THE SUSPENSE IS KILLING ME!

More bits of info via Twitter and Dave Stewart.... Hit the link to his twitter page.

With references to Fleetwood Mac meets the Beatles meets Tom Petty meets the Eurythmics... This sounds epic!

Today - March 4th
"Now driving over to Stevie Nick's place to make more majik"

"working on 4 songs with Stevie now very fast capturing the essence of the music and poetry keeping it spontaneous ,sounds amazing"

yep it is awesome stuff , Stevie's Voice is soaring !!!

March 3rd
"back to Stevie Nick's house more songs on the go :)"

From earlier in the week
"wrote a great song with Stevie Nicks on Monday called "Everybody Loves You"

and when asked if this means Stevie's making a new album?.... He responded with:
"she's on top form and I see that possibility"

(REVIEW) MICK FLEETWOOD BLUES BAND - CHRISTCHURCH, NZ

Boz Scaggs, Michael McDonald, The Mick Fleetwood Blues Band. Westpac Arena Christchurch, Wednesday March 3, 2010
Reviewed by Alistair Armstrong.
The Press

Elder statesmen fly with blues

What looked like a showcase for the faces behind a lot of mature FM radio hits was actually a rare glimpse of some of the best players in the music business.

Rhythm and blues was the lifeblood linking this triple treat comprising one of rock's great drummers (Mick Fleetwood), arguably its finest blue-eyed soul artist (Michael McDonald) and an adult pop practitioner with a pedigree far deeper than many suspect (Boz Scaggs).

Fleetwood, the venerable giant with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes, started things by paying tribute to his roots in the British blues boom with a set that included Fleetwood Mac classics such as a gloriously authentic-sounding Black Magic Woman and Albatross.

What made his Blues Band an unheralded sensation was Mac alumni Rick Vito, surely one of America's finest guitarists, whose shimmering slide guitar and bluesy vocals made the quartet's set an event in itself.

While Fleetwood thumped the kit and mugged enthusiastically, Vito set the place on fire, especially in Love That Burns, when he bypassed the microphone to sing directly to the crowd.

Watching Michael McDonald, you're struck by qualities that lots of contemporary musicians leave at the door.

He pours endless amounts of soul and passion into his music, whether it's bright and funky stuff like What a Fool Believes, which got them dancing in the aisles, or ballads with worrying levels of heartache like I Keep Forgettin'.

The yearning in a lot of Motown is a natural fit for this guy, so familiar favourites like Heard It Through the Grapevine and Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing regain freshness. Happily though, the St Louis native focused on his solo and Doobie Brothers material, which was carried brilliantly by his crack six-piece band and back-up vocalist through to a rousing gospel-style finale in Takin' It to the Streets.

Scaggs, accompanied by yet another group of hand-picked American musicians, was a contrast in style.

Mention his name and many think of disco-era celebrations, but he has matured and mellowed into a masterful purveyor of mellow funk and jazz, as well as blues.

The introductory Jojo was just elegant perfection that could have stopped on a dime.

It was like being escorted in slow-cruising musical Cadillac carrying supple, sumptuous grooves and steered by Scaggs' distinctive mellow warble.

Lowdown came halfway through and as the band took solo turns, it was easy to reflect on a night of deep-seated luxury that was warmly appreciated by the moderate-sized crowd.

DAVE STEWART SEEDING THE TWITTER CLOUD WITH HINTS OF STEVIE NICKS

A Twitter quote today from Dave Stewart....
"back to Stevie Nick's house more songs on the go :)"

From earlier in the week
"wrote a great song with Stevie Nicks on Monday called "Everybody Loves You"

and when asked if this means Stevie's making a new album?.... He responded with:

"she's on top form and I see that possibility"


This is pretty exciting stuff!  You da man Dave! Make it happen.

FLEETWOOD MAC UK CHART UPDATE FEB 28, 2010

THE UK
In it's 19th week of release "The Very Best Of" slides from #25 to #31 on the UK Top 75 Chart.

UK TOP 75 CHART RUN W/ NONE SALES FIGURES (2009 Best Of Version):
Week 01 #06 - Oct 26, 2009 - 18,763
Week 02 #10 - Nov 02, 2009 - 17,541
Week 03 #12 - Nov 09, 2009
Week 04 #15 - Nov 16, 2009
Week 05 #26 - Nov 23, 2009
Week 06 #29 - Nov 30, 2009
Week 07 #31 - Dec 07, 2009
Week 08 #25 - Dec 14, 2009
Week 09 #21 - Dec 21, 2009
Week 10 #23 - Dec 28, 2009
Week 11 #37 - Jan 04, 2010
Week 12 #42 - Jan 11, 2010
Week 13 #31 - Jan 18, 2010
Week 14 #35 - Jan 25, 2010
Week 15 #31 - Feb 01, 2010
Week 16 #22 - Feb 08, 2010
Week 17 #16 - Feb 15, 2010 - 16,895
Week 18 #25 - Feb 22, 2010
Week 19 #31 - Mar 01, 2010

SOME NOTABLE UK ALBUM/SINGLE SALES STATS
2009 Singles/Albums Analysis - UK Music Week Magazine

Physical sales accounted for 100% of the market at the start of the decade but only 2% at the end. With millions of singles thus available at the click of a mouse, catalogue singles sales have played an ever-increasing role, with buyers now cherry-picking their favourite songs, rather than buying albums. Some acts who have not had a single out in years achieved impressive sales as a result – Queen sold 1,118,445 singles, while Fleetwood Mac sold 358,377 singles and even MC Hammer sold 128,710 – but those who have held out against digital delivery fare less well, with The Beatles, for example, selling just 2,372 singles in the decade.

TOP 50 BEST-SELLING ALBUMS ARTISTS 2009
At year end, Fleetwood Mac land at #43 in the Top 50 best-selling Albums artists of 2009 category. About 3/4 of these sales come from the October, 2009 release of "The Very Best Of".

43 (--) FLEETWOOD MAC - 416,520

FLEETWOOD MAC'S ECONOMIC IMPACT ON NEW ZEALAND REGION

Taranaki Daily News (Page 11) March 1, 2010
Fleetwood Mac's Economic Impact on New Plymouth, NZ

If you are a Taranaki local and went to one of December’s Fleetwood Mac concerts, you were very

much in the minority. But that was good news for Taranaki, as explains.

ANYONE who was in New Plymouth during that heady weekend just before Christmas will know that the city was bulging with visitors.

They were all here for a single reason – to attend one of the two concerts by rock group Fleetwood Mac at the TSB Bowl of Brooklands.

It all meant that thousands of fans poured into the region on the Friday and Saturday to attend the first concert on December 19. Then, as they departed on the Sunday, thousands more poured into Taranaki to attend the second concert on December 20.

And while all these people were in Taranaki, not only did they spend, but they also enjoyed what Taranaki has to offer – and most say they’d love to come back.

How do we know all this? Because the region’s economic development agency Venture Taranaki commissioned an economic impact report on the weekend, which used sales data, attendee surveys and economic impact analysis to measure the difference between Taranaki having the concerts and not having them.

The report’s conclusions are fascinating.

For example, the research showed that of the 34,045 people who crammed into the Bowl for the concerts, three-quarters were visitors with 27.7 per cent from Auckland. More than a third were aged between 45 and 54, and more than two-thirds were women.

That data speaks volumes about the years Fleetwood Mac was at its peak and who the fans were.

But there’s more. Of those 34,045 ticket sales, 25,622 or 75.3 per cent were to fans from outside Taranaki. Most came from Auckland, 16.4 per cent came from Wellington, 13.9 per cent from Waikato, and 10.5 per cent from Bay of Plenty.

Only 9.8 per cent of visitors came from Manawatu and 3 per cent came from Wanganui – the same number as those who travelled all the way from Canterbury for the concerts.

Close to 98 per cent of all the visitors stayed in the region for at least one night – their average stay was actually 1.76 nights – and 72.2 per cent stayed in commercial accommodation.

Of real economic significance for Taranaki is the fact that 26 per cent of visitors had never been to the region before. But did they enjoy themselves? Venture Taranaki’s research questioned visitors on how they rated the concert experience, with one being a low rating and 10 being a high rating.

