FLEETWOOD MAC TRADES HITS FOR CASH

Minnpost.com
by: Britt Robson

Stevie Nicks stormed off the stage and permanently short-circuited the last Fleetwood Mac tour five years ago because of an argument with, who else?, her ex-lover and sparring partner, Lindsey Buckingham, with whom she swore she’d never play again.

But hey, there’s a new boxed-set edition of "Rumours," a DVD/CD combo, which includes previously unreleased songs from the sessions that were so good they had to be held 31 years for the rest of the world to catch up. And Nicks’ "Live in Chicago" DVD, originally scheduled for release last fall, has been pushed back to March 31. And tickets for Tuesday’s second stop on Fleetwood Mac’s "Unleashed: Hits Tour 2009" at the Xcel Energy Center go for a mere $149.50 (or $49.50 for nosebleeds), not counting service charge. Perhaps all of these things enabled Nicks to have a change of heart.

Unlike their last tour, which included songs from their then-current album that became a waste of everybody’s time, Fleetwood Mac is reportedly purveying nothing but the hits on this sojourn into the big arenas and increasingly unreliable memories of their aging fan base. Christine McVie once again has refused to come on board, having retired from the whole shebang years ago. But Nicks and Buckingham, who each turned 60 last year, plus bassist John McVie (63) and drummer Mick Fleetwood, who’s old enough for Medicare, will be around.

Bickering aside, both Nicks and Buckingham have proved to be in good voice recently, and it’s not as if the likes of "Rhiannon," "Going Out of My Head," "Go Your Own Way" (and all the other chestnuts that placed the band alongside the Eagles and Jackson Browne as the poster narcissists for the SoCal pop-rock of the 1970s) are that challenging on the larynx. If you’ve got the green, Fleetwood Mac will flip on the way-back machine. 

By the way, Buckingham’s latest collection, "Gift of Screws," is a pretty good record that can be had for a fraction of a ducat at the Xcel. But I don’t imagine that will dissuade thousands from flocking to the hockey palace for a mass, boisterous sing-along (such as this one) of the old stuff. All together now: "Don’t stop/thinking about tomorrow/yesterday’s gone/yesterday’s gone!"

Fleetwood Mac at the Xcel Energy Center, Tuesday, March 3, 8 p.m.; $49.50-$149.50.

REVIEW: Buckingham is a pure live wire

Fleetwood Mac still rockin' after all these years

Monday, March 02, 2009

By Scott Mervis, 

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Back in the '70s when you were listening to "Rhiannon" and "Gypsy," you may have given a passing thought to the concept of Stevie Nicks at 60.

Now we're at the point where we don't have to imagine anymore.

We saw her last night at the Mellon Arena on the opening show of the Unleashed tour, and we can testify that she's still the golden haired diva, still mysterious, still beguiling, still beautiful as she sings those haunting, heartbreaking love songs.

Her partner in crime since they were teenagers, Lindsey Buckingham, is still on the brink of 60, at 59, and he's, well, he's going to be an intense dude up until the day he dies.

The former lovers came out holding hands and then went off to their positions to dazzle with the promised greatest hits show, plus some surprises from the back catalogue.

Buckingham made early mention of the band's "complex and convoluted emotional history," saying that every time they come back together "it's always different." He added that they "had a ball" during their days of rehearsal at the arena, and the evidence was on stage.

A nod to their fresh start was "Monday Morning," an unexpected opener, as it was never a staple of the "Say You Will" tour five years ago. It wasn't until the second song, "The Chain," that we got that first taste of the magical Buckingham-Nicks harmonies, two voices that born for each other.

Nicks always had an unusual voice, husky yet delicate, strong yet vulnerable. Early in the set, like on "Dreams," she clung more to the lower register, backing away from the mike on the high notes. As the set picked up energy, so did she, pouring emotion into "Sara" and "Landslide," with that line "I'm getting older, too." On "Gold Dust Woman," she unleashed a long, gorgeous wail, before turning her back to the crowd and spreading her golden shawl like wings -- dragon-lady wings -- as the song slowly faded.

Buckingham is a pure live wire, and people who have never seen Fleetwood Mac might not know that if he hadn't ended up in this co-ed pop band, his name might be thrown around with guitar heroes like Neil Young and Eric Clapton. Buckingham can rip in numerous ways, from the frantic acoustic fingerpicking on "Big Love" to the nitro shredding on "I'm Afraid," which, contrary to the image of the 50-something ballad-loving Fleetwood Mac fan, drew the biggest roar of the night.

