Open Letter to The Mac
 

*No New Album
*No OFFICIAL NAME for the "Tour"
*A stage show and set list that (with the exception of the remarkable "Sisters" and two new songs) has been REHASHED for the past 20 years

Call me crazy, but I'm a bit UNDERWHELMED by the whole "effort" (or lack thereof). I have WORSHIPPED Fleetwood Mac since 1977. I have bought EVERYTHING they've ever done and attended EVERY TOUR (and ALL solo member tours, including Chris McVie's only solo tour in 1984). But, I'm on the verge of losing interest.

Artists like Johnny Cash, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Paul Simon and Tom Petty have made some of the best music of their careers AFTER the age of 50 or 60. NOTE TO FLEETWOOD MAC: You can still save this sinking vessel. Get Christine McVie to give up gardening and come back ONE MORE TIME. Hire an amazing producer like Rick Rubin, Ethan Johns, Mitchell Fromme or T-Bone Burnett and get back into the studio to make the greatest ART of your life (like you once did with "RUMOURS" and "TUSK, two of the greatest masterpieces in music history). Who gives a crap about TOP 40 hits or record sales? It's not going to happen anyway. Do you think Dylan and Springsteen are sitting around worrying about getting a TOP 40 RADIO HIT in 2013's market? Then, go out on the road with a revamped show (including the new music) and become ARTISTS again. You might even get critical acclaim and win a GRAMMY.......(RESPECT???)

BUT, I guess you're too busy trying to fill corporate rock arenas with the same tired casual fans and the same set list you've been playing for years. I did enjoy "SAY YOU WILL". While not perfect, it was a FINE EFFORT and you at least tried something different. Keep moving in that direction and I'll be the first to jump on board. For the first time in 35 years, I am considering NOT attending a Fleetwood Mac Tour. Why would I shell out 300 dollars plus parking and 15 dollar drinks to see the same show that I've been watching for years just to keep Mick from going broke for the 10th time. It seems to me that you're not really concerned with exploring the artistic future of this band, but rather just biding time to fill your retirement accounts. If not with the band, let Stevie and Lindsey go back to solo projects where THEY DO try to make some new and interesting art (SEEDS WE SOW & IN YOUR DREAMS). You are considered Rock N Roll Royalty by many and you CAN do whatever the hell you want. In the twilight of your career, why not try to be GREAT again? You are all truly gifted artists, just put it down on paper.

I'm in the same boat - i've seen every tour since Tusk in 79. And I was underwhelmed with the shows I saw during the Dance and Say You Will tours. But that's just me.
I like the old school FM without all the back up musicians and singers.
Unfortunately they won't see this post and they aren't Springsteen or Dylan, etc.
And I doubt Lindsey would have the patience to work with Rick Ruben or Ethan Johns.
T Bone Burnett would be interesting...

One thing I do love and have always loved about this band.
Love them or hate them, people always pay attention to what they're doing. And I think that's great.

You have a point, Lindsey would have issues working with an outside producer. Bring back Caillet and Dashut.....throw us a bone.

I was excited with THE DANCE TOUR because we had Lindsey back after years of absence and that dreaded BEHIND THE MASK NUMBER. THE DANCE was at least reason to celebrate.

With the SAY YOU WILL TOUR, at least we got some brand new material, even if we didn't have Chris.

This whole UNLEASHED and NO NAME 2013 TOUR has got me falling asleep. Honey, put the LEASH back on.....it feels as if you been tied up for years.

Blah, you are lucky they are still breathing and giving you what they got.

I don't mind the no name tour with no album.
The Grateful Dead did that a lot - as have the Heartbreakers and Bob Dylan.
These guys just want to play (and I can promise you none of them are doing it for the money).

I find myself losing fanhood too, as well as three friends, all of us longtime diehard fans. We have greeted the current tour with a collective shrug although there are 3 shows within driving distance. Unleashed was a lukewarm experience and now, years later, still the same old.

Too many years of nothing new or creative, and the endless oldies show. FM make it too hard to be a fan.

If a tour for purely mercenary reasons is what they currently giving then I'm keepin what I got.:nod:

Please add:

"P.S. - Not all of your fans feel this way, and some are super happy with the tour. So from them, keep it up...and we can't wait for the new music, even if this tour doesn't have a 'name'!"

