What's your favorite pre-75 album and why?
 

I know everyone likes to discuss various songs and stuff, so I tought it would be good to bring entire albums into the conversation. My personal favorite would definitely be Future Games. For me, it's the mellow cool vibe of the whole thing that I never get tired of. Mystery To Me is right behind it. Here's how I would rand them if you made me choose.

Future Games
Mystery To Me
Heroes Are Hard To Find
Bare Trees
Kiln House
Then Play On
Penguin

I wasnt sure if I should include things like Engilsh Rose or Pious Bird Of GOod Oman because if I'm not mistaken, they have some of the same songs on them, but if you'd like to feel free!!

Then Play On
Future Games
Bare Trees
Kiln House
Mystery To Me
Heroes Are Hard To Find
Penguin

Mac with Danny beats Mac without Danny every time, I'm afraid - and I'm not Bob Welch's biggest fan despite a few brilliant songs he's done. So I'll go with Then Play On for Peter's brilliance which edges it over Future Games for me. Future Games and Bare Trees rate very closely in my book.

The first two albums (Fleetwood Mac and Mr Wonderful) - I find it impossible to compare these with everything that followed - it just depends what mood I'm in.

I never pick favorites as a rule, simply because I have no desire to rank my enjoyment of music. So many of these albums are great in so many different ways. I enjoy them all immensely at different times, in different moods.

That said, the one that I've appreciated the most lately has been Blues Jam at Chess. The playing, by everybody who appears, is just phenomenal throughout, and the studio banter that is included in the reissue makes the sessions feel so wonderfully initmate, like I'm sitting right there in the booth. This is just some classic blues, played with extraordinary feeling and skill.

Future Games

As a whole, I'd say "Future Games." The Welch and Kirwan songs are very strong. Chris's best work on pre BN albums comes later.

But there's also Kiln House, a one-of-a-kind record in its own right.

Here's how I'd rank the pre-1975 albums:

1. Mystery To Me(It's starts with "Emerald Eyes" & ends with "Why" with "Hypnotized" in between. I love Bob & Christine together. The album flows beautifully. There's no filler to be found anywhere on this album. It's my favorite Fleetwood Mac album.)

2. Heroes Are Hard To Find
3. Bare Trees
4. Future Games
5. Then Play On
6. Penguin
7. Mr. Wonderful

What she said.
100%.

Sometimes it changes from Future games and MTM. SO my list fluctuates too.

NOT a fair question! So, I'll give one answer for the blues years, and one for the rock years, to keep it somewhat fair.

Blues album: English Rose. It got most of the essentials from "Mr. Wonderful" and featured a few singles, and a few Danny Kirwan songs. While all three come of brilliantly, Dany especially shines. "Something Inside Of Me" is one of the greatest guitar songs ever!

Rock album: Future Games. Don't get me wrong, I love all of the Welch-era albums. But, this one just sounds so completely different from the others to my ears. It has a real breathtaking quality to it. I also love how they did some extended jamming in the songs. They went places on this one that they never did before or since. It's one of the few albums (by any artist) that doesn't have a song I don't like on it.

I simply love the bulk of MTM, and am nuts about "Emerald Eyes"--a good song in its own right but one made even better by Christine's harmonies on the chorus; they are as delicious as a fine wine. Her vocal presence on "Hypnotized," "Miles Away" and "Somebody" is equally intriguing. Why she didn't contribute more audible harmonies to Welch's "Heroes" tunes is beyond me. I'd love to hear her more, for example, on "Angel" and she should be singing the chorus in "Bermuda Triangle."

BTW: MacFan 57 I noticed your list doesn't include Kiln House anywhere. Mistake or deliberate?

Oh no! I forgot.:o Here's my revised list:

1. Mystery To Me
2. Heroes Are Hard To Find
3. Bare Trees
4. Future Games
5. Kiln House(I actually like Jeremy's songs here.)
6. Then Play On
7. Penguin(This album would have been much better as a McVie/Welch album. I don't like those Dave Walker songs at all.)
8. Mr. Wonderful(Love That Burns & Stop Messin' Around are wonderful, but I don't like all those Jeremy Spencer/Elmore James songs.)

How come nobody's lists include Fleetwood Mac (the dog&dustbin album)? it's a pretty wonderful debut, I think.

Indeed! It's a very vital piece of work.

Being a Greeny fan, the post-Green albums are not as essential for me, but great
nonetheless..

1. Then play on (but could have done without "When you say").
2. Dogs and dustbin album
3. English Rose
4. Mr. wonderful (Too many Elmore rip-offs, I know)
5. Bare Trees
6. Future Games
7. Mystery to me (the one with "Why", right? Great great song)
8. Kiln House
9. Penguin
10. Heroes are hard to find

She DOES sing on the "...Galveston, to New Orleans..." parts on "Bermuda Triangle.

I was thinking about this just this very morning. I think that Christine didn't learn how to REALLY sing backups & harmonies until Lindsey & Stevie joined.

Her harmonies weren't really missed when I first got the albums. Now, when I go back an listen to those pre-1974 albums...I can definitely hear parts she COULD'VE sung.


