Today's Vinyl Re-Spin: Fleetwood Mac's 1975 Album

Today's Vinyl Spin goes back to the very successful Fleetwood Mac line-up of Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckinghman, John McVie, Christine McVie and Mick Fleetwood. Fleetwood Mac is the first album to feature the then new line-up of the group.

Fleetwood Mac enjoyed moderate success as a blues band and a mainstream rock group with numerous membership changes. In 1974 after former lead singer and guitarist Bob Welch left the group, the duo of Buckingham-Nicks were recruited to take his place. The two new members proved to be the best thing that happened to Fleetwood Mac in terms of a new music direction and commercial success.

The band paved its way to becoming a major concert draw with Stevie, Lindsey and Christine showcasing various songs while McVie and Fleetwood provided a solid foundation. It is one of the few bands that I personally saw in concert not once, but twice.

Their debut album Fleetwood Mac with the new line-up slowly crawled to the #1 position on the charts by 1976 while its singles garnered more and more radio airplay. These included "Over My Head", "Rhiannon," "Say You Love Me," and "Blue Letter". "Landslide" also became a hit after Fleetwood Mac recorded it again for their 1997 live album, The Dance.

I was first introduced to this album by an old college friend back in the day. I always knew of Fleetwood Mac but never paid much attention to them. I had only one track of theirs in my record collection which was "Stop Messin' Around" that appeared on a compilation LP. I later liked the song "Hypnotized" after hearing it on the radio. Was not enough for me to buy their records at the time (I was a starving high school student when this stuff first came out)....

Over the years I have owned 2 vinyl copies of Fleetwood Mac as well as 2 CDs of this. Made at least two cassette tapes off the vinyl and later the CD for portability before the digital age.

Fleetwood Mac is definitely one of my favorite albums of all time by them. It's an enjoyable, refreshing listen whenever I give it a spin.

The back cover of Fleetwood Mac with track list, group members Nicks, Fleetwood, McVie, Buckingham and McVie.

Fleetwood Mac would be the last of their albums to show up on the Reprise label.

Track List

Side 1

1. Monday Morning
2. Warm Ways
3. Blue Letter
4. Rhiannon
5. Over My Head
6. Crystal

Side 2

1. Say You Love Me
2. Landslide
3. World Turning
4. Sugar Daddy
5. I'm So Afraid

"Rhiannon" was one of 4 singles released from the album. All 4 singles have different mixes from the versions on the album. When Fleetwood Mac was issued in a special edition CD in 2004, the single tracks were included as bonus material. Nice move on Warner / Reprise's part.

"Rhiannon" by Fleetwood Mac....

Flawless Album B-Sides

From the Friday 5 website came this question: What album has a flawless B side?

The answer to this one is simple... any compilation or "Greatest Hits" type of album all have good B-sides that equal the A-side.

However in this day and age how many people actually play vinyl records or cassettes and have to flip the thing over to play a B-side?

You don't have to do that if you listen to CDs or MP3 albums. Everything is on the A side.

That all said some of my favorite albums with great B-sides that at least equal the A-side include the following:

1. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - The Beatles
2. Rumours - Fleetwood Mac
3. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road - Elton John
4. Band on the Run - Paul McCartney & Wings
5. Fleetwood Mac - Fleetwood Mac
6. Revolver - The Beatles
7. Abbey Road - The Beatles
8. Parallel Lines - Blondie
9. Ram - Paul & Linda McCartney
10. Double Fantasy - John Lennon & Yoko Ono

Moving on... This week's Top 10 Oldies that were submitted to the Classic Top 30 site for their weekly tabulation include the following:

June 17 Top 10 Oldies

1. In Your Letter - REO Speedwagon
2. Eat At Home - Paul & Linda McCartney
3. Seven Year Ache - Roseanne Cash
4. Twistin' USA - Chubby Checker
5. Only the Lucky - Walter Egan
6. Arms of Mary - Sutherland Bros. & Quiver
7. Jolene - Dolly Parton
8. How Can You Mend a Broken Heart - Bee Gees
9. Talk it Over - Grayson Hugh
10. It's a Matter of Time - Elvis Presley

A\V: The following are songs from the lists above:

Today's Vinyl Spin - Fleetwood Mac

Today's Vinyl Spin goes back to the very successful Fleetwood Mac line-up of Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckinghman, John McVie, Christine McVie and Mick Fleetwood. Fleetwood Mac is the first album to feature the then new line-up of the group.