Im kinda tired of all the negative people on these boards, im suprised i still read the crap after all my 12+ years being a lurker here! I saw opening night columbus, i live n ohio...and the last 4 years its been nicks, nicks, nicks, mac in 09' and im just grateful! This tour is amazing becuz there all actually happy to be onstage together, unlike Say You Will when Stevie coulda gave 2 Shi*s if she was there.....the vocals show it and this was 10 years ago. Stevie Nicks has been reborn somehow and i luv it as i prefer her over all the other members....i come to the shows to see her! So all u negative people take it somewhere else....Im a happy 28 year old fan and love anything i can get....and ill b n cleveland june 15th for the same show i cant wait to see....the countdown begins! :nod: :nod: :nod:

I wonder why you think that is lucky.

I'm on this side.

My take
 

I disagree, I was at MSG the other night and I had a great time. Seeing the close to sell out crowd on their feet all night, listening to 65 year olds rocking out a 23 song 2 1/2 set. I will appreciate anything they do in their age.

I'm loving Fleetwood Mac Live 2013, cant wait 'till April 24th at Newark, NJ Prudential Center!!

Well said, she is definitely more on board and putting more effort in than she was with SYW, and I am PUMPED to see them in Detroit in June! And the ending to Sisters of the Moon at MSG...WoW.

Pretty much my sentiments, although I do understand where the frustration comes from. I just don't share it.

:xoxo: We most certainly don't! Not everyone has been to every tour since 1979 and I've never understood why so many people that feel a band going out on tour is always and only a cash grab. They can get paid, and still enjoy what they do, and right now, they appear to be having a great time :nod: Regardless of their reasons, because I love the music, and the band, I'm going to love every second of this tour.

Yeah, kinda weird for a fan board! We don't have to be happy with everything they do, but it does get old listening to all the negative comments since the tour was announced.

I was there opening night, and at MSG too, and both were electric :blob1: I haven't visited here at all until today, as I didn't want to risk ruining the high I get from the concerts. The Mac are amazing for a band of any age, and I'm so freakin' happy to see them my concert high is still intact, despite the haters :cool:

Well that's true too. There are some of us fans who (like me) agree and disagree with the original poster. Depends on what day of the week it is. ;) That said, I don't stay up at night pining over the fact that Fleetwood Mac hasn't put out new music in 10 years. But... if I'm in a place like this where there's other fans to share and discuss... I can be honest and say, yeah... it does kinda suck what they're doing. Especially since they've all been kinda saying since "The Dance" that they are a band again and with Buckingham back it doesn't really make much sense that they are not putting out new material. Are they basing it purely in terms of SYW sales? Probably so. Why get on that horse when you don't need to? But even still... we know what the band is capable of. Lindsey in particular has been very prolific over the last 7 years. So yeah, it does kinda sting a little when the band you love so much goes on tour and just "plays it safe"... but hey, I know that we're lucky to still have them around.

Completely agree with everything you said. Sometimes I almost feel like FM should just disband and Lindsey and Stevie should carry on with their solo ventures, which still have actual artistic value.

Ditto! Give them a chance....jeez.
They Are FLEETWOOD MAC. All ya have to say is I'm going to see Fleetwood Mac.
We all know what year it is, its The Mac who needs to be reminded.

As a long time fan...(been going to FM shows and Stevie shows since the late 70's)...I can see both sides of this topic...while I am glad they are going on tour and, being a New Orleanian, I get my dream of seeing them at Jazzfest!!! this year...I am thrilled to see them in my home town at an outdoor festival for the first time since 1977. And while I am happy that the setlist contains some gems that I will always love....I wish they would include some older Fleetwood Mac songs from before the LB/Stevie era...I daydreamed of them performing *Hypnotized*, which was the cool FM song we listened to as teens before the Rumours era...and what about another song from Mirage, like Straight Back or Empire State? And Tango in The Night/Say You Will get NO play at all...I also thought it would be cool to hear Stevie do her cover of *Note Fade Away* with The Mac...
But having said all of that, I am happy they are making a stop in my town even though the setlist isn't my dream setlist...I also realize that as I get older...they are even older than me...and getting older by the day...So at this point I am just happy to be able to have the FM experience at least one more time...reading some of the ideas and posts on here, sometimes I think us fans could do a better job managing the band than the actual managers!

Wow, such vitriole from a supposed fan. If you want to get really brutally honest, one could really say that Fleetwood Mac essentially ceased to be an "artistic outlet" after Tusk; that's when everyone seemed to focus their artistic mojo onto their respective solo careers. Since Tusk, it seems that every subsequent reconvening of the "fab five/four" has been a forced affair that seemed to arise only because arms were twisted or political pressure was applied and NOT due to some magnetic artistic chemistry that compelled them to work together. Rather than approaching each new album as a means of exorcising musical/interpersonal demons, everything from Mirage onward seemed to be a deliberate, calculated affair that carried the baggage of hyper-stardom as well as conflicting priorities.

