Relocated: London, Christine, Lindsey, FM
 

One of Bob's facebook fans wrote me that Lindsey tried to keep Christine off the stage and didn't want to perform with her. Is there any truth to this or have you heard anything. I am just curious. I also heard John had to be helped onto the stage in Europe, which is very sad to me. Is there any update on John's condition? Please pray for him. We all love John.

From an interview with Stevie a few months back which was published this month in Mojo magazine:

The big Fleetwood Mac news is that Christine McVie is back. How involved has she been?
She’s just re-emerged to do one song. It could have been a few songs, but Lindsey’s very funny about that. Chris left in 1998 and we didn’t start Say You Will until 2002. It took us that long to figure out what the hell we were going to do without her or even if we could do without her.

Lindsey seems almost cross about Christine’s return. He said she’d “burned her bridges”, and asked MOJO not to use a line-up shot including Christine on the cover of our issue about the making of Rumours…
I think his words to us were, “She can’t just come and go.” That’s important to him, but it’s not quite so important to me. Chris is coming to Dublin when we go into production rehearsal, and she’s going to come on and do Don’t Stop the second two nights in London. Much as Lindsey adores her and he does; she’s the only one in Fleetwood Mac he was ever really willing to listen to he doesn’t want the first night reviews to be all about Christine’s one song, rather than the set we rehearsed for two months. But it will be wonderful to have her back up there, and from there, who knows?

Every other year? I WISH that were true.:lol:

Well for Stevie's case, in the 80s anyway haha :lol:

I really wanna stress again I mean no disrespect for either Lindsey or Stevie honestly because their both amazing, it's just their attitude towards the band that gets to me. To each their own I guess.

I deleted my last post. I reread it and I was really harsh on LB. I didn't want to ruffle any feathers, I hate conflict :/

I can totally seeing LB not wanting her up there. He IS a prima donna, and always has been.

You were harsh on LB. I was waiting for Elle to arrive with her coat of armor.:lol:

I doubt Lindsey wanted to keep her off the stage because he'd talked about her coming up and doing something months before they ever got to London. As soon as he was questioned about the dinner in Los Angeles he said she could come up and do a song. At the time, I fervently hoped that her involvement would not be limited to just one (or even 2 songs). I was disappointed in that hope, but he always seemed to expect her to perform. Stevie has just let everyone know he is the reason that the longed for performance was limited to just Don't Stop.

As for her returning from what can be gathered by the comments out there, he'd be up for her returning if she did it on record and on stage, for reasons that I don't understand.

Michele

That he is. When I saw them at the Wells Fargo center back in April the minute he stepped on stage it was like the Lindsey show. I guess it's something he can't control. Fame does that to some people, but that doesn't mean he's a bad guy off stage and out of the public eye.

Wouldn't want that :lol: Like I said above, I shouldn't judge him just by his stage persona. Out of the spotlight he's probably a swell guy. I mean, he is what he is...a family man! (Sorry couldn't resist that one :p )



What just strikes me as odd is the fact that John, Mick, and Stevie have been wanting her to return since she retired but Lindsey is supposedly opposed. Why? I mean they always worked so well together in their collaborations, why wouldn't he want more of that? Then again the media is prone to take statements out of context and twist them for their own wicked ways. and Michele I'm in the same boat as you. We should be blessed though in the fact that Chris is writing again, maybe that'll turn into something with the band. Kinda like the events with the band on LB's project that eventually ignited The Dance :lol:

I can kind of understand that but either way the fact that Christine was to join them on the stage then would've overshadowed the performance in the reviews one way or another. Its just the way those sort of things play out. :shrug:

I don't think anyone said he was opposed to her returning. Well, when they started doing the SYW promotion he was saying that if she wanted to come back now, he wouldn't know what the answer would be, but before they recorded SYW without her, I think he wanted her in the band and was miffed that she didn't relent and come back. I think the assumption was that although she SAID she was done in 1998 that if they gave her enough time she would change her mind. So, when they started recording SYW if she had returned then, that's what he wanted, but then she still wouldn't tour and I don't think he took it well.

I don't think John did either. I think that both John and Lindsey were upset at the time. Christine never said this, but she did say when she promoted Meantime that she was in touch with Stevie and Mick and that some of them were a little angry about her decision to leave and to stay away. I concluded that the two who were angry were not Mick and not Stevie.

Right. The prodigal son is always going to get more attention than the son who stayed. As you said, that's the way these things play out, because that's what makes an exciting narrative. So, the first night the paper didn't talk about Christine and they figured that the first night is the one that all the media would review, not the next two. Yes, I found it extremely disheartening because they had this looooong tour and who cared what the reviews said for ONE night of that tour. It disturbs me that Lindsey cared.

