80% FM is 100% Lacking (Delaware on CM)
 

Delaware Online, April 10, 2009

http://www.delawareonline.com/articl.../ENTERTAINMENT

If it's 80 percent Fleetwood, it's 100 percent lacking

We here at Nightlife would like to issue the following two statements before moving forward.

Statement No. 1: We like and respect Fleetwood Mac and its entire catalog except for the song "Big Love" from the 1987 album "Tango in the Night."

Statement No. 2: We have no problems with bands soldiering on after one or two original members go their separate ways.

But we simply cannot let this quartet version of The Mac go through Philadelphia without saying whoa, wait a minute, this is a stinking pile of horsebleep (There is actually disbelief here that this column never dealt with this. Anyway).

Christine McVie wrote some of the band's best and most memorable songs. If Paul McCartney was a chick, he would have written "Everywhere." Beatle or no Beatle, the dude version of McCartney wishes he had written "Say That You Love Me." And although it's now eternally linked to Bill Clinton and his presidential victory lap after the 1992 election, "Don't Stop" deserves a place on the top-shelf of all-time classic rock anthems next to "Born to Run" and "Baba O'Riley."

Add in the fact that her keyboard parts have been integral to the band's sound since it went from blues to pop rock in the early 1970s and you're talking about an integral member, not just some Bill Wyman or Dave Abbruzzese (Pearl Jam's original drummer).

But McVie will not be a part of the "Fleetwood Mac Unleashed" tour. It's just Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. That's it.

This is not unprecedented. In fact, we can think of three times as many bands who have gone on without a key cog than those who did the right thing and hung up their guitars.

R.E.M. should have gone to sleep when drummer Bill Berry retired in 1998, because: A) the band lost its stones and hasn't put out a decent album since 1996's "New Adventures in Hi Fi," and B) the band has only seemed to play with gusto on the rare occasions when Berry got back behind the kit for a spot appearance, including one in 2007 when R.E.M. was inducted into the Hall of Fame.

(2 of 3)


For some reason, Genesis thought it could succeed without Phil Collins in the 1990s, and Journey continues to dilute itself by thinking it has a reason to exist without Steve Perry.



And in this case, yes, you could make an argument -- as the rest of the Mac has -- that now they can focus more on the tunes by Buckingham and Nicks. And now we'll get more awkward googly eye moments like when the pair sings to each other during "Landslide."

But we say Fleetwood Mac without Christine McVie is no Fleetwood Mac at all.

If you disagree, you can be one of the tens of thousands who show up for the band's gig at 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia.

Tickets range from $49.50-$149.50, and are available at www.livenation.com.

So this is a negative advertisement for a concert that the writer hasn't seen yet? How stupid. And the dumb title and annoying statements like, "now we can focus more on the tunes by Buckingham and Nicks. And now we'll get more awkward googly eye moments like when the pair sings to each other during "Landslide."", which isn't true because (a when does Lindsey sing on Landslide? and b) "googly" eyes sounds so High School. Lindsey and Stevie are way too old and been there/done that for such stuff. Maybe angry, passionate, annoyed, happy eyes, but googly I don't think so.

And listen, I really love Christine. She has always been a cool lady and should be regarded that way until forever. But she has not been in this band for a LONG ASS time. It is time for people to, you know, get the F over it at this point. It's wonderful to remember all the memories and the songs being sung, and etc. but at some point in these past 10 or so years you had to come to terms with it: She's not touring.

And Paul McCartney has far too big of an ego for that. If it was up to him, he'd give you a list of all the songs he'd wish he had written, and I'll bet you most would be his (already released) solo/Beatles numbers and then a Chuck Berry or Elvis number thrown in. Puhlease!

**Note: I felt like writing today. No, I didn't take this article that seriously**:laugh:

...:mad::mad::distress:

I for one will not be truly pleased until Mick, John, Stevie, Christine, Lindsey, all three Bobs, Peter, Jeremy, Danny, Rick, Billy, Dave, that guy who did two songs on Penguin whose name I can't recall, and Bekka all appear on one stage to perform a 90-minute long improvised jam of Thoughts On A Grey Day. :mad:

Well, I hope that happens for your sake.