The "Fleetwood Mac" that you pine for disbanded over thirty years ago. And you know what? It's all good. Time marches forward. People change. Music evolves. They are still a great band, albeit, in a different way. This is clearly a group of people (specifically Lindsey and Stevie) who grew sick of working with each other in the studio and who has now figured out a way to stay together while enjoying themselves- touring. Of course the alternative would be to have Fleetwood Mac disbanded once and for all, which would be a crying shame. For me, an appreciation for FM isn't about charting new artistic ground or taking edgy, bold chances; in fact, I think you are following the wrong band if you are all about the new and edgy! It's all about chemistry and being in the music in the moment as it happens. Yes, most of the songs are old and they have played them a gazillion times, but there is a brilliant shimmery electricity that hangs in the air when they are up on stage, together, doing what they do best. It isn't something that can be captured on crappy audience recordings or shaky/blurry/tinny-sounding clips on YouTube.

Yes, a new FM studio album would be a dream come true, and yes, I would love it if they would play nothing but deep cuts in concert. But what we have in 2013 is a band that is realistically in its twilight. I don't hold them up to the level of scrutiny that I did 30 years ago; nobody is the same after 30 years. They certainly don't need to do this for the money, and they could certainly be doing things that are more personally gratifying (solo careers). And they have certainly earned the right to look back on an extraordinary body of work. If you don't agree, then simply don't patronize their shows. But why does one feel the need to come on here to pi$$ on them and everyone else who just wants to enjoy some good f***ing music?

I certainly understand the frustration. I didn't go to one Stevie show between 2005 and 2011 because I didn't want to spend the money to hear LITERALLY the same set list that she'd been doing for years, with the inclusion of a few covers as her idea of shaking things up.

However, I've come to accept, as has Mr. Buckingham, that Fleetwood Mac is the BIG MACHINE. We're not going to get the "riskier" set lists that we would love, or that LB (and to some extent in recent years, Stevie) might be willing to do on a solo tour.

It boggles my mind when people seriously suggest that FM do a set that contains "Seven Wonders," "Can't Go Back," "Crystal," "Walk a Thin Line," "Angel," and "Tango in the Night." Might we get 2-3 of those songs on a tour? Possibly. And we did on this tour! Two new songs, "Sisters," "Say Goodbye," "Not That Funny" (which hadn't been done in FIFTEEN YEARS...to put that in perspective, that's the same length of time between Mirage and The Dance, and remember how big of a deal that was?).

But this has never, ever, ever been a band that really shakes up its set list. Take a look at their sets from the Tusk tour on. They'll play a handful of tunes from whatever album they're promoting, and then stick to the hits.

Would I love a tour where half the set is songs they haven't done in 10+ years, or ever? ABSOLUTELY. Am I happy with this current tour's set? ABSOLUTELY.

Indeed. But isn't that more a function of the contempt the band shows for fans than fans just looking for something to pick on?

If FM wants to be a band -- and I would be fine with them just packing it in at this point because they are so stale -- then they should have new music. Ten years and counting since the last studio album. In the meantime, the two songwriters of the band have been producing new music. They are so prolific now that there's just no excuse.

Really, this band has been taking fans for a ride since the mid 1990s, when it looked like they might actually do something cool and meaningful. Instead we got one decent, but not great, studio album, a bunch of retreads and a couple of live recordings.

Compare that measly output -- even going back to 1977 -- to some of the more prolific bands of the 1990s, like Counting Crows, Cracker, Dave Mathews or Sheryl Crow, and you can see how pathetic FM really has been. They simply don't deserve the adoration they get here.

I'm sorry if that offends some fans, but it's true. They are a washed-up musical collaboration that really can't collaborate. They would be better off retiring the band and going off on their own. But they know that as long as they feed people little drabs here and there, go on tour with their rickety tired old show, and continue to play up the Stevie-Lindsey thing, some people are still going to fall for it.

Sad to say, FM has become precisely the thing that Lindsey fought so hard against for son long. Now he wants to justify it with the big machine/small machine stuff, but it must be killing him inside. Ten years or so ago he was still talking about artistic integrity. Do those words even pass his lips anymore?

That goes to my point of how pathetic their output has been. This is a band with an embarrassingly thin catalog, when you think about it. Compare it to Sheryl Crow's or Dave Matthews' or Counting Crows', none of which were even around before the 1990s.

