Fleetwood Mac - Denver: "Lindsey Buckingham’s six-string prowess is a sight to behold"

Fleetwood Mac Concert Review Denver, CO
December 12, 2014 - Pepsi Center,
by Ken Tomczak
995TheMountain.com

Photo: Ken Tomczak

When you go see a Fleetwood Mac concert, you’re immediately struck by how much talent is on the stage.  Stevie Nicks sings lead on classic hits like “Gypsy” and “Landslide,” but Lindsey Buckingham’s six-string prowess is a sight to behold – playing the entire concert in his signature plucking style with no guitar pick.  The legendary rhythm section of Mick Fleetwood and John McVie always keeps the band rolling forward, but the story of Friday night’s "On With The Show" tour stop at Pepsi Center was the return of Christine McVie after a 17-year hiatus from the band.

The nearly sold out crowd was thrilled to see the classic Fleetwood Mac lineup back together, giving McVie extra applause when she performed “Over My Head,” “Little Lies” and “Everywhere.”

“A very good evening, Denver!” McVie yelled to the crowd.  Stevie Nicks added, “She’s back!” and then quickly screamed “Let’s get this party started” before the Mac launched into “Dreams.”  Additional musicians and three background vocalists helped supplement the sound, making their trademark vocal harmonies that much more lush.

Buckingham was jumping around the stage from the opening notes and McVie quipped “That was fun!” after finishing “Say You Love Me.”  The band was exceptionally tight and it was apparent they were having a good time on stage.  Stevie Nicks’ signature vocals were especially strong on “Seven Wonders.”  Buckingham took some extra time to introduce “Big Love” off 1987's Tango In The Night explaining the tune was originally written about “boundaries” but it has since taken on a new meaning about “the importance of change.”  Lindsey performed the song by himself, showcasing his immense talent.

The stage production wasn’t anything to write home about – minimal lights and random images projected onto a backdrop.   Fleetwood Mac isn’t about lasers and pyro, they were happy to let the music do the talking.  And many fans were talking about the band already announcing another Pepsi Center gig.  If you missed this concert, tickets for their April 1st return appearance go on sale this Monday at 10am.

But the feel good story of the concert was the return of McVie, punctuated by the final song of the evening “Songbird.”

Mick Fleetwood Interview "Stevie and Christine, they're a funny couple, a lot in common, and yet nothing in common"

Mick Fleetwood Interviewed by Mike The Intern on 104.7 The Cave Pure Classic Rock

Stevie Nicks: "The Lady Gaga song 'Do What U Want' makes me want to dance and made me revise the hustle

People Magazine - December 15, 2014 issue
Click her to enlarge

Stevie Nicks: I will never marry again

The Fleetwood Mac singer, who was married to Kim Anderson for three months in 1983, says she is happily single at the moment, and while she would consider online dating she doesn't want to walk down the aisle at any point.

The 66-year-old star - who previously dated her bandmates Lindsey Buckingham and Mick Fleetwood, and the Eagles' stars Don Henley and Joe Walsh - said: "I'm happy. I might have a relationship, but I'm never getting married again.

"Mick and I always laugh about going on Match.com together and saying, 'We're looking for somebody with no health problems. And no bunches of ex-wives and ex-husbands.' "

The 'Dreams' hitmaker admits she would like to fall in love again but if she doesn't find another partner she will still have a good life.

She said: "There is always hope. If somebody comes along and he's worth it, then it will be a lucky throw of the cards. But either way it's going to be great."

Stevie has lost 10 pounds in the last few months since the band embarked on a new tour and she credits Lady Gaga's song 'Do What U Want' for inspiring her to dance off the pounds.

She added to PEOPLE magazine: "I go onstage for three hours, four days a week and have lost about 10 pounds in the last couple of months.

"The Lady Gaga song 'Do What U Want' makes me want to dance and made me revise the hustle. My girlfriends and I used to do this [dance] at clubs 30 years ago. Now it's a great way to exercise."

Review: Fleetwood Mac Live in Denver December 12, 2014

Fleetwood Mac at the Pepsi Center in Denver 
by Ray Mark Rinaldi
Heyreverb.com

Christine McVie always performed stage right with Fleetwood Mac, though she was never a side player. The keyboardist wrote a good number of the band’s hits back in the day and took the position of lead singer whenever they came into rotation.

Photos by Daniel Petty

More than that, she was the supergroup’s third leg. Lindsey Buckingham was the rocker, Stevie Nicks the spiritual siren and McVie the pop songstress who brought a head-bopping bounce to the band’s sound with numbers like “You Make Loving Fun.” That combination gave Fleetwood Mac something for every prevailing taste in the 1970s and pushed it to the top of the charts.

And so when McVie retuned to the band after a 16-year vacation this fall, she brought not just her 71-year-old self, but also a little more easy-going fun. Fleetwood Mac’s appearance at the Pepsi Center in Denver Friday night felt much more like a pop concert than the raucous rock show it performed there in 2013.

Continue to the full review (+ 20 photos) at Heyreverb.com

Review: Fleetwood Mac Live in Phoenix December 10, 2014

Review: Fleetwood Mac celebrate Christine McVie's return
by Ed Masley
AZCentral

"Our songbird has returned," Mick Fleetwood told the sold-out crowd at US Airways Center Wednesday night before the reunited "Rumours" lineup treated the fans to an encore performance of "Don't Stop" that featured the songbird in question, Christine McVie, taking a turn on lead vocals and contributing a rollicking piano solo.

