Friday, April 26, 2013
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Fleetwood Mac at Prudential Center is enjoyable, but...
By Tris McCall/The Star-Ledger
NJ.com
Last year, Hear Music -- that's the label run by Starbucks -- released a tribute disc to Fleetwood Mac. There wasn't a single cover of a Christine McVie song on the collection. Maybe she gave the okay for that, and maybe she didn't want to negotiate with Hear; in any case, it felt like she'd been written of a story in which she's a central character.
Last night, the Mac held the stage at the Prudential Center for nearly two and a half hours. There was only a single Christine McVie song on the setlist -- "Don't Stop," which is mostly sung by Lindsey Buckingham. McVie wasn't present for the concert, which is nothing new: She hasn't been performing with the group in more than a decade. Mick Fleetwood mentioned in an interview that the door is always open, and he'd love it if she'd walk through. Some fans have high hopes for the upcoming London gig; in Newark on Wednesday, she didn't walk through.
Check out these Photos by Jon Gregory - The Click Studio Photography - View The Gallery |
I love Lindsey Buckingham. He's something of an onstage megalomaniac, and he'll solo all night and day if you let him, but he's endearing, he's a magnetic frontman and a dexterous guitarist, and his restlessness and taste for experimentation was put to good use by the rest of the group. I love Stevie Nicks, too; her songs are smart, tough, and intoxicating, and get her going in an extended outro and she's likely to guide you to places that few singers ever visit. John McVie and Mick Fleetwood are the rare rhythm players with indelible personalities; push play on a Fleetwood Mac recording and within seconds, you'll know it's them.There are days on which I am convinced that there has never been a greater British-born rock group than Fleetwood Mac -- not the Beatles, not the Kinks, not Led Zeppelin, not the Attractions, nor any of the other boys', boys', boys' bands who never seemed to want to let the girls get a word in.
But that version of Fleetwood Mac is impossible without Christine McVie. She provided the serenity that made Buckingham's frenetic approach palatable, the earthiness that kept Nicks grounded, and the trancelike electric piano parts that added mystic resonance to the thump and throb of the rhythm section. Most of all, she added terrific songs to the repertoire: songs of romance and warmth, stories that added to that distinctive Fleetwood Mac feeling of men and women in conversation. She did not demonstrate Buckingham's imagination or Nicks' urgency. But no songwriter in a band of great songwriters understood the architecture of pop melody better than she did.
Christine shown here in this recent photo supports Trevor's Law! |
Years before Mick Fleetwood had the bright idea of enlisting Buckingham and Nicks, Christine McVie was
writing and singing great songs for Fleetwood Mac. She was writing good songs when she was still Christine Perfect, singer and pianist for British blues act Chicken Shack. After "Rumours" became a smash hit, pre-Buckingham-Nicks material dropped out of setlists, and because of that, an unfair percentage of Christine McVie's finest work has gotten lost in the Dark Ages of Mac history. She joined the group in 1971 (she'd drawn the children's book-like cover for the "Kiln House" set the year before) and immediately became a major contributor. "Believe Me," the leadoff cut from the 1973 album "Mystery to Me," is first-rate Fleetwood Mac and as delicious as anything on "Rumours." "Come a Little Bit Closer," from 1974's "Heroes Are Hard to Find," anticipated the major-league pop moves the band would make a year later. Once the band hit the big time, she kept right on penning hits: "You Make Loving Fun," "Think About Me," "Hold Me," "Say You Love Me." (Her album cuts were just as good.)
I'll have my review of this show in Saturday's paper, but I'll give you the short version here: Fleetwood Mac is always something great to behold, but I missed Christine McVie like a jeweled ring I'd dropped down the drain. I want her back, badly, and I'll bet her former bandmates do, too.
Note: Mick Fleetwood has recently been indicating to fans during the Meet and Greets on the Fleetwood Mac Tour that Christine will likely make an appearance on stage in London during The Mac's 3 sold out shows... When asked if she'll be doing all 3 he indicated likely just one, but wouldn't confirm which show.