Oh...and my favorite is whichever one I'm listening to at any given moment. Although, which one do I think is the strongest of them all? Mystery To Me.

I have a very soft spot for Penguin because it was the first FM album I bought on or around the release date. I think it is a bit weak in places but it holds a special place in my heart.

Mystery to Me is actually my favourite because of the strength of the songs

Gail

True. I hadnt thought of that. I have a question for you. WHy wasn't that instrumental I posted about a while back, Fleetwood Mac, included on that album?

WOuld a weak spot be I'm a Roadrunner perhaps?:lol:

I have no idea. Perhaps at the time they thought it'd be a little too precious? Eponymous album with an eponymous song?

The only cd I've ever seen Fleetwood Mac on is one called The Original Fleetwood Mac. That'sthe one I have.

I think the significance of the "Fleetwood Mac" track has increased over time. I don't think that it was all that "important" of a track at the time of the sessions for that first album. (remember, "Fleetwood Mac" was recorded a good bit earlier than the formal sessions for their first album)

Right. If memoery serves me right it was done in June of '67 right? When did they start recording the album? early 68?

How did you guess?

Gail

God, listening to that is like listening to nails on a chalkboard, dont you reckon?

Yes

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Gail

this one minus Mr.s Wonderful I need to get this.

I think Dave Walker had just gotten back from one of his benders with John and stepped right into the recording studio....:lol:

I'm guessing they'd had a "group outing" to the Nag's Head before recording that one. :laugh:

Then play on.

Because it's the most daring (commercially AND musically) album they made apart from Tusk.

Well I still like Road Runner - but that's probably because so many people hate it - I'm like that, I love When You Say as well :o

The track "Fleetwood Mac" was recorded in August '67, along with "First Train Home". The sessions for the debut album began in November '67. Quite a few songs were recorded around that time but left off the album, like "Drifting", "Watch Out", "Leaving Town Blues", "Mean Old Fireman", A Fool No More", "You're So Evil", "I'm Coming Home To Stay", "Can't Afford To Do It", and "Allow Me One More Show". I guess they just chose the songs they liked the most or that would fit in to an album the best.

Two other songs recorded in September '67 were "Rambling Pony" and "I Believe My Time Ain't Long", which wound up as two sides of a single.

Which was basically just Jeremy's arrangement of Robert Johnson's "Hellhound On My Trail" with different lyrics.

Yes. As you probably know, according to Mike Vernon it stemmed from Jeremy not really knowing the lyrics to HOMT and on one take he came out with a load of different lyrics. Given how Jeremy was quite prone to changing someone else's song slightly then crediting it to himself (as all good Bluesmen did...), it wouldn't have been too shocking for a tidier version of this to have ended up on the album.

as i am new to this site,i´m happy to find this very topic.
the only album i have from kiln house to heroes are hard to find is bare trees,
although i do like it, it hasn´t send me to record store to buy the other albums.i´m still very interested in future games which i´ve noticed has got your approval and especially kiln house.could you tell me more about it,is it closer to dragonfly style or closer to bare trees?

Welcome to the board!

Future Games is pretty much the "softer side" of Bare Trees. "Woman Of A Thousand Years" does have some "Dragonfly"-ness about it. And, would be worth the price of the album alone. "Sands Of Time" & "Sometimes" are in the "Station Man/Bare Trees" mode. Bob Welch's title track would also be worth the price of the album by itself. Then Christine's two tunes "Morning Rain" & "Show Me A Smile" are wonderful as her first two songwriting contributions to the band. Future Games is highly recommended, from this end.

And from this end too :wavey:

Kiln House is a bit more schitzophrenic than Future Games or Bare Trees, because Jeremy Spencer's songs differ quite strongly from Danny Kirwan's. You might like Jeremy's stuff, you might not - it's hard to say! :laugh: I like it very much, but it took me more time to appreciate it. It's fair to say that FG and BT have more of a uniform vibe about them - they flow better.

My favorite is Penguin because it has a bunch of songs I love, but primarily that neglected masterpiece "The Derelict" by Dave Walker.

All the vocal doubletracking Christine McVie did back then really bugs me.

She probably thought "Well, John Lennon did it and it sounded cool...guess I'll give it a go.".

Indeed welcome. Its rare for a new person to have their first post be in this section.:thumbsup:

Pardon my igorance about terminology.

Are you referring to that kind of weird-ish echo that surfaces on her lead vocal parts? If so, I have often wondered why she did this on Penguin. "Remember me" and "Dissatisfied" are marvelous tracks that could have been recorded more straightforwardly (if that is the right word).

I hear the same kind of thing, incidentally, on "Love in Store" from Mirage--which is otherwise one of my favorite Chris songs.

Tough one, since I really do love this era of FM.

If I had to pick just one it would be Future Games. Just a very sweet album.

Bare Trees

It's just such a soothing and beautiful album and contains some really great gems, indeed some of my favorite Fleetwood Mac songs ever, like "Dust," "Sunny Side of Heaven," "Sentimental Lady," and "Spare Me a Little of Your Love." The whole album (with the minor exception of "Thoughts on a Gray Day" - that woman's voice irritates me) is a masterpiece.