Save Me A Place
 

"Save Me A Place" is one my favorite songs from TUSK; it is one of Lindsey's very best. There's one thing that I've always wondered about, though: whose is that deep, male voice singing in the background? Mick? It most certainly isn't Lindsey....Or is it? Anyway, if anyone could clear this up for me I'd really appreciate it.

It is Lindsey. All of the voices in that song - high, middle and low - are Lindsey's. And I agree, Save Me A Place is a great song and one of my favorites.

Grower..
 

It was a grower on me and now I adore it. It's certainly a unique song in it's pacing and his vocals.

I really love these two lines.

Guess I want to be alone
And I guess I need to be amazed

Wow. Thank you, Les. I had no idea Lindsey's range went that deep. Guess you really do learn something new every day!

Thanks again for solving one of my "Mac Mysteries!"

No problem, Justin. :) I'm not sure if it's really all natural vocal range. I suspect he could have used a little studio manipulation to get the lowest lows in that range, but I do think he can sing lower than you might ordinarily imagine based on his relatively high-pitched speaking voice.

Save Me a Place is (as most probably know) the only Lindsey song on Tusk I don't like. I think it sucks. I'd say it's Lindsey's worst Fleetwood Mac song ever.

:lol: :laugh: I wasn't going to rain on the thread's parade, but...actually, I think the lyrics are STELLAR, but i don't love it much.

Love it. One of my favorite Lindsey songs ever. It's beautiful. :nod:

Talk about being satisfied by mediocrity... :laugh:

Sorry, I wasn't talking about Angel or Sara. :xoxo: :wavey:

Bwahahaha!!
 

right, you were talking about SMAP. mediocre. By the way, i don't care much for sara. But i love Angel. It's fun, it makes me happy, it's kicky, it's fun to sing..

I don't care much for it on Tusk. On the other hand, I love live versions of it.

Sara sucks on the album, but kicks ass live.

Angel has some stunning lyrics, but the song just does nothing for me.

Save Me A Place is my favorite, next to The Ledge. The beauty is in its simplicity, IMO.

I :heart: SMAP. One of his best with Fleetwood Mac! When I first bought Tusk, it was only the song that I actually liked. Now that I like the whole album, SMAP is still the star.

When I bought Tusk, I listened to Stevie's songs first, Christine's songs next, and somewhat listened to Lindsey's contributions. There are some that I skip no matter what. I'll hold out my hand so it may be hit.

Nice to know there are others who think "Save Me A Place" is a masterpiece! :thumbsup:

-Justin

Whoever said that the lows were Lindsey's is correct. Tusk was the first time Lindsey started slowing and speeding up the tape to get different ranges on vocals - he used it a lot on Law + Order and even more so on Mirage and Tango - (and Say You Will). It's a nifty little trick that Brian Wilson made famous but was also used heavily by the Beatles. Matthew Sweet does it frequently too. It's very similar process to running a tape in reverse for guitars, etc. - which is also a big Lindsey thing. You can hear it on the Beatles Revolver album. Check out "I'm Only Sleeping" from that album.

Christine also got into the trickery on Mirage and Tango with the same technique. I think it's cool because it originated as a tape/analog thing and has nothing to do with synthesizers or Pro Tools, etc.

For vocals, Lindsey just slows the tape speed down, or speeds it up, and then corrects the pitch so the key stays the same. It's a great thing for people who put tracks together when they work solo.

I have always loved Save Me A Place. It has a very George Harrison-like quality to it. And I think people that really respond to old harmony singing like The Kingston Trio or The Mamas and the Papas get into it also.
It's not the kind of track that your average FM top 40 fan will like - it requires some thought and participation to really appreciate it for what it is, and that's asking a lot of your average joe who justs wants to be entertained.
Save Me A Place is an important song because it was the first Fleetwood Mac song released where people who appreciated true artists finally took notice of the band. It was a risky move for Lindsey (as was the rest of Tusk) but for me - it's the reason I fell in love with Fleetwood Mac.

He took it one step further, but with higher vocals on Walk A Thin Line. What a gorgeous song that is. I still love it and put it up there among my top 5 FM songs.
Also - if you listen to "Smile At You" , there's a section where guitars run in reverse which is pretty cool - it happens in the bridge.

Can you imagine how bland Tusk would have been if Lindsey didn't push the project in the direction that he did?

I think we all can. :laugh:

Fascinating post, dontlookdown. Thank you!

Speaking of "Walk A Thin Line," it's the first song that made me really appreciate those soundscapes (somehow visual and aural all at once, supremely textured) only Lindsey can do...

