Music Hall turns into Buckingham Palace (Toronto Review)

[MacMan]

Music Hall turns into Buckingham Palace
By JANE STEVENSON
Toronto Sun

Lindsey Buckingham's career is two halves of the same whole.

There's the singer-songwriter-guitarist with the more "commercial venture," as he called legendary rock band Fleetwood Mac last night during a solo show at The Music Hall.

And then there's his more "esoteric, left side of the palette" solo career -- again his words -- whose discography was most recently expanded by the mid-September release of the rock-oriented Gift of Screws, which actually boasts a catchy first single in the form of Did You Miss Me which was included in his set list.

The 59-year-old guitar virtuoso managed to show off both sides of his impressive 35-year-plus career in equal and crowdpleasing measure during a lively two-hour show which saw him backed by a crack three piece of bass-keyboards-guitar (Brett Tuttle), guitar (Neale Heywood) and drums (Alfredo Reyes). Opening with the new songs, Great Day and Love Runs Deeper, Buckingham hit his stride vocally with the older solo tracks, Trouble, and Go Insane, but it was the Fleetwood Mac songs, Tusk (complete with blue strobe lights) and I Know I'm Not Wrong, that really kicked the show up another notch and standing ovation after standing ovation started to come his way.

The singer-guitarist was also an engaging solo performer during a standout acoustic set made up of the beautiful Never Going Back Again, the dramatic Big Love and the intense Shut Us Down.

Often Buckingham stood with his head back, his eyes closed and his mouth wide open while he played, seemingly lost in his own world while he freely exposed his emotions.

As Tuttle described him: "He's a champion of music and a champion of songs."

And when he talked about the tumultuous time in his life that he wrote Big Love, just before he left Fleetwood Mac for a time in the '80s "to get my sanity back," he admitted the lyrics of "looking out for love," have now been put firmly in the past after meeting his wife eleven years ago with whom he now has three kids.

The biggest applause often came for Fleetwood Mac songs like World Turning -- which featured one of the strangest drum solos I've ever seen by the nonetheless talented Reyes -- Come (not a great song but completely elevated by Buckingham's awesome playing), I'm So Afraid, Go Your Own Way and Second Hand News, the last two which saw people finally streaming to the front of the stage to clap and sing along and even touch Buckingham's guitar strings.

And when Buckingham did his long band introductions, it was clear he had a genuine affection for the trio, particularly Heywood who he's known since his "crazy Malibu days."

"I'm having flashbacks of Gary Busey and Nick Nolte -- it's a strange crowd there," joked the slim and youthful looking Buckingham, dressed in a black leather jacket, black shirt, jeans, and black cowboy boots.

---
LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM
The Music Hall
Last Night
Sun Rating: 4 out of 5

[1Tuskfan]

Nice article. Too bad she got Brett's and Walfredo's names wrong...

[wondergirl9847]

Aren't these people given press releases or something with the names on them? Good grief.

Can't wait to hear all the Toronto Ledgies' reviews!

[gretchen]

OMG, Brett Tuttle

Alfredo (Sauce) Reyes

[GoS]

Originally Posted by gretchen

OMG, Brett Tuttle

Alfredo (Sauce) Reyes

I laughed so hard that I imagine that the other people in the room are wondering if I am insane. But it was worth it, that was really funny, for some reason.

[michelej1]

So, people are regularly strumming his guitar these days. When I saw the show, there was no audience playing.

I like when people note that he is youthful and slim. His face is not really youthful, but when you see him running around the stage like he does, you think he's in his twenties or thirties.

Michele

[michelej1]

Hamilton Spectator

http://www.thespec.com/Entertainment/article/447091

October 08, 2008
Graham Rockingham
The Hamilton Spectator

It wasn't always easy to notice the guitar skills of Lindsey Buckingham when Stevie Nicks was standing front and centre pouring out all that sensuality.

I mean, something in the back of our (male) minds was telling us that this Buckingham character was probably a great songwriter and a fairly good guitarist to boot.

But the drummer and the bass player owned the band name, Fleetwood Mac. And there was also that sultry Nicks, a true rock queen, right down to her black high-heeled boots. She was the one you wanted to take home and not introduce to your parents.

So who can fault Buckingham for wanting to break free of Fleetwood Mac? (Breaking personally free of Nicks is a whole different matter).

Last night when Buckingham brought his solo act to Hamilton Place, even the hardcore Nicks' fans had to admit this guy is one hot guitarist.

The guitar freaks already new that, of course. They were the guys who always dug deeper than Nicks' throaty howl and noticed that there was all these great threads of guitar happening in the background of those Fleetwood Mac albums. But us shallow types just couldn't get our (male) minds out of the gutter.

Excuse me. All these references to Steve Nicks must seem somewhat rude in a Lindsey Buckingham review. They may help to explain, however, the fact that the melodic genius behind one of the best selling albums of all time (Fleetwood Mac's Rumors) can't seem to draw flies as a solo artist.

Last night, he failed to fill well under half the 2,200 seats in Hamilton Place.

And that's a pity, because Buckingham and his three-piece band put on a dazzling two-hour show that not only focused on his new album, Gift Of Screws, but also featured several fan favourites from the glory days of Fleetwood Mac.

Unlike some of his recent solo tours, Buckingham came out to rock, opening the show with two fast-paced numbers from the new CD, Great Day and Underground, before boring into older favourites Trouble, Go Insane and the weird psycho-drama of Fleetwood Mac's Tusk. At times these numbers, however, seemed too rushed and a couple of notches too loud, almost as if he was trying to get them out of the way for the mid-show acoustic set of Never Going Back Again, Big Love and Shut Us Down.