I also remember Lindsey's return during the Behind The Mask tour. He performed on Landslide, GYOW and he also came out on Tear it Up. Plus, he came out for the group bow both nights. So, I wanted to have at least that much of Christine. Michele

I guess I can see your point there Michele. I would be upset if I were in the same situation BUT at the same time I would welcome that person back no matter how much time has passed. That's just me though. The fact that Chris is getting back out there now and writing again gives me the warm fuzzies. Maybe it could lead to a full reunion or maybe just another solo stint. Only time can tell though.



He just loves being in the spotlight I think is all. It's always been that way. And it probably will always be like that. He probably doesn't mean any harm, just loves being in the limelight. Oh well

I don't think it's a question of welcoming her back. If she wanted to come back full stop, it seems like everyone is on board. I think it's a question of insisting that she has to tour, if she wants to record and not be willing to have her do one or the other and not both. That's what it sounded like in their SYW statements and Stevie recently saying that Lindsey said she "can't just come and go" suggests she could come, if she is going to STAY.

This attitude makes little sense to me, because If he enjoys his stage time in the quartet, then having Christine on record (an album that he wouldn't get if she is not on the next album with FM anyway, since Stevie is not interested) and just Stevie on stage would work out swell for him. But having Christine on the record and on a tour as well would reduce the number of songs he would perform on stage. But it wouldn't reduce his guitar solos necessarily because he always had those with Christine there (the never-ending Not That Funny and a shorter ISA too) and she always had Songbird as the close. She said the guys in the band talked her into that.

It seems to be something different than that, because by not having the five of them on the cover of Mojo, the result was that only Mick and Stevie were on the cover and Lindsey was not on the cover himself. So, I'm not sure what he's aiming for, but I hope that John's emergency will bring everyone together in private and for public purposes as they reach the twilight of their careers.

Michele

Point well taken. So if I understand you correctly, there is no future FM album without Chris? And as far as Lindsey having less songs on a potential future album why should that matter? That's what he has a solo career for. Same goes for Stevie. They can just release the creative energy that they couldn't fit on a FM album on their own albums. A FM album, especially with Christine should be a collaborative effort like they had in the pre Tusk days. Not trotting out basically recycled solo attempted songs branded with the FM name which essentially SYW was. If there is another Fleetwood Mac album, it might be a last considering the situation at this time. But maybe I could be wrong. If John pulls through (which he will, I deeply believe it) and Mick's constant ambition to keep FM afloat, they could be up there with the Rolling Stones, who are most likely gonna keep touring and making albums into their mid 80s.



I would hope that John is their primary concern right now. It probably means the world to him that his bandmates are by his side. And I agree with you, maybe John's situation will finally end all the rancor and bring everyone back together. We can only hope for John's speedy recovery. He will pull through, he's a fighter!

Well, there could be a future FM album without Christine, but Lindsey has been saying he wants one for almost 10 years now and it hasn't gotten him anywhere, because Stevie isn't interested. I'm just saying that if Chris was on board, Stevie would change her mind -- and if she didn't. Chris, John, Mick and Lindsey could do the album without her, since they have her on a few songs already anyway. But that would be moot, because you know if Christine was recording for FM, Stevie would want to record with her.

Also, if Lindsey wants exposure for his songs, then the publicity that Christine returning after 16 years would bring to the album is something that could only benefit his exposure, to my way of thinking.

Yes, I agree with you, if everyone is ok, I don't see why they couldn't perform for at least another 5 years. And I was thinking that John could sit and play bass. There's no shame in that. After his spinal tap, Lindsey did have a chair on stage, although he didn't stay in it a lot. Also, I'm not sure but I seem to remember Lindsey sitting down when he and John did Songbird with Christine. John can sit if that makes things easier.

Rolling Stones, McCartney and all of our rock veterans, we just want as much more as they have to give us. Bob Welch's passing should have made them take stock, but maybe it didn't. I hope this John scare puts everything in perspective regarding egos.

Michele

They both sat side by side on the large [amp?] that Mick's drums rested on in my vision of this memory.

Anything with Christine these days would be a godsend. And yeah if Christine is doing anything with the band Stevie will definitely be there. Two peas in a pod.

Very much agreed. Lindsey would have a field day with a) the press and b) the exposure!

That would be an ideal situation honestly. This way there would be no discomfort with John. We just have to hope that his treatment doesn't affect his playing abilities...that would be a real shame because cancer treatments can really weaken a person and the more advanced the worse it gets.

