HUGE Fleetwood Mac Update
 

Saw this posted on another message board (Swiped this over on MetalSludge's message board - A heavy metal related website - So take it for what it is), thought it was rather out of the blue:

* The "new album" is in fact a new compilation album that will feature several new tracks. Interestingly enough, one of the conditions for Stevie recording new Fleetwood Mac music was that Lindsey not be named primary producer. An outside collaborator, rumored to be John Shanks or Chris Lord-Alge, is being brought in to "even things up".

* The "new tour" is indeed a "farewell tour" and could last up to two years with a blowout finale being planned. The ideas and expectations for this tour are big amongst organizers with one idea being that the finale will take place at either Wembley Stadium (or Twickingham Stadium) in London, or New York City's iconic Central Park.

* The tour will kick off in the U.S. next Spring with a European tour of arenas and some stadiums to follow. The group are already being mentioned for next year's Heiniken Jammin' Festival in Italy.

* While Sheryl Crow will be participating in the recording the new Mac tunes, she will not be made a member of the band, contrary to what she announced to the public earlier this year. The first set of U.S. shows will, however, be a Fleetwood Mac/Sheryl Crow double-bill. Crow is reportedly set on opening for the group for the duration of the tour, including all overseas legs.

* A lot of money is being put into this and the band are reportedly shopping their name around to both LiveNation and AEG Live for the farewell tour, and any one-offs that will follow.

Read the rest, including where the tour will end, the not so surprise opening act and more at http://artemisinside.blogspot.com

Very, VERY interesting...

Couple of points of interest for me:

1.) The article claims that FM is heading back into the studio to record new material in October. Lindsey has already announced a full fledged solo tour that month. Without any time off, looks like he would be jumping from tour straight into FM studio sessions if this is indeed true.

2.) A Sheryl Crow/FM double bill is not what I really would have hoped for. Not that I'm against her music, I just don't care for it. And I know a lot of FM fans wouldn't appreciate her as an opening act since she would more than likely not be an "opener". If she plays a 1-1/2 hour set that leaves little time for the 2+ hour FM set we would all wish to see! But who knows...

3.) Does Steve really hate Lindsey's production abilities or what???

That is what I was thinking, maybe he made some concessions to get GOS released and one of those may be new recordings.

I'm not, nor will I ever be a fan of Sheryl Crow. But this double bill makes sense in a reality of musical styles.

If that article is true (Who knows :shrug: ) then maybe she does indeed hate his style.

But if the tour lasts up to two years, that means Stevie will have to politely assuage the impatient demands of the producers who will soon be clamoring to develop her Rhiannon project!!!!

No. It didn't say he wouldn't be producing at all...just not the sole producer.

Thank you for posting that. I need to start saving up some serious cash.
A compilation album??? (sigh), I was hoping for more, but I guess what can you expect on such a short turn around time on this? No wonder Stevie is dipping into the vault to find some lost gems. Maybe we all will be surprised at the result.

What ever happened to all of that supposed footage that Lindsey has shot over the years? Maybe that will be part of a compilation farewell package. If they do this right, they could go out on a serious high (pun intended) ;)

Hmmm, Stevie insisting that Lindsey not be the primary producer... interesting, but understandable given their history.
I would prefer John Shanks to produce.

Double bill or opening with Sheryl Crow, ehh, but I guess it is way better than Sheryl on stage with FM as part of FM
(shuddering). I guess if she wants to be with the band so bad, this is the best way to do it and not ruin the FM legacy.

(Now this should be interesting).

Meaning he can do whatever he wants but he'll never be free to ruin the likes of Silver Girl or Smile At You again. :laugh:

Wow, that's quite a bit of news! Exciting!

I'm just thinking about what a final concert in Central Park would be like. On a warm summer night. On the Great Lawn. Probably cost insane amounts of money, but that could be really magical. I hope it happens!

Also, while I'm curious what a compilation can consist of at this point that hasn't already been done ten times, I'm kind of pleased they aren't putting themselves through a whole album process. Partially because the wear and tear can't be fun at this point, partially because I want Stevie to still like the band enough to actually BE on this tour and ok, also if there aren't that many new songs, that means Lindsey probably won't have to give over anything he wouldn't want to. Though the proximity of that to his solo album pretty much eliminates the possibility of that for the first time ever, doesn't it?

