REVIEW: Fleetwood Mac - Dublin "This was what we expected and so much more"

Fleetwood Fans in Awe as Stevie & Co Regroup
By Juno McEnroe
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Examiner.ie

Photo by Andrew Carson

THIS was what we expected and so much more.

With a throw of her slight arm over the microphone stand, a sullen Stevie Nicks took us into The Chain, Fleetwood Mac’s second melody of the night. A sunken O2 arena quickly perked up as a crescendo of cheers rushed over the north Dublin venue.

This was every party song played to its full.

Mick Fleetwood himself barely opened his eyes, tapping cymbals and booting the bass drum into the night.

Back on the road again for the first time in six years, this self-confessed old-time group took time out of their well publicised set to tell Dublin of their tales of mixing with the likes of other bands such as Velvet Underground.

This concert was so much more than just a medley of greatest hits, it was an opportunity for the original 1960s group to settle scores. Despite the fact that group founder Peter Green separately played an arresting set at the weekend in Cork, Fleetwood Mac were not for falling. The band played out the iconic group tune, Dreams, and a slower than usual Rhiannon.

But it was guitarist Lindsey Buckingham’s gripping guitar solo during I’m So Afraid that pushed Irish fans up off their seats to a standing ovation.

As the 60-year-old guitarist blitzed his way along his fretboard, the awestruck crowd shouted for more.

A briefly excited Stevie Nicks brought listeners back to the all-known Go Your Own Way as Fleetwood Mac moved to the end of their set.

In between songs, Lindsay and Stevie satisfied hardcore fans with talk of what the band did before the infamous splits began.

This was more than just a play list.

And an enthusiastic Mick Fleetwood said before courting Stevie off stage: "We’ll see you next time."

This story appeared in the printed version of the Irish Examiner Tuesday, October 27, 2009