Can Stevie break the trend?

[DestinyRules]

The pragmatist in me does not expect much in the way of In Your Dreams sales beyond her hard core fans. Sure, the music may be some of the best she's ever done. The collaboration with Dave Stewart might have energized her creativity in ways that you can't imagine, but that part of me can't fathom the record selling much more than 100,000 copies.

The Nicks fanatic in me imagines an era when "Secret Love" might have soared up the charts to the point where even I'd get sick of it to the point I've gotten sick of "Landslide" or the studio version of "Stand Back." And that's zooming for the skip button as fast as my 30-something fingers can go sick of those songs.

As for Red Velvet Car, I bought it off iTunes, even though I don't consider myself a dyed in the wool Heart fan the way Heartboy is, for instance. But of the songs on that record, the two I play the most often are "There You Go" (and yes, I *know* it isn't Stevie singing the harmonies, but it sounds so much like her that I imagine it's her) and "WTF". I can see myself playing "Hey You" if I'm in the right mood, but having only one song burrow into my music playing brain means the rest of the record isn't earth-shattering.

To me, if IYD sells well among Stevie's fan base and draws in any new audience, or at least earns critical acclaim, that will make it a success. Success for IYD won't be bucking the odds and going double-platinum. Success will be making a record that we as fans will be proud to play even if people ask "who's he" when we mention the name Stevie Nicks.