This is very exciting news!!! Funny though how Stevie nicely explained to Sheryl how FM is so encompassing that you can't take a baby on the road with you if you are in FM.
I guess if you're the opening act, no problem man. I agree that FM doesn't need an opening act. I'd love to see them come onstage at 7:30 and rock the arena till 10:30. If Bruce Springsteen can do a three hour show then why can't Linds and Steve pull it off too? They certainly have enough material.

Oh, Lord...it wasn't LB that ruined Silver Girl!! :laugh: That one could have stayed in the vault...

LOL! I wish for Stevie's "Farewell Interview" we could all call her on the carpet... I mean, I would seriously LOVE to hear her admit she's lying. Can you imagine her answering it with "I lied." Just once that would be so grand.

Anyway, I don't know if her voice would withstand the strain of a 3 hour show...it would be awesome if they could do that and just stretch out the dates so she could rest her vocal chords.

If he's not producing or arranging Stevie's material (which seems like a possibility), then the "FM" that's "heading back into the studio" in October would be Stevie, Mick, John, & Hired-Out Producer. Lindsey can do his **** later.

The best idea for opening act I've heard yet is a big panel of us ledgies -- dozens of us -- onstage & wired for sound. We take questions from the audience, followed by intense debate & polemics. We'd sure have everyone's attention, I bet.

I guess she doesn't want him to arrange or orchestrate her stuff. I assume she doesn't mind if he still plays a little guitar on it, although maybe she doesn't dig that idea, either.

To reiterate my point from several weeks ago, there's no producer on Earth who is going to prevent Lindsey from arranging or orchestrating (the production nuts & bolts) his own material. So in that context, it's moot. The only control an outsider would have over Lindsey's material would be final say over which of his songs gets kept on the album -- & that would be true only if it were some guy the label appoints to the task, not Stevie's appointment.

Well, technically, he could have already done it. It could be what didn't go on GOS - again. Ha.

Makes perfect sense to me. I actually welcome and relish this condition. Lindsey did not produce the 'White Album', Rumours, and Tusk(special thanks to Lindsey). Probably their most loved and successful albums ever. I say give it a twirl! I mean whirl!

What's going to make it any bigger than the SYW Tour? The fact that it's labeled as their farewell tour? So many bands have had farewell tours that aren't. I don't think that's going to be a big selling point. Now bring on some past members of FM like Christine, Peter, and Bob and we're talking MAJOR!!!!


This doesn't excite me in the least. Sheryl is a formidable musician, but I don't get the FM connection at all.

With a finale in London, I've got one thing on my mind. Well, one woman on my mind . . . would be a perfect finale.

Michele

Indeed! Given that this is supposed to be the final Mac album (or is it?) the band SHOULD ask Christine to play, write and sing on it. And she should say yes to this hypothetical offer.

None other than PETULA CLARK!!! :D

Whatever.

Can you say "cash grab"?

Stadiums? LOLOL. A Fleetwood Mac farewell tour, even WITH Chris, wouldn't be able to headline a 50,000 stadium. A bunch of festivals (like said festival in Italy), sure... but, Springsteen, or U2 (who will be touring next year as well), they ain't.

That's nice. Considering this will be 2009 and not 1996, I'm not sure the already economically depressed market will be enthused to pay $200 for Golden Circle seating to see a Fleetwood Mac/Sheryl Crow bill.

According to another post I just read on this board, it seems that Live Nation is considering one of its 360 (degree) deals for the next year or so. Then again, AEG/Concerts West already has the inroads due to promoting the bulk of the SYW tour.

It would be great but don't hold your breath! Wembley Stadium or Twickenham (not Twickingham) would be good venues.

I think that they could make room for her on some recordings if she wanted to and I think that it is a very BIG if. Mind you Martin Wyatt is supposedly negotiating with Universal to "rework" ITM so maybe the two are linked.

Stevie obviously missed Christine's input on the last album so now Lindsey can't be the sole producer- that should make for an interesting atmosphere when they do start recording.

Gail

[QUOTE=estranged4life;762642]

* The "new album" is in fact a new compilation album that will feature several new tracks. Interestingly enough, one of the conditions for Stevie recording new Fleetwood Mac music was that Lindsey not be named primary producer.

If the "new album" is a compilation I will be very very disapointed. I always take Stevie's rants about Lindsey with a grain of salt. I think a co-producer might work fine, with Lindsy having the final word though.

