Seven Wonders (Early Version)
 

Just downloaded this from iTunes. I love the "Rock A Little" singing she does after the point where the original fades out. Very interesting to listen to but it will never come close to the brilliance of the original for me.

Oh thanks, I was about to post about it.
If someone wants to listen to it without buying you can do it here on Soundcloud, you just have to use an extension like Hola who lets you access to site from other countries and select "Spain": http://www.rtve.es/noticias/20170216.../1491290.shtml

Me too! It's a bit less sophisticated than the final version, isn't it?

I still can't work out what she's singing in the bridge, even though it's a bit clearer - it sound like 'carer'... or even 'Karen'!

I know, I've listened a few times now and like you said it's much clearer but I can't decipher that word either. I used to think it was "Sara" though I can't hear an S.

Finally
 

Fleetwood Mac – hear an unreleased version of Seven Wonders
We’ve got an early version of one of the standouts from Tango in the Night for you. Have a listen and let us know what you think

Fleetwood Mac have spent the past few years reissuing their peerless back catalogue in the obligatory remastered, expanded, deluxe editions. Last year brought us the 1982 album Mirage, which somehow managed to make an album already slathered in cocaine sound even more cokey, all sheen and shine.

Next up is Tango in the Night, coming out on Warner on 10 March, and we’ve got this early, unreleased version of the Stevie Nicks track Seven Wonders for you. It’s longer but also a little harsher than the album version, drawing out the fatalism of the chorus and de-emphasising the keyboard hook.

Tango in the Night came out five years after Mirage, and had originally been planned as a Lindsey Buckingham solo record – Nicks spent only two weeks in the studio with the band because she was concentrating on her solo career. Be thankful that it became a full-band record, because the album became defined not by his songs but by the contributions of the other writers; without the two singles from Christine McVie – Everywhere and Little Lies – it would be a very different record. While many Mac fans might have their favourite writer in the group, it takes all three of Buckingham, Nicks and McVie to balance the group. It was noticeable how different the shows with McVie back in the band were to those when the group was performing only the Buckingham and Nicks songs; it was if her songs were the bridge between Nicks’s airy proto-gothiness and Buckingham’s barely suppressed rage.

That balance is what makes Tango in the Night so great. For all that the music is of a piece – sophisticated, slick, without ever being over-complicated – it manages to shift through moods effortlessly. Buckingham is on edge throughout and has explained that Big Love, his single from the album, gets misinterpreted: when he sings that he is “looking out for love”, he doesn’t mean he is looking for love, he is putting himself on guard for it. In the title track, he’s restless, discomfited (“Try to sleep, sleep won’t come”); Caroline upbraids a woman who is crazy and lazy; Family Man seems to be a hymn to domestic stability, but even then he can’t help observing that “the road gets tough”.

McVie’s songs appear much more straightforward. Everywhere is a simple, gorgeous statement of love; Little Lies its counterpart, the realisation that the feelings of Everywhere depend on self-deception. Nicks’s are neither straightforward, nor angry: Welcome to the Room … Sara was written after treatment at the Betty Ford clinic, and uncertainty echoes throughout her contributions (“If I see you again / Will it be the same?” she asks on When I See You Again. “If I see you again / Will it be over?”), and Seven Wonders exemplifies that, with Nicks confronting the notion that even living to see the seven wonders will never match what she has lost.

Have a listen: https://www.theguardian.com/music/mu...-seven-wonders

Only available in the U.K. Wtf?

Try this one

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/ne...uttake-w467411

My god, that sounds atrocious. The last minute or so sounds decent but the rest of it is really plodding and clunky. I don't know whether it is but it sounds so much slower than the final version. Good job Lindsey polished this up into something so much better.

You're right about the slower tempo, but other than that I think I prefer this version. Musically I like the more subdued keyboards, and the vocals at the end are great!

I actually like this version a lot. I don't mind that it's a bit slower, although certainly the rhythm track needed to be seriously beefed up. Most of all I like that the keyboards are toned down, lending more emphasis to Stevie's vocals, which are some of her only excellent latter-day work. As much as I love the original, the keyboards were overwhelming (and too synthetic).

I honestly think that this is the same vocal take as the album version but with all Lindsey's production taken off. Certain moments are identical. I mean that part where she makes a noise rather than singing before the 2nd chorus is the same as the album take - "wweeeellll ablab I'm sorry but...".

Maybe the album version is multiple versions shoved together?

Yes, it's very likely.

Isn't Seven Wonders the song that she supposedly only did one or two takes of? I can't remember. Anyway, yes, it does sound the same.

I got all excited for nothing :(
Yes it is the same vocal track as the album. Its probably just the original cut before all the fancy production and add ons. Big deal
I wish the group worked together more during this time and there were real lost demos of songs we never heard. I dont see this "new revealation" as being that different than what is on the album. Really grasping at straws to find something "new" about Tango.

You really aren't fussed about TITN are you?

It is absolutely the same vocal.

Hmmm.... does this answer the ongoing Tara/Sara/Aaron mystery?

Definitely not "sara" and sure doesn't sound like "aaron" to me.....

Don't hear any "T" like tara....

only hear the first vowel..... Ara.....

the mystery continues.....:shrug:

On the other hand it does sound like she calls it the "rainbow's edge"

sorry, didn't see your comment first time through. Agreed! The mystery continues.

I remember reading a music critic saying he heard "certain" once.

I thought it was "never" (pronounced as "nev-uh"). Repeated from the line "I'll never see that beauty again."

hmmm... have you listened this early version? I'm curious if you hear nevuh in there.

Whatever she's saying starts with a vowel sound (a) so.......maybe it's Aaron after all......:shrug:

I have, and one of them does sound like "never" to me. Maybe the others are "ever"? Like never ever?

Could it be Hera?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hera

At the end she is definitely saying "rainbow's edge."

I like this version a lot. It sounds like the same vocal from the album version but more raw. It's stripped down instead of overpoweringly 80s.:nod:

I had to listen to the released version back to back with this one. The tempo on the released one is faster, and it sounds like her vocal is sped up to go with the slightly faster tempo. (Maybe they couldn't get her in to do another take, or maybe they did but none were as good as this one?)

Exhausting.

As far as tempo goes, you can see here the comparison of the two versions. The top line is the original album release, it's from about 17 seconds to 27 seconds into the song.

I love the extended ending with Stevie's additional vocals and the chours with Buckingham/McVie's voices more prominent.

if i'm reading it right it looks like it starts out same but starts going out of synch the more it goes along

I definitely hear "Aaron" and "rainbow's edge." And "Ara" is pretty darn close to "Aaron."

In the second chorus, it sounds like Stevie would have sung "rainbow's edge" again, but "edge" was clearly edited out (1:47). I only hear Lindsey and Christine singing at that point.

Here's the "hidden" link to the "Seven Wonders" Soundcloud page. It looks like Rhino posted it two days ago.

That's exactly right. I lined up the very first drumbeat at the same spot and as you can see it's quite quickly out of sync.

The more laid back take on it almost makes me think this is the sound they would've gone with if they'd have done the song with Lindsey on tour in '88 or for The Dance in '97.

Just a little bit slower and more emphasis on guitar and vocals.

Stevie is definitely singing "Aaron", which I believe was the original title of the song, as written by Sandy Stewart. The "additional lyrics" credit is undoubtedly due to Stevie's ad-libbing throughout and probably also in recognition of the song title being changed.

This Unreleased Version of Fleetwood Mac's 'Seven Wonders' Is Better Than the Original
Listen to a stunning Stevie Nicks vocal performance.

While most styles of music come and go, Fleetwood Mac always feels somewhat relevant no matter the year. Recently, though, as the '80s have made their way back on the big wheel of trends, Fleetwood Mac's most inconsistent era is more influential than ever. (Just look at recent albums from Taylor Swift, Haim, and Tegan and Sara.) Which makes it the perfect time for the band to release the 30th anniversary edition of Tango in the Night. The album itself might have been hit-and-miss, but what's exciting about this reissue is it comes with unheard recordings, including alternate takes of "Mystified" and "Seven Wonders" and a demo of "Tango in the Night."

Normally, these alternate versions of songs aren't anything to be too excited about. But Fleetwood Mac is different. With each anniversary release, Fleetwood Mac includes plenty of demos and alternate tracks of every song on the album. The Super Deluxe version of Rumours had early, stripped-down versions of the songs from their seminal album. Take the version of "Second Hand News," for example: Without any of the production, it really just shows off Lindsey Buckingham's songwriting ability.

Today, the band shared an early, unheard version of "Seven Wonders" that accomplishes much of the same. Without the production, this take on the song cuts out those bongos and that dorky synth hook. It's still a glossy Fleetwood Mac pop song, but feels more raw and subsequently more timeless. More importantly without the studio mess, Stevie Nicks' vocals carry the song, which should always be the case.

Compare that to the original version below:


http://www.esquire.com/entertainment...-in-the-night/

I did not know what you meant until I googled the meaning of "fussed." In the states we have a different meaning. To make a "fuss" means to make a big deal. Your context is to be excited?
Tango is probably my least favorite Mac album but I love the re-releases to give the band the credit they deserve. The point I was making that I read so many making a "fuss" about this Seven Wonders demo. Every online page had some article "The unleased/demo of Seven Wonders is so much better than the original or album version."
I don't see they are much different. The vocal track is the same and its just a stripped down version of the song.
IMHO
Too much fuss ;)

Sandy's original lyric:

"You touched my hand, all the way all the way down you held the line"

Stevie sang:

"You touched my hand, all the way, all the way down to Emmiline"

That's the only reason she got a writing credit.

i thought it was nearer ....... Near-rah

I agree. They aren't radically different. To fans who grew up with the remixes, the music on the early version is familiar. Lindsey's solo which is in the background of this mix is called out on the Seven Wonders dub version.

Sorry, I need to be more aware of my British colloquialisms. Yes, I recall from previous posts you don't tend to hold Tango in particularly high esteem and I think that came across in your assessment of the Seven Wonders outtake. For me TITN is the album that got me into the band and for that matter it will always be my favourite. I've been so excited about the deluxe releases so far. Though I love TITN so much it is without a doubt the one deluxe release that has excited me the most- for several reasons. I'm sure I'll get it but I havent bothered to order it yet.
I too seem to be in the minority and cannot see the big fuss over the early Seven Wonders version. I don't dislike it but I personally much prefer the polished version with all the extra synth hooks- they made the song so...catchy.

Interesting the final version is slightly sped up, hence the slightly higher pitched Stevie vocals.

I think he did the same thing with Everywhere and Isn't It Midnight too, Christine's voice sounds higher than usual.