Sans Crow, Fleetwood Mac To Tour In 2009
 

In the wake of Lindsey Buckingham's latest solo project, Fleetwood Mac is gearing up for a tour in early 2009 that will likely be followed by a new band album.

Buckingham -- who releases "Gift of Screws" on Sept. 16 via Warner Bros. and begins a solo tour Sept. 7 in Saratoga, Calif. -- tells Billboard.com that Fleetwood Mac will convene in January to begin rehearsing for the tour, whose itinerary is currently being assembled. It will be the group's first outing since promoting the "Say You Will" album in 2003 and 2004.

"There was no sense we had to jump right in the studio," Buckingham reports. "I think maybe there was even a sense that we would make a better album if we went out and hung out together first on the road ... maybe even sowing some seeds musically that would get us more prepared to go in the studio rather than just going in cold. It takes the pressure (off) from having to go in and make something cold."

Contrary to previous reports, however, the Fleetwood Mac tour will not include Sheryl Crow, who spoke of the possibility of being part of the group while promoting her most recent album, "Detours." Buckingham says the matter "kinda got out of hand," though there were discussions between the Fleetwood Mac members and Crow. Ultimately, he says, the prospect "just kind of lost its momentum."

"I think with Stevie (Nicks) ... maybe to some degree there was a little too much testosterone on stage when we went out in 2003," Buckingham notes, "and I think the band was looking to kind of balance that out a little bit.


"I think the good side has been, for Stevie, she came to a point of clarity where she realized the most appropriate thing we could do as a band was to create what needs to be created in the context of the four of us. That's been a real positive, and it's been a real rallying point for all of us, too."

The Fleetwood Mac rhythm section of drummer Mick Fleetwood and bassist John McVie appears on three songs on "Gift of Screws," which was the title of a solo album Buckingham was working on before Fleetwood Mac decided to record "Say You Will."

Great news! So, now they're going to tour a little and do an album while they're on the road?? This seems odd.

Well that just made my day, haha, and no..I don't think mthey will make the album during the tour on the road besides the concept of jamming during rehearsals, and like lindsey and stevie have done before, write their own songs in the hotel rooms, and bring it in to the studio at a later time....Iand weird but true, i just had a premonition that Lindsey is going to make this new album more "Fleetwood Macky" than previous...I hope my psychic skills don't fail me!

before SYW or before THE DANCE? I thought the songs they were working, (and Lindsey mentioned when he introduces Bleed to love her in the Dance original show) were supposedly for GOS..

This honestly made me tear up!!! That's actually the best possible news -- especially given how many songs Lindsey wrote about Stevie during the previous Mac tour :) :O) :) :) :)

Waiting to record an album will give them plenty of time to interview/consider a new producer.

So, it sounds like a rather pretty way of saying they are gonna tour without any new material. Yeah, ok. I guess I'll just be happy to see them again.

Michele

Sheryl should repeatedly insinuate that she's going to join Fleetwood Mac, piss off lots of people, retract her statement, and continue doing this in an endless cycle.

Because, it'll be, you know, funny. :blob2:

I agree. However, history demonstrates that they likely will pull out a rarely heard gem or two. For example, we got Oh Daddy, The Farmer's Daughter, and Silver Springs on The Dance. We got Beautiful Child on SYW plus some other stuff played but then dropped. So, maybe they'll follow suit and do a different set with something like Seven Wonders, Storms, etc. I mean they likely will drop one or two of the SYW songs as well as Beautiful Child.

In case you missed it the first time...

I agree that this is the best possible news. It discredits that other thread about the compilation and farewell tour bull**** thatll last 2 years. This is they'll tour make and album and tour again. So now for the 09 tour with no new material they'll have to do some rarer ****.

Good news! Looks like we're going to have an awesome show to see next year with a full? studio album to follow. I agree with Lindsey about the band sowing the seeds of some music together on the road as opposed to bringing their individual songs into the studio to be worked on. I think that will add greatly to creating a truer band sound.

Bad news. Empty wallets.

Well, if this is a "farewell" tour, making a record after the fact doesn't make sense!!

Besides, what happens if Stevie and Lindsey get sick of each other again as they have a history of doing?

WE suffer the consequences!!!

I WANT NEW MAC MUSIC but I dont want them beating the hell out of one another in the studio!!!!

I have mixed feelings. Somebody hold me:shrug:

Well, that's the thing. I have no doubt that touring together will give them both fodder for new song material, but I do think the touring experience will make it harder for them to go into the studio AFTER the tour than it would be before.

The only thing I can say is that because this tour will last a looong time, maybe they can record an album during a break -- which would be impossible for them to do. We'll never get something as fast as the White album again. But that's the only way I can see this working. First leg without new material. Then throw an album out there and tour with "new" music the 2nd leg. At least that way, they will have a much better excuse for saturating the market -- by revisiting so many tour cities-- than they did in 2004.

Michele

Yep, this experience won't shut down those creative juices.

Well, now we don't know how long this tour will be. . . but your scenario makes sense. It will certainly be tour-album-tour. Recording songs on the go and jamming on the road might allow that break to be relatively short. A good producer -- Timbaland! hollah!! -- will also help. That said, I think all those "rumours" started by that heavy metal band should be thrown out the window -- so there's no need to suspect this will be a loooong farewell tour.

. . . sigh, does anyone else ever listen to "Shut Us Down" and imagine it as a Lindsey-Stevie duet?