Stevie's Demos

[sisterofthemoon]

I LOVE the piano version of SOTM and the cleaning lady version of Sara.
As for all the unreleased songs...
China Doll
Joan of Arc (probably my favorite, I love it!!)
Smile at You (angry)
Forest of the Black Roses
The Tower
Space Needle
All the Beautiful Worlds
RUNNING THROUGH THE GARDEN (I take it back, this is my favorite)

[The Tower]

WOW!!! I totally forgot "Julia" and the cleaning lady version of "Sara" (the best version of the best song...)

[Wldhrt315]

I got to thinking about different versions of certain released songs. Here is a list.

SOTM piano is very pretty

the piano version of Rhiannon where Stevie talks to Richard and Lindsey but she answers as them. Cute

No Light (Planets) for sure

Sorcerer - Coffee Plant demos with Lindsey singing alomh with her. There is some amazing amazing harmonies in that version!

Beauty and the Beast piano when she plays it twice and tells the guys in her room how much she cam amaze herself. It is just the way she sings the song that makes it cool!

Sara - "And the wind becomes crazy" - Cleaning lady version

There is a version of Gypsy that I like a lot, I used to have it on MP3 before we got a new computer, it was very bluesy, that was amazing. I have never found it again.

There is a version of Juliet I like, I dont know what version it is though.

Finally, I like the dressing room Wild Heart demo. The sound quality sucks but I like the sound of the song and her voice.

[Wldhrt315]

Originally posted by jwd
Another question...wasn't "Sara" on Tusk pretty much the demo version of Stevie's song. I thought I remember Mick saying that the song's demo version was pretty much the sound they wanted to get from that song.

No, Stevie's original Sara was 16 minutes. They kept cutting parts out to the point where it is now but Stevie has said something like, 'will the name Sara even be in this song?' She was definitely not happy that they cut it down so much.

[Mac Fan]

I can't remember the names of any, but I love the demos off the Enchanted 3cd set.

[Sugar]

OK so everyone likes "The Dealer" but which one do you like?

Take 11 from the BellaDonna masters is one of my favorites! I just love the "You'd of had to watch out" on the fade out! And the second, "I was the dealer/and it wasn't hard" at the end of the second verse.

Close second is the BellaDonna master without any backing vocals. And the Rumours era one sararhiannnon has posted right now is cool too! What is she saying at the beginning? Something like "Forget that you're a millionaire" or something? Like she was talking to Lindsey or Christine about getting back to work on the song after they were talking about their new found success (assuming this is in fact Rumours era, and it sounds like it could be!).

I also adore Julia #5, and Belle Fleur.

I think Courtney Love should do "Starshine"! C'mon, you know you can hear it!

I had dreams of "See The World Go By" being on the album (I know, no way!) but it's just begging for a Lindsey vocal!

That's enough for now!

[estranged4life]

why is the Beatles demo material I have on cd, is of the greatest quality while my Stevie/Mac music is of a lesser quality?

Someone, somewhere is sitting on the great quality Stevie/Mac material which seems to trickle out very slowly every once in a "Blue Moon". Could it be because of the demos that Stevie had stolen?

I saw recently posted elsewhere on the 'net that someone read an interview where Mick Fleetwood stated he would like to one day trade for the Mac demos mainly because they don't even know what they had recorded in the past, And he would like to just sit down with the rest of the group and listen to what they had recorded.

Also Stevie's quote in the "Enchanted" boxed set booklet about "Rhiannon" makes ya wonder if Stevie herself may have heard some of these demos that are floating about-"With all of the bootlegged piano demos of "Rhiannon" that are out there, I decided to just go into a studio with a great grand piano, sit down, and play "Rhiannon" to you now, as she is today."

Sorry to ramble on and get off the subject a bit...Brian J.

[Johnny Stew]

Wow, where do I begin? I love so many of them.

One of the things I like best about Stevie's demos... well, at least in regards to those that later became album tracks... is that we get to see them in their infancy.
No fuss. No muss. No studio gloss. No high-class musicians, or producers.
Just Stevie and her piano (or keyboard).
Sometimes a drum machine. Sometimes Sharon or Lori.
But still just really simple, and straight from the heart.

Other times... like with a song such as "Fall From Grace," or "Space Needle," I can hear the potential of a song that will be even greater once it's been fine-tuned in the studio.

Either way, it's always a fascinating experience to listen to these demos, and I'm happy to have them in my possession.
(Though I do agree with those who feel a bit guilty about that, since Stevie never meant for us to hear any of these just yet.)

Ok, with that long-winded introduction out of the way, here are some of my favorites (of those that have yet to be officially released)....

Julia (take #5, from the Bella Donna masters)
She Still Loves Him
If You Were My Love (the Mirage-era studio version)
Something Exquisite
Lady From The Mountains
The Dealer (any version)
Belle Fleur (*I think Sheryl Crow would do an excellent job producing this one)
Not Make Believe
Joan Of Arc
Smile At You

I'm sure there are some I'm forgetting!

Joe (jwd)... "Lady From The Mountains" is a completely different song. The only thing it shares in common with "Sorcerer," is the title lyric.
It's a very cool song, and both it and "Something Exquisite" are worth seeking out.



Johnny Stew

[sisterofthemoon]

I can't believe I forgot I forgot Something Exquisite...what a great song.

[Rhiannon]

i like-
Sorceror and Nomad- they're both with Lindsey I think, since they were from the Rumours era. I like them better than the TISL produced versions.

Beautiful Ghost (or is it The Mystic?) is very moving.
The Witch (the one that makes mention of Melusine)
Joan of Arc is dark and strange

The Tower
Sisters of the Moon- the demo is a lot more poignant than the studio version on Tusk. It's a lovely example of how much her music changes when it undergoes production.
I love both versions.

-Rhi

[ERigby818]

There really IS a never-ending supply of demos out there. I can't believe how many I keep finding. When I get like more than 5 in one shot I get a little overwhelmed and start hyperventilating because they are all so exquisite (Like when I got the Gems cd, Brian. Just amazing!). Though I didn't feel any guilt about having them until I read this thread and learned that they'd been stolen. I just thought Stevie was such an incredible songwriter and unlike other artists had recorded a vast amount of unreleased material. I'm so naive . But still joyful
My Faves of the unreleased:
China Doll, Forest Of The Black Roses, The Tower, Maker of Birds, Mirror Mirror (the early version, the really early version with a different melody as well as the b-side version), Knocking On Doors, At The Fair (probably my all time fave at the moment!), Julia (the version with the most harmonies), Ooh Ooh Baby, The Witch, If You Were My Love (especially the Mac demo), Smile At You (angry version especially) Baby Doll (I've heard two very different versions, both amazing) City Of Hope, All The Beautiful Worlds, Joan Of Arc, Thrown Down and Space Needle
Of the later released:
Sisters Of The Moon (Gems), Think About It w/ The Mac, I Sing For The Things, Straight Back, Sorcerer, Nomad, No Light, If You ever Did Believe and ahhh...of course Cleaning Lady Sara.

I haven't heard Running Through The Garden, Blue Water or Dial The Number.... or a million others, I'm sure.

I agree with Bella Figura...It's a shame people try to sell bootleg music on ebay (I admit I bought the Rumours Japan video on ebay but that was it). Trading is the way to go. I have so much respect and admiration for the fans who put up those lovely trading sites and do 2 for 1's for novices and stuff like that. Those sites take a lot of work and patience! I don't know how you guys do it, but I've seen so many of these sites and I love them all.
-Sonia