Leave Stevie Alone!

[Janet]

I mean that in the nicest way.

If I read one more post regarding her loss of spirit, I may quit these boards.

I mean she is 55 years old. Look at your moms, grandmothers, yourself..and imagine yourself out there at 55, or them, and can you see them tearing it up and running around and acting like a total A$$?

Stevie has dignity and she's not pretending to be 25 or 30 anymore. Shes growing OLDER and she's acting her age.

She still spellbounds the crowd. I was there for TISL and for this show, and I was pretty close and she has the entire crowd under her spell--she still sings her heart out and spins.

When she was crazy onstage, that was a wonderful time, but that was a long time ago. She was a young woman, now she's an older woman.

Thank GOD she isn't making an A$$ of herself, because it would be embarrassing if she was still trying to be 30. Shes just being 55 and I think that makes her happy.

It makes me happy, I DO wish I could see the old Rhiannon or the crazy Sister of the Moon, but I realize that was a long time ago and what I have now, the Stevie I get to see, is just as special.

Stop living in the past people!

[CarneVaca]

Yeah, I think she lost her spirit. Now we should all help her find it.

[laurarox]

I agree with you Janet!

I'm sooo proud of the way SHE has evolved over the last 30 years. A total class act.!

[Johnny Stew]

Stevie hasn't lost her spirit, she's simply found new ways to express it.

Many people seem to still want her to be that hellcat she was in her 20s and 30s (or some version thereof). It's that age-old mindset that a woman must constantly live up to who she was in the past, while a man is allowed to evolve and change, as everyone praises him for "getting better with age."

Me, I'm quite happy with who Stevie is today. And I get the feeling Stevie is too.
She's grown, she's changed, she's matured... and, in my opinion, she's better than ever.

To quote another wonderful lady... "yesterday's gone" (so don't stop thinking about tomorrow).

Thank you for this thread, Janet.

[darklinensuit]

As I've posted before, we are SO lucky to be alive at this time. How many generations in the future will never get to see the real-time evolution and live performances of the only Queen of Rock?
How many icons are there?
How many who have stayed in the forefront of Rock for so long & are still going strong, AND who have so many lyrics & vocals that reach us so effectively?
Elvis is gone, Lennon is gone, Janis is gone, Hendrix is gone, Jerry Garcia is gone, etc.
The Rolling Stones are going strong, but do their lyrics grab your heart?
Cher & Madonna have style, but do you anticipate their vocal interpretations each song upon its release?
Stevie is the WHOLE package.
Yeah, I'll joke when that package is wrapped in old BlackDress, but I'll never take my eyes off of her, not during Street Angel, not during hip problems, not during the coke days. Stevie ALWAYS brings something to the table that connects to me, whether it's the lyrics, the vocals, the moves, the look, the dark eyes, the spontaneity, or any combination. She'll always have this for me.

- Jake

[belladonnamoon]

I absolutely, 100% agree with you, Janet!
I'm so incredibly sick of people slamming Stevie, complaining about her clothes, her 'lack of energy', her hair...WHATEVER.

She has NOT lost her spirit. She's acting like the classy 55 year old rock star QUEEN she is. There's no reason for her to be any other way! People should just be thankful that she's still out there touring and recording and putting forth an effort...and is ABLE after all the years and hardships she's been through!

~Renae

[belladonnamoon]

Originally posted by Johnny Stew
Me, I'm quite happy with who Stevie is today. And I get the feeling Stevie is too.
She's grown, she's changed, she's matured... and, in my opinion, she's better than ever.

AMEN!
My sentiments exactly!

~Renae

[BombaySapphire3]

I have been a fan since the Rumours era and saw Stevie perform in that time and loved it .I concur with the folks who think it would be absurd for her to try and behave that way now and I also see a double standard here.A woman being ctricized for not looking and acting like she did at 27 when she is over twice that age!This is unrealistic and kind of sexist people.Stevie is still a significant Rock Star and this does not occur often for women that age.Consider this:for the last 28 years every release she has been involved with solo or with FM has at the very least achieved Gold status this can not be said for Tina Turner.Cher ,Heart ,Pat Benatar.Bonnie Riatt or Linda Ronstadt to name but a few .This is 20 albums.box sets and compilations in 28 years ,I'm including SYW which will be certified any day now.We should be celebrating her great success and the wonderful music she is still making.Her like will never be seen again.She wrote the 4 Phoenix songs pretty much on command and they range from great to pretty good.I think she is in a great era now let's not lose sight of that while pining over an era that is gone forever.

[Sorcerer386]

These posts make me laugh. They remind me of a Japanese short story i had to read my freshman year of college in a class aptly titled, "The Short Story." It's about a man who wants to be the best archer in the world so that everyone will know he's the best and he will be famous. He goes up to this mountain to meet this very, VERY old man who (to make a long story short) basically teaches him how to be the master. The man comes down the mountain and realizes that he is now the master archer, but instead of flaunting it, he realizes that a true master does not have to flaunt his (or her) talents in other's faces. I'll just leave this post at that...

[MACFAN]

Well said Bombay.....

What about all the other Rock Stars who were clearly very big but then careerwise died a fast death:

Lisa Lisa, The girl from Quaterflash, Alanah Myles, Bananarama, Alanis Morrisette, Sinead O'Connor, Taylor Dayne, Martha Davis(Motels), and the list goes on.....

