Saturday, March 11, 2023

Stevie Nicks and Billy Joel Inglewood, CA March 10, 2023

Review: Billy Joel and Stevie Nicks keep fantasy alive at SoFi Stadium



By: BY MIKAEL WOOD

Stevie Nicks slumped against a microphone stand, steadying herself with both sparkly gloved hands, and bowed her head for 10 or 12 seconds as the final chords of “Landslide” rang out through Inglewood’s SoFi Stadium on Friday night.

Concluding her set on the opening date of a joint mini-tour with Billy Joel, the singer and gothic-hippie style icon had just performed her signature acoustic ballad in front of an enormous video screen showing photos of her with Fleetwood Mac bandmate Christine McVie, who died in November. We saw Stevie and Christine harmonizing; we saw them holding hands; we saw them whispering into each other’s ear, sharing some joke made only funnier by its secrecy. Now, Nicks — onstage for the first time since McVie’s death — lifted her head, her eyes seeming to glisten under the stadium lights.

“There’s really not much to say,” she told the tens of thousands in the crowd. “We just pretend that she’s just still here — that’s how I’m trying to deal with it.”

Finding new emotional purpose in well-worn material — in lines like those in “Landslide” about getting older after having built your life around someone — is probably the most you can ask of a veteran rock star on the road for the umpteenth time. It’s a way to keep the classic music alive, even (or especially) when it’s painful; it shows there’s use left in the old songs, not just for the audience but for the artist as well.

There are less noble reasons to tour, of course, some of which were in evidence Friday. Maybe you want to show off a voice, as Nicks did, that still sounds great at age 74 — low and smoky, with an imperiousness that can suddenly melt away to reveal pure need. Maybe you want to crack some dad jokes, as 73-year-old Joel did, about his lack of dance skills, just before his band struck up the Rolling Stones’ “Start Me Up” and he flailed around for a minute like an adult-aerobics Mick Jagger.

And maybe you want to make some money, as both stars certainly will on a leisurely run scheduled to touch down once a month or so through November. (Primo floor seats for the duo’s next concert, in Arlington, Texas, are available for $2,250 a pop.)

But for those watching, a moment like Nicks’ moving “Landslide” — its reminder that honesty and finesse can happen in the same place at the same time — is the reason to show up for an operation like this.

Do Joel and Nicks make for an odd combination? He’s Mr. New York, she an avatar of West Coast cool; his songs look back to the tidy structures of the Brill Building, hers the haunted romance of Welsh folklore. Yet each began racking up radio hits around the same time, in the mid-1970s: Two years after Fleetwood Mac’s “Rumours” was named album of the year at the Grammy Awards, Joel won the same prize with “52nd Street.”

More to the point, both singers outlasted the FM era to endure well into the MTV age — a testament to radio’s career-building power, sure, but also to their understanding the emergent value of a visual brand. At SoFi, Joel still scrunched up his bulldog’s face while Nicks kept twirling in her glittering shawl.

Besides, how much sense does a joint bill of boomers even need to make? (Recall that Nicks toured a decade ago with Rod Stewart, of all people.) As Joel told The Times in an interview last week, McVie was just one casualty of the war of attrition that time is waging against his generation. “Dropping Like Flies” was his joking title for the next possible tour. That would really only sharpen the catch-’em-while-you-can pitch embedded in “Two Icons — One Night,” as the current show is called.

Here they joined forces for a pair of unlikely duets: her “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” in which Joel sang the part made famous by the late Tom Petty; and his “And So It Goes,” for which they stationed themselves at opposite ends of Joel’s grand piano. Neither performance convinced you that they had finally found their musical soulmates; both performances made you glad nonetheless to see two artists reaching toward each other.

Other than “Landslide,” highlights of Nicks’ set included a lustrous “Sara,” which online record-keepers say she hadn’t performed solo for a decade and a half, and a juicy take on “If Anyone Falls” that led you to think about how much modern pop music Nicks was groundworking between the years of 1975 and 1983. (No “The Wild Heart,” no Miley Cyrus; no “Bella Donna,” no Lana Del Rey.)

Joel did that too with “Just the Way You Are,” which sounds now like a blueprint for guys like the Weeknd and Bon Iver and their ideas about the obsessions concealed by shimmering surfaces. Mostly, though, he seemed less interested in casting new light on his music than in showcasing its durability: Before “An Innocent Man,” he said he was worried about hitting the song’s high notes, then nailed each one — wouldn’t you know it? — with precision to spare.

His hits were many and varied, from “My Life” and “Movin’ Out” and “Allentown” to “Only the Good Die Young” and “The River of Dreams” and the inevitable “Piano Man.” For his encore Joel rose from behind his piano and grabbed a mike on a stand to belt out “Uptown Girl” and “It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me” as his band cranked the guitars. The songs were arguing that things never change — another fantasy to believe in even when you know better. 






Tuesday, February 21, 2023

STEVIE NICKS AND FLEETWOOD MAC RECORD STORE DAY 2023 RELEASES

 COMING SOON!



STEVIE NICKS
Bella Donna Live 1981
RECORD STORE DAY 2023 EXCLUSIVE RELEASE
APRIL 22, 2023

Available for the first time on vinyl, this 2LP set features Stevie Nicks live, a recording from the White Winged Dove Tour, at the Fox Wilshire Theatre on December 13th 1981. The show included tracks from Bella Donna including “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” “Leather and Lace” and “Edge of Seventeen,” along with Fleetwood Mac favorites “Gold Dust Woman,” “Dreams,” “Sara” and “Rhiannon.”

Side 1
A1. GOLD DUST WOMAN
A2. GOLD AND BRAID
A3. I NEED TO KNOW
A4. OUTSIDE THE RAIN

Side 2
B1. DREAMS
B2. ANGEL*
B3. AFTER THE GLITTER FADES
B4. LEATHER AND LACE*

Side 3
C1. STOP DRAGGIN’ MY HEART AROUND
C2. BELLA DONNA*
C3. SARA
C4. HOW STILL MY LOVE*

Side 4
D1. EDGE OF SEVENTEEN
D2. RHIANNON







FLEETWOOD MAC
Albatross/Jigsaw Puzzle
RECORD STORE DAY 2023 FIRST RELEASE
APRIL 22, 2023

Fleetwood Mac's only #1 single in the UK was Peter Green's “Albatross.” This Record Store Day 2023 reissue of the original Fleetwood Mac/Blue Horizon single brings to light the greatness of Peter Green and his time with Fleetwood Mac.  The red vinyl 12” single has individually numbered sleeves. 

"Albatross"/"Jigsaw Puzzle"






Monday, January 23, 2023

STEVIE NICKS 2023 SOLO NORTH AMERICAN TOUR

Stevie Nicks returns to the stage with 14 solo shows booked beginning this spring



Fleetwood Mac's Stevie Nicks will begin her solo tour on March 15th at the Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle and end the first leg on April 5th at the Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Alabama. 

The second run of shows starts on May 12th at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina and ends on June 27th at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky. 

Tickets for all shows will be available for purchase on January 27th at 10am local time. 

Access tickets through Stevie's official website.

In addition to the solo run of shows, Nicks will also be co-headlining stadiums across the country with Billy Joel starting on March 10th in Los Angeles and ending on November 10th in Minneapolis. 

Stevie's been busy this last year somewhat with touring. She released a new cover of Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth" last year and is also set to appear on Dolly Parton's upcoming rock album, featuring Paul McCartney, John Fogerty, and Steve Perry among others.

Stevie Nicks 2023 Solo Tour Dates

March 15 - Seattle, WA - Climate Pledge Arena
March 18 - Las Vegas, NV - T-Mobile Arena
March 23 - San Francisco, CA - Chase Center
March 26 - Sacramento, CA - Golden 1 Center
March 30 - Oklahoma City, OK - Paycom Center
April 2 - New Orleans, LA - Smoothie King Center
April 5 - Birmingham, AL - The Legacy Arena at BJCC
May 12 - Raleigh, NC - PNC Arena
May 16 - Knoxville, TN - Thompson-Boling Arena
May 22 - Atlanta, GA - State Farm Arena
May 25 - Orlando, FL - Amway Center
June 20 - Toronto, ON - Scotiabank Arena
June 23 - Chicago, IL - United Center
June 27 - Louisville, KY - KFC Yum! Cente

Previously announced dates with Billy Joel

March 10 - Inglewood, CA - SoFi Stadium 
April 08 - Arlington, TX - AT&T Stadium 
May 19 - Nashville, TN - Nissan Stadium 
June 16 - Philadelphia, PA - Lincoln Financial Field 
August 05 - Columbus, OH - Ohio Stadium 
August 19 - Kansas City, MO - Arrowhead Stadium 
September 23 - Foxborough, MA - Gillette Stadium 
October 7 - Baltimore, MA - M&T Bank Stadium
November 10 - Minneapolis, MN - U.S. Bank Stadium

Saturday, January 21, 2023

STEVIE NICKS AND DOLLY PARTON IN THE STUDIO TOGETHER

Stevie posted a photo on her social media showing herself and Dolly Parton sitting in the studio... Not sure what studio or where it is, but they finished a song together that will appear on Dolly's Rock album she's recording.  Not sure when this will come out, likely later this year. 




FLEETWOOD MAC ALBUM CHART WEEKLY UPDATE

Fleetwood Mac's Rumours continues it's world dominance remaining in the top tier of many charts around the world. It's sitting in the top 20 in the following countries: US, Ireland, Scotland, New Zealand, Australia, The Netherlands, and Belgium. Pure album sales in the US were 7,000 for the week, which is a dip of 17% vs last weeks sales of 9,000 units. (Pure album sales means the full album was purchased either digital or physical). The Top 100 Album Sales Chart used to be the Billboard Top 200 prior to Billboard incorporating streaming numbers into chart placement on the now Billboard Top 200.

Country Chart Album/Song Position This week
(Previous week)
Sales
USA Billboard Top 200 Rumours 18 (14)
USA Billboard Top 200 Greatest Hits 163 (145)
USA Top 100 Album Sales Rumours 5 (4) 7,000
USA Top 100 Album Sales Greatest Hits 65 (58)
USA Top 25 Vinyl Albums Rumours 3 (2)
USA Top 25 Rock Digital Song Sales Dreams 22 (Re-Entry)
UK Top 100 Albums 50 Years-Don’t Stop 14 (9) 4,124 
UK Top 100 Albums Rumours 29 (20)
UK Top 40 Vinyl Albums Rumours 12 (5)
Ireland Top 50 Albums 50 Years-Don’t Stop 14 (10)
Ireland Top 50 Albums Rumours 18 (14)
Scotland Top 100 Albums Rumours 14 (6)
Scotland Top 100 Albums Greatest Hits 64 (35)
Scotland Top 100 Albums Tango In The Night 77 (Re-Entry)
New Zealand Top 40 Albums  Rumours 5 (5)
New Zealand Top 40 Singles  Dreams 22 (11)
Australia Top 50 Albums Rumours 19 (16)
Australia Top 50 Singles Dreams 50 (50)
Austria Top 200 Albums Rumours 75 (68)
Canada Top 100 Albums Rumours 22 (17)
Netherlands Top 100 Albums Rumours 18 (13)
Netherlands Top 33 Vinyl Albums Rumours 5 (5)
Belgium Top 200 Albums Rumours 18 (25)
Belgium Top 200 Albums Greatest Hits 74 (70)

Stevie Nicks Tour Announcement coming Monday January 23rd

A number of venues around the US posted at the same time on social media on Friday with the following video and message. It looks like solo dates are about to be announced for Stevie Nicks. All of the venues posting are arenas which means it's likely not part of the stadium tour with Billy Joel. We'll have to see what Monday brings. Exciting!

"There’s Gold Dust in the air.  Details Monday."


The venues and cities include:

Seattle

Atlanta

Oklahoma City

Las Vegas

Knoxville, TN

Orlando

Chicago

Toronto

Raleigh, NC

Louisville, KY

New Orleans

Sacramento

San Francisco



Wednesday, January 18, 2023

Stevie Nicks and more confirmed to be singing on Dolly Parton's 'Rock Star' album

During an appearance on "The View," Parton said she wanted to make a rock album to help her feel her Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction was legitimate.


"I didn't feel like I had earned it. ... If I'm gonna be in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, I'm gonna have to do something to earn it," she said.

Parton revealed the album will include some covers of classic rock songs, like the Rolling Stones' "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" and Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven."

While Parton is aiming for pal Mick Jagger to help her on "Satisfaction," the legendary singer disclosed, "I think Pink and Brandi Carlile are going to be singing on that particular song with me."

Parton also revealed she and Nicks "just finished our song last night," but didn't say what they performed together.

Other people assisting Parton on her rock album include Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, former Journey singer Steve Perry, Paul McCartney and possibly Cher. Parton said she would only invite the icon if she could find the right song.

"We've been trying to get the right thing together. ... That's gonna be a big thrill," she teased.

No date on when this will come out, but something new to look forward to in any case.

Wednesday, January 11, 2023

Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham and Mick Fleetwood celebrate the life of the late Christine McVie

Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham and Mick Fleetwood reunite to remember their late bandmate Christine McVie in Malibu... two months after her passing.
 


Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham and Mick Fleetwood braved the rain to celebrate the life of their late Fleetwood Mac bandmember Christine McVie on Monday night.

As the trio reunited two months after English musician's death at 79 following a brief illness, the group looked somber while leaving Little Beach House Malibu.

For the occasion, Nicks, 74, wore a black jacket, matching pants, a light grey scarf and her voluminous blonde hair curly and free. 

While exiting the posh oceanfront venue, the two-time Grammy winner clutched one red and one white rose. 

Fleetwood, 75, wore a fedora, black jacket, a white button-down with a popped collar and dark-wash pants to the memorial.

McVie is best known for writing and singing some of their band's biggest hits, including Don't Stop, Little Lies, Say You Love Me, You Make Loving Fun and Songbird. 

Her genius and warm, soulful vocals helped to turn the one-time blues band into one of the most successful rock groups of all time, with more than 100million record sold worldwide. 



Fleetwood Mac's Rumours 5th Best Selling Vinyl Album of 2022



According to Billboard Magazine, Fleetwood Mac's album Rumours was one of the best-selling albums in the US in 2022. The album sold a total of 310,000 copies, of which 243,000 were vinyl albums. This makes Fleetwood Mac one of the best-selling artists of the year. That's amazing!! Notably, Michael Jackson appears on both lists. Rumours was the best selling album in the US up until Michael Jackson released Thriller in 1982. 

Top 10 best-selling albums of 2022 in the U.S. (physical & digital combined), according to Luminate's 2022 year-end report:

1. Taylor Swift - Midnights (1.818 million)
2. Harry Styles - Harry’s House (757,000)
3. BTS - Proof (422,000)
4. Olivia Rodrigo - Sour (354,000)
5. Beyonce - Renaissance (335,000)
6. Fleetwood Mac - Rumours (310,000)
7. Adele - 30 (296,000)
8. Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d city (278,000)
9. Michael Jackson - Thriller (236,000)
10.Tomorrow X Together - Minisode 2: Thursday’s Child (229,000)


Top 10 best-selling vinyl albums of 2022 in the U.S. according to 
Luminate's 2022 year-end report:

1. Taylor Swift - Midnights (945,000)
2. Harry Styles - Harry’s House (480,000)
3. Olivia Rodrigo - Sour (263,000)
4. Kendrick Lamar - good kid, m.A.A.d city (254,000)
5. Fleetwood Mac - Rumours (243,000)
6. Tyler The Creator - Call Me If You Get Lost (211,000)
7. Taylor Swift - Folklore (174,000)
8. Tyler The Creator - Igor (172,000)
9. Michael Jackson - Thriller (168,000)
10.The Beatles - Abbey Road (160,000)

Friday, January 06, 2023

Fleetwood Mac Albums Chart Update First Week of 2023



THREE TOP SELLERS THIS WEEK
(Previous week on the charts in brackets)
 
Fleetwood Mac this week on the Album Charts around the world

USA 
Billboard Top 200 Albums January 7, 2023
#32  - Rumours (27)
#174 - Greatest Hits (138)

Top 100 Album Sales (pure sales)
#5  - Rumours (7)
#66 - Greatest Hits (56)

Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours climbs 7-5 with 12,000 (down 39%).  In the US in the month of December, Rumours has shifted approx. 55,000 copies. That's amazing!