Perhaps you should start a petition. I'll sign.

This person is obviously full of crap.:rolleyes:

Many people think Paul's Vintage Clothes sounds very much like Say You Love Me, so I think that's why he mentioned that particular song. I don't know about Everywhere.
Michele

:laugh:Well, there are people who really do want that -- except for the Grey Day part.

I'll just take the five. Can't rise above that desire.

Michele

Say you love me is a great song. And i love Paul and the beatles, hey i even liked wings, but vintage clothes?
:o

Oh, yikes. That performance is definitely unflattering! Michele

Dude lost me when he said he liked every FM song EXCEPT Big Love.

Next.

Ugh.:distress: I am sorry. Listen, the Beatles are my all-time music loves and I know every single member's solo catalog like the back of my hand. This song? Don't like. And there are so many fine examples of great pop numbers by Paul that could be comparable to any of Christine's tunes. I know she loves Paul's music. I've always been more of a John girl (alltheway), but he is great and this song is not. So sorry Michele.:wavey:

:laugh::lol: I know, right? Loser.:rolleyes:

yeah that's like one of my fav studio songs...

:confused:I don't like Vintage Clothes. I just know that when it came out, many critics compared it to Say You Love Me, which is what I think made that writer think that Paul wants to do Chris. I don't think that, myself. Actually, I never wondered if Paul admired Christine's work. I . . . except for the Playboy interviews that John and Paul did, which gave me a lot of pleasure looking at what each of them said on a song-by-song basis, I don't spend a lot of time thinking about the Beatles.

I don't think much of anything compares with SYLM myself. In fact, I'm pretty happy with Lindsey's version of Here Comes the Sun and, you know, George better be happy with it too -- wherever he is. I'm not one to spend a lot of time comparing Beatles to Macsters.

Michele

See, this is an example of the reviews I referred to:

Buy.com
http://www.buy.com/articles/loc/6423...e/3/64843.html

"Vintage Clothes" and "That Was Me" are thematic cousins to "Ever Present Past." The piano intro to "Vintage Clothes" is a dead ringer for "Say You Love Me" by Fleetwood Mac.

Pitchfork

http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/...y-almost-full/
For a more honest portrait of Macca '07, look to Memory's best (and loopiest) song, the self-effacing retro-culture commentary "Vintage Clothes". The sprightly piano intro initially suggests a rewrite of Fleetwood Mac's "Say You Love Me", but its West Coast idyll is soon pushed askew by a skittering dub break and subliminal synth/bass frequencies;

Charleston Post and Carrier

http://www.charleston.net/news/2007/jun/21/sound/?print

Another one of the better songs on the CD, 'Vintage Clothes,' is classic McCartney, except for the opening piano riff, which is so close to Fleetwood Mac's 'Say You Love Me' that Christine McVie should consider legal action.

You know, I'm always amused at how these "critics" love to tell us how we're all idiots if we dont think exactly as they do, because they OBVIOUSLY know more than any of us what part of Fleetwood Mac we should all like more than another. I stopped giving a **** a LONG TIME AGO what these douchebags have to say. The only thing I care about is how I feel about the music and what I'm seeing each night. I couldnt give a **** less about the rest.:nod:

You know, back in 2003 I was totally excited about the prospect of it being just Lindsey and Stevie. I thought it was a full circle Buckingham Nicks thing. I thought it would be interesting to see what kind of chemistry and music they could make with it being pure, and just them. I've been a Mac fan for almost 2 decades, and it took me a LONG time to really appreciate what Christine added to the band. It actually took me buying all the pre 1975 Mac albums 8-9 years ago to really get into Chris. Say You Will was proof positive that the magic formula for the Mac really was that Rumours 5. Then In The Meantime came out, and I was more hooked on Chris. I walk around saying all the time now "I really miss Christine!!" She just added a much needed counterbalance to the seriousness of Lindsey and Stevie, without her there aren't those magical harmonies, etc. I'm still glad the Mac is around, but I kinda do agree with this reviewer... it's just not the same without her.

