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#1
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"In the Back of My Mind" as a set opener
I was looking at some old setlists and was really surprised that by the end of the 1990 tour, the band would open with "In the Back of My Mind". Really odd and bold choice, it was a new song and not really a hit, it had Billy (still a relative newcomer to the band) as the primary vocalist, and it's a slower number too, much different in tone from previous openers like "Say You Love Me", "The Chain", "Second Hand News", or "Monday Morning". I'm wondering, if you were at any of those shows, how did that go down with the audience? Did it work as an opening number?
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#2
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The crowd roared.
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I would tell Christine Perfect, "You're Christine f***ing McVie, and don't you forget it!" |
#3
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Everything you said about In the Back of My Mind is pretty accurate- it was a slower song, new, and spotlighted Billy. Still, as jbrownjr said, it really was a spectacular opening! The stage was obscured by a steel curtain, and as the long intro played, it helped to build up the excitement and had the crowd on their feet, trying to see through the curtain. Then as the vocals started, the curtain rose and everyone was already in place singing. It really was great. And Stevie and Christine were singing almost as much as Billy, just like on the Chain, so that probably helped. So even though it was a new song that most of the audience may not have been familiar with, it was dramatic enough that it certainly kept the audience engaged, that was for sure. And the segue into the Chain was seamless and just so natural. Man, I wish a live recording would be released as a Deluxe Edition!
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#4
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It was the PERFECT opener. The giant masks on the stage went up and slowly revealed the band. The song features 3 of the singers and its got everyone interested since its the opening number and then it goes into the Chain.
It also set the moment that its a new band with new members. Back in 1990 there was no internet so when you went to a concert you had no idea of the setlist. This song was one of my favorites from the album and I was floored and excited they opened the show it. The opening number gets everyone's attention. I have always believed a lesser known song should be the opener for that reason. Too many bands rely on their standard opener or hit for the first song. Fleetwood Mac is not known for change so this change was pretty cool IMHO. During this last tour, the band was rehearsing old Mac songs. I firmly believed the band should have come out and opened with the Green Manalishi and blew everyone out of their seat. That would have been so freaking cool. They could have played it like Judas Priest too. But we got the Chain (again) without Lindsey
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My heart will rise up with the morning sun and the hurt I feel will simply melt away Last edited by Macfan4life; 05-11-2021 at 04:17 PM.. |
#5
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As a song, I almost feel like it was intentionally designed to be a set opener. Especially given that they abbreviated it a bit and segued it into The Chain, it really always sounded like it was perfectly placed in that slot. Unlike the middle of the set, you aren’t going to lose a lot of the audience to the bathrooms or beer line by placing an unknown new song at the top of the order.
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#6
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#7
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I think they did perform some surprises on their 2 tours- the first tour had Brown Eyes, Oh Well, Tear It Up, Stand Back, Has Anyone Ever Written Anything, Seven Wonders, Everywhere, Isn’t It Midnight, I Loved Another Woman, and Little Lies. Those were 10 songs that were either new, deep cuts, or never performed by the band before. I think for both tours, FM was trying to straddle the line- they had a new lineup that they wanted to spotlight, but yet still keep the fans they had who came to hear certain songs. This last tour had a lot of surprises initially, but audience reaction to the deeper cuts resulted in swapping out those songs for hits. As a fan of those deep cuts, I was bummed, but I understood.
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#8
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They even had to make Stevie sing a Crowded House song and Black Magic Woman to prevent people from running to the bathroom
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My heart will rise up with the morning sun and the hurt I feel will simply melt away |
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