Filler songs...
 

Which songs do you guys think seem like filler, that could have been cut or replaced by a better song

Fleetwood Mac:

Sugar Daddy

Rumours:

I don't want to know

Oh Daddy

Tusk:

Well Tusk could have been cut down to 12 tracks. All there writers have good tracks on this album? Lindsey and Christine have the fillers though. All of Stevie's songs on Tusk are great.

Mirage:

Can't go Back

Oh Diane

Wish You Were Here

Tango In The Night:

Actually, there is no filler on this album, IMO. When I See You Again could have been better though.

You must only be a Stevie fan because you are only throwing out Christine and Lindsey songs :eek: Just teasing you ;)

I don't think there are any filler songs or "padding" on Fleetwood Mac, Rumours, Tusk or Mirage. I LOVE Sugar Daddy. It has a pre-Stevie and Lindsey sound to it. I also LOVE Wish you were here from Mirage.

I would not call these fillers but on Tango Welcome to the Room Sara and When I see you again are just plain horrible. Stevie hardly spent anytime on the record and she threw Mac these demos when she was still on the RAL tour. You can tell not much time went into these songs with writing or music. They are not great vocally either. But even though they are not favorites of mine, I would never call them "filler." The Mac and especially Christine and Lindsey are such music professionals they would never put filler on any record. Filler songs are from the 60's and 70's when singles sold and there was pressure to do an album and the albums were horrible. The Mac always made albums and were not part of that pop culture.
I like to use Christine's phrase better. She uses "padding" to describe songs on albums that are just thrown on to take up space.

Christine and Lindsey... never. But Stevie definitely had "padding" on some of her 80's albums. They were not written by her and brought to her to sing. Fire Burning is a good example. Unconditional Love is another. Blue eyes yet another. Those songs have no passion and are not signature Stevie songs. Definitely padding IMHO.

I Mystified isn't filler I don't know what is.

I don't see any filler on Fleetwood Mac or Rumours or Tusk. There may be songs some people don't like, but all of them are genuine and in some way innovative. For example, I usually don't like to listen to The Ledge, That's All for Everyine, and What Makes You Think You're the One...but all three of them are strong statements of Lindsey's musical direction. I'm not crazy about Never Make Me Cry, but it's a solid Christine tune.

I love Sugar Daddy and Warm Ways and Oh Daddy. The albums they appear on would be much poorer without their inclusion.

But Mirage and Tango have filler tunes (IMO): Empire State, Oh Diane (hit or no hit), and That's Alright. The last of these is a great tune and especially impressive in demo form, but the band just can't seem to commit to it on record, and Stevie sounds a bit bored. It's a shame, because it could have been a highlight.

The filler on Tango: Family Man (but with a killer flamenco guitar) and both Stevie-penned tunes.

After this, the albums are hit and miss.

I admire Say You Will and feel that it's the band's best studio album since Tusk. The filler tunes there are, as with Tusk, necessary insofar as they further an aesthetic and place the standout tracks in an interesting context. The album sags a bit in the middle, but I still really admire the effort.

Mystified is the holy goodmother of all filler songs in the universe!
Sugar Daddy is a great song, one of my favorites.

I'm sorry but I had to come back and post this. Oh Daddy filler? Oh my. Its one of the best songs on Rumours.

Just listen to this stripped down version with no singing... just the music. Its a mystical masterpiece. And the meaning of those lyrics add to the song too. But just the music is magical. Pure magic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfc3y0G511Y

It's a matter of personal taste, I know, however I think that Mystified is a beautiful track. Is it genius? No way. But, Christine's voice is stunning on the track and the final minute with the four musicians playing is heavily. Lindsey's guitar effects are stunning. A very mellow track...a great listen for late at night.

I have never understood the dislike towards "Oh Daddy". It is a hauntingly beautiful song...one of Christine's best. The way it segues into Gold Dust Woman helps make the brilliant conclusion of the Rumours album.

Fleetwood Mac:
Sugar Daddy
Rumours:
Oh Daddy
Tusk:
That's All For Everyone
Live:
Over & Over
Mirage:
Book of Love
Tango:
Family Man
BTM:
When It Comes to Love
Time:
I Got It In For You
The Dance:
You Make Loving Fun
Say You Will:
Red Rover
Extended Play:
It Takes Time

This is exactly how I feel about this tune. Also, Lindsey nails these parts on Only Over You, as well.

Wholeheartedly agreed. Not only would Rumours be poorer without its inclusion, it stands as one of the best pieces of instrumentation and singing on the record. It's an iconic song, too--as entrenched in the popular psyche as Rhiannon, though in a different way.

Wow because I absolutely LOVE Mystified. Those harmonies blow me away. Also how could "I don't wanna Know" be on anyone's list???????? It's amazing.

Agreed! I love it, so much. Definitely not a filler song. I love how most FM fans appreciate that song, even though not many people know it! Lets remember that not liking a song is different from it being a filler.

For example, I can't stand Big Love (yeah yeah, its a musical masterpiece I know but bear with me here), but its definitely not a filler despite my personal opinion.

Now I Don't Want To Know on the other hand, wasn't it technically the definition of a filler? Like to fill in for Silver Springs? Correct me if I'm wrong there though.

Filler Song:
Angel
Straight Back
When I See You Again
Welcome to the Room Sara
You and I
Warm Ways
Book of Love

Its funny because one person's filler is another person's favorite song and vice versa :)
Somebody better not say Songbird is filler :eek:

For me, the only albums that do not have filler tracks are Fleetwood Mac and Rumours. Bare Trees comes pretty close. I wasn't a fan of Mrs Scarott's "Thoughts of a Grey Day."

There are a few that don't like it. :distress:

lol. yeah. looks like many people are answering the question "songs i don't like" not "what is the filler".

No Christine song is filler. Not a single one.

I used to think Honey Hi was. Then I took vocal jazz and vocal harmony and realized what a gem it really is. All three of them shine so brightly on this. Christine really nailed it with simplicity and yet it's not simple to do what they are doing.

Amen. She has peaks and valleys but all of her songs seem deliberate and earnest in their intention.

I don't like Morning Rain, but it ain't filler, it just has a bad vocal (unlike the earlier BBC broadcast version).

I can't stand All Over Again from Time and Skies the Limit from Mask. But it's clear she herself saw them as featured tracks. Just not very good ones.

The arrangements could make these songs so good. But, the arrangement and her keyboard voice choices make my ears bleed. She went from warm, elegant soft rock to a casio.

I don't think FM approaches any song as possible filler. They want every song to be great. Some maybe don't turn out that way but to label them filler is wrong.
It's funny most of the "filler" songs quoted are my favorites. "That's all for Everyone" for example. it's genius in my eyes.

"I Don't Wanna Know" immediately comes to mind. Yes I know that you can argue that if you didn't know the whole history with "Silver Springs" you wouldn't find it filler, but ... I think I would anyway. It's a nice song but feels out of place with the rest of the album, except possibly "Second Hand News". But Stevie needed a third addition so on it went. I tend to like to listen to it with tracks from the white album instead.

To me there is nothing filler at all about "That's Alright" or "Oh Daddy". I don't think Tusk has filler songs, it's not like there was any empty space that was crying out to be filled.

"Mystified" (though I don't dislike it) and "You and I Pt 2" certainly seem like lightweight compositions to me. "Oh Diane" is filler, even though I am not among its haters.

There is no accounting for one's idiosyncratic tastes. I like all of those songs! I don't consider them as filler in any sense. Just because they don't meet a subjective standard doesn't mean they are taking the space of better songs.

Tusk was born out a deliberate artistic statement Lindsey wanted to make. Watered down to a standard 12 track album, it wouldn't have distinct allure which many have come to appreciate over time. Not every song on an album has to achieve universal appeal.

Tusk reminds me of the Beatles' White album -- a double album in which each member had their own specific moments. It's a eclectic group of songs -- not all them great, but as part of the greater whole, they amount to a very unique, distinctive album.

Where can I find the BBC broadcast version?

I Don't believe in " Filler Songs" at all. These are just the songs that aren't the most popular with the fans. I Don't Want to Know from Rumours is what got me into the MAC in 1976. To this day it's still one of my all time favorite tunes.

AMEN to IDWTK. Such a great poppy song. And the first guitar solo I ever learned to play. I wish Stevie didn't hate it.