Fleetwood Mac enjoyed moderate success as a blues band and a mainstream rock group with numerous membership changes. In 1974 after former lead singer and guitarist Bob Welch left the group, the duo of Buckingham-Nicks were recruited to take his place. The two new members proved to be the best thing that happened to Fleetwood Mac in terms of a new music direction and commercial success.

The band paved its way to becoming a major concert draw with Stevie, Lindsey and Christine showcasing various songs while McVie and Fleetwood provided a solid foundation. It is one of the few bands that I personally saw in concert not once, but twice.

Their debut album Fleetwood Mac with the new line-up slowly crawled to the #1 position on the charts by 1976 while its singles garnered more and more radio airplay. These included "Over My Head", "Rhiannon," "Say You Love Me," and "Blue Letter". "Landslide" also became a hit after Fleetwood Mac recorded it again for their 1997 live album, The Dance.

I was first introduced to this album by an old college friend back in the day. I always knew of Fleetwood Mac but never paid much attention to them. I had only one track of theirs in my record collection which was "Stop Messin' Around" that appeared on a compilation LP. I later liked the song "Hypnotized" after hearing it on the radio. Was not enough for me to buy their records at the time (I was a starving high school student when this stuff first came out)....

Over the years I have owned 2 vinyl copies of Fleetwood Mac as well as 2 CDs of this. Made at least two cassette tapes off the vinyl and later the CD for portability before the digital age.

Fleetwood Mac is definitely one of my favorite albums of all time by them. It's an enjoyable, refreshing listen whenever I give it a spin.

The back cover of Fleetwood Mac with track list, group members Nicks, Fleetwood, McVie, Buckingham and McVie.

Fleetwood Mac would be the last of their albums to show up on the Reprise label.

Track List

Side 1

1. Monday Morning
2. Warm Ways
3. Blue Letter
4. Rhiannon
5. Over My Head
6. Crystal

Side 2

1. Say You Love Me
2. Landslide
3. World Turning
4. Sugar Daddy
5. I'm So Afraid

"Rhiannon" was one of 4 singles released from the album. All 4 singles have different mixes from the versions on the album. When Fleetwood Mac was issued in a special edition CD in 2004, the single tracks were included as bonus material. Nice move on Warner / Reprise's part.

"Rhiannon" by Fleetwood Mac....

Today's Vinyl Spin - Fleetwood Mac "Mirage"

Mirage is Fleetwood Mac's first studio album released in the 1980s that features the hits "Hold Me" by Christine McVie and Stevie Nicks' "Gypsy". Both singles became big hits in 1982 in an album that to me tried to harken back to 1977's Rumours LP that sold in the mega millions and also earned the band their only #1 single "Dreams" and a Grammy Award. 

However listening beyond the obvious singles, there are tracks on the album to love even more. My favorite is the retro sounding "Oh Diane" that features Lindsey Buckingham on lead vocals as well as his rollicking "Can't Hold Back". Christine is also solid with "Love in Store" and the ballad "Only Over You". There is a touch of country in Nicks' "That's Alright" while Buckingham's "Book of Love" reminds me of music from Tusk.

Overall a highly recommended but under-appreciated album from the Mac. :)

Giving Mirage a spin on the ol' Technics.

Artwork featured on the inner sleeve.

"Oh Diane" featuring Lindsey Buckingham, Top of the Pops.*

* video may be taken down without notice.

Flashback Friday: Christine McVie & Fleetwood Mac

FLASHBACK FRIDAY on Mel's Internet Universe Music Blog

Big news breaking this week was notification that longtime Fleetwood Mac vocalist Christine McVie is re-joining the band after a long hiatus. The news broke in Billboard Magazine this week: "The band's publicist, Liz Rosenberg, has confirmed to Billboard that McVie has rejoined the band after departing the group in 1998."

McVie who joined the band in the early 1970s has been responsible for singing and writing some of the band's most well known hits including "Don't Stop", "Songbird", "Say You Love Me", "Over My Head", "You Make Loving Fun", "Little Lies", "Everywhere" and "As Long As You Follow" to name some here. She pre-dates the band's most well known line-up by a few years when she used to share vocal duties with former bandmates Bob Welch and Danny Kirwin.

Today, McVie joins the band's most well known line-up which also includes her ex, John McVie; singer-songwriters Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham and percussionist - drummer Mick Fleetwood.

Fans are hoping that Fleetwood Mac goes on tour this year with the revived line-up and even work on and release a new album.

Fleetwood Mac is the only band that I have seen in concert twice, once in 1977 and again in 1980. Mick Fleