Mike Campbell talks about FM in New interview

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by elle

see to me the fact that he sued them knowing full well they can take it to court and air all the FM dirty laundry (wouldn't public eat that up??) was a sign he knew there's no there there. they had nothing on him.

if they did, that was the perfect time to air that out, in the height of #metoo. rabid SN stans kept repeating and insinuating SN was an abused woman trying to justify the firing - but all they had was a whisper campaign. if SN had something, why not come out right then - and again, if that was the case would he be stupid enough to risk it with the lawsuit?

also, if you remember the way they originally planned it was to say that he left. he just refused to go along with that, went to the press and made it clear he was fired for petty reasons. for months FM statements were all over the place because their prepared statements were that he left and they didn't have good reasoning and story to go with the firing.

one last thing - McVies were never onboard with firing. they just were too spineless to try to prevent it. it was never "the whole band wanted to fire LB" - it was always Stevie and probably Azoff, with Mick going along with it for money.

The McVie's are spineless. I mean, I know they're all 100 now, but jesus, step up to the plate!

They might not have been huge without $tevie, but THEY ALSO WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN HUGE WITHOUT LINDSEY.

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

The McVie's are spineless. I mean, I know they're all 100 now, but jesus, step up to the plate!

They might not have been huge without $tevie, but THEY ALSO WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN HUGE WITHOUT LINDSEY.

John McVie, more than any of them, is responsible for their success. On December 31, 1974, Fleetwood Mac was on a major label coming off a Top 40 album. They got signed to that label in 1969 because Fleetwood Mac was one of the top bands in Europe. Fleetwood Mac was one of the top bands in Europe because Peter Green was one of the top blues guitarists in England. Peter became that in the Bluesbreakers, after Eric Clapton had become a guitar god with them and basically invited the Gibson Les Paul through a Marshall amp sound. Prior to that, Clapton was a hot shot guitarist from the Yardbirds, though not yet a god. Clapton joined the Bluesbreakers because they were the blues band with the most potential in England. John McVie was the bassist when this happened. Without John McVie playing for Mayall, there wouldn’t be a Fleetwood Mac on a label for Stevie and Lindsey to join and none of what eventually happened would have been possible. He is literally the foundation of Fleetwood Mac.

John McVie was the bassist of record for the debut/breakout recordings for John Mayall, Eric Clapton, Peter Green, Aynsley Dunbar, Mick Taylor, Mick Fleetwood, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Stevie Nicks, and Lindsey Buckingham. That’s ten artists inducted into the Hall of Fame, two multiple times. Coincidence?

Spineless? No. He just wanted to go on tour and was probably tired of the BS. What gets him the biggest paycheck? Considering all of the vitally important albums he was on, which tour is better for his legacy? The one that’s full of new songs played in theaters built around the eccentricities of one that will probably be discarded by the next tour or the one representative of the entire career that’s played to arenas?

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

John McVie, more than any of them, is responsible for their success. On December 31, 1974, Fleetwood Mac was on a major label coming off a Top 40 album. They got signed to that label in 1969 because Fleetwood Mac was one of the top bands in Europe. Fleetwood Mac was one of the top bands in Europe because Peter Green was one of the top blues guitarists in England. Peter became that in the Bluesbreakers, after Eric Clapton had become a guitar god with them and basically invited the Gibson Les Paul through a Marshall amp sound. Prior to that, Clapton was a hot shot guitarist from the Yardbirds, though not yet a god. Clapton joined the Bluesbreakers because they were the blues band with the most potential in England. John McVie was the bassist when this happened. Without John McVie playing for Mayall, there wouldn’t be a Fleetwood Mac on a label for Stevie and Lindsey to join and none of what eventually happened would have been possible. He is literally the foundation of Fleetwood Mac.

John McVie was the bassist of record for the debut/breakout recordings for John Mayall, Eric Clapton, Peter Green, Aynsley Dunbar, Mick Taylor, Mick Fleetwood, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Stevie Nicks, and Lindsey Buckingham. That’s ten artists inducted into the Hall of Fame, two multiple times. Coincidence?

Spineless? No. He just wanted to go on tour and was probably tired of the BS. What gets him the biggest paycheck? Considering all of the vitally important albums he was on, which tour is better for his legacy? The one that’s full of new songs played in theaters built around the eccentricities of one that will probably be discarded by the next tour or the one representative of the entire career that’s played to arenas?

Do you know what's good for your legacy as a HUMAN BEING? Being LOYAL to people you've worked with for 43 years. Having a spine, and standing up for what's right. WHY TF does John need with a bigger paycheck????? He's survived cancer, and lort only knows how many years he has left. DOING THE RIGHT THING. THAT'S what matters at this stage in life, or should.

And the Peter Green years have NOTHING to do with where they were in 1974. They were going NOWHERE. A minor hit, and milking it by earning minimal money. Big f*cking deal. They all had a debt....an eternal debt to Lindsey, and they welched(no pun intended) on a debt owed.

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

Do you know what's good for your legacy as a HUMAN BEING? Being LOYAL to people you've worked with for 43 years.

Like leaving the band less than eight weeks before a tour?

Having a spine, and standing up for what's right.

Or, Lindsey could have just waited to do his solo stuff.

WHY TF does John need with a bigger paycheck????? He's survived cancer, and lort only knows how many years he has left.

Wants to make sure his daughter is set for life? And, how is his finances anyone’s business?

I mean, it’s laughable that you’d think John would take that kind of financial hit for Lindsey. They’re a corporate rock band, not some buddy-buddy gang.

And the Peter Green years have NOTHING to do with where they were in 1974.

Without Peter Green, they wouldn’t have been on Warner-Reprise. The Bob Welch band wouldn’t have gotten signed to the label. However, they did well enough not to get dropped.

They were going NOWHERE. A minor hit, and milking it by earning minimal money. Big f*cking deal.

They had sold at least two million albums by the time Stevie and Lindsey joined. To put that in context, Wilco has only sold about three million albums in 25 years. They had viable careers, they just weren’t megastars. They were certainly bigger than most of today’s legacy indie rock bands that have been around for decades.

They all had a debt....an eternal debt to Lindsey, and they welched(no pun intended) on a debt owed.

Please, he owes them, too. Without the labors of John McVie during the Bluesbreakers, without Peter Green forming the band, without the songs that were big enough to land them on Warner-Reprise, and without all of the sweat equity from the constant touring and recording from 1967-74, there wouldn’t have been a viable band for Stevie and Lindsey to join in the first place.

Furthermore, Lindsey didn’t have the musical vocabulary on his own to make the albums they made. He couldn’t make legendary albums without the core trio. Christine had been writing hook and harmony laden pop gems before 1975 that were on par with anything she did after 1975. Lindsey and Stevie improved upon the harmonies, but the songs weren’t radically different. However, comparing the live Buckingham Nicks “Rhiannon” to the live fall, 1975 Fleetwood Mac “Rhiannon” is a bit more stark. One sounded like any random bar band, the other was a rock legend. And, I hear the blues in the Mac version (weirdly, I hear “No Road Is The Right Road” on the Fleetwood Mac version).

So, from my perspective, Lindsey owes them a debt of gratitude. He was going nowhere when they basically rescued Buckingham Nicks.

[HomerMcvie]

An absolute ray of sunshine. I'd expect nothing less...

[UnwindedDreams]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

John McVie, more than any of them, is responsible for their success. On December 31, 1974, Fleetwood Mac was on a major label coming off a Top 40 album. They got signed to that label in 1969 because Fleetwood Mac was one of the top bands in Europe. Fleetwood Mac was one of the top bands in Europe because Peter Green was one of the top blues guitarists in England. Peter became that in the Bluesbreakers, after Eric Clapton had become a guitar god with them and basically invited the Gibson Les Paul through a Marshall amp sound. Prior to that, Clapton was a hot shot guitarist from the Yardbirds, though not yet a god. Clapton joined the Bluesbreakers because they were the blues band with the most potential in England. John McVie was the bassist when this happened. Without John McVie playing for Mayall, there wouldn’t be a Fleetwood Mac on a label for Stevie and Lindsey to join and none of what eventually happened would have been possible. He is literally the foundation of Fleetwood Mac.

The one that’s full of new songs played in theaters built around the eccentricities of one that will probably be discarded by the next tour or the one representative of the entire career that’s played to arenas?

The one that played Crowded House, Split Enz, and Tom Petty?

[goldustsongbird]

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

The McVie's are spineless. I mean, I know they're all 100 now, but jesus, step up to the plate!

They might not have been huge without $tevie, but THEY ALSO WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN HUGE WITHOUT LINDSEY.

I'm not at all shocked that they didn't say anything. They probably should have, but they've always tended to keep to themselves. It's likely habit at this point.

Thinking about all of this, wondering how long it'll take Mick to write that tell-all... After Lindsey left in 1987, Stevie said that everything with them goes in two-year cycles. All of their problems get ironed out in roughly that amount of time. If the world doesn't fold on itself, we should know soon enough. They will either patch things up and make some money off of yet another public reunion, or Mick will start doing book signings at B&N.

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by goldustsongbird

Thinking about all of this, wondering how long it'll take Mick to write that tell-all... After Lindsey left in 1987, Stevie said that everything with them goes in two-year cycles. All of their problems get ironed out in roughly that amount of time. If the world doesn't fold on itself, we should know soon enough. They will either patch things up and make some money off of yet another public reunion, or Mick will start doing book signings at B&N.

I've read Mick's first book MANY MANY times.

I bought his second book several years ago... I've never cracked the cover open. Now that we know what a LYING POS he is, I just don't care what drivel he cares to spin. Because 90% of it is lies, I'm sure.

[goldustsongbird]

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

I've read Mick's first book MANY MANY times.

I bought his second book several years ago... I've never cracked the cover open. Now that we know what a LYING POS he is, I just don't care what drivel he cares to spin. Because 90% of it is lies, I'm sure.

I read part of Mick's first book online years ago. It was a poorly formatted .doc that was difficult to read, and I don't think the pre-existing editorial errors made it any easier to get through. I didn't get much out of it. As with most accounts like this, there are probably kernels of truth in it. I feel the same way about CAH's book.

[UnwindedDreams]

I read this interview with Neal Schon that came out on RollingStone yesterday and I could think from his comments about Mr. Irving Azoff's practices that Irving could have lied to Lindsey about Stevie saying "he goes, or I'm leaving" MF told a paparazzo that Stevie didn't give the band an ultimatum.

Neal suggests Irving isn't a 'straight-shooter'

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/m...iverse-1109823

And for anyone who wants to write "Who cares?" to this post... maybe you should start your own message board where you can have rubber stamp friends.

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by UnwindedDreams

I read this interview with Neal Schon that came out on RollingStone yesterday and I could think from his comments about Mr. Irving Azoff's practices that Irving could have lied to Lindsey about Stevie saying "he goes, or I'm leaving" MF told a paparazzo that Stevie didn't give the band an ultimatum.

Neal suggests Irving isn't a 'straight-shooter'

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/m...iverse-1109823

And for anyone who wants to write "Who cares?" to this post... maybe you should start your own message board where you can have rubber stamp friends.

Mick is a god damned liar, though. I don't believe a word he says.

And WHY ELSE would they break up the Rumours five? Mick is all about the paycheck, so he wouldn't. The McVies wouldn't do it. It had to be that stupid old goat!

(after reading your Journey link) I'm sure that management is part of the problem. When you're no longer communicating with each other, but sending your messages through "your people", things are bound to get f*cked up.

Rubber stamp people....there's no reason to bring $tevie's friends into this!

[UnwindedDreams]

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

And WHY ELSE would they break up the Rumours five?

I think Mick and Stevie both don't want to make new Fleetwood Mac music. They'd rather hear the roar of the crowd when the old classic rock radio songs are played.
They don't want a lukewarm applause for new songs.

You have to wonder why Storms was dropped in the first month of the 2018 tour when it was played for an entire year on Unleashed. I think it bothers Stevie to see people sitting and chatting, or people walking with beer in their hands while she's singing a song in which she's pouring her heart out. What did she replace Storms with.. oh how surprising, Gypsy

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by UnwindedDreams

I read this interview with Neal Schon that came out on RollingStone yesterday and I could think from his comments about Mr. Irving Azoff's practices that Irving could have lied to Lindsey about Stevie saying "he goes, or I'm leaving" MF told a paparazzo that Stevie didn't give the band an ultimatum.

Neal suggests Irving isn't a 'straight-shooter'

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/m...iverse-1109823

And for anyone who wants to write "Who cares?" to this post... maybe you should start your own message board where you can have rubber stamp friends.

Please, I’m the one who’s been saying the whole smirk thing was BS all along. I still LOL that he and his minions believed that.

Lindsey’s days in Fleetwood Mac were numbered starting on June 20, 2017, when he told an L.A. Times reporter that he/Fleetwood Mac were doing the Classic shows for the money as well as a favor to Irving Azoff.

Asked how he felt about playing a show explicitly geared to evoke memories of the old days, Buckingham cringed.

"It doesn't necessarily speak of the aspiration to present anything in the way that Fleetwood Mac would want to present it on its own terms," he said. "But we're all very close to Irving, so it was just sort of a 'Why not?'"
Pretty diplomatic for a rock star.

“I was going to put it less diplomatically, but I stopped myself," he said.

"Do the undiplomatic version," McVie chimed in. "What were you going to say?"

"I was going to say, 'Just close your eyes and take the money,'" Buckingham answered, and the soundstage rippled with laughter again.

The interviewer also reviewed the Classic West show and gave them a terrible review.

I can’t say I wasn’t warned.

In a recent interview with Lindsey Buckingham, I asked the Fleetwood Mac frontman about turning his attention from his and Christine McVie’s new duets album to Fleetwood Mac’s participation in Classic West.

First he cringed, as though the mere mention of the two-day festival — which brought Fleetwood Mac and the Eagles, among other veteran rock acts, to Dodger Stadium over the weekend — had embarrassed him. Then he explained that the explicitly nostalgic event wasn’t exactly his dream gig, but that he’d agreed to do it in deference to his manager, Irving Azoff, who put the Classic West together.

Buckingham’s mantra for the show? “Just close your eyes and take the money.”
Having seen Sunday’s miserable excuse for a concert, I wish I’d been closing my eyes.

How do you think that went over with Irving Azoff, who was still promoting the shows and selling tickets? He had millions invested in those shows, and then the talent starts talking it down? Think it’s also purely coincidental that Irving dropped Lindsey as a client after Lindsey got fired from Fleetwood Mac?

By all accounts, the tour negotiations in November, 2017 were brutal. I can easily imagine Irving, not feeling the love for his client, asking Stevie how Mike Campbell was doing since Tom’s untimely passing at some point.

The decision to fire Lindsey was made before MusiCares.

[sleepless child]

I agree. I think the seeds were sown then. Lindsey and Chris doing an album and Stevie not wanting to record new music with the Mac. I'd say the different paths are Lindsey doesn't want to be an oldies band and Stevie is fine with that.