And I agree with you 100%, those rock veterans are the last ounce of good music we have. Most of them have been able to establish fanbases in my generation (I'm 22), but its the younger generations they still have to reach, or they'll be stuck withy the pop trash garbage that's plaguing this day and age. That's why we still need them around to spread the seeds of musical enlightenment.

I think in a lot of ways Bob's passing did impact them in a big way just none of them went really public about it. But with John's scare I'm sure it will even them out since it's hitting so close to home.

Heaven forbid we end up stuck with the Katy Perry's of this world and have to sit around hearing them roar.

Well, Christine's sure been in the public eye a lot lately, and apparently travelled with them in Europe, so maybe both affected her.

Or the bat**** crazy Miley Cyruses who have to watch them "twerking" their boney asses.

ENOUGH with that!

True, it was hard to believe the video of Christine in Hawaii. I do wonder if the deaths of 3 Fleetwood Mac members, including Bob Welch with whom she'd worked with so extensively, helped accelerate a transition that she'd probably been trying to make for quite some time now.

Michele

One could take that into account. Maybe she felt homesick for her pretty much adopted family, realizing she should be close to them in these golden years rather than being somewhat estranged. As sad a thing as it is, death often brings people closer together.

No, don't do that. I don't want to miss what's said.

To sum it up I basically said LB is really arrogant and how he burned his fair share of bridges in the past and he's came and went in the band plenty of times. The only reason I deleted it though is because I sounded like a class A bitch ahaha

I don't think Lindsey was wrong for wanting to limit Christine's involvement with the shows. The fact is she's not in the band, at least for the time being. This is THEIR tour, and having the biggest moment of the night be somebody who's no longer in the band steal the rest of the show seems to diminish all of their hard work. So, I totally get where he's coming from on that. Creatively, Lindsey probably has the most invested in Fleetwood Mac's live shows these days.

My guess is that if Christine said in Dublin, "Hey, I want to rejoin the band, touring and all..," they would have found a way to accommodate her. I'm not sure how, but it could have happened. But, that apparently was not the case, which makes some sense. If she decided that the road was still not for her, she could have gone home at any time, no questions asked. I think not being in the band gave her an out. However, she's taken some rather large baby steps in the past year, and it appears that she wants back in. She was afraid of flying, and she flew from England to Hawaii. She didn't like touring, yet she stayed with them throughout Europe, at least from what's been said. I don't know how much of John's situation factored into her staying with them, but she still proved she COULD do it again. My speculation is that if John's health is up to it, Christine's back in the band.

The thing I don’t get is how people think that Lindsey doesn’t want Christine back in the band because he’d have to give up the extra time he has for his songs in concert because she's NOT in the band, but that the only way he’d want her back in the band is if she recorded AND toured with them. That doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. MY *theory* is that he’d be fine with her taking the Brian Wilson route, and would even be up for her making cameos at selected shows, so long as she was still *actually* in the band.

I don't think the band would generally be ok with her making cameos at selected shows, because they aren't happy with variety.

I think what Lindsey SHOULD want is Christine to record and not tour with him, I mean, if he really likes the way the stage show is going now with the 4 of them. That's what he SHOULD want. Who knows what he actually does want. I know after Hawaii he was saying she was never coming back, but I don't think that can be said with any certainty now, so I'd like to hear him interviewed on the subject, with me in the wings, waiting to run in and box his ears, if necessary.

Michele

THAT'S my issue with them.

However, if they planned ahead, it could work.

Well, as of today, I'm sure he'd say all is on hold until they know more about JM's situation...

But what would be the point in recording with them and not touring to promote her songs? I think that would kinda hurt the band in album sales and shows. People would be expecting christine on stage with them. It would be very misleading. It would be like the "Time" era sans the radical lineup changes and Dave Mason. In laymans terms there would essentially be no point in Chris recording with them if she's not gonna tour. It'd be a waste of time on both ends. Unless they just do an album with her and not tour. But what's the sense of that? I personally think we should stop speculating and just let things happen naturally because I think the more we speculate, the more they're gonna keep us in the agony of waiting. Remember, big brother mac is watching :lol: and besides we have the situation with John and I think that's the most important thing on all their minds right now...I would hope.

^ [b]EXACTLY[\b]

I disagree. The "Time" band did all but one show prior to the release of "Time" and there was really no promotion for that album. An album with the classic five would come with a lot of press, and it would constantly be noted that Chris wasn't going to be on the road with them.

Definitely not the case in 1994. Hell, I remember getting tickets to see Crosby, Stills, & Nash for my birthday and then hearing that Fleetwood Mac had a show the same day. Now, I assumed that Christine was out (given that call to Carl's office) and had heard that Bekka and Dave were in the band. To my shock, they were CSN's opening act, which made everything right in my world at that moment. (I did NOT know that Billy was back, and was happy to see him back.)