Dec 31st - No. 7 with 20,000 sold
Dec 14th - No. 7 with 13,000 sold
Dec 17th - No. 8 with 12,000 sold
Dec 10th - No.10 with 10,000 sold

Top 25 Vinyl Albums
#6 - Rumours (6)

CANADA
Top 100 Albums January 7, 2023
#54 - Rumours (Re-entry)

Top 50 Digital Song Sales
#13 - Everywhere (Re-entry)
#23 - Dreams (Re-entry)
#39 - Little Lies (New)

UK 
Top 100 Albums January 6, 2023
After climbing to No.8 last week – its highest chart position for 90 weeks – Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours departs the Top 10 for the ninth time in its near 46-year chart career, dipping to No.12 (3,869 sales).
#11 - 50 Years - Don't Stop (15)
#12 - Rumours (8) 3,869 sales

Top 100 Singles Chart
#85 - Everywhere (Re-entry)

Top 40 Vinyl Albums
#2  - Rumours (2)
#14 - Greatest Hits (9)

SCOTLAND
Top 100 Albums January 6, 2023
#2  - Rumours (3)
#20 - Greatest Hits (21)

IRELAND
Top 50 Albums January 6, 2023
#12 - 50 Years - Don't Stop (20)
#15 - Rumours (11)

GERMANY
Top 100 Albums January 6, 2023
#64 - Rumours (Re-entry)

NETHERLANDS
Top 100 Albums January 7, 2023
#8 - Rumours (21)

Top 33 Vinyl Albums
#1 - Rumours (1)

AUSTRALIA
Top 50 Albums January 9, 2023
#11 - Rumours (12)

Top 50 Singles Chart
#34 - Dreams (78)

NEW ZEALAND
Top 40 Albums January 9, 2023
#4 - Rumours (6)

Top 40 Singles chart
#34 - Dreams (39)

Billy Joel and Stevie Nicks Live in Minneapolis November 10, 2023

NEW DATE ANNOUNCED



Billy Joel and Stevie Nicks One Night Only in Minneapolis, MN November 10, 2023.

Tickets go on sale Friday January 13 at 10am local time.

Pre-sale dates:
Citi pre-sale: Mon, 1/9
Venue pre-sale: Tue, 1/10
Live Nation pre-sale: Thur, 1/12

Saturday, December 31, 2022

Fleetwood Mac Album Charts Update for Christmas Week 2022



THREE TOP SELLERS THIS WEEK
(Previous week on the charts in brackets)


USA 
BILLBOARD TOP 200 - DEC 31, 2022
#27  - Rumours (27)
#138 - Greatest Hits (154)

TOP 100 ALBUM SALES CHART 
Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours is a non-mover at No. 7 with nearly 20,000 (up 55%).
#7  - Rumours (7)
#56 - Greatest Hits (57)

TOP 25 VINYL ALBUMS
#6  - Rumours (5)

TOP 50 ROCK & ALTERNATIVE ALBUMS
#3  - Rumours (3)
#26 - Greatest Hits (14)

TOP 25 ROCK ALBUMS
#3  - Rumours (3)
#21 - Greatest Hits (20)

CANADA
TOP 100 ALBUMS
#48 - Greatest Hits (Re-entry)

UK
TOP 100 ALBUMS - DEC 30, 2022
#8  - Rumours (13)
#15 - 50 Years - Don't Stop (25)

TOP 40 VINYL ALBUMS
#2 - Rumours (3)
#9 - Greatest Hits (13)

IRELAND 
TOP 50 ALBUMS - DEC 30, 2022
#11 - Rumours (8)
#20 - 50 Years - Don't Stop (23)

SCOTLAND 
TOP 100 ALBUMS - DEC 30, 2022
#3  - Rumours (10)
#21 - Greatest Hits (23)

BELGIUM
Top 100 Albums December 31, 2022
#11 - Rumours (11)
#86 - Greatest Hits (53)

AUSTRALIA 
TOP 50 ALBUMS - Jan 2, 2023
#12 - Rumours (13)

NEW ZEALAND 
TOP 40 ALBUMS - JAN 2, 2023
#6 -  Rumours (7)