lol! I take it you're not the biggest Beatles fan, which is perfectly fine. I've always found Paul McCartney solo overrated. I think so many of his songs are pure crap yet people herald him as this great pop songwriter. I find that to be true with many of his Beatles and some of his solo work. The early stuff. And then Chaos and Creation in the Backyard are impressive, but everything in the middle- and even more recently- have been albums filled with some wonderful songs and a LOT of filler. Hey, that's jmo.

Thanks for the interviews. I understand the comparison...

And I'm fairly certain George Harrison would love LB's tribute. He adored cutting edge stuff and said point-blank that edgy, creative, revolutionary sounds were what he missed most about John Lennon. Yep. It's in the Anthology. I'd say he'd probably LOVE that LB cover. :)

While the tone of the article is a bit distasteful, I cannot help but agree with the main thrust of the argument.

Yes, Christine has been gone since 1998, but in my opinion the band has been lop-sided ever since. No amount of spin can change that. It's fine if you just love FM because you love Lindsey and Stevie -- and I see more people on this board all the time who see the band just for them -- but for others it was about more than their music.

I was kinda pissed when I read the start of the article, but afterwards I pretty much laughed at it. This person clearly has never seen the current shows, or even read a ****ing setlist. If I recall, isn't Don't Stop in there? And in the line of "classic rock anthems", I always thought GYOW and Rhiannon would be well ahead of Don't Stop? :p Oh how I love a review when people don't back up their argument at all, it's kinda like the work you'd get murdered for when you have to write an English assignment. Schoolboy error :lol:

wow, that was pretty harsh. BUT, even though I am going to see them on Wednesday, the writer of this article is absolutely right. Fleetwood Mac is not the same and never will be the same without Christine.

My main annoyance is the title of the album- which implies without Christine the band is "100% lacking", implying there's nothing there at all, which is an excellent reason not to read the article.

Oh, and.. "Ooh. Ahh. Oh. Ah. Ooh. Ahh." BIG :xoxo:

- Spike

Didn't Rolling Stone draw the comparison about forty years ago? One of its critics wrote that McVie is the "best writer of silly love songs since Paul McCartney." And certainly the Fleetwood Mac <--> Beatles analogies have been drawn in Rolling Stone over & over.

There is a sort of link between the two writers in terms of pop song construction & subjects (love, love, & love), set to a major-key, "compartmentalized" style.

Years ago, Christine talked about having met McCartney at some industry thing or something or other, & she was awestruck. She was also pleased when he addressed her as Christine Perfect.

Better try for the Four Horsemen to be there too. Because that kind of face meltage would only be possible in the apocolypse haha!

I read this in the paper last night (The News Journal out of Wilmington, DE) & I just rolled my eyes & said Oh, boy! :distress: I did not want to be be the first one to post this. ITA with the above statement & as I e-mailed my dad, who quoted what this man said & asked how much I paid for the tickets, this guy is obviously not a Fleetwood Mac fan, & he obviously has not seen them since Christine has left the band. Yeah, of course it's not the same without Christine, but what are the other band members, chopped liver? Each of them have their own special talent, & they each bring it into the band which still makes them special to this day. :nod:

Lee :)

Jesus. It's not like they took Christine out on John's boat and threw her overboard. She retired. Dude, SHE DOESN'T WANT TO TOUR ANYMORE. If this guy (or gal) did their history they would see that FM has an ever changing personnel landscape. It's part of the band.

I would say that without Christine's 1/5, there is about 60% left. But that 60% is pretty dynamic and I still enjoy it immensely.

Without Lindsey's 1/5, well . . . I am still in counseling for that 10 year loss.

Michele

The most irritating piece of argumentation from these kind of pressdildo's is the fact that they use other examples to underline their case. That SOUNDS convincing, but at second view it's total bull.