This thread reminds me of the quote from Grace Slick about how people over 50 should not be on a rock and roll stage. Well since Grace had 2 songs and a really ****ty solo album in the 70's she should have said "I don't belong on a rock and roll stage". Stevie is where she is because she DESERVES to be there. Critics have never kissed Stevie's ass like they have Cher's or Tina Turner's but I feel Cher should really be part of Ringling Brothers and Tina always reminded me of a puppet with the way she moves.

[Regina]

There's one thing about the Ledge (and I love this site, so it's not a diss)...
You can leave for months or years but it can still raise your blood pressure when you get back on;-)
I'm taking all of this Stevie stuff with TONS of salt.
A month or so ago--what was the big issue of the day? How washed up Lindsey was because of the Today and Tonight show performances. And I took GREAT offense since I hauled my ass out there before the crack of dawn and came back on Cloud 9 only to be brought down by reading about how the Mac was going to absolutely flop on the tour because they couldn't hit notes, and couldn't play instruments correctly, etc., etc.
And now--Lindsey is doing well because he's right smack in your face magnificent and Stevie is a bit more subdued, so she's the one who's sad, aging, yada yada.
Well, you're absolutely right, Janet. She has aged magnificently and with dignity.
I wrote something last night but of course, the Ledge was down by the time I tried to post it and it's gone with the wind.
People just don't stop to think of the changes in their own lives.
They are harkening back to 20 or 30 years ago. Crap. Even if you're young yourself--think of yourself 10 or 15 years ago and imagine doing anything the exact same way you did it then. You can't and won't. The world effects you. Growing up effects you. Does a thirty year old dance the same way, or sing the same way they did when they were six. Never mind sound quality. I'm talking about singing with the same enthusiasm or abandon. No. You just dont. Because at six, you don't give a crap about what people think about your singing or dancing. You're doing it because you want to do it.
And the fact that Stevie seemed to do it for so long? Stevie was on some heavy duty stuff at one time that, frankly, scared me when I watched the tapes of some of it. Red Rocks scares the hell out me, to this day. Because I see a woman who is hovering on the brink of something disastrous--and I am very grateful she pulled herself back. I don't care how much of the wildness she had to lose to do that. I want a live, healthy Stevie Nicks entertaining me and she does entertain me.
And she's really come such a long way. If you see some of the tapes from the Street Angel tour--where was she letting loose there? She was so subdued and so unhappy. I think she's freer now than she has been in years.
And believe me, if Stevie did "let loose" the way she did back then, there would be just as many posts, if not more--about her acting like a teenager--and in a second childhood, or whatever--than there are now.
So, of course I do have something to say (when don't I?) but I don't worry about it much. It's all a matter of opinion and I think she's absolutely magnificent. I was incredibly proud of ALL of them but especially Stevie and Lindsey. They are so different as people and performers, but it's an incredible moment seeing them up there together and I thank God I had that opportunity and hope to do it again.

[Enchanted58]

People change as they age ... it's all part of growing up. What was outrageous & wild behavior from a 20-something back in the dark drug ages would be downright scary from a 50-something now.

Yes, Stevie has mellowed and her performances are not as, um, shall we say, "entertaining" as they were in the beginning of her FM journey. However, her songwriting is just as deep and thought-provoking as it ever was, and let's face it, her health is far better!

I'm one who marvels at the changes in people over time, which are influenced not only by age but also by experiences, decisions made (both good & bad), opportunities taken & those lost, and so on. If we all stayed the same, we would not grow.

Eileen

[Johnny Stew]

Originally posted by Sorcerer386
These posts make me laugh. They remind me of a Japanese short story i had to read my freshman year of college in a class aptly titled, "The Short Story"....
The man comes down the mountain and realizes that he is now the master archer, but instead of flaunting it, he realizes that a true master does not have to flaunt his (or her) talents in other's faces.

Excellent parable, but it raises the question, Sorcerer... who is the master?

(Sorry, I couldn't resist.)

[Janet]

Well Im guilty of watching the Tonight Show and saying..where is the life!

But I guess it was so much built excitement, almost 6 years worth...so everyone was just expecting to much. ALL our expectations were too high.

Now I see the life and respect Stevie SO much for not making a fool of herself. It really hit me, everytime I heard someone report the roar of the crowd when Stevie sang Landslide and it hit me...shes older..shes not 30 anymore. Time has passed and we aren't in 1977 anymore.

We are in 2003. I wasn't a fan back then, but in 1990 did ANYONE, I mean ANYONE think that Stevie and Lindsey would be on tour together. Did anything think Stevie would get over all those hurdles of drugs and pain??

She did! Man and HOW she did it. She looks great, sounds great. She isn't the same, but who wants the same. I mean by now isn't everyone sick of Mick Jagger fluttering about like some fish on crack LOL, I mean really. Stevie is letting herself AGE and giving the songs a new life as her life changes.

So thats cool and thanks for everyone showing that they agree. I don't want to be a hypocrite because I know I have said that I want a crazy Rhainnon and so on..but it was because I wasn't around to see it in 1977 ( the year I was born)--but Im lucky to see them at all, because again, 10 years ago, 'who'd thunk it'!?

[cliffdweller]

I agree, the TISL show was wonderful and Stevie still knows how to "enchant" the crowd. If she performs even half as well on the Mac tour as she did on TISL then I will be pleasantly pleased. One nice thing about the TISL tour was that she talked to the crowd ALOT! I was in heaven!