Mirage: The Most Underrated Pop Record

[redbird]

I don't exactly agree that "Empire State" and "Straight Back" are unconnected. I always saw "Empire State" as Lindsey's running away song, like "That's Alright" is Stevie's. New York is about as far from L.A. as you can get. And "Straight Back" is full of a kind of nostalgia, IMO, especially (obviously) "She remembers how good it can be, he remembers a melody." Like others on the album, these are both songs that have happened in the wake of some kind of watershed moment.

[shackin'up]

I'll take my mirage anytime above tango. Musically Mirage outshines Tango on all levels.

[guillamene]

Originally Posted by shackin'up

I'll take my mirage anytime above tango. Musically Mirage outshines Tango on all levels.

Agree!
I have very fond memories of this album as it was my first Fleetwood Mac album. Up to the time I bought it, I was only vaguely aware of the name of the band through ' Albatross ' and nothing more. Remember hearing 'Hold Me' being played regularly in my local bar and asked the barman who this band was. That Friday went out and bought a cassette(!) of 'Mirage' as it ,of course, contained this song.
People sometimes say they can remember the moment when hearing a particular song/album for the first time and the sensation they felt: well, playing 'Mirage' for the first time that night was such a sensation for me. I was absolutely mesmerised by the fact that there were so many wonderful songs (Oh Diane excepted, of course) and such a SOUND!!!
My 'musical life' would never be the same again - I had found my band!

[SpyNote]

Originally Posted by redbird

I don't exactly agree that "Empire State" and "Straight Back" are unconnected. I always saw "Empire State" as Lindsey's running away song, like "That's Alright" is Stevie's. New York is about as far from L.A. as you can get. And "Straight Back" is full of a kind of nostalgia, IMO, especially (obviously) "She remembers how good it can be, he remembers a melody." Like others on the album, these are both songs that have happened in the wake of some kind of watershed moment.

I can see "Empire State" being about a different kind of love, maybe a love for New York. But it's more about ambition, makin' it in the Big City, flying high. It's a song I could have pictured on Tusk, for its restlessness, but not so much on the laid back Mirage.

I look at "Straight Back" as Stevie forgetting why she and Lindsey wanted to became rock stars, which was fulfilling "the dream" to perform music. This is what I think all the ivory keys, melodies, and how good it can be talk is all about -- Stevie trying to turn herself around and head straight back to the sun, where all the energy is. So it's less about feeling nostalgic, but feeling inspired again to create great music again with Lindsey and Fleetwood Mac.

Just an interpretation. I can talk forever about Mirage.

[jbrownsjr]

Originally Posted by SpyNote

I can see "Empire State" being about a different kind of love, maybe a love for New York. But it's more about ambition, makin' it in the Big City, flying high. It's a song I could have pictured on Tusk, for its restlessness, but not so much on the laid back Mirage.

I look at "Straight Back" as Stevie forgetting why she and Lindsey wanted to became rock stars, which was fulfilling "the dream" to perform music. This is what I think all the ivory keys, melodies, and how good it can be talk is all about -- Stevie trying to turn herself around and head straight back to the sun, where all the energy is. So it's less about feeling nostalgic, but feeling inspired again to create great music again with Lindsey and Fleetwood Mac.

Just an interpretation. I can talk forever about Mirage.

And I don't mind that you do. I like your insight.

[PenguinHead]

Take note. When Mirage was released, it was heralded in the press as a comeback! In the concert video, Lindsey addresses the audience with something like "you probably thought we went away or something, but we are here to show you we're still doing it."

Mind you, they released Tusk in 1979 and were on the road until 1980. Subsequently, Lindsey, Steve, and Mick each released their debut solo albums. A mere two years later Mirage was recorded, released and they were on the road again.

Yet, back in those fast times, two years of inactivity was like an eternity. It also signaled the end of the band's momentum. Solo careers, stressed relationships, and various estrangements hampered any possibility for the five fireflies to continue their streak of productivity.

I'm grateful for the five albums that established the "Rumours era brand" - Fleetwood Mac, Rumours, Tusk, Mirage, and Tango in the Night.
I just wish there was a little more "meat" to their recorded legacy (aside from the live/and compilation albums). That is why the last chance of one last new album (with Stevie) holds significance with me. They don't have the luxury of time now.

Side note: A shout out to the somewhat unloved/overlooked Christine song Only Over You. I love it!

[BombaySapphire3]

Mirage is a pop album from a band that up until this point had not been a pop band I can't listen to it all the way through There are some good songs here mostly the first 3 hit singles but a major let down after Tusk ..If I want to hear a great pop album by a band with 2 split couples Il put on one of the later albums by the greatest Pop band of all time ..ABBA.

[Macfan4life]

I LOVE Mirage and is the time in the band's history that I started to follow the band so I really like this thread. And I agree with everyone's comments. In some odd way whether we love or like the album we see the album similarly. The only thing I read that I did not agree with was that Straight Back did not sound to belong on the album. To me, Straight Back is the textbook example track of the album. Its mystical, romantic, and probably the most daring song on the album. But the harmonies, lyrics, and the way Chris and Lindsey play off each other right before the bridge IS SO CLASSIC FLEETWOOD MAC. I think Straight Back should have kicked off the second side completely or traded on side 1 where Gypsy is and put Gypsy first track side two. Lindsey still has some quirky songs so there is a bit of a Tusk hangover.
Mirage is a moment in time where things would never be the same again. Stevie's voice changed, Lindsey gets angry and leaves and the band members drift different ways for half a decade.
Long story short.....Mirage sounds like the Mac in many areas.....something rare on Tango. Tango started out as a Lindsey solo record and most of it sounds like a Lindsey solo record.

LOVE ME SOME MIRAGE

[AncientQueen]

I was inspired by this thread and listen to the album right now, for the first time in decades, probably. It is a good album, stands the test of time really good for me - I'm side-eying you, TITN.

Gypsy, played to death and terribly cut here, is still amazing.
Hold Me! Hands down the best track of the album, the harmonies are everything to this day.

I remember when Mirage came out, I quite young and had just started working as a nurse in palliative care, I was surrounded by pain and death, unprepared and devastated. It was comfort to listen to this set of songs - while I was so struggling, somewhere else people created perfection, the world was somehow balanced out by what this beautiful music meant to me back then.
/Sentimental musings.