Re-Imagining Fleetwood Mac - Stevie Nicks Edition

One of my favorite bands of all time is Fleetwood Mac.  What makes The Mac so amazing isn't one particular member.  The band is a true sum of its parts.  They are the gold standard when it comes to the team effort approach to their songs, albums and live shows.  Though they are a chameleon of a band who has evolved and changed over time, they have had their share of chaotic times.  But difficult roads lead to beautiful destinations.  When the group is in sync with each other, there is no one better. But what if that wasn't true?  What if Fleetwood Mac only had one singer?  The Mac has been known since their early beginnings as a band who has shared vocal duties.  But just for fun...what if that wasn't true?  What if they only had one singer?  What would an album by Fleetwood Mac sound like?  Over the next three days, I want to look at three different versions of The Mac...each one featuring a different singer.  What would an album sound like if only Stevie Nicks, Christine McVie or Lindsey Buckingham were the singer?  I am not advocating this should be the case...but what if? Up first, here is the Stevie Nicks version of Fleetwood Mac.  I have kept the album to a tight 11 songs, trying to find the best songs that cohesively fit together.  It's an interesting experiment and I'd love to know your thoughts. Listen below. Fleetwood Nicks

1. Sisters of the Moon (Tusk)
2. Straight Back (Mirage)
3. Seven Wonders (Tango in the Night)
4. Gypsy (Mirage)
5. Rhiannon (FM)
6. Sara (Tusk)
7. Dreams (Rumors)
8. That's Alright (Mirage)
9. Angel (Tusk)
10. Landslide (Rumors)
11. Storms (Tusk)

     

The 55 Best Albums of 2014 (34-44)

2014 was filled with 90s superstars, indie rap reinvention, 80s throwbacks, and some of the best EPs to come out in recent memory. The 55 Best Albums of 2014 (34-44):

34.  Nothing - Guilty of Everything
35.  D'Angelo - Black Messiah
36.  Protomartyr - Under Color of Official Right
37.  Future Islands - Singles
38.  LA Dispute - The Rooms of the House
39.  Freddie Gibbs and Madlib - Pinata
40.  Stevie Nicks - 24 Karat Gold
41.  Smashing Pumpkins - Monuments To An Elegy
42.  Schoolboy Q - Oxymoron
43.  Ought - More Than Any Other Day
44.  Small Black - Real People EP

Buy these albums and more...now!!!          

The 11 Best Stevie Nicks Team-Ups

We all have our favorites.  We all have artists who we follow.  We all have artists who we can listen to no matter the album, whether it's considered their best or their worst.  For me that artist is Tom Petty.  He has been one of my favorites for over 25 years.  He also may be the only artist among my favorites I've never seen live.   That changed this week.  After going through a deeply frustrating personal set-back, one of my best friends came through out of the blue with a free ticket to his show in Anaheim.  It could not have come at a better time, and it was exactly what I needed.  Tom Petty...40 years a rock n roll star...put on one of the best rock shows I have ever seen.   It was big, personal, and filled with every riff I ever wanted to hear out of Petty's mouth or Campbell's guitar.  Today, I have gratitude that when we get knocked down that our friends are there to pick us up. One of Petty's best rock friends is the one and only Stevie Nicks.  Many people don't know that Nicks almost became a member of the Heartbreakers in the 80s.  Nicks may have had a massive career in dysfunctional family of Fleetwood Mac but her solo outings were ripe with huge duets and guests that made her equally respected on her own.  And with Mike Campbell sneaking into every one of her solo albums, it's safe to say that she might as well be a Heartbreaker. Here are the 11 Best Stevie Nicks Team-Ups:

1. Stand Back w/ Prince (The Wild Heart)
2. Stop Draggn' My Heart Around w/ Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers (Bella Donna)
3. Whenever I Call You Friend w/ Kenny Loggins (Nightwatch)
4. I Will Run To You w/ Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers (The Wild Heart)
5. Leather and Lace w/ Don Henley (Bella Donna)
6. Magnet And Steel w/ Walter Egan (Not Shy)
7. You Can't Fix This w/ Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins, Rami Jaffe (Reel To Reel)
8. Too Far From Texas w/ Natalie Maines (Trouble in Shangri-La)
9. Sorcerer w/ Marilyn Martin (Streets of Fire)
10. Everybody Loves You w/ Dave Stewart (In Your Dreams)
11. Twisted w/ Lindsey Buckingham (Twister Soundtrack)

Buy Stevie Nicks new album, 24 Karat Gold...now!!  

The 11 Best Fleetwood Mac Songs Featuring Stevie Nicks

Fleetwood Mac may be most famous for their line-up featuring Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks but if their famous for anything else, it's for their everchanging line-up.  From Peter Green to Danny Kirwan to Bob Welch to Rick Vito to Billy Burnette to Bekka Bramlett to Dave Mason to line-ups with Christine Perfect then Christine McVie then minus her altogether then line-ups with Lindsey and Stevie to line-ups with Stevie without Lindsey to line-ups without either to line-ups with Stevie and  Lindsey back.  It's hard to keep track. And we give Axl Rose a hard time.  Even though Christine is probably my favorite Mac songwriter, this list is dedicated to the new tour, new EP and current line-up.

Here are the 11 Best Fleetwood Mac Songs Featuring Stevie Nicks:

1. Landslide (Fleetwood Mac)
2. Rhiannon (Fleetwood Mac)
3. Seven Wonders (Tango In the Night)
4. Dreams (Rumors)
5. Sara (Tusk)
6. Sisters of the Moon (Tusk)
7. Gypsy (Mirage)
8. Gold Dust Woman (Rumors)
9. Thrown Down (Say You Will)
10. Freedom (Behind the Mask)
11. Not Make Believe (Say You Will Bonus Track)

Buy Fleetwood Mac's new EP, Extended Play...now!!

The 11 Best Songs By Stevie Nicks

In a recent interview, Jerry Seinfeld compared the show Seinfeld to the Beatles.  Though it’s not a far stretch that his TV show was the medium’s version of the Beatles that wasn't the reason for the comparison.  He said it because both entities left at the peak of their popularities.  That it was better to leave on top, with the audience wanting more than it was to leave on the way down when you’ve been forgotten.  He brought up all the artists like Mark Knopfler who barely play…but when they do, it means something.  I believe that means something.

Stevie Nicks is one of those artists who legendary status isn’t just because of her epic catalogue of fantastic songs from Fleetwood Mac and her solo career, or her elite company of guest stars like Tom Petty, Prince and Layne Staley.  Nicks knows how if you keep a slow and steady pace, it can only amplify what material you do put out.  We, the audience, want her to play more, but she doesn’t…and that makes you love what she does put out even more.  Stevie’s new album is her first new album of original songs in 10 years, and though it was the longest wait for one of her solo albums…many are calling it the best of her career.

Here are the 11 Best Songs By Stevie Nicks:

1.  Stand Back (The Wild Heart)
2.  Edge of Seventeen (Bella Donna)
3.  Leather and Lace (Bella Donna)
4.  I Can't Wait (Rock A Little)
5.  Long Way To Go (The Other Side of the Mirror)
6.  Sable on Blonde (The Wild Heart)
7.  Nothing Ever Changes (The Wild Heart)
8.  Talk To Me (Rock A Little)
9.  No Spoken Word (Rock A Little)
10.  Planets of the Universe (Trouble In Shangri-La)
11.  How Still My Love (Bella Donna)

Buy Stevie Nicks new album, In Your Dreams, now!

The 11 Best Stevie Nicks Solo Songs

Yesterday, I went to a comic book exhibit and saw a copy of Action Comics #1. (the first comic to feature Superman) Though I don't really read comics anymore, I was an avid fan as a kid. At 11-years-old I would have flipped to see that. It would have been the highlight of my life. But now, it doesn't have the same effect. It's still a cool thing for the sole reason that it brings back such fond memories of being a kid and collecting comics. And I guess in some way...I've just accomplished one of my life long dreams.

Here are the 11 Best Stevie Nicks Songs:

1. Edge of Seventeen (Bella Donna)
2. Stand Back (The Wild Heart)
3. Leather & Lace (Bella Donna)
4. I Can't Wait (Rock a Little)
5. If I Were You (Rock a Little)
6. Sable on Blond (The Wild Heart)
7. Long Way To Go (The Other Side of the Mirror)
8. Planets of the Universe (Trouble in Shangri-La)
9. No Spoken Word (Rock a Little)
10. Nothing Ever Changes (The Wild Heart)
11. Talk to Me (The Wild Heart)

Buy Stevie Nicks new live Sessions now.