* The "new tour" is indeed a "farewell tour" and could last up to two years with a blowout finale being planned. The ideas and expectations for this tour are big amongst organizers with one idea being that the finale will take place at either Wembley Stadium (or Twickingham Stadium) in London, or New York City's iconic Central Park.

Fleetwood Mac is my favorite band, but I wish this would be a farewell tour. I hate to see them decline so I wish they would end on a high note. But I do hope the tour plays all over so those that haven't seen them will get one last chance.

*The first set of U.S. shows will, however, be a Fleetwood Mac/Sheryl Crow double-bill. Crow is reportedly set on opening for the group for the duration of the tour, including all overseas legs.

I like Sheryl Crow but the Mac doesn't need her as an opening act, or as a member. Why would they need any opening act? Don't we all want it to be the Mac on stage for 2 to 2 1/2 hours?


* A lot of money is being put into this and the band are reportedly shopping their name around to both LiveNation and AEG Live for the farewell tour, and any one-offs that will follow.

If a lot of money is put into this and WalMart is the exclusive seller I think this could be very big. But again please no compilation CD. The Eagles CD
was new material and WalMart sold about 7 million copies of that CD. And in my opinion their new CD wasn't any good.

I do like the suggestion made by someone else that there could or should be a special guess if Fleetwood Mac performs their finale in England!

From a blog? Unless this guys some sort of insider... I don't believe 3/4 of this.

If it truly is a farewell album, I’d rather it not be another friggin’ compilation album with new songs. I’d rather they release the new songs from Stevie and Lindsey, with new songs from Christine, Bob Welch, Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, Billy Burnette, Rick Vito, and Bekka Bramlett. Make it the one album all fans could enjoy.

I hold all this with a grain of salt given that its off a blog and not a reputable source of information. Given its true:
*Lindsey not being the primary producer is NOT the way to end Fleetwood Mac's career.
*Sheryl Crow as an opener or co-headliner is rediculous.
This coupled with Stevie's request for LB to not be the primary makes me wonder just how much pandering Warner Bros. is willing to do

Chirping crickets, followed by The Chain. That's all I need. But if Sheryl can sell a few tickets, I guess -- I guess it's a good thing. Whatever lubricates the wheels and helps make it happen.

Michele

Well,
 

I hate to hear that it's a "farewell" tour if that's what it really is. But the Eagles have had a farewell for years, so I tend not to believe that it is really that.

Yeah, I have nothing against Sheryl Crow, I do like her music, but they don't really need an opening act unless, of course, they think she going to draw more people to their shows & therefore get even more money. But really, they are a "draw" all by themselves. Funny, I was just at the grocery store last night, & a Sheryl Crow came on, Love is Free, & right after that, they played Stand Back. I thought maybe that was a sign of things to come. :lol:

As far as Lindsey not producing their new CD, well, what can I say? It does sound like Stevie won't do it unless Lindsey doesn't get to be the boss. :laugh:

Lee :)

The time for that has passed I fear..it ended with the final show of The Dance reunion tour IMO.

THAT is actually a GREAT GREAT GREAT idea!!!!!!:xoxo:

What has she lied about that has you in such a tizzy?

But, she has said that when she did the interviews for Street Angel she was horrified because she had to promote a record she knew was not up to snuff - she may have even used the word lying in there.

But, as to the other stuff, I am sure they have all lied at one time or another :shrug:

Oh, sure he did, Joe -- the band was its own producer in those days, but Lindsey had the single biggest role of anyone, inside or outside the band, in designing the tracks & orchestrating the instrumentation & vocals.

I completely agree. Given the time that they are planning on doing this, a compilation album makes sense because they won't have a whole lot of time in the recording studio, so they are using their time wisely. Plus, when TVBOFM was released, there were no new recordings on it, so i have a feeling that this compilation album might be half old stuff and half new stuff (like 50/50), or half newly-recorded old stuff and new stuff. SYW was great, but as many critics said, it was too much like a Stevie solo album and Lindsey solo album put on one CD...it was just too much!

I don't think another producer could be better for this new album, except Richard or Ken, who are aligned to the Fleetwood Mac sound.

I don't think Stevie hates Lindsey as producer, but if the article is true, maybe it means she just wants a neutral element to attenuate the typical conflicts between them.

Well if the tours ends in London, I hope that means CHRISTINE MCVIE at least for a last show. That would be magical!

If it's true, is cool news, but please no more compilations!!!

David, you know I respect your opinion(s). I just disagree with you here. I don't think Lindsey had a more dominating role in the production of Fleetwood Mac's sound until Tusk. You know when he wanted to start recording his songs at home/on his own. What I believe, and Mick feared, was the beginning of the fragmentation of Fleetwood Mac. Concerning Rumours and their eponymous album, the band had other producers involved, namely Keith Olsen, Richard Dashut, Ken Caillat, and Cris Morris(who?). These men had to have had some role, in more than just a minor way, in the sound of Fleetwood Mac. Why were they there? I'm not saying that Lindsey didn't "influence" the sound of the band. After all he was a writer and the lead guitarist. I know that he and John butted heads on occassion over the way John played his bass lines. I think this is documented in the Tusk documentary. I'm sure Mick, John, and Christine played just as heavy a hand, and probably more so than Lindsey, in their sound, especially on the first two records. What I believe happened after Tusk, was that Lindsey took on the primary role, if not sole producer or their records. I think, if this article is accurate, that Stevie just wants an outside producer, besides Lindsey, to work on her songs, within the confines of Fleetwood Mac. I think John Shanks did an incredible job on her TISL songs. Do you not hear differences in the way Stevie's songs sound on TISL to the way they sound on SYW? I have to say that I like the former more as opposed to the latter.

I didn't even know there was a dispute about it. I really don't have an abundance of information about the White album's production, but for Rumours, which has been discussed ad nauseum, everyone that has talked about the production of the album, including both FM members and the outside producers have repeatedly acknowledged Lindsey's dominent role in producing that album. In fact, it was probably because he was so pivotal with Rumours that Mick (and the rest of the band) were grudgingly willing to give him as much leeway as he had with Tusk.

Michele

Yes, I'd definitely expect it to be just a one-off thing for her, in London. I surely wouldn't expect her to be involved in the rest of the tour.

Michele

I knew I liked you for some reason. ;)

I'm one of those critics. I want the band to sound like they did in the early years. I guess the best adjective to use here would be homogenous, like a band again. I think that would be the greatest advantage of bringing in an outside producer this time.

I just can't beleive that they gave credit to other producers on Rumours then. Why were they involved? Am I missing something here?

Michele, I believe the reason Lindsey was given as much leeway with Tusk was because the man was unhappy in Fleetwood Mac at the time. Surprise! He wanted the band to move in a different direction, away from the sound of Rumours. He would have left if the rest of the band didn't let him have more control.

They gave credit to the other producers, because they were the other producers. Just like they were producers on Tusk. Lindsey didn't do that by himself either. Clearly everyone lent a hand. They all participated. But Lindsey was the one who most dominated the direction of Rumours, at least from what everyone involved in the project says. Yes, you're right Lindsey might have bolted if they hadn't let him do his thing with Tusk, but I don't think they would have much cared if he had bolted, if they hadn't thought he contributed so much to Rumours' success. I don't think those guys were just trying to make him happy because they liked his smile.

Michele

^^^

I rather agree.

I will say, however, that when you have someone as multi-talented as LB, they kind of can't help but wear the producer's hat. In other words, Stevie can play a little piano and guitar, but that is about it, esp. back then. LB, on the other hand plays most intruments and, for Tusk, made instruments out of non-musical things. So, I think when LB plays a guitar part for one of his songs, he knows there will be a few other parts to that sound. SO, he sort of always is producing. I suppose it is the same vocally for Stevie. I think she hears the harmonies in her head and produces them as such.

I think the job of the other producers is perhaps more of a mangerial one and then arranging the sounds already produced.

The key here being was that there WERE other producers involved in the sound, dominating or not.

Much cared?! Are you KIDDING?! Everyone had dollar signs in their eyes at that time. Nobody wanted to mess with the magical formula they had found after all those years "working the streets". I think that feeling applied much more to "Lindsey the guitarist" than "Lindsey the producer".

I agree. Don't know if actually he got the dominant role, but he tried from the beginning. Remember his fights with John about how to play the bass, mentioned in Mick's book and admitted by both guys in the Making of Rumours video. Or Stevie in the same video saying Lindsey had a special way to make her songs sound good ("when he was happy with me..")

So thos facts evidence an active involvement in albums productions, always.