(REVIEW) Stevie Nicks' voice clear, stunning at MGM Grand show

BY STEPHEN PETERSON
The Sun Chronicle
MASHANTUCKET, Conn.

Stevie Nicks tours even when she isn't really touring.

The stellar rock singer performed Saturday night at the MGM Grand Theater at Foxwoods Resort Casino, the last of just six dates on a mini-tour.

Nicks is scheduled to come out with a new solo album in March, which likely will mean a longer tour, however.

Nicks, 62, the singer and songwriter for Fleetwood Mac along with Lindsey Buckingham, and the group's most popular member, sang several of that supergroup's hits along with her own material.

She stayed away from any new songs, fearing they would end up on the Internet before her seventh album and the first one since 2001 comes out. But she explained one reason she decided to do a few concerts was because she finds making an album "very solitary."

Her new songs are being co-written with Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics.

Nicks' voice remains as stunning as ever, and that was clear after the opening songs in which the lyrics were a bit difficult to hear.

Kicking off with "Fall From Grace" from her 2001 album, "Outside the Rain" from her first album, "Bella Donna," a No. 1 from 1981 and her best effort, segued into Fleetwood Mac's "Dreams."

That No. 1 song was off the phenomenal 1977 Grammy-winning "Rumours" album that has sold over 25 million copies and led to a cover of Tom Petty's country-rock tune, "You Wreck Me."

Nicks had a big hit with a duet with Petty on her first album, "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around."

Nicks' "Sorcerer" featured a riveting solo from her longtime lead guitarist and music director, Waddy Wachtel.

Nicks stretched her voice at the tail end of "Gold Dust Woman," also from "Rumours." Here she really displayed her mystic pose in her black outfit and shawl.

"If Anyone Falls in Love," another solo number, preceded a fast-paced Bob Segar song, "Face the Promise."

There was a sweet piano introduction for "Rhiannon," the group's first hit, off "Fleetwood Mac," the 1975 No. 1 and first album with Buckingham and Nicks.

Nicks performed her famous twirl on her solo smash, "Stand Back," a No. 5 song from 1983's "Wild Heart" that had Prince on keyboards.

Nicks' voice was brilliant and Wachtel was on acoustic for the simply stunning "Landslide" from "Fleetwood Mac."

The smooth "How Still My Love," off her first album, led to solos by the drummer and percussionist.

Another of Nicks' big solo hits, "Edge of Seventeen (Just Like the White Winged Dove)" from 1982, showcased the organ.

The appreciative singer shook hands with dozens of fans along the front of the stage before returning for the encore, a cover of Led Zeppelin's "Rock and Roll," and her "Love Is."

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Nicks was backed up by two female singers - one her sister-in-law. The band was filled out by a bassist and second guitarist.

Nicks' popular "I Can't Wait" didn't make the song list.

Nicks and Buckingham brought a California flavor to the former British blues band of Fleetwood Mac, and they shot the group to worldwide fame when they joined the group in the mid-70s, adding harmony and exceptional songwriting.

Nicks has been nominated for seven Grammys and has inspired many female singers over the years.

Nicks was born Stephanie Nicks in Phoenix, and came out with one album with Buckingham before joining Fleetwood Mac.

(Review) Stevie Nicks a strong, elegant, presence at Foxwoods

By Margaret Smith
GateHouse News Service
August 30, 2010
Mashantucket, Conn. —

The glamorous trappings were there – the black lace, the white shawl, blond hair – but for Stevie Nicks and her packed house at MGM Grand at Foxwoods Saturday, the thread throughout was the beat.

The Fleetwood Mac principal and solo performer, synonymous with all things ethereal, took to the stage with an elegant presence underscored by a strong, percussive sound. Her imagery and characters may have a celestial touch, but her delivery was firmly planted on terra firma.

With a back screen projecting elemental images – such as falling rain, and for “Edge of Seventeen,” the archetypal white-winged dove, soaring in dream-like slow motion through space – the set list was a delight for Nicks fans with much-loved favorites, such as “Dreams,” “Rhiannon,” and “Stand Back.”

But, the woman who gave rock its feminine side also drew inspiration from some of the guys -- with inspired renditions of songs by Bob Seger, her long-time friends Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and ended with a nod to the past – Led Zeppelin’s “Rock And Roll.”

Standards such as “Gold Dust Woman” – the dark, heady exit cut on Fleetwood Mac’s “Rumours” – probably did as much as Bauhaus’ “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” to inspire a generation of gothic bands. On this night, the song’s sepulchral spirit lived again, only fresh, new, and disquieting as ever.

Nicks gave a much-deserved nod to her band, and long-time musical director, Waddy Wachtel, for helping to bring the vitality to a body of work sometimes dismissed as flighty and delicate, and detached from worldly cares.

But this has never really been true. Few coming of age songs resonate are as plaintive “Landslide,” which evoked a spontaneous, choir-like response as the audience sang along. Or “Edge of Seventeen,” which is more than about a longing for a forbidden love; it’s a mature woman’s acceptance of its truth.

And, “Still of The Night ”and “Outside The Rain,” from Nicks’ first solo album, “Bella Donna,” not as celebrated as other songs from this album, but jewels in their unadorned arrangements, and lyrics filled with passion and yearning for resolution.

In recent years, Nicks has infused a great deal more playful banter with her audience in her shows, with charmingly self-deprecating references to “Alice in Wonderland” and many warm salutes to people in her life who have inspired her works. It's hard not to feel that everyone is friends at her concert, because that is how she treats her audience -- another enduring Nicks hallmark.

The only missing feature was a signature of Nicks’ performances – changes of costume, each signifying various facets of the identities evoked in her songs.

But this too many signify a sea change – in case anyone should doubt it, it always has been about the music, and a great music maker who now as ever does more than just rock a little.

STEVIE NICKS SIGHTING....

Stevie was spotted at the Borgata in Atlantic City on August 26th - Stevie (in town playing the Trump Taj Mahal) dined at Bobby Flay Steak on Thursday night.

Philly.com

Stevie seems to enjoy her steak houses!... She was spotted back in March of this year in Santa Barbara at Boa Steak House Link to post

CHART UPDATE: Fleetwood Mac's "The Very Best Of" Massive leap on the UK Charts

For the week of September 4, 2010 on the official UK Albums Chart Fleetwood Mac's 2009 double disc release moves up from #84 to #41 on a massive sales increase this week.  This is the 3rd week back in the top 100 and it's 224th week on the chart (224 weeks combines the 2002 & 2009 release).

(Review) Stevie Nicks' Voice Left Something To Be Desired At MGM Grand

By THOMAS KINTER, Special To The Courant
Hartford Courant

Stevie Nicks holds one of the most substantial 1980s pop music legacies thanks to her work alone and as a member of Fleetwood Mac. Her show Saturday night at the MGM Grand Theater at Foxwoods casino in Mashantucket was her final stop on a brief run of summer dates, a fresh chance to polish up that chest of memories, even if Nicks is not quite capable of getting them to shine like they once did.

A husky, nasal edge is still her voice's defining trait, but a tool with fewer fine motor skills than it once possessed. The 62-year-old Nicks hammered away in the most general of fashions at her opener, "Fall from Grace," though she had some trouble competing with the robust chug of her 9-piece band.

Nicks sang with an almost detached quality, tugging at the long fabric strands that dangled from her microphone stand while floating through "Outside the Rain" with a nonchalant remove from any spark it may hold. Her phrasing had a scattershot quality, doing the popular Fleetwood Mac song "Dreams" no favors.

Nicks draped her voice over lyrics like it was a horse blanket, which made for a shapeless inflation of "Sorcerer" and a rasp-lined meander through "Gold Dust Woman" that was more insistent than artful. Her singing was the least melodic component of "If Anyone Falls," splattering against its roomy sway.

The show was a dawdler, taking nearly two hours for 15 songs, among which were covers of Tom Petty's "You Wreck Me" and Bob Seger's "Face the Promise," each a feasible vehicle for the percussive jabs that remain within her vocal range. Songs from her own history are much as they ever have been, but her stewardship of them has changed, to the point that she was most effective when she dialed back her singing, resorting to nearly spoken-word handling to make "Landslide" a cool, understated treat.

Nicks remains one of rock's most prominent shawl advocates, sporting them for a number of tunes and holding one aloft while spinning slowly to the bounding pulse of "Stand Back" when not trumpeting its lyrics. Her closing delivery of "Edge of Seventeen" was so much filler in a rendition that had more than its share, from the dragged-out drum solo that preceded it to the flabby jam that extended its back end.

She avoided tunes from her forthcoming album in the encore as she had during her show — she has spoken out against posting of clips online as spoilers for new work, and so isn't giving anyone the chance. Instead, she served as more of a passenger than driver in Led Zeppelin's "Rock and Roll," but moved to a comfortable finale with a stroll through the puffy "Love Is," evoking hints of the past without ever quite recapturing it.

(REVIEW) STEVIE NICKS ENDS 6 SHOW TOUR AT MGM GRAND AT FOXWOODS

Stevie Nicks at the MGM Grand
August 29, 2010
by: Donnie Moorhouse
Masslive.com

MASHANTUCKET - It came during “Stand Back,” her signature pirouette with shawl-covered arms outstretched, looking like a bird in flight as the band revved on.

Stevie Nicks took a break from a recording session to mount a quick, six-show tour that included a stop at the Grand Theater at the MGM Grand at Foxwoods on Saturday night. She performed a two-hour set that featured many of her classic hits and some choice covers.

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