Christine and Lindsey during the last two decades, her strike rate is astoundingly low.

I should remind viewers that I did recently cop it from a number of fans for having the audacity to examine the "Street Angel" atrocity through a less than murky lens. To all of my detractors, I now quite agree that if you are prepared to close your eyes and ears, the album can offer a mildly enjoyable experience. How's that for a conciliatory approach?

Anyway, I do actually retain a soft spot for good ol' Christy McVie and should like to remember her fondly. However, achieving this necessitates erasing the last twenty odd years of her career - sad but true.

[jwd]

There's not too much I don't love about her or her songs. The only complaint I have is that they do become somewhat boring after a while. To listen to them back to back on a solo album is rather tiring. I guess you have to be in a certain mood to listen to her music...and just her music. It's definitely less noticeable when you listen to her songs within the context of a Fleetwood Mac album with Lindsey's and Stevie's songs to shake things up....well even Bob Welch's or Danny Kirwan's songs for that matter....or EVEN Billy Burnette's and Rick Vito's songs. She and her songs play better in a group environment than on their own. This same sentiment even applies to Christine when she's in concert. Have you seen the Christine McVie Video Album? Nuff said!


Joe

[BombaySapphire3]

I have to agree having seen her once on her 1984 solo tour that she is not exactly riveting by herself and her 1984 eponymous lp was except for a couple of Mirage retreads a pretty uninspired listen .As i have pointed out before she really needed Lindsey's more left leaning arrangements to put her over the top,hence her abrupt end of major hits after his departure.

[David]

How depressing.

I had absolutely no idea that so many Fleetwood Macheads thought Christine was boring.

To me, she's the Kit Cornell of pop music!

[Steve]

Christine is often so overlooked. Maybe it's because many of her songs after Rumours were very soft...light weight. But when she gave us her best, she created classic pop songs such as "Think About Me", "Hold Me", "Gotta Hold On Me", "Little Lies", "Everywhere", and "Temporary One", most the staple of FM classics. Honestly, when I first heard the title of her song on "The Dance" was going to be called "Temporary One", my first thought was, well, this is going to be another Christine slow..light love ballad. Boy, was I happily wrong/surprised. To me that was the best NEW song on the Dance.

She will be greatly missed on the new CD. I personally think her abscence will affect sales....oh, well. Christine was 1/5 of the classic FM sound. It won't be the same with out her. I will be surprised if it really is a true mega-hit.

What tempers the situation is the fact that she is coming out with a solo CD. I truly can't wait. And I can't blame her. What would most of us be doing at 60? I respect her decision. :p

[jwd]

She will be greatly missed on the new CD. I personally think her abscence will affect sales....oh, well. Christine was 1/5 of the classic FM sound. It won't be the same with out her. I will be surprised if it really is a true mega-hit.

I agree with that sentiment 100%. After hearing what's "supposed" to be the first two singles from the upcoming lp, albeit "Peacekeeper" is not the FM version, I'm having my doubts about the "new" FM sound without Christine. I think she'll be missed more than we realize. What she gets from the Lindsey/Stevie mix she equally gives back to it. I dunno, it's going to be an interesting year....."Strange Times" indeed!


Joe

[Steve]

Even though I have once again began posting on The Ledge recently, I have watched over the years. It's interesting how much attention is NOT paid to Christine(me included). She was and still is much overlooked. There will be no "Say You Love Me", "You Make Loving Fun", "Brown Eyes", 'Little Lies", "Temporary One"....how sad.:(

[macfan 57]

Originally posted by jwd
I think she'll be missed more than we realize. What she gets from the Lindsey/Stevie mix she equally gives back to it.


Joe

I completely agree with this. Very often, you don't miss something until it's gone. To me, without her it's just another band. Since I'm primarily a Christine fan, I'll probably get the new album, certainly if she's on it even if only on one song.

As for Christine being boring solo. I love that 1984 video. I actually saw her live that year and loved her show. And it was in a much smaller venue than Fleetwood Mac always played in, which made it even better. I definitely got my money's worth.

I agree with Steve about her leaving the band. She is nearly 60 and obviously doesn't need the money. She made the right decision. In the meantime, I can't wait for her solo album, hopefully this fall.

[Johnny Stew]

Originally posted by macfan 57
To me, without [Christine], it's just another band.Which is exactly the way a large number of fans felt about Fleetwood Mac after Stevie left.

I always felt bad that Bekka Bramlett had to suffer the unfair and unwarranted comparisons to Stevie. Both women brought completely different vibes to Fleetwood Mac.
Bekka is a great singer, who gave her all... she just had the unenviable task of following in Stevie's platformed footsteps.

So I was really glad that they didn't try to replace Christine for this new album.
She's been gracing Fleetwood Mac with her unique "calm inside the storm" contributions for decades, and anyone who would have been brought into the band to "replace" her would have most likely been crucified.

At this point in the game, there's no way anyone (except maybe chiliD!) would accept someone new joining the band, to fill in for Christine.
Whether they'd have been male or female, already famous or completely unknown, the cries of "_________ is NO Christine McVie," would have been deafening.

I think the choice they made of remaining a quartet, was the wisest one of all.

Christine will be missed in Fleetwood Mac, but she has more music on its way... and that's definitely a good thing. :)
And I have complete faith that the band has created music that will be just as strong and engaging as anything they've done in the past, with or without Christine.



Johnny Stew

[Skylark]

Christine will be sorely missed by fans who loved her fine musical
blend with the band! Chris and Lindsey appreciated each others musical harmony and liked to blend their melodic voices!I agree with Stfan 100%; their songs together were just wonderful!!! :)
He admired her as a trained musician to play songs with and
their looks to each other during Bleed To Love Her said a lot!!!
She was the calming force in a deluge of personality issues!Sky:)

ps...About the Album...single or double...
PUT IT OUT!:blob2:Please!!!

[wetcamelfood]

Originally posted by Johnny Stew
At this point in the game, there's no way anyone (except maybe chiliD!) would accept someone new joining the band, to fill in for Christine.
Whether they'd have been male or female, already famous or completely unknown, the cries of "_________ is NO Christine McVie," would have been deafening.

I do agree with all you said Johnny Stew but I would have to say that I would probably be with ChiliD and I would also greet a "replacement" (for lack of a better word) for Christine with open arms. :)

Naturally, no one would EVER REPLACE CM, and he probabaly never would have joined anways but I sure would have liked to have seen what Peter Bardens would've brought to the FM sound as a... well, let's just say a "keyboard player for the vacant stool" but of course it is not possible now anyways (RIP Pete).

Of course I can't speak for ChiliD but I rememeber talking about the "new" FM with him and he is very happy about the new FM "lineup" as am I and with the added plus of this upcoming CM solo album, it sure works out as more CD's for us which is the main thing we (or certainly "I") care about and I'm glad we agree about this with you and many other here too. :)

John

[seteca]

Originally posted by wetcamelfood
...it sure works out as more CD's for us which is the main thing we (or certainly "I") care about and I'm glad we agree about this with you and many other here too...

Totally agree with you there. I don't want to sound pessimistic but I really do think that this is going to be the last Fleetwood Mac studio album, and therefore by the end of this year I hope to have as much material from these 5 amazing musicians as possible. Ideally, we would have the entire GOS collection, plus all new LB and SN songs on the new album, plus an entire CM solo album. Now obviously a compromise has been made between LB's GOS (as well as, it seems, some TISL demos) and the new album, which is understandable, especially given that GoS would never have been released anyway. However, the idea of entire album's worth of CM material is absolutely fantastic!:blob2: :blob1:

:wavey: :wavey: :wavey: