Stevie, a laughing stock?
 

I was reading an old thread and they said at one point in her career Stevie was like a laughing stock (mid 80's) in the music business. Is this true?

after the white album, rumours, and especially Tusk - Stevie had earned herself quite a reputation as a serious singer and songwriter. When Bella Donna was released, suddenly any existing skeptics were converted. Stevie had surrounded herself with a large circle of musicians and producers who at the time, were considered to be the best in the business: Jimmy Iovine (who Stevie sought out because she loved the sound of Patti Smith's Easter record, Tom Petty (who came by way of Jimmy), Roy Bittan, other members of the E Street Band and the Heartbreakers - and the Eagles, etc.

Before she even knew it, Stevie was sort of rock and roll royalty. A lot of people were sure that she would just break from FM for good and enjoy her new friends who often rocked much harder.

When Stand Back was released, a lot of this respect went down the toilet.
Sure it was fun and Prince was all the rage but it wasn't rock and roll- at least not the kind you can find on a Tom Petty record.

I think that sort of started the downfall in terms of respect. It was also when a lot of the drunkeness and drugs started to get a lot of publicity.
Anyway - not sure if I would say she was a laughing stock - but a lot of the respect she got from being with Fleetwood Mac and being associated with Tom Petty went away. Rock A Little and The Other Side of The Mirror didn't help the situation. Either did her tracks on Tango In The Night. The Clinton "performance" of Don't Stop was so embarrasing and even I was shocked when I saw Stevie.

I think The Dance album and tour - and especially the PBS broadcast of the show saved Stevie's career. Her new found vocal training and the obvious hard work she put into rehearsing for those shows made everyone stand up and take notice. Silver Springs was sort of a celebration - at least for me - because it was sort of like getting our old Stevie back. That live version is about as close to perfection as Fleetwood Mac has ever gotten.

So - laughing stock or not - the point is she saved herself and thank god we have Say You Will. I still think they have one great album to record. I just hope Lindsey and Stevie can write together so it's more of a cohesive project.

I think I'll go listen to Stop Dragging My Heart Around or Hard Promises...

Well
 

Actually wasn't this the first piece of music that was nominated for a grammy? Hardly shows a lack of repect. "Stand Back" and a lot of songs on The Wild Heart rocked harder than anything she'd released before. I'd also venture to say that quite a few fans on this board would pick that lp as their favorite. Apparently this was the most fun Stevie ever had on the road too, at least solo speaking, as she admitted this herself.

I tend to think she bacame more of a laughingstock when the drugs and alcohol took a grim control of her around the mid 80s or RAL. Recall Letterman and his making fun of the "I Can't Wait" video. Her looks changed then too. She looked older and was picking up weight. Falling off of stages isn't pretty either. So I think this part of her career was the beginning of her downward spiral that continued into the 90s. Her songs became less effective and her albums sold even less.


Joe

Hello Christopher
 

and welcome to The Ledge. You've got a sort of Q&A going on right here. What you might want to do, rather than listing all your questions out in headline form is check out The Penguin a bit.

Go to http://www.fleetwoodmac.net/penguin
the main page and check out a few things:
1-The Q&As
2-The Blue Letter Archives
3-the biographies

There's a whole lot of stuff that might help get you acquainted with your new favorite band from The Dance.

For Stuff Specific about Stevie, you'll probably also enjoy The Nicks Fix,
http://www.nicksfix.com


Some GREAT pics of Stevie in various colours, ages and sizes are to be found on Nicks Fix:

http://www.nicksfix.com/hiresphotos.htm


There's also a lot of fans that will answer you here. Enjoy yourself and the tour.

Re: Hello Christopher
 

Thanks so much! I just have a lot of questions about the band, especially since I am pretty new to their music and don't know a lot about the actual history of the band, other then what I have seen on like the making of Rumors DVD. Thanks again!

What happened during the Clinton performance? Did she just look bad or something? Also, do you think that she has gained pretty much all her respect back after the Dance? Obviously she was in top form and looked great (and still does). I think with The Dance, the Practical Magic disc, Trouble in Shangrila, and the new cd she has pretty much gained a lot of respect. Not to mention the dixie chicks using her song and getting a lot of credit for that.

I guess what I really want to know is, if you bring up her name in a conversation today, would anyone make a nasty comment or something?

The Clinton performance was embarassing. She was bloated beyond belief and was wearing this...tarp. She looked like she was sick, her voice sucked, and she looked like she was about to burst out in tears at any moment. I too was shocked.

I think that when RAL was released, she really became a laughing stock. Compare her previous albums, quality-wise, and then look at her mid to late eighties albums. BAD comparison. She wore these costumes that made her look like she was going trick-or-treating, falling off stages, forgetting lyrics, screaming and shouting the songs, the songwriting was going very downhill, and heavily using drugs. People looked at her as if she was a cartoon. The newspapers would say that she bordered on "self-parody."

I think that she got back all respect when The Dance came along. She was healthy, happy, and smiling. Her voice was amazing and she was into what she was doing for the first time in a long time. TISL was released to GLOWING reviews and she has been acknowledged as the foremost inspiration for most female musicinas in the industry today. When people in the media speak about her, they refer to her as a "living legend." That she is! :nod:

I wonder why she was like that during the Clinton event??? I know, at least I hope, she's not anti-democratic... cause she looked so sad. Anyway, I know that Stevie's RAL era sucked performance wise, but I think the album Rock A Little is awesome, the only reason I don't own it is because I cannot find it in any of the stores (which should tell me something) but I think it is one of her best solo-wise. "The Nightmare" is one of my all-time favorite songs. Anyway, all I wanted to say is that I'm glad I wasn't a fan back then (mid eighties) mainly cause I wasn't born yet...I think seeing Stevie in that condition would through me into a severe depression. :(

I agree... I wasn't born until the late 80's which is good because I don't know if I could really remain a fan if she was constantly falling off stages! She is great now, and that is all that matters to me...

I didn't think Stevie looked that bad during the Clinton Innaugural performance... though her face was fuller, and she was rather pale.

USA Today reported a few days before that performance, that Stevie had very recently undergone surgery to correct a "sinus problem" (perhaps the hole in her sinuses, that she's often mentioned in the years since), so that probably added to her washed-out look.

Another full body shot....

A third full-body shot....

Those first pics were mislabeled... my apologies. The actual date of the performance, was January 19th, 1993.

Here's a close-up of Stevie, alongside Bill and Wacko Jacko....

I know! Her waist is quite small in these pics. Her face, however, looks fuller as if she is on steroid therapy. As for her voice, she sounded great IMO. LB on the other hand did not. I love when SN looks over at him seemingly with daggers as if to say "SING ON KEY DAMNIT!!!" :laugh: And - where the hell was his tie :laugh:

By the way, Christopher... in the future, you should direct all questions solely regarding Stevie, to the Stevie Forum.

That's what we're there for! :)