So, we've talked about Christine's return with the current Fleetwood Mac AND the "Time" band all in a thread about Bob Welch...That's a big ol' didja.

{sigh} Again. There shouldn't have BEEN anything misleading. TECHNICALLY, the Time-lineup never toured. The band that had been on the road for the 10-12 months PRIOR to the release of the album toured WITHOUT doing an album (or actually, toured without RELEASING an album since there was an album done, albeit rejected by WB).

There were no LIVE CONCERTS by Fleetwood Mac on the heels of the album's release. The subsequent live show by Fleetwood Mac after the release of the Time album were the shows that became The Dance and there certainly was nothing misleading about the lineup of THOSE shows.


EDIT: Well, once again the Steve's are riding the same wavelength! :lol:

That's what they said after SYW and I don't agree with that position. If she wants to tour fine, but if she doesn't, she should be able to record and not tour. It made no sense to say that she couldn't record songs on SYW because she didn't plan on touring. At this point in their career, they are not going to have some gigantic hit that people will be devastated not to hear in concert. Maybe people were hoping to hear Everywhere in London and they were disappointed in that hope, but it didn't hurt the live show, so the argument that she has to tour if she records is stupid.

Do I want her to tour? Sure. What I'm saying is that if Lindsey actually wants to hog the stage like some people assume he does, then HE would want her to record and not tour. But that's not what he appears to want.

Michele

I suppose you're right. After all we do live in an age controlled by the media. I don't know I guess I'm just traditional where a band records an album and they all tour together. I guess all we can do is wait and see.

I feel like we're going in circles here Michele. Wouldst thou not agree?

While I think most understand that, I don't think they did at the time. It's not like any album they've ever done with the five of them has ever bombed. Even "Tusk" did well for a double album, and especially well by today's standards in terms of sales, and has a high regard with today's musicians. So, I could see where they'd think Chris had to tour.

The reality, as we all know, is ridiculous. In fact, it's almost better that they don't have hits at this point. Pop radio sucks these days. Hell, I'd kill for another Ambrosia, far less what this slate of crap is giving us. Twerking??? REALLY??? Hell, I miss the days when Madonna was sticking a whip up some black guy's ass in a picture book. Sorry, Miley. Waving your boney ass in front of Alan Thicke's son doesn't really shock me all that much. I expect whorier my pop stars.

Sorry for that tangent.

SteveMacD...you don't know how bad I want to hug you for saying that! :nod: Tangent very much forgiven. But you gotta admit, that's why we need bands like FM to produce more hits today. For the very reason that pop music...hell pop culture in general is absolute ****. They need to put those so called "artists" like Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber in their place. Just because you're daddy had a one hit wonder and was able to give you a leg up in your career in the industry or you were a youtube sensation, doesn't make you in any rite talented. They're too reliant on their image rather than on the music (that they don't write themselves) they put out. What they don't realize is that they're just pawns in some mass corporate record company's marketing ploy. They're famous now but once the record companies get bored with them, they'll be nothing but dust in the wind which will probably be in a few years no doubt. Younger generations need to be exposed to music like Fleetwood Mac to save themselves from the agony of the "hot new acts" that emerge every other day. Music is dying by the hand of pop trash and hipster driven **** music and that's why we need a new Mac album to bring music back to life. Music by people who actually worked hard to write and perform the songs they've written. Not something pre-recorded and written by a suit.

Now...sorry about my tangent!:p

John?
 

What do you know about John's health? Do you think he will be well enough to come back? What has anybody heard about what kind of cancer he has? Love to John!

You probably have more ins than us, but we all are praying for the best.

I agree. But then again, I like artists like Guided by Voices, Richard Thompson, and Wilco, all indie (i.e. sub-500K) and who have amazing catalogues, but nothing that was a hit.

I can agree with you on those 3 examples, throw in The Breeders, Pixies, Ivy, and Yeah Yeah Yeahs and we have a deal. I personally think though that there's a fine line between indie bands and hipster noisy nonsense (by that I mean all those different bands who look and sound the same who all play the same songs that just drone on and mesh together) with the beards and the plaid shirts (Not that I'm knocking plaid because I own a few myself but I don't wear it as a statement to define my music.), they're two totally different genres if you will. I'm all for indie bands, just not the hipster nonsense. If that makes any sense:lol:

We're all wishing the best for him. He's a fighter so I'm sure he'll be well enough to return, especially if it was caught early enough, which it seems like it was. I hope he finds solace in the fact that all of his fans are wishing and praying for him to get well soon and that we send our love!