Lindsey Buckingham Talks Fleetwood Mac Tour, New EP - Rolling Stone

[Jondalar]

Originally Posted by michelej1

It's the same thing that Christine said about him when he left the band. She said that other than GYOW she and Stevie really had all of the hits.
Michele

Lindsey's great production is responsible for a lot of those hits.

[michelej1]

Originally Posted by aleuzzi

It's part of the business of justifying the existence of the foursome that they downplay the contributions of whoever of the five is to there. I mean, I cold just imagine the comments Lindsey and Chris would make if they were touring without Stevie. That said, Lindsey's comments are less accurate than Chris's were. She had A LOT of hits....

It's not less accurate. Lindsey didn't say she never had any hits or that she only had one. And I don't think it's really justifying the existence of the foursome (or in Christine's case the sextet that remained). I think that they care/cared that the other is gone and have some unresolved feelings.

If someone left and they were all right with their leaving, like if someone left for health reasons, then neither would make comments like that.

Originally Posted by Jondalar

Lindsey's great production is responsible for a lot of those hits.

And she knew that when she said it.

Michele

[elle]

talking about hits, i was [pleasantly] surprised that Gold Dust Woman and Landslide seem to be 2 SN songs that got by far the biggest recognition reaction as they started during these shows. and GDW was never a single or a "legitimate" hit right? kinda like The Chain or SHN.

it's almost like many of the songs that were not released as singles when the albums first came out were actually better and had more staying power than many that were.

[michelej1]

Oh, looking at the comments, she actually credited Lindsey with two hits:

"Every concert so far has been a winner,” says McVie sounding enthusiastic, “and we’re actually quite in shock ourselves of the apparent lack of concern that Lindsey’s not on the stage.

“Between me and Stevie we have the bulk of the hit songs and in reality Lindsey only had two hits. Go Your Own Way and Big Love. The rest of the hits, in the cold light of day, were actually mine and Stevie’s.”

Michele

[johnnystorms]

Originally Posted by aleuzzi

It's part of the business of justifying the existence of the foursome that they downplay the contributions of whoever of the five is to there. I mean, I cold just imagine the comments Lindsey and Chris would make if they were touring without Stevie. That said, Lindsey's comments are less accurate than Chris's were. She had A LOT of hits....

I do appreciate Steie's loyalty to Chris. She genuinely misses her and hasn't wavered in her appreciation of her former band mate.

yeah, like.. "what happened to the audience?"

[WildHearted]

Originally Posted by elle

Tusk, SHN, Big Love, NGBA... on some RS lists they had songs like Monday Morning among 200 classic rock songs of all times, which was kinda surprising to me.


that said, Christine was the one with by far the biggest number of top 50 hits among the 3 of them, so for him to say she had a few minor hits or whatever he said is either completely ridiculous or it had to be tongue-in-cheek.

Well, it depends on what you call a 'hit.' The entire Rumours album except for a few songs gets played constantly on the radio around here, but I'm not sure that any of the songs that weren't released as singles actually count as having charted, regardless of their airplay. At least, I can't find them. So another thing to consider is that Chris often had more of her songs released as singles than the others did (probably because her songs were good single material and were likely hits, as was proven), so they would be listed on the charts whereas songs that weren't released as singles but are still played a bunch and would be considered "hits" in the mind of the general public don't appear on the charts.

Hits on the Billboard 100 for the Rumours lineup divide up like this:


Christine
Everywhere -14
Little Lies - 4
Love In Store - 22
Hold Me - 4
Think About Me - 20
You Make Loving Fun - 9
Don't Stop - 3
Say You Love Me - 11
Over My Head - 20

Stevie
Seven Wonders - 19
Gypsy - 12
Fireflies - 60
Sisters of the Moon - 86
Sara - 7
Dreams - 1
Rhiannon - 11

Lindsey
Go Your Own Way - 10
Tusk - 8
Big Love - 5
Family Man - 90

So, looking at the top 20 for example - Chris has 8, Stevie has 5, and Lindsey has 3. Lindsey actually has more top 10 hits than Stevie, by one.

[BombaySapphire3]

Originally Posted by WildHearted

Well, it depends on what you call a 'hit.' The entire Rumours album except for a few songs gets played constantly on the radio around here, but I'm not sure that any of the songs that weren't released as singles actually count as having charted, regardless of their airplay. At least, I can't find them. So another thing to consider is that Chris often had more of her songs released as singles than the others did (probably because her songs were good single material and were likely hits, as was proven), so they would be listed on the charts whereas songs that weren't released as singles but are still played a bunch and would be considered "hits" in the mind of the general public don't appear on the charts.

Hits on the Billboard 100 for the Rumours lineup divide up like this:


Christine
Everywhere -14
Little Lies - 4
Love In Store - 22
Hold Me - 4
Think About Me - 20
You Make Loving Fun - 9
Don't Stop - 3
Say You Love Me - 11
Over My Head - 20

Stevie
Seven Wonders - 19
Gypsy - 12
Fireflies - 60
Sisters of the Moon - 86
Sara - 7
Dreams - 1
Rhiannon - 11

Lindsey
Go Your Own Way - 10
Tusk - 8
Big Love - 5
Family Man - 90

So, looking at the top 20 for example - Chris has 8, Stevie has 5, and Lindsey has 3. Lindsey actually has more top 10 hits than Stevie, by one.

Save Me reached number 33 on the Hot 100 and As Long As You Follow almost cracked the top 40 so that makes it 10 for Christine.

[WildHearted]

Originally Posted by BombaySapphire3

Save Me reached number 33 on the Hot 100 and As Long As You Follow almost cracked the top 40 so that makes it 10 for Christine.

Right, but I was talking Rumours line-up. That wasn't with the Rumours line-up.

[bethelblues]

I agree, it's hard to distinguish what exactly we consider a hit. In my mind, it's purely performance on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Chart (though interestingly the band has seen slightly different results in the U.K., one example being Isn't It Midnight). I think it's very clear that Lindsey wrote three hit songs (Christine forgot Tusk in her interview response, though that could have been intentional). It's also clear that the majority of Fleetwood Mac's hits came from Christine, who was the primary force for the pop sound of the band, beginning with Over My Head. That being said, to Stevie's credit, when her solo material is taken account of in addition to her Fleetwood Mac hits (including the band's only number one), she's clearly the most successful and visible of the writers. And arguably, it is her songs that are the most iconic, again fitting the most dominant personality of the band--a position that gave Stevie more power following Rumours and Tusk. Had Silver Springs been written later on, it would've never been dropped.

And speaking of Silver Springs, that one and the now omnipresent Landslide became hits over time and are probably the most played of Fleetwood Mac's songs today (along with Go Your Own Way, Dreams, and Rhiannon, and Say You Love Me and You Make Loving Fun from Christine). So I'd point those two out, as I feel they lie slightly in the middle, as they were eventually released as singles and weren't hits when they were first written.

As for other songs, there are certainly perceived 'hits', or what the band would call must-play songs that weren't singles. There's the band's total effort The Chain. Lindsey's are Secondhand News and Never Going Back Again. Slightly behind those two is I'm So Afraid, which, please correct me if I'm wrong, is much more recognized as a concert performance than its studio recording. Stevie has Gold Dust Woman, which actually does get radio time. And probably the only other Christine song not mentioned already, Songbird. I'm actually surprised that one isn't really played on the radio, especially by the Adult Contemporary stations. But maybe I'm a little unclear of whether radios can play non-singles or what the procedure is. I could see quite a few nightly programs eating up Songbird if it was ever requested.

[michelej1]

Originally Posted by elle

the way Lindsey said it in that new interview though (and again, i can't see how could that be anything but tongue-in-cheek... but than again, there are burned bridges and all that ), was different i guess from what he said some time in the past

Yes. Now, it's more along the lines of, "she's not here to do them justice and we can't recreate her style." Which is, I guess, what they told her because she told Mojo that she thinks they tried to do her songs and couldn't perfect them. So, that's why she concluded that only Don't Stop and World Turning were in the setlist, because they couldn't get the others right.

Michele

[michelej1]

Originally Posted by bethelblues

Stevie's Landslide and Silver Springs became hits over time and are probably the most played of Fleetwood Mac's songs today, along with Go Your Own Way, Dreams, and Rhiannon. So I'd point those two out, as I feel they lie slightly in the middle, as they were eventually released as singles and weren't hits when they were first written.

And you can give Stevie extra compensation, since Dreams went to #1. But actually, they're a very balanced trio, all things considered.

Michele

[Jondalar]

Originally Posted by michelej1

And you can give Stevie extra compensation, since Dreams went to #1. But actually, they're a very balanced trio, all things considered.

Michele

Stevie gets extra points because Landslide is their most popular song and soon to be their only platinum song.

[bethelblues]

Originally Posted by michelej1

Yes. Now, it's more along the lines of, "she's not here to do them justice and we can't recreate her style." Which is, I guess, what they told her because she told Mojo that she thinks they tried to do her songs and couldn't perfect them. So, that's why she concluded that only Don't Stop and World Turning were in the setlist, because they couldn't get the others right.

Michele

That is true. Wasn't that the interview she got her songs mixed up and said they were doing You Make Loving Fun rather than Say You Love Me, and that they weren't quite getting it? I remember reading it.

They are a balanced trio: Christine = pop relevancy. Lindsey = sound and direction of the group. Stevie = the most talented songwriter, and I'd argue the writer of their most lasting and uniquely Fleetwood Mac songs.

Yes, that's how I read it from my other post, and probably how the band sees it:
Number One Hit = Dreams, I bet it burned Lindsey that Stevie got the one and only number one. But in the long-term, obviously, a number-one hit doesn't mean your song will hold up. How many pop acts fade into obscurity? Even Mariah Carey with her 18 number-ones has had trouble selling concert tickets and has struggled to stay relevant. I'm just glad Fleetwood Mac was able to get one.
Hits = Top 20 on U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Chart
Gradual Hits over Time, eventually singles = Landslide, Silver Springs
'Perceived Hits'/Non-singles = I still wonder about Songbird---does anyone hear that song on the radio??? It seems like perfect Adult Contemporary material. I'm not sure if non-singles cannot be played, but then Gold Dust Woman appears on classic rock stations.

[bombaysaffires]

Originally Posted by michelej1

Oh, he knows. He's insane. He's just . . . it's like the Sheryl Crow thing. Sometimes he just says things to provoke, for his own personal pleasure. This is one of those things that has obviously gone onto his, "They tried to make me use a guitar pick" list of grievances that he will never get over in this lifetime.

You know when they pick a new dalai lama they have to go and find who he is by testing the reincarnated person to see what he knows and recognizes from his past life. I could easily find the reincarnated Lindsey, just by asking him about 5 questions.

Michele

^ This. Thanks for making me laugh out loud.

[shackin'up]

Originally Posted by michelej1

And you can give Stevie extra compensation, since Dreams went to #1. But actually, they're a very balanced trio, all things considered.

Michele

Dreams was NOT #1 in my country. But Go Your Own Way was. (As was Oh Well in 1969). Who gets that compensation?