Which Album Do You Prefer? BTM or Time

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by foxyluva

For starters, there was too much similarity to Stevie - so it came off like she was a cheap replacement.

How so? Other than blonde hair, I don't see any similarity. In fact, I'd say there was more similarity, at least visually, to Christine than Stevie. In terms of voice, it's like comparing Grace Slick to Mavis Staples.

Originally Posted by foxyluva

Secondly, she didn't write her own songs, she doesn't play any instruments - what does she really bring to the band apart from her looks and her voice

With the last name "Bramlett," most music fans and insiders were more interested in her singing than anything else. I know when I heard about Bekka on Mick's album, my first question was "any relation to Delaney & Bonnie," and my second was "does she sound like her mother". So, her voice is her primary instrument. (Kind of a weird question. "What does a singer really bring to a rock band, apart from her voice?" )

Having a chick in the band has been a part of Fleetwood Mac's identity since 1970. With Christine retired from the road and Stevie out of the band, it created the need for another female. So she didn't write songs. Lots of singers don't write their own songs. I don't believe Janis Joplin was a songwriter. I know her most popular songs were penned by others. Yet Stevie fans don't diminish the worth of Janis like they do Bekka.

Where people make the mistake with Bekka is comparing her to Stevie. Christine is a much nicer comparison. Christine was a good keyboardist when she joined, but her singing and songwriting paled in comparison to her later work. She DEVELOPED into the Christine McVie that wrote a butt load of hit songs. If "Future Games" was all we knew of Christine, we'd like her, but wouldn't be utterly in awe/blown away by her, especially when put up against Peter Green just a year and change earlier.

[HomerMcvie]

^^^What.he.said.too.

[foxyluva]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

How so? Other than blonde hair, I don't see any similarity. In fact, I'd say there was more similarity, at least visually, to Christine than Stevie. In terms of voice, it's like comparing Grace Slick to Mavis Staples.

I wasn't talking about the voice at all, but to me, she looked like a mid-70s Stevie

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

Having a chick in the band has been a part of Fleetwood Mac's identity since 1970. With Christine retired from the road and Stevie out of the band, it created the need for another female. So she didn't write songs. Lots of singers don't write their own songs. I don't believe Janis Joplin was a songwriter. I know her most popular songs were penned by others. Yet Stevie fans don't diminish the worth of Janis like they do Bekka.

Janis Joplin wrote alot of her own songs, not the famous ones you hear on radio, but she did write her own songs.

On your other point, I don't see how apart from the touring aspect, why another female was necessary for FM. They could get away with replacing guitarists, because FM needs a guitarist - but replacing either two females, like it or not, who were the main focal point of the band, would never work...

[chiliD]

Originally Posted by foxyluva

Janis Joplin wrote alot of her own songs, not the famous ones you hear on radio, but she did write her own songs.

And, so does Bekka...she just didn't have her own songs on the one & only Fleetwood Mac album she was a part of. Faith Hill has made a BUNDLE on songs written by Bekka

Originally Posted by foxyluva

On your other point, I don't see how apart from the touring aspect, why another female was necessary for FM. They could get away with replacing guitarists, because FM needs a guitarist - but replacing either two females, like it or not, who were the main focal point of the band, would never work...

And, you DO know that Grace Slick wasn't the original singer for Jefferson Airplane, right?

I think your logic in this is just skewed, insanely skewed.

If Fleetwood Mac would've just packed it in when Peter Green left, then we wouldn't have all this "Stevie/Bekka" bull****...because we all know that Fleetwood Mac, for all intents, was just crap once Peter left.


Yes, there was a bucketload of sarcasm in my last comment.

[foxyluva]

Originally Posted by chiliD

And, you DO know that Grace Slick wasn't the original singer for Jefferson Airplane, right?

I do know that, but how would it have gone down if they had replaced Grace with another female? Not well I would think.

My point is what Gail said above - Bekka was always going to come across as a cheap knock-off of Stevie, and the general public I doubt would have ever bought into it

[chiliD]

Originally Posted by foxyluva

I do know that, but how would it have gone down if they had replaced Grace with another female? Not well I would think.

My point is what Gail said above - Bekka was always going to come across as a cheap knock-off of Stevie, and the general public I doubt would have ever bought into it

I guess we'll have to agree to acknowledge we are diametrically opposed on this topic.

[foxyluva]

Originally Posted by chiliD

I guess we'll have to agree to acknowledge we are diametrically opposed on this topic.

I'll take that

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by foxyluva

I wasn't talking about the voice at all, but to me, she looked like a mid-70s Stevie

I just don't see it. The styles were pretty different to my eyes. Certainly no chiffon on Bekka's part. Even they way they moved around on stage was different. The only thing I see them having in common is blonde hair.

Originally Posted by foxyluva

Janis Joplin wrote alot of her own songs, not the famous ones you hear on radio, but she did write her own songs.

But, again, not the hits. Bekka was just developing in that area. I think Bekka has written or co-written a lot of great songs since leaving the band.

Originally Posted by foxyluva

On your other point, I don't see how apart from the touring aspect, why another female was necessary for FM.

If they stopped touring altogether, or if Christine decided to tour again, then I agree there wouldn't have been the need for Bekka. But they were a touring band, and it wouldn't make sense to have somebody who wasn't a member of the band fronting it on at least 30% of the show.

Originally Posted by foxyluva

They could get away with replacing guitarists, because FM needs a guitarist - but replacing either two females, like it or not, who were the main focal point of the band, would never work...

I wish I could agree. But their tours were done before the album was released, and they stopped touring right as the album was released. They never really gave Bekka a shot at fronting the band behind an album she appeared on. I think there would have been further changes in personnel, but I think if they had focused the band around Bekka and Billy, things would have been much better.