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A masterful romp
Lindsey Buckingham in concert at Hogg
By Kathy Blackwell

Friday, January 26, 2007

Lindsey Buckingham possesses that wackiness that comes from being ahead of one's time.

The Fleetwood Mac guitarist's masterful romp through four decades of song Thursday at the Hogg Auditorium was rounded out by slightly dramatic gestures — in between songs, he would place his hands in the prayer position and bow his head toward the audience — and New Age-tinged stage banter. He talked earnestly about letting go of dreams and getting old.

"Under the Skin," his first solo album in 14 years, is about "growing up, which we're all trying to do at various rates," joked the 57-year-old.

Yes, that's right, 57, in case the "four decades of song" didn't startle you earlier. The hugely successful 20th anniversary tour celebrating "Rumours"? That was 10 years ago.

It seems like just yesterday that Edward Norton and Courtney Love bopped away in the front row at Fleetwood Mac's MTV taping, lending the band cred with the kids.

A lot has changed since Fleetwood Mac reunited. Buckingham finally settled down (his wife was in the audience) and now has three children, something you learn pretty quickly if you listen to "Under the Skin" lyrics, which are . . . well, they aren't subtle.

"Reading the paper saw a review/Said I was a visionary, but nobody knew."

What he might lack in songwriting craftsmanship is more than compensated by his indisputable gifts, from strikingly sophisticated melodies to fingerwork that borders on unbelievable. He keeps his California-clear voice perfectly controlled.

Highlights from the show, which started with a three-song acoustic set before the three-member backing band came out, included all the Buckingham Specials: "I'm So Afraid," "Never Going Back Again," "Go Insane" and "Tusk," along with a reworking of 1981's "Trouble" and the title track to his new album.

Of course, there were some peculiar moments, from a voice remix over the percussion solo in "World Turning" to some barking. But nothing was stranger than the dancing frenzy set off by the un-Buckingham-like "Holiday Road," the 1983 theme song to "National Lampoon's Vacation," prompting him to joke about whether he and the crowd still had their dignity left.

The audience responded with good-natured laughter. They were certainly older and lacked the hip factor of the Jeff Tweedy followers who had packed Hogg on the previous nights for the Wilco founder's two sold-out shows. With Buckingham's show coming on the heels of Tweedy's gig, a contrast/comparison seems inevitable.

Like Tweedy, Buckingham (as reflected in his lyrics) is often pegged as someone who hasn't been given the credit he deserves as a music visionary. But if the reaction of the crowd was any indication — from the person pumping his or her cane in the air (I could see only the cane) after "Go Your Own Way" to the tween boy on the 15th row loudly applauding with his parents in one of the night's many standing ovations — there's still time.

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