Close to 80 per cent gave the experience a ranking of seven or more.

And when asked how they enjoyed Taranaki itself, 66 per cent ranked the Taranaki region as either vibrant or very vibrant.

Seventy-nine per cent said they’d come back for another event, with 58 per cent saying they’d like to return for a holiday.

Venture Taranaki chief executive Stuart Trundle says the visitor rankings of Taranaki pleased him most of all.

With the concerts, we were aware we were being presented with an opportunity to maximise the promotion of Taranaki.

It’s great to know that so many people who came to the concerts say they would definitely return.

It shows that you have to get people to visit a region for them to change their perceptions about a place.

It’s a much better way than simply putting nice images on a wall at Wellington or Auckland airport.’’

The research also surveyed the Taranaki residents who attended the concerts, and that has thrown up some interesting data.

Of the 8423 Taranaki fans, 90.9 per cent came from New Plymouth district, 7.6 per cent from South Taranaki – and just 1.5 per cent from Stratford.

They were asked whether events are important to Taranaki’s vibrancy, with one being not important and 10 being extremely important. Of the total surveyed, 53 per cent gave a ranking of 10, while another 39.7 per cent gave a ranking of eight or nine.

Not only that, but 65.2 per cent felt the number of events held in Taranaki is about right, while 33.3 per cent felt there aren’t enough events – with just 1.5 per cent saying there are too many events. And 75.8 per cent felt the variety of events is about right.

So while this survey showed that the Fleetwood Mac concerts provided a $23.08 million initial financial boost to the Taranaki economy, which resulted in a net profit to the region of $9.56m, the benefits obviously go beyond the cash.

Not only did the concerts draw national and international media attention to the region, but they attracted many people who had never been to Taranaki before. And they were impressed, which means there’s every chance they will come back.

‘‘While the measurable economic benefits were certainly a boost for the region, the many non-financial benefits offer greater long-term potential,’’ says Mr Trundle.

‘‘Attracting new visitors to the region and delivering an experience resulting in significantly more positive perceptions of Taranaki will deliver further benefits down the line, as the region looks to meet future growth needs.’’

FLEETWOOD MAC - TWO TOP 20 ALBUMS IN AUSTRALIA (#11 & #16)

AUSTRALIA:

ARIA TOP 50 CATALOGUE ALBUMS CHART - Week of March 1, 2010:

Fleetwood Mac's "The Very Best Of" slips two spots to #11 on the Australian Top 50 Catalogue Charts. Total weeks on the Catalogue Chart = 16.

RUMOURS LEAPS UP CHART
Fleetwood Mac's Rumours jumps 22 spots from #38 to #16 on this weeks chart.  Not sure what's causing the sudden climb up the Catalogue Chart.... Rumours has been certified 12 X Platinum in Australia (840,000 units).

THE MICK FLEETWOOD BLUES BAND
On the broader chart, Mick's Blues Band album is at #96 - with 416 units sold

SOMETHING'S COOKING IN THE NICKS CAMP

A couple of intersting tweets from Producer Dave Stewart (Eurythmics):

"wrote a great song with Stevie Nicks on Monday called "Everybody Loves You"

and when asked if this means Stevie's making a new album?.... He responded with:

"she's on top form and I see that possibility"

What this all means is anyones guess.  And where this all falls within Stevie's album making process, if that's in fact what she's doing is really up in the air - maybe she's writing music with Dave Stewart for another artist to sing?... Maybe it's just the beginning of putting an album together for herself and we have a few more years to wait for it to be complete... And you never know, maybe she's been working on this already for a few years and it's the middle of the process...it could also be the final leg of making an album.  Man, you could speculate all day about this!  In any case, it's great to hear she's still interested in making new music whether it's writing for herself, others, or producing music for Michelle Branch, which Michelle Branch tweeted about earlier in the month (link)...  Personally, I hope Stevie's working on music for herself... It's been far too long since her last studio album Trouble in Shangri-La came out (2001).

And it's not Dave's first encounter with Stevie as he explains in this interview from Rockline from a couple of years ago when talking about the inspiration behind writing Tom Petty's song "Don't Come Around Here No More" back in the early 80's.

Interview Download