Time to bust out my vinyl copy of TUSK for a listen.

-Justin

Come again?

You like what you like. "Tusk" isn't a social studies lesson that you dutifully need to "explore." It's a piece of pop music -- listen to any part you want to listen to, & tell others to go to hell if they harass you about it.

There's no telling in what direction FM would've gone without Lindsey's push with Tusk. It could've solidified their at-the-moment success. Without a doubt, Tusk is one of my favourite albums a SMAP is definitely one of the highlights. Ever so pleased to have heard it at last year's Soundstage. Too lucky.

I don't really understand being satisifed with mediocrity. I think dontlookdown has easily detailed how un-mediocre SMAP is. I guess you hear what you want to hear.

I LOVE this song :nod: It is LB at his best!!!!!!!! :woohoo:

It's called Mirage. :D

Which is one of my fav.s EVER by any group LOL :cool:

i'm coming again.


I suppose the single "Tusk" best fits that description - but once listeners got the album in their sweaty palms, Save Me A Place was the first song they heard that was a true departure - a signal of what was to come for the rest of the album.
I grew up in New York and in 1979 there were a handful of pretty adventurous dj's on the radio - and they ate Tusk up like it was the best thing they had heard in ages. The New York shows were pretty spectacular also - very uncommercial - but very loud and raw. Which is how I like Fleetwood Mac best - when maybe the harmonies aren't perfect, with no back-up singers, no additional musicians - just the band as they were meant to be. That's what Tusk was for me.

Get out of my head woman! :laugh: I was the same way - HATED this song, now it's one of my faves on Tusk.

Paula

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Lots o' SMAP love here!

Lol
 

The Ledge is #2 on the album and I think it's the first that departs. And The Ledge also kicks SMAP's ass. The Ledge is a masterpiece. As is Not That Funny and Tusk and I Know I'm Not Wrong, and one that just very recently grew on me, Walk a Thin Line. But this thread is about the awful Save Me a Place, so I have to be raining on a parade :laugh:

This is Lindsey at his minimal best. I loved this song from the first listen

I also enjoyed the band and their performances in the Tusk era. I remember seeing them in Los Angeles 3 times on that tour, and I recall that they played "Save Me A Place". I enjoyed it live much more than on the album.
Back in those days it was great to just hear the 5 onstage, without extra musicians and vocalists. It was raw, but alot more powerful, as someone just mentioned.

SMAP is not my favorite Lindsey song on Tusk, but I certainly find its harmonies and mood appealing. After hearing it live at his Soundstage, I gained a renewed appreciation for its simplistic but effective artistry. I can understand why some people don't think it's his best, but the passionate hatred some exhibit towards it completely mystifies me!

Now THE LEDGE - there is something to passionately hate. ;)

Someoneouttasomeoneouttasomeoneouttasomeoneotta.....

I have a love/hate relationship with "Save Me A Place." (Well, I think "hate" is way too strong of a word.)
I disliked it when I first heard it... started to enjoy it for a while, several years back... and then disliked it again.

It's a song that I love the various parts of, but dislike how they were brought together.
I like the lyrics in all their minimalist glory, I like the harmonies, I like the central theme and the conviction with which Lindsey conveys it... but, for me, the enjoyment ends there. But I won't get into why, since I have already done so in the past, and since this is supposed to be an appreciation thread.

So, basically, the song isn't my favorite, but it's cool that others love it... and, at the end of the day, anything that brings enjoyment to someone else is OK in my book.

I don't like this song. It is kind of a snooze fest.

What's to like about the lyrics? They're vulnerable and sweet and a little bit helpless and that's kind of irresistible to me. It's only my interpretation of the lyrics, but what I like about them is his honesty. He knows he's been working too much, and he knows he can't really come up with an explanation that will be satisfactory for her because he can't fully explain himself why he hasn't been able to tear himself away from the work, so he's telling her to get mad at him, give him the cold shoulder, to do all of these things that he probably deserves for not being around enough. But today, just let him know in some small way that he's still loved, because as long as he knows that, he'll be there with her in a heartbeat (because he's in love even if he sometimes falls down on the job about showing her). There's a strong implicit message about his love for her that emerges between the lines. That's what I like about the lyrics.

:thumbsup:
I would rate Lindsey's Tusk songs like this:

I Know I'm Not Wrong
Walk A Thin Line
Not That Funny
The Ledge
Tusk
That's All for Everyone
That's Enough for Me
...
..
.
Save Me A Place

SMAP has the most annoying chorus EVER.

Or not. ;)