As a band, they should bow, not after the show, but in shame.

If you don't like the band, don't respect them, and feel they should retire...why don't you just step away from a message board...for FM fans? Seriously, if the glory years of FM are behind them and you feel you aren't getting what you need (which, I would imagine 90% of the thousands of people in the audiene would disagree with) ... abandon ship already!

And, really, judging something you haven't seen is not really going to pursuade those of us who have seen the show that we should send them potted plants in the Retired Rockers home.

I just wanted to say, I love this. Kudos to you - it is perfectly stated, and it could not have been said better. Some will attack you and question your status as a fan because they can't bear to hear their idols criticized, but I know that the truth is not always kind or generous; despite this, it always needs to be said.

This whole thread is so typical of this message board. I love all the loyalty to the Mac and its members that i am seeing from many of you here. I know that they are human and are not without fault, but they are 65 years old and have NEVER been ones to put a lot of consecutive albums out or be spontaneous or anything like that. Why is this such a newsflash to people?

To me, the negativity in this thread is why I dont post here much. I mostly dont consider this a FAN board...I consider this a place to come if you want to be picked apart down to your bones. While those who feel negatively about this tour may disagree, many years of being a member here has proven this over and over to me.

The thing is, they've had 26 years of chances. If you don't count Behind The Mask and Time, they've had one album in the last 26 years - and four - FOUR - tours. Granted, for 10 of those 26 years, Lindsey and Stevie were not working together, so let's be fair about it and say they've had one album in 16 years, and FOUR TOURS. Four tours that made them millions. It's a joke, really.

Fleetwood Mac (1975)
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Rumours (1977)
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Tusk (1979)
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Mirage (1982)
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Tango in the Night (1987)
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Say You Will (2003)

And nothing since. How many chances are we supposed to give them?

I love Fleetwood Mac's music. Even without Christine, I think this lineup is capable of making timeless and classic music. They just don't care enough to do it, and why should they when there are fans willing to fork out thousands and thousands of dollars to hear the same old song and dance?

Oh please. We're fans of a band, not Stepford wives. It's ok to be honest, critical, and engage in debate.

I'm sorry your first response to someone you disagree with is to tell them to leave. I don't expect you have the right to tell anyone here to stop posting, and I don't believe that kind of attitude gets one too far in life.

And, frankly, I don't post here -- which is actually rather rare -- to "persuade" anyone but to express my views. And if my views of the band at this moment in time happen to be negative, that is what I have to offer. No one is forced to read anything.

Agreed! I understand wanting more from the band - I want more from the band, too. However, I don't understand the attitude that they are completely worthless because they're not releasing enough new music or doing enough deep tracks live. Are they reaching their full potential? No. Are they still an incredible band with terrific music who rock the house? Yes.

LONG LIVE FLEETWOOD MAC.

[QUOTE] Are they reaching their full potential? No. Are they still an incredible band with terrific music who rock the house? Yes.
LONG LIVE FLEETWOOD MAC. /QUOTE]

YEP!!! :cool:

No one said the band is worthless. :shrug:

Well, perhaps you and I differ in our interpretation of comments where people suggest that Fleetwood Mac disband if they have nothing more to offer.

I'm glad they are still touring.

None of these older bands cant compete with new music on the radio with todays young artists.

I have to say this.I agree with them .Why bother recording new tunes that will not sell in this day in age.

Yes only us fans will buy the new stuff and which does not add up to make it worthwhile to record the new tunes.

I'm glad that SYW had a great outing 10 years ago.Also it got good radio airplay.

I guess so. I tend to be rather literal. :laugh:

As far as the OP and differing points of view:

I'm trying to think about this in a different perspective, and I think this difference in opinion among fans comes down to two different consumer types. I'll use an analogy: your favorite movie. I have a favorite movie, or a few, as most people do. While I can listen to the same songs over and over, I rarely will ever watch a movie twice. I think of a tour, a live show, as being more like a movie and less like a song.

I don't buy copies of movies, and I'd bet I'm not the only one. I see no point in spending money to own a copy of it when I've already seen it, and I certainly will not be paying to see it again in the theatre. I probably won't even watch it for free on TV, unless it's been so long that I've forgotten most of the story. A concert is like a movie to me, it's a visual representation or display of a band's songs. it's like a play or theatre production, for music.

There's little point, from my perspective, in seeing that show twice. As it is now, Fleetwood Mac has taken the same show (or movie) out on the road three times now, and all they've done is *slightly* rearrange the order of the scenes and show us a few more from the cutting room floor. It hasn't been long enough for me to forget the story, so it feels redundant *to me*. When movie-makers want to engage us in more of the same, they make a sequel - what Fleetwood Mac needs is a sequel. The same characters, with a very different story. When movie sequels are obvious replays of the original, they get panned by critics. A fan is pretty much a critic, and this critic is panning this tour, because it's just the same show rehashed.

Now, because I'm unhappy with the setlist, or feeling malcontent about no new album, or just because I complain about the tour, or I (and others) agree with a post that is critical of the band/tour/setlist *does not* mean that we hate Fleetwood Mac, or that we think they suck, or that we wish they were dead, or that we're ungrateful they're alive and working, or that we want them to not tour at all. It just means we're not satisfied, and we're not giving them our money this time, and we're talking about it, and that's OK.

I really liked what HejiraNYC said. See for me...I was not around for the "heyday". I was born in 1978, and all I recall is the songs I heard in the 80s on the radio. In 1997, I was aware of The Dance because of my best friend. I was a little curious about it, but did not get to go to those concerts because I wasn't really a "FAN fan" yet, if you know what I mean.

In 1998, I started to "get it." Stevie Nicks toured in June 1998 in NJ, and I got to see that and was SO excited to see a legend. I thought this might be her last time! I had NO idea that in the 2000s she would tour almost EVERY YEAR!

When 2003 came, and "Say You Will" came out, I was in love. I couldn't believe I got to hear new music from a band who was legendary and before my time in a way. I considered myself SO lucky. It was 18 songs of sheer bliss for me. I usually do NOT like an "older legendary" band's new output when compared to their older stuff, but in this case I really got INTO this album. When they toured with it, and had THREE legs in my hometown area, I jumped aboard for a great ride, never knowing if this would be the end or not.

2009 Unleashed came. I was excited, but longed for more new stuff.

I've had almost every year since of solo Stevie and Lindsey tours to satisfy me. But when they are together and Fleetwood Mac is on that stage, well it IS true -- it's about CHEMISTRY and hearing those great songs, because one day there will be fans who come here, who right now are only 10 years old, but in ten years they will be 20 and coming here for the first time, and guess what...they will be envious of us, and they'll be wanting to hear the stories of when they toured, because FM probably won't be touring in 2023! You know? So, it's not that I am drinking the Kool-Aid, or falling for some scheme of theirs to tour for the wrong reasons, and I'm not against ever hearing criticism for my favorite band. What I AM....is grateful no matter what, because even though I am a latecomer fan in Fleetwood Mac's career, I STILL got to see them LIVE in my lifetime. We are lucky we have that because not everyone will. Even if I didn't see the rockin' bangin' kick-ass FM of 1979, and even though I missed Sisters Of The Moon in 1982 etc....I got to SEE them, in some form, perform this great music. I was a part of something. In my lifetime. In THEIR lifetime.

Youtube videos and cell phone clips and even any recording I may have captured WON'T show all of that magic to you skeptics. To someone who wasn't there, maybe it would sound stale to your ears, maybe it looks lacklustre to your eyes. But if you were THERE....you know why it was so important and you appreciate the magnitude of what you witnessed.

I'm grateful for the esacapism I got last weekend. Fleetwood Mac gave that to me. Moments of my life where all I felt was a tingle in my gut from the electric anxiety of seeing them live. Where all I felt was happiness. That's what they gave to me.

This!!!!!!:blob2::blob1:

Couldn't have worded it better Abbi!

Wow AbbiJoy78 I could not have said that any better myself and its exactly how I feel being that I was born in 1977 and the first time I saw the Mac was in 1997 as well. I literally can't get enough and I get so freaking excited everytime they tour and while I would love for them to add some different stuff in their set I am still so unbelievable happy to hear Dreams for the 10th time live. They are my favorite band so I dont care what they sing just as long as I can see them on tour.

Wow, this is so beautiful, I actually had some tears in my eyes when I was reading it. :xoxo:

But there is absolutely nothing wrong with the fans that are showing their disappointment about the new setlist etc. They are real fans nevertheless, and they have every right to write down what they are feeling.

You can absolutely love the Mac and still be sad about some of their choices.
I'm sure you all love your partners, but still don't agree with all of their actions all the time. ;)

It's a little bit like kindergarten in here, at least sometimes. ;)

This is great! Awesome! I feel the same way, I was born at the end of 1980...months after the very long Tusk Tour had ended and years before I'd know what a Fleetwood Mac was! My story is much the same as yours and I for one am thrilled to be able to enjoy this band still now that I am in my 30's, despite the fact that they no longer are!