This is McVie's first tour with Fleetwood Mac since 1998. And Fleetwood was far from alone in viewing her return as cause for celebration, reuniting as it does the soft-rock icons' most successful lineup. The crowd responded with enthusiasm when she took her first lead vocal, two songs in, on "You Make Loving Fun," which was followed by a heartfelt tribute to McVie by Stevie Nicks.

McVie herself talked about "what a thrill it is for me to be standing on this stage singing with these amazing musicians and friends" before taking another lead vocal on "Everywhere."

Photos by: Johanna Dupuy - VIEW GALLERY (33 photos)

Lindsey Buckingham shared his thoughts on how "the return of the beautiful Christine" had signaled a new chapter in their history.

And the second encore started with McVie alone on piano and vocals for two verses and a chorus of an understated "Songbird" before Buckingham joined in on lead guitar.

That was it for the music, but Nicks returned to share a charming anecdote about a phone call she got last October in Italy, imitating McVie's British accent to ask, "What would you think if I decided to come back to the band?," ending her speech with "We so wanted her to come back. And we're so happy to have our girl back."

They did a lot of talking in the course of their nearly three-hour performance. Buckingham talked about how thrilled he was to be in Phoenix, where he and Nicks had spent a lot of time, saying "It kind of feels like a second home." He gave a lengthy monologue before tearing it up on a solo acoustic performance of "Big Love," talking about how although that "Tango in the Night" track is actually newer than much of the material in Wednesday's set, it feels like it came from "a whole different lifetime," before he "pulled back and made a few adjustments." The song began, he explained, as "a kind of contemplation on alienation perhaps" but had become "more a meditation on the power and the importance of change."

Several songs from the show, including full songs of Landslide, Go Your Own Way, and Silver Springs

Mick Fleetwood displays art in Scottsdale gallery

By Lindsey Reiser
CBS 5 News

CBS 5 - KPHO

SCOTTSDALE, AZ (CBS5) - You wouldn't expect to see a Rock 'n' Roll legend used to screaming fans meeting folks at a quiet art gallery in Scottsdale, but that's exactly where Mick Fleetwood, founding member of Fleetwood Mac, was Tuesday evening.

The group is scheduled to perform in downtown Phoenix Wednesday evening.

Fleetwood said displaying his art can sometimes be more nerve-wracking than performing on stage.

"I don't write songs, and I don't sing them. I play in a band and it's a lot of work one way or another, but this more personal for me," Fleetwood said.

Before he gets an arena full of people going Wednesday night, he's showing his talents go beyond the stage.

"When I became a drummer, I sort of was doing what we did as a family. We traveled all the time, and I was the boring snapshot-taker in the band," Fleetwood said.

He admits his photographs in the collection Reflections are not what people might expect. They show moments of calm, either in his birthplace of England or his new home in Maui.

"I understand they were probably expecting ladies hanging off chandeliers and things," Fleetwood said.

"The contrast in this photo between the old rusty worn-out truck, and this new burst of super green light from the leaves," said Scottsdale resident Sari Lewis, describing what drew her to the piece she purchased.

She said she's not surprised he chose the Valley as one of his first exhibitions in the states.

"Scottsdale has an awesome gallery district, and we earn and deserve a lot of great art here," Lewis said.

As for his favorite piece? Fleetwood prefers a pair of swans he photographed individually that he said remind him of his parents because swans mate for life.

"In a way, these are my babies," Fleetwood said.

If you'd like to take a look at the pieces, they'll be on display until Thursday at DeRubeis Fine Art of Metal.

Mick Fleetwood follows a path of art and music
By John Hook
FOX 10 News

PHOENIX (KSAZ) - It's been 16 years since every original member of the legendary group Fleetwood Mac performed and toured together. 

They are one of the greatest Rock and Roll bands of all time, selling over 100 million albums.

On Wednesday night the band will be rocking U.S. Airways Arena, but first tonight FOX 10 caught up with drummer and founder of the band Mick Fleetwood at a gallery in Scottsdale. 

Fleetwood's other passion besides music is his photography.

For such an imposing figure, Mick Fleetwood is 64, and he's an incredibly gentle, thoughtful, soft spoken man.

"I still have periods where I take a lot of pictures and think about it a lot, this is the sum of what I've taken," said Mick Fleetwood.

He's still following the path, in music and photography.

"And then I joined a rock and roll band many years later, and was the boring member of the band who took pictures all day long," he said. Then at night he would take his place behind a great band and was hardly boring. "We have affected people, and people love our music that still exists."

He says the band is still relevant today for one reason; they all love making music.

"They would truly be doing music with or without the money; it was nothing about being successful," said Fleetwood. 

People always ask him whether he'll release something like "Life on the Road with Fleetwood Mac" , he says he doesn't think so.

In less than 24 hours from the airing of this story, he will play in front of a sold out crowd. So how does Fleetwood keep his mind on photography? "I don't get overly thinking about it until I get to the show and get in the complete routine... you would have brought up that I suffer from stage fright, so you've actually triggered me already, I'll be drinking heavily tonight!" he said.

For the first time in 16 years, Christine McVei is back touring with the band so the lineup that produced "Rumours" , one of the best selling albums of all time, is back together.

FOX 10 News | fox10phoenix.com