Review: Lindsey Buckingham "Songs From The Small Machine"

Published by @Nickslive nickslive.blogspot.com for Fleetwood Mac News and Reviews: 

Eagle Rock Unleashes Classic Rock Concerts on Blu-ray

Fans of Fleetwood Mac undoubtedly know Lindsey Buckingham. He, with Stevie Nicks, joined the band in time for them to become monster hit makers in the 1970’s. He’s a heckuva guitarist in his own right and has a good singing voice, too.

I was never a Mac fan (heck, I’m writing this on a PC!) so wasn’t too interested in this disc, but I’m glad I watched it. Buckingham does songs from his Mac and non-Mac career, peppering the concert with anecdotes shared with the audience.  The show kicks off with some acoustic performances, and then his band joins him for most of the rest of the disc. Songs include “Shut us Down,” “Go Insane,” “Trouble,” “Never Going Back Again,” “Big Love,” “Tusk,” “Stars are Crazy,” “End of Time,” “That’s the Way Love Goes,” “Go Your Own Way,” and “Seeds We Sow.”

Alas, once again the video here isn’t as good as Eagle Rock’s best, with a lack of detail on longer shots (though close ups are good). And as usual, you get the three choices of audio tracks and, as usual, the DTS-HD is the best, offering a beautiful mix.  There’s no center channel on tap, though; this is a four channel presentation.

by: Jim Bray

Canada Free Press

Available at Amazon.com $15.49

LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM LIVE
Scheduled to be released on February 7th (for the first time on Blu-ray) Lindsey's 2005 Soundstage Performance titled "Lindsey Buckingham Live"  This show was recorded during a break on the Say You Will Tour in 2003 - and really is a must have... The sound on this is spectacular in this small setting.

Pre-orders available through Amazon with a nice price: $14.99

Song List: 

Someone's Gonna Change Your Mind

Trouble

Big Love

Go Insane

Down on the Rodeo

Peacekeeper

Red Rover

Never Going Back Again

Say Goodbye

Murrow Turning Over In His Grave

Go Your Own Way

Videos: "Rock N Roll" and "Edge of 17" Stevie Nicks Live in Sydney, AU 11/29/11

Published by @Nickslive nicklive.blogspot.com for Fleetwood Mac News and Reviews

A couple of really great video captures of Stevie live in Sydney, Australia November 29, 2011. Stevie and the band sound and look awesome as usual!  Stevie looks like she's sporting either a new Rock N Roll Top Hat or its a new feather attachment thing...Either way, looks great... The hat seems a little more stable on her head then the hats from previous tours with the long white feather.  She dedicates this song to XFactor Australia's Reese Mastin.  This was the only performance of the song on the Australian tour... So Sydney, you got a bonus!

Also - "Edge of Seventeen" with Rhiannon & Leather and Lace links included. 

ALSO AVAILABLE at these links:Rhiannon | Leather and Lace

Photos: Stevie Nicks | Dave Stewart | Brian McFadden - Canberra http://bit.ly/rzgUVf

Published by @Nickslive nickslive.blogspot.com for Fleetwood Mac News and Reviews

Photo Gallery: 

Stevie Nicks | Dave Stewart | Brian McFadden

Canberra, AU December 7, 2011 

36 Photos by Snapshotsofthoughts View Gallery 

Auction Winner Questions Stevie Nicks Autographed Poster

Published by @Nickslive of nickslive.blogspot.com for Fleetwood Mac News and Reviews

Really? Someone questioned this?

Apparently, the person that won one of the 2011 Fillmore posters, from Stevie's two shows earlier this year, that she autographed and auctioned off to benefit Mike Campbell's Tazzy Animal Rescue Fund questioned the validity of Stevie's signature. The situation was brought to Stevie's attention and she sent in a note to her website The Nicksfix addressing the situation... Check it out. (scroll down the page a bit for the 2 page pdf file)

The Auction was run by Mike Campbell from the Heartbreakers back in early November to benefit "Mike Campbell's Rock The Dogs Rock and Roll Holiday Auction".  Stevie's items raised a load of money for the fund... Here are the two signed items.

Stevie Nicks | Fleetwood Mac - Billboard Year End Charts

Published by @Nickslive - nickslive.blogspot.com - Fleetwood Mac News and Reviews: 

Stevie Nicks and Fleetwood Mac make Billboard Magazine's Year End Charts.  

Click here for a complete listing of all charts compiled by Billboard.

Billboard Magazine calculates the sales year from December to November so a lot of the big sellers from last December make this years list.  All sales are based on Soundscan data.

Top Rock Albums
Year-End top-selling albums across all rock genres, ranked by sales data as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan.

# 45 - Stevie Nicks "In Your Dreams"

Top Catalog Albums
Year-End top-selling albums across all genres that are at least 18-months old. ranked by sales data as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan.

# 47 - Fleetwood Mac "Rumours"


On Other Charts:
(Previous week in parenthesis)

UK Top 40 Catalogue Chart - December 10, 2011
# 21 - Fleetwood Mac "Rumours".

Australia Top 100 Albums Chart - December 5, 2011

# 24 (25) - Fleetwood Mac "The Very Best Of"
# 52 (44) - Stevie Nicks "Crystal Visions… The Very Best Of"

Australia Top 50 Catalogue Chart - December 5, 2011
#  1 (1)  - Fleetwood Mac "The Very Best Of"
#  7 (5)  - Stevie Nicks "Crystal Visions… The Very Best Of"

Lindsey Buckingham - UK & IRELAND Tour Cancelled

Published by @Nickslive of nickslive.blogspot.com for Fleetwood Mac News and Reviews: 

LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM TOUR CANCELLED

Lindsey Buckingham has unfortunately had to cancel his upcoming UK/IRELAND shows as his guitarist has severely injured his back and is not able to presently perform. It has not been possible to reschedule new dates for 2012. For refunds please contact your point of purchase. 

We are sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused.

Live Nation UK - Facebook | Website

Really sorry to hear this!... The UK and Ireland fans were REALLY looking forward to him - for the first time solo!

NEW At HDTracks - Fleetwood Mac "Mirage"

FLEETWOOD MAC AT HD TRACKS

Founded by David and Norman Chesky of the audiophile-record label Chesky Records, HDtracks is a high-quality music download service offering a diverse catalog of music from around the world. HDtracks does not believe in DRM, and as a result, we offer a selection of unencrypted files that play on any computer or portable device.

In an age when there is a computer in every home, we have grown accustomed to accessing music at the touch of a button. But, what about the quality of that music? Why should the sound suffer because of convenience? With HDtracks, we have discovered the way to have it all: world-class music, unrivaled sound, and files that play in any environment.

We have several formats available for fans of all types of music. If you would like genuine CD-quality sound, HDtracks offers both AIFF and FLAC lossless files. For those who wish to carry their music in a portable player, we have 320kbps files that far exceed the quality of standard MP3 files.

Finally, audiophiles take note. HDtracks offers select titles in ultra-high resolution 96khz/24bit files. This is true DVD-audio sound quality for music lovers that demand the very best!

Download at HDTracks (sound samples available)

Rumours 
Audiophile 96kHz/24bit $19.98



Tusk
Audiophile 96kHz/24bit $20.98
Audiophile 192kHz/24bit $29.98

Mirage *NEW*
Audiophile 96kHz/24bit $17.98
Audiophile 192kHz/24bit $24.98

Tango In The Night
Audiophile 96kHz/24bit $17.98
Audiophile 192kHz/24bit $24.98

Review: Songs From The Small Machine "Lindsey Buckingham’s six-string tapestries are jaw-dropping"

Published by @Nickslive at nickslive.blogspot.com for Fleetwood Mac News and Review:

DVD Review: Buckingham Earns Respect
By Scott Smith
Times Record

"The women ruined Fleetwood Mac.”

That ongoing, mean-spirited joke that claims Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie sabotaged the artistic integrity of one of rock’s most-loved groups is frustrating and puzzling. Those who pass that tired joke along are commenting on the skyscraper-level success Fleetwood Mac enjoyed immediately after Nicks and guitarist-singer Lindsey Buckingham joined the group.

But those armchair critics, while leaning on that anti-Nicks sentiment, really are missing the point entirely. Yes, Fleetwood Mac originated as an all-male blues band in the late 1960s before becoming co-ed chart-toppers in the mid- and late-1970s, but the Buckingham-Nicks version was — and still is — just as daring and critical as almost any punk-rock band.

A quick spin of Fleetwood Mac’s beautifully flawed LP “Tusk” — the LP is jagged, nervy and completely different than its safer, bazillion-selling predecessor, “Rumours” — reveals Buckingham to be as much as a lone-wolf, do-it-yourself artist as Johnny Rotten, the late Joe Strummer or any leather-jacketed Ramone.

The same can be said of Buckingham’s new DVD, “Songs from the Small Machine — Live in L.A.,” which gives sharp focus to Buckingham’s immaculate guitar playing. Filmed on the front end of his recent “Seeds We Sow Tour,” the DVD presents some of the most unique — and wildly inspired — finger-picking from any guitar player.

Buckingham’s six-string tapestries are jaw-dropping on his trademark, one-man version of “Big Love,” and his fingers and right thumb also succeed in aweing fans on more recent work like “Seeds We Sow,” “Under the Skin,” “Shut Us Down,” “In Our Own Time,” “Stars Are Crazy” and “End of Time.”

The Rock and Roll Hall-of-Famer also breathes new venom into Fleetwood Mac’s “Second Hand News,” a still-impressive track that contains a galloping rhythm and the best lyrics ever about romantic adventures found in tall-grass fields.

Format: DVD/CD combo
Studio: Eagle Vision
Rated: Not rated
Running Time: 142 minutes
Grade: A
Other formats: Blu-ray and stand-alone DVD

REVIEW: Stevie Nicks Canberra, AU

Published by @Nickslive at nickslive.blogspot.com for Fleetwood Mac News and Reviews

Queen of rock rolls with career's punches

Photo: Stuart Walmsley

Rolling Stone once dubbed her the ''reigning queen of rock and roll'', and while Stevie Nicks may no longer sit on the throne, she continues to influence those who do.  Artists like Sheryl Crow, Courtney Love and even the Dixie Chicks have cited her as an inspiration - not bad for a girl who was only added to Fleetwood Mac after then boyfriend Lindsey Buckingham insisted they came as a package deal.

The long, flowing skirts and tassles remain at age 63, but the feverish on-stage antics have given way to a slow twirl. She may be moving with less verve, but Nicks showed fans at the AIS Arena last night that her songwriting ability is far from on the wane.

Nearing the end of an Australian tour to promote her latest album In Your Dreams, Nicks only borrowed sparingly from her Fleetwood Mac days and past solo career, preferring new material co-written in 2010 with Dave Stewart of Eurythmics fame.

In Your Dreams has been widely lauded as her best collection of songs since the '80s and she told fans last night that the experience of making the album with Stewart at her Santa Monica home was ''the best year of my life''.

CONTINUE TO THE FULL REVIEW

BY STUART WALMSLEY
The Canberra Times

"Nicks of Time" Hobart Mercury

Published by @Nickslive at nickslive.blogspot.com for Fleetwood Mac News and Reviews:

Stevie Nicks looks back over her life and loves on her new album, says Helen Brown

(This article appears in the December 8th printing of the Hobart Mercury (Tasmania).  Article was originally published in The Telegraph in June, 2011

WHEN Stevie Nicks asked her 15-year-old god-daughter to take part in her new video – “playing me at 30, around the time I joined Fleetwood Mac” – the girl asked for a little direction.

“So I told her to twirl, talk to yourself, make like you’re crazy – be me,” Nicks says. “We put her in my vintage, evergreen tie-dye with my top hat. Oh, she looked so beautiful. My girlfriends laughed when we saw the dress. Were we ever that small? We must have been!” She may lament outgrowing her youthful stage gear but Nicks is still a rock-star Rapunzel at 63, blonde locks cascading over billowing, black chiffon sleeves.

It’s been a long and winding road for Nicks. She developed a huge cocaine addiction between the 1977 release of Fleetwood Mac’s 40 million-selling Rumours and her 1986 admission to the Betty Ford Clinic. Her recovery was “aided” by a prescribed tranquilliser, to which she became addicted for eight years.

“I’m still very angry about that,” she says. “I might have met somebody, had a baby, made three more amazing albums in those years.

“I’m pretty sure that had I not eventually checked myself into a hospital and stayed there for 47 days, I would be dead now. I would have OD’D on something crazy – over the counter.”

Photos: Stevie Nicks, Dave Stewart & Brian McFadden Wollongong

Published by @Nickslive at nickslive.blogspot.com for Fleetwood Mac News and Reviews: 

Stevie Nicks | Dave Stewart | Brian McFadden 

WIN Entertainment Centre Wollongong December 5, 2011 

Gallery

Looks like a couple of wardrobe changes for both Stevie and Dave.  Stevie's red jacket on this night didn't include the long chiffon sleeves, instead she went for a gathered sleeve top similar or exactly like one she's been wearing in black. Dave in deep purple in a similar style to his yellow blackbird suit.

Photos by: shot2frame

Stevie Nicks brought her trademark ethereal feel to Wollongong

As a member of Fleetwood Mac she captivated a generation, and Stevie Nicks brought her trademark ethereal feel to Wollongong.

It was cold, windy and wet when the baby boomers fought for parking down by the beach and several blocks inland.

Many appeared to have arrived early enough to have quite a few drinks.

Surprisingly, many stayed outside drinking while Dave Stewart and his excellent band played a great set.

It was early though, they were playing a Eurythmics track when we arrived at 7:30pm.

Stevie announced at the start of her show that this concert tour was not a greatest hits show but to promote her 2010 album with Dave Stewart.  She then reassured us that there would be some hits interspersed with the new work.  The crowd was grateful.

Then, to sweeten us up, explained she'd never before visited Wollongong (which she correctly pronounced).

She praised the vista of entering from the escarpment: "Where the amazing ocean meets the mountain.

This is maybe where I find my house on the cliff".

"Yes!" we cheered, especially the Wombarra residents down in the $170 seats who probably thought more of the boost to their home prices than what sort of a neighbour Ms Nicks might really make.

A couple of new songs, the second with a video projection featuring Dave Stewart in black and young ethereal girls swirling around in swirly Nicks style dresses, cutting to images of a dark Stevie in black with very straight blonde hair.  The video background was quite distracting but reminded the crowd of Stevie's witchy persona.  In the flesh, she reminded us too of what she had been.

She wore a dark red, layered, ruched dress with tight bodice and the most amazing hair. Long, lustrous white blond locks had the 2011 Stevie, more beautiful than the tortured perms of the 70s and teased looks of the 80s but a little incongruous 30 years on.

The band launched into Dreams and the crowd sang along.

The expensive seats came alive with the lights of iphones: were they recording or waving their lighter app in the air?

Reviewed by Sarah Moss
Full Review at ABC Illawarra