With Nicks offstage to change shawls, or something, Mac reverted back to its early blues-rock form for "Oh Well," with Buckingham excitedly playing Peter Green's scorching riff. You need a good drummer for all of this and at 61, Mick Fleetwood is still beating the hell out of the skins and hasn't lost any of his pace. John McVie blends into the background with the two side musicians and three backup singers, but manages to keep up with the fiery Fleetwood and Buckingham, even on "Tusk," which had the USC marching band channeled through the keyboard player.

They churned like a powerful New Wave machine on "Stand Back," with Nicks delivering one her most edgy vocals. Buckingham closed the set by first playing the note-perfect solo on "Go Your Own Way" before beating the guitar with his fists.

They ended the show with the Clinton-Gore theme song "Don't Stop," and leaving the arena, fans had plenty of reason to be glad that Fleetwood Mac takes that title at its word.

Fleetwood Mac Photos - Opening Night Unleashed Tour

Interesting shot of the stage lighting.... The stage looks very minimal.

This is a pre-encore shot

photo by: Basial

Below photos by:  Stephanie Keegan

FLEETWOOD MAC SET LIST FOR OPENING NIGHT... UNLEASHED TOUR

Opening Night in Pittsburgh at Mellon Arena.

With the first show in the can... Fleetwood Mac move on to Minneapolis for Tuesday nights show...  Let's hope the set list stays intact.

Based on what was coming out of some of the interviews with the band members - there weren't as many surprises with the set list tonight as expected.  A few gems pop up I'm happy to say and I'm completely looking forward to hearing them played live.  I hope this set list doesn't change from here on out, which can happen after the first show - we'll have to watch for Minneapolis to see if anything is dropped or added.  If anything, I think they should add a couple more songs to the set.  Comparing this show to the Say You Will Tour - this was 2 songs shorter. 

If you want to be spoiled on the set list - you can view it here:  Set list

Reports from the show indicate that there is no percussionist on this tour.  Both Stevie and Lindsey sounded amazing tonight and the backup band consists of: Brett Tuggle & Neale Heywood with Sharon Celani, Jana Anderson and Lori Nicks on backup vocal duties:

Lindsey wore a red shirt with a black leather jacket.... Stevie came on the stage in a Burgundy/red dress - and at some point had on red boots!!  The top hat was worn near the end of the show... and Mick didn't do his drum solo like he said he was going to do.

There will likely be video posted late tonight on the various video sites... 

MICK TRIES TO JUSTIFY THE HIGH COST OF FLEETWOOD MAC TICKETS

Startribune.com - Minneapolis, MN
by: Jon Bream

Full Article

Fleetwood Mac's ticket prices have jumped 20 percent from the last tour -- from a top of $125 to $150 this time. Other Rock and Roll Hall of Fame acts, including AC/DC and Bruce Springsteen, are keeping their top prices under $100 in economically challenging 2009.

Can Fleetwood Mac explain the discrepancy?

"We don't do the amount of gigs that, say, a Bruce Springsteen or an AC/DC does," Fleetwood said. "We're doing 46 gigs. We're not doing 250 gigs."

Does that mean that Fleetwood Mac makes more money off a shorter tour than Springsteen or AC/DC do for a longer tour with less expensive tickets?

"I doubt it," Fleetwood said. "It's actually probably the other way around."

Opening Night Fleetwood Mac - Unleashed

TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT that Fleetwood Mac begin the first of 44 US dates in Pittsburgh at Mellon Arena - show time 8:00pm.

The Set list has been wildly speculated upon and largely kept a secret by the band. In various interviews with Mick, Lindsey and Stevie - some of the obvious "Hits" (and set list staples) have been confirmed ie "Go Your Own Way" & "Dreams". Mick believes the fans will be very happy with the 2 1/2 hour set they've put together including paying a little bit more attention to what Christine McVie contributed to the band and its catalogue of hits. 

Everyone loves Christine Mcvie and miss her music and her presents within Fleetwood Mac as a band member and as a touring band member, but Christine's touring days are over... and so the band must play on.

This will be the first time Fleetwood Mac has toured without backing up a new release of new material. It will be interesting to see what they fill the set list with now that 3 or 4 tunes (new material) aren't there.   We know Lindsey and Stevie will each be bringing to the set one song each from their solo career - and if they had asked the fans what they should include, you'd hear titles such as "Sisters of the Moon", "Angel", "I Don't Want To Know" and a whole host of Lindsey's tunes from Tusk.  Not to mention tracks from the Buckingham Nicks album.  But the band hasn't asked the fans, so we'll just have to leave it in their capable hands and wait it out until later tonight when the first show set list is confirmed.

Have a great show tonight Fleetwood Mac - and to everyone going to tonight's show... Show the band some love!! 

Fleetwood Mac is a rare act and one that won't be around forever.

Oh... And there's been talk that additional dates will be coming for the month of June.... Here's hoping they head to the UK, Europe and beyond.