The best was saved for last, of course, with the Fleetwood Mac classics World Turning, Go Your Own Way and Second Hand News working their way into the show.

[email protected]

905-526-3331

[DavidMn]

Not to digress but that name faux pas brought up a very funny memory for me. Back in 1998, when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa were going for the baseball home run record, Ted Kennedy, (in one of his less that lucid moments) had a proclamation on the floor of the senate congratulating MIKE McGwire and Sammy SOOSER for their achievemants....

[MacMan]

Originally Posted by michelej1

Excuse me. All these references to Steve Nicks must seem somewhat rude in a Lindsey Buckingham review. They may help to explain, however, the fact that the melodic genius behind one of the best selling albums of all time (Fleetwood Mac's Rumors) can't seem to draw flies as a solo artist.

That made me laugh, given what the reviewer wrote prior..... But it's true, and sad at the same time... and also something I find completely baffling!

[GoS]

Originally Posted by MacMan

That made me laugh, given what the reviewer wrote prior..... But it's true, and sad at the same time... and also something I find completely baffling!

Well, if he had started his solo career a little differently, that is less weird, and pulled the FM fans over, then they would buy anything he put out. But when his first two albums came out, the only two where he was still relevant, he didn't attract enough fans. Now he could put out an album that is better than Rumours (Not just to us, but to the non-fanatic FM fans) and no one would know. He is still known as "Lindsey Buckingham, the guy from Fleetwood Mac (he dated Stevie Nicks!)" and so he can't break out of that with the way the music scene is today. If he had had a significant solo hit in the era of FM, then he would be a star of magnitude that he deserves.

[AliceLover]

Originally Posted by michelej1

Hamilton Spectator

http://www.thespec.com/Entertainment/article/447091

October 08, 2008
Graham Rockingham
The Hamilton Spectator

It wasn't always easy to notice the guitar skills of Lindsey Buckingham when Stevie Nicks was standing front and centre pouring out all that sensuality.

I mean, something in the back of our (male) minds was telling us that this Buckingham character was probably a great songwriter and a fairly good guitarist to boot.

But the drummer and the bass player owned the band name, Fleetwood Mac. And there was also that sultry Nicks, a true rock queen, right down to her black high-heeled boots. She was the one you wanted to take home and not introduce to your parents.

So who can fault Buckingham for wanting to break free of Fleetwood Mac? (Breaking personally free of Nicks is a whole different matter).

Last night when Buckingham brought his solo act to Hamilton Place, even the hardcore Nicks' fans had to admit this guy is one hot guitarist.

The guitar freaks already new that, of course. They were the guys who always dug deeper than Nicks' throaty howl and noticed that there was all these great threads of guitar happening in the background of those Fleetwood Mac albums. But us shallow types just couldn't get our (male) minds out of the gutter.

Excuse me. All these references to Steve Nicks must seem somewhat rude in a Lindsey Buckingham review. They may help to explain, however, the fact that the melodic genius behind one of the best selling albums of all time (Fleetwood Mac's Rumors) can't seem to draw flies as a solo artist.

Last night, he failed to fill well under half the 2,200 seats in Hamilton Place.

And that's a pity, because Buckingham and his three-piece band put on a dazzling two-hour show that not only focused on his new album, Gift Of Screws, but also featured several fan favourites from the glory days of Fleetwood Mac.

Unlike some of his recent solo tours, Buckingham came out to rock, opening the show with two fast-paced numbers from the new CD, Great Day and Underground, before boring into older favourites Trouble, Go Insane and the weird psycho-drama of Fleetwood Mac's Tusk. At times these numbers, however, seemed too rushed and a couple of notches too loud, almost as if he was trying to get them out of the way for the mid-show acoustic set of Never Going Back Again, Big Love and Shut Us Down.

The best was saved for last, of course, with the Fleetwood Mac classics World Turning, Go Your Own Way and Second Hand News working their way into the show.

[email protected]

905-526-3331

Idiots. I tell ya!

[MacMan]

Originally Posted by GoS

If he had had a significant solo hit in the era of FM, then he would be a star of magnitude that he deserves.

So I guess his 3 top 10 hits in the era of FM, with FM weren't "significant" enough?

[GoS]

Originally Posted by MacMan

So I guess his 3 top 10 hits in the era of FM, with FM weren't "significant" enough?

Did they amount to anything? I mean there are a lot of people that have gotten into the top ten that have gone no where. He didn't even do a tour.

[Red]

It was a fantastic show, the crowd really got into it in the last 3rd. Lindsey seemed pretty pleased with the audience too, which is always nice to see. Got to play his guitar again and thankfully I got a bit of his sweat on me.

[3rd World Man]

Originally Posted by Red

It was a fantastic show, the crowd really got into it in the last 3rd. Lindsey seemed pretty pleased with the audience too, which is always nice to see. Got to play his guitar again and thankfully I got a bit of his sweat on me.

I heard from a friend that the Toronto crowd was pretty sedate most of the show, and that one particularly enthusiastic (& gorgeous!) fan was like the only one who was up dancing, singing along and getting lots of personal attention from Lindsey & (of course!) Brett. I think I saw the same girl the last show I was at and lemme tell you...she knows how to have fun at a Lindsey concert! Sounds like you do too, Red! An LB show is not one that I want to sit quietly with my hands folded like I'm at a frickin' OPERA. C'mon people! Show Lindsey some LOVE at his concerts!