Labels:
4-24-13: Fleetwood Mac - Newark
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
STARTING FRIDAY: Stevie Nicks "In Your Dreams" Film at Carlton Cinema in Toronto For 1 Week!
SCREENING FOR 1 WEEK IN TORONTO
Beginning Friday, April 26th and running through Thursday, May 2nd, Stevie's documentary "In Your Dreams" will be running at the Magic Lantern Theatres - Carlton Cinema located at 20 Carlton Street at Yonge. The film will play twice daily at 1:40pm and 6:50pm.
Go on Toronto... You know you want to!
PHOTOS | VIDEO | REVIEW: Fleetwood Mac Live in Newark, NJ
at Prudential Center
April 24, 2013
"Silver Springs"
(was a no show tonight)
"Silver Springs"
(was a no show tonight)
Photos by: By Saed Hindash
Above photos by Ashley Glynn
Rare moment! A fan brought the Buckingham Nicks album and both Stevie and Lindsey agreed to sign it.
Labels:
4-24-13: Fleetwood Mac - Newark
REVIEWS | PHOTOS | VIDEO: Fleetwood Mac Live in Ottawa Canada
Fleetwood Mac performed for about 12,400 fans at Scotiabank Place.
By Lynn Saxberg, Ottawa Citizen
By Lynn Saxberg, Ottawa Citizen
Fleetwood Mac Live at Scotiabank Place
Ottawa, Ontario Canada
April 23, 2013
PHOTOS: Andre Ringuette/Freestyle Photography - See Gallery |
OTTAWA — The Fleetwood Mac that touched down at Scotiabank Place on Tuesday appeared to be a
band in transition, turning in a slightly uneven performance for a crowd of about 12,400.
band in transition, turning in a slightly uneven performance for a crowd of about 12,400.
The 2013 version of the 1970s hitmakers still counts guitarist Lindsey Buckingham, drummer Mick Fleetwood, bassist John McVie and singer Stevie Nicks in its lineup, but no longer includes singer-keyboardist Christine McVie, who has refused all invitations to join her old bandmates.
Of course, that’s nothing new, and the band has been soldiering on without her for years. On this tour, a keyboardist, extra guitarist and two backing vocalists help fill in the sound, leaving Nicks and Buckingham co-fronting the classic rock outfit.
With their voices in sync, the former sweethearts presented a united front during the first song, knocking out a terrific version of Second Hand News.
The lovely twang of Buckingham’s guitar led into a muscular version of another old favourite, The Chain, to the delight of the audience.
It was Nicks who greeted the crowd first, remarking on how beautiful Ottawa was, with its “rivers and castles.” But after issuing a call to get the party started, the 64-year-old, who still wears her hair long and blond, seemed to struggle to find her groove on Dreams. Maybe it was an off night, but in it, and her signature song, Rhiannon, her voice had a harsh edge, lacking much of the fluidity of the early days.
When Buckingham, who’s 63, took his turn at the microphone, he shared the news that the band had been working on new material, and an EP is being released soon. One of those new songs, the upbeat Sad Angel, was played early in the show, indicating a crisper form of melodic rock to come from the soft-rock survivors, a style perhaps better suited to Nicks’ not-so-lush voice.
Buckingham, who played a solo show at the Ottawa Folk Festival last summer, also talked about the 1979 album, Tusk, describing it as a line in the sand between him and the record company, who would have preferred another blockbuster like 1977’s Rumours. Digging into a couple of tracks from the album, he showed how well the music has held up.
Leave it to Buckingham to forge ahead creatively back then, and to push the band in new directions now. Looking fit and tanned in jeans and leather jacket, the guitarist was the band’s guiding light throughout the show, while Nicks, draped in something fringed and sparkly, had to work to match his energy and recreate her old magic.
But everything clicked during the encore. With Buckingham as the guitar hero, Nicks as the rock goddess and Fleetwood bashing out a thunderous drum solo, the band finally sounded reunited as they tore through World Turning and Don’t Stop.
FAN PHOTOS
MORE FROM THE SHOW AT THE 'CONTINUE READING' LINK
Labels:
4-23-13: Fleetwood Mac - Ottawa
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