The Mac makes some weird commercial choices...

[Scarlett DuBois]

Actually, I imagine it's more Mick than anyone, since I think he controls licensing, etc.

But here's what I'm curious about:

Fleetwood Mac has a loyal following, and gets new fans all the time thanks to the timelessness of stuff like Rumours and Tusk having such a cross-generational appeal. So frankly, with all the re-mastering technology available lately, the increased space on the CD medium, etc., I really think the band is missing a LOT of opportunities to make money:

For example. LIVE ALBUMS. The Mac were absolutely one of the best live bands EVERY, and in my opiion, one of the most ESSENTIAL bands to SEE live because their stage act was such a contrast to their studio act - they substituted ferocity for finesse, and it works just as well!

So what about LIVE albums?

Jefferson Airplane, for instance, has released so many archived live albums over the last 5 years I can't count them all. And they were a MESS live.

After all these years, all we have from Fleetwood Mac is still the one Live album, and it's a disaster. Okay, I don't mean it's BAD, but it's bad when you consider the CHOICES - did anybody really need to hear Don't let me down again at the expense of a live Sisters of the Moon? Where the hell is THE CHAIN? Tusk? Didn't they do brown eyes, too?

Stuff like this kicked ASS live, and it's only available on bootlegs.

And yet the Mac continues to release this endless stream of "The Dance" remakes - Live in Boston, etc. I love 'em, but really, this is like "Greatest hits live" type stuff. You can't tell me that they weren't EXTENSIVELY recorded AND filmed when they were in their prime - there are TONS of bootlegs, both video and audio, and a good deal of them are excellent sound quality. And this is BOOTLEGGED!

Imagine how plush this stuff could be if it were packaged officially!

Ditto for Stevie's solo career. Bella Donna hasn't been reissued for CD since like, what, 1991? Imagine a plush reissue. Think of the BONUS tracks: contemporaneous stuff like Blue Lamp and Sleeping Angel. B-sides!

The reissue of the Pretenders II has a whole second disc that's basically a live album. I'd pay top dollar for a remastered Bella Donna with a second disk full-set of just the HBO Source Concert!

And yet all we get is more, ya know, soundstage type stuff.

So does anybody have any idea what's with this? Frankly I think the Mac are all missing out on big dollars with this - imagine live DVD released. I'd collect 'em ALL, even if they released one for each tour, white album through Tusk.

And seriously, why is Stevie Nicks Live at Red Rocks on DVD and yet it's still used-VHS for the FAR superior HBO special? WEIRD stuff.

Anybody else think that the Mac is missing out on a LOT of money by not releasing all this readily available audio/video material from their glory days?