They could easily have said: For some reason, Genesis thought it could succeed without Peter Gabriel ....and ehhh...at least commercially....THEY DID! -with Phil Collins.

And Journey stopped to "dilute itself by thinking it could replace Steve Perry", so they decided that they could only survive with an EXACT copy of Steve's voice. And YES! They found him!

Well whatever, Bands are bands because of groupdynamic. That means also the occasional changes.

That guy just wants Christine. Who's gonna kick him in the face screaming that Christine doesn't want HIM anymore?

I volunteer.

You know, I think that if Stevie, Lindsey, John and Mick were all replaced, then maybe the guy could say, 'Yeah - time to give up'. But, as it goes, only one member from the '75 lineup has left, and her spirit is still there. Christine can't ever be replaced - as can none of them - but I'd much rather see Lindsey or Stevie singing her stuff than some random musician. At least they were there when she wrote her songs, at least they know the core essence of them. And not seeing Christine tour with them isn't gonna make me stop listening to their stuff.

And, if he thinks it's time to give up without Christine - since they're just on the bandwagon, now - he may as well have used that rule after Peter Green left.

He doesn't like Big Love? He's already an idiot...

I have to agree here. I am a HUGE Christine fan and would have loved to have seen her with the band in Rochester this past March. But the show I did see was still excellent--especially since the band was trying some new spins on old songs.

While there's no doubt that all five together would have been amazing, the four we had were pretty damn good.

Since we had been talking about McCartney, I smiled when I saw that he was doing a cover of Hi Ho Silver during his latest tour. This is an excerpt from the Press Enterprise review of the Coachella show, April 18, 2009:

http://blogs.pe.com/features/2009/04...-rocks-co.html

He opened the set with the Wings' hit "Jet" and overall he played everything from a cover of a Fleetwood Mac song ("Hi Ho Silver") to the best of his Beatles' collection ("Yesterday," "Hey Jude," "Let It Be) and the best of his fellow Beatles' collections ("Something" on the aforementioned ukulele and "A Day in the Life").

Hi guys, I've been lurking for a long while and this is my cue to say hello ... and on behalf of the intelligent folks of Delaware, my apologies for the douche who wrote this. I can tell you, a harem of FM fans made our way to Philly last week and enjoyed every last inch of it.

So yeah, hi! I'm Christopher from Wilmington, Delaware.:wavey:

HELLO and WELCOME!:wavey: Nice to hear that you are there to Represent!:thumbsup:

Hi, Christopher. I'm Lee, born in Wilmington, raised in New Castle, now living in Slower Lower, Delaware! :wavey: Wish my husband & I could have met some people there from DE while there at the show. We enjoyed it, too, & you are right, that guy is a douche! :laugh:

Lee :)

Get out! Small world! Where in SL are you living?

I also want to add that most people don't take Delaware Online seriously, so chances are this was ignored, as most things are. I did see a few comments by users with Stevie-esque names that made me laugh a bit.

Since when do they sing to each other on "Landslide"?

I think Paul McCartney has enough to his name that he couldn't give a **** about a few other good tunes. He should have a big ego, he wasn't just a BEATLE he was half of the creative duo of THE BEATLES! A Don't Stop or Say You Love Me to his collection would just be one or two tiny additions, the guy has so many to his name that they would amount to nothing by his scale.

This is a little reference to that article in a follow up column:

http://www.delawareonline.com/articl.../ENTERTAINMENT

Wednesday at Johnny Brenda's in Philadelphia.
By PETER BOTHUM • The News Journal • April 23, 2009


Two weeks ago we ripped Fleetwood Mac for touring without one of its main songwriters and vocalists, Christine McVie, and a few readers wrote in to say we were overreacting.

Upon further review, we hear where you're coming from.

But we think that all rock fans can unite and join us in slamming the sham of a band that's calling itself Foreigner these days.

Yeah, I saw that in the paper. What a smuck! Yeah, we won't pick on Fleetwood Mac anymore, but let's pick on Foreigner instead. :mad:

Lee :)