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dougl 08-02-2022 08:08 AM

Little Lies 35 Years Ago
 
https://ultimateclassicrock.com/flee...c-little-lies/

Villavic 08-02-2022 08:59 AM

Interesting article, though I'm not convinced about:
At the same time, however, no one seemed content to allow Mirage to be Fleetwood Mac's final album. As Buckingham told Creem, "it left a lot of things dangling."

No one? As i remember Tango was born because they wanted to help Mick, who was broke. Not because they longed to make another album.

Probably Lindsey did say that (does anybody know when was Creem interview?), but I'm not convinced he was sincere. He probably said so to convey a positive context.

Cause Mick said in his first book that "Lindsey Buckingham alone was fairly reticent about Fleetwood Mac. He was enjoying his hard-won independence and deep into his own album with Richard Dashut...
He was under some strain with this project, and lost his patience occasionally...
."

Anyway Tango give us some cool songs and LL is one of the best in that album.

bwboy 08-02-2022 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Villavic (Post 1276661)
Interesting article, though I'm not convinced about:
At the same time, however, no one seemed content to allow Mirage to be Fleetwood Mac's final album. As Buckingham told Creem, "it left a lot of things dangling."

No one? As i remember Tango was born because they wanted to help Mick, who was broke. Not because they longed to make another album.

Probably Lindsey did say that (does anybody know when was Creem interview?), but I'm not convinced he was sincere. He probably said so to convey a positive context.

I think the article was interesting and pretty accurate. I’m certain Lindsey and Christine both at some point have said that they didn’t want Mirage to be their last work together as FM. Christine could hardly say many positive things about it when it was reissued. I don’t think she dislikes Mirage, just that it’s not the album they wanted to go out on.

Also, this idea that FM reconvened to help Mick because he was broke? I don’t buy it. Sure, it was a fringe benefit, but I am quite certain he never asked the band to record Tango to help his finances. Likewise, the rest of the band didn’t come together on their own because of Mick’s financial problems. I believe 100% that Christine was working on Can’t Help Falling in Love and eventually Lindsey, Mick, and John got involved, and they had a good enough time working together that they decided to do another album. As a result of making Tango, Mick got back on his feet again, and they all made a lot of money, but no way did they do it to help Mick.

Clearly during the making of Tango, Lindsey had a change of heart and decided Tango would be his swan song from the band, and I definitely believe he and Christine think Tango was a stronger album to go out on, both in terms of sales and material. As much as I love certain songs on Mirage, none of those songs have the strength of Little Lies, Isn’t It Midnight, Big Love, or Everywhere.

Macfan4life 08-02-2022 02:11 PM

They may be quoting Lindsey from the 1982 Creem magazine interview where the entire band was interviewed except Stevie (she also did not participate in the 1982 Rolling Stone "Happy At The Top" interview on the advice of her manager.
Lindsey said all kinds of wild stuff in 1982. He also spoke of the future and how he will never tour after the age of 40 :lol: He's pushing mid 70s and still touring :lol: Fleetwood Mac was on the cover of Creem magazine in 1982 and a fancy Mirage cover shoot.

I think the article is accurate. Little Lies is one of those songs that you know is a hit the first time you hear it. So much that it kicked off the second side of Tango. In the late 80s this is usually where record companies put their lead off single. But Stevie was upset about her lack of appearance on the album and put Seven Wonders ahead of Little Lies in the singles department. Seven Wonders did not chart spectacularly in the USA and tanked in the UK after the success of Big Love. Here comes Christine rescuing Tango with her monster international hits Little Lies and Everywhere.
It was the Mac's last top 10 hit and was sort of an end to an era. I saw the band in early October 1987 as Little Lies was racing up the charts.

I dont think anyone even at the time of Mirage thought Mirage was their last album. They always knew they would be back together again someday. It just was Stevie was a huge solo star and getting her back would keep the band waiting.

Most obvious error of the article was that Little Lies was only a hit because Lindsey left the band.

;)

HomerMcvie 08-02-2022 08:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bwboy (Post 1276665)
I definitely believe he and Christine think Tango was a stronger album to go out on, both in terms of sales and material. As much as I love certain songs on Mirage, none of those songs have the strength of Little Lies, Isn’t It Midnight, Big Love, or Everywhere.

Maybe, but I far prefer Mirage to Tango. Tango is plastic and sterile. It doesn't sound like a band. And live, Mirage is the last time they were a band, before the backup singers and additional players.

aleuzzi 08-02-2022 09:10 PM

^^^I don’t see in the article where the success of this song was attributed to Lindsey’s leaving. Did I miss something?

Error I noticed: “Hold Me was a top 10 hit, not a top 20 hit.

The song is impeccable. I remember thinking at the time that this was one instance on the record where everyone was present and in great form. John’s bass, Lindsey and Stevie’s famous vocal interchange on the chorus, Mick’s classic heart beat drumming, Christine’s sly, ironic songwriting and seductive vocal…

I remember the article from CREEM, which is where Mick has noted that Lindsey appeared to be “giving his notice in the press.” You can tell the other members didn’t expect that: Christine said she wanted to do another solo album with Lindsey producing; Stevie talked a lot about Lindsey’s naked vocal on “When I See You Again,” even taking credit for his solo singing by declaring that she removed her own vocal from what was a duet after it was recorded; Mick was clearly anticipating a lucrative come-back tour…So none of them appear to have been expecting Lindsey’s resignation.

bwboy 08-02-2022 09:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie (Post 1276686)
Maybe, but I far prefer Mirage to Tango. Tango is plastic and sterile. It doesn't sound like a band. And live, Mirage is the last time they were a band, before the backup singers and additional players.

I agree with you- while I think the four Tango songs I mentioned, plus Seven Wonders, are stronger than anything on Mirage, Mirage as a whole is more consistent. I dislike Family Man and When I See You Again, and think You and I, Caroline, and Tango are just ok. On Mirage, the only songs I dislike are Empire State and Oh Diane. Otherwise I can listen to Mirage straight through, and as you said, they sound like a band. Not so much on Tango. But Christine’s growth and confidence as a songwriter from Mirage to Tango is truly impressive. It’s unusual to see someone grow so much as a writer later in life… the opposite of Stevie, whose songs tended to be less memorable as she got older. Although in all fairness, Stevie has released a lot more material than Christine, and the more material out there, the less memorable it may be.

HomerMcvie 08-02-2022 11:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bwboy (Post 1276688)
I agree with you- while I think the four Tango songs I mentioned, plus Seven Wonders, are stronger than anything on Mirage, Mirage as a whole is more consistent. I dislike Family Man and When I See You Again, and think You and I, Caroline, and Tango are just ok. On Mirage, the only songs I dislike are Empire State and Oh Diane. Otherwise I can listen to Mirage straight through, and as you said, they sound like a band. Not so much on Tango. But Christine’s growth and confidence as a songwriter from Mirage to Tango is truly impressive. It’s unusual to see someone grow so much as a writer later in life… the opposite of Stevie, whose songs tended to be less memorable as she got older. Although in all fairness, Stevie has released a lot more material than Christine, and the more material out there, the less memorable it may be.

Maybe it's because I was 5 years older for Tango, but Mirage LIVES IN MY HEART. ALL of the songs. They come on, and I remember how much they meant to me. How happy they made me. I used to skip Only Over Ewe, but it finally grew on me, too.

And I love Empire State, which was only a year after Law And Order, so I was still into freaky Lindsey.

aleuzzi 08-03-2022 06:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie (Post 1276691)
Maybe it's because I was 5 years older for Tango, but Mirage LIVES IN MY HEART. ALL of the songs. They come on, and I remember how much they meant to me. How happy they made me. I used to skip Only Over Ewe, but it finally grew on me, too.

And I love Empire State, which was only a year after Law And Order, so I was still into freaky Lindsey.

I used to skip about 1/3 the album when it first came out but listened to the other 2/3 all the time. But now I dig all of it—except “Oh Diane” (which I never liked) and “Straight Back” (which I used to like). Side 1 is especially cool. But “Eyes” on side 2 is also great.

I’ve always dug “Only Over You” primarily because of the surprise of her voice ascending in such a sexy way. It’s like: “oh, we’ve entered a room where people are doing adult things...” After the initial embarrassment of hearing her sing/moan, I couldn’t turn away. Voyeur?

jbrownsjr 08-03-2022 07:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aleuzzi (Post 1276697)
I used to skip about 1/3 the album when it first came out but listened to the other 2/3 all the time. But now I dig all of it—except “Oh Diane” (which I never liked) and “Straight Back” (which I used to like). Side 1 is especially cool. But “Eyes” on side 2 is also great.

I’ve always dug “Only Over You” primarily because of the surprise of her voice ascending in such a sexy way. It’s like: “oh, we’ve entered a room where people are doing adult things...” After the initial embarrassment of hearing her sing/moan, I couldn’t turn away. Voyeur?

Oh Diane, I've only slightly come to like it. It's such a weird song on this album. (But, Mirage is weird).

OOY and WYWH are beautiful songs. After hearing it live with the passion she sang it with during BUCKVIE, I might say WYWH is my favorite. OOY that outro grabs me. Pure Buckvie on both outros.

The chemistry between Buck and McVie is kind of amazing. I'm glad Stevie was absent a lot of the time. The other two really shine on Tango and Mirage.

Macfan4life 08-03-2022 07:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie (Post 1276686)
Maybe, but I far prefer Mirage to Tango. Tango is plastic and sterile. It doesn't sound like a band. And live, Mirage is the last time they were a band, before the backup singers and additional players.

Its not even a fair comparison....apples and oranges. Mirage was a total band performance with real instruments on every track. Tango was sort of a more commercial version of Go Insane....a slick, trendy modern Lindsey solo album. There are moments where Tango shines and you can hear the band but sadly those moments are rare. Just imagine everyone off drugs and devoting all hands on deck. Lindsey was always fascinated with cutting edge sort of sound so the band's lack of direction, he sort of seized the direction of the album. But no doubt everyone wanted a huge commercial success which also explains the radio friendly synth pop sound of much of Tango. Mirage is not experimental like Tusk but its a completely cohesive sound. It needed a few moments of rawness but the Tusk blowback was in full effect.
Only Over You is a gem. It was always my least favorite song on Mirage from about 1983-1997. Its pure perfection.... dreamy hypnotic lullaby with some fantastic Mick/Lindsey/John/Chris playing. It has a vintage Mac quality. Its also a very classic Chris tune with her singing her devotion to a guy but you get a line about the dark side. "They say I'm a silly girl, but I'm not a fool" Very similar to "If you use me again, it will be the end of me" and "your mood is like a circus wheel, changing all the time. Everything else about those songs is pure love devotion but she always gets her line in about the guy not being perfect in any sense. Only over you is just overdosing on overdubs and sometimes you just have to soak it all in. When you first hear the song, you dont know where its going. Once you have heard the song several times, you appreciate the direction it goes and it has a wow factor. Indeed Mirage was an end to an era and the band NEVER made another cohesive and inclusive album again with these 5.

HomerMcvie 08-03-2022 08:44 AM

Really, the main reason I never cared for OOY is that I've always been prejudiced against songs I couldn't sing. The beginning of the chorus is impossible for my manly being.

jbrownsjr 08-03-2022 09:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie (Post 1276703)
Really, the main reason I never cared for OOY is that I've always been prejudiced against songs I couldn't sing. The beginning of the chorus is impossible for my manly being.

You're out of your mind.

HomerMcvie 08-03-2022 09:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jbrownsjr (Post 1276705)
You're out of your mind.

But it's only over ewe.

jbrownsjr 08-03-2022 10:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie (Post 1276707)
But it's only over ewe.

People think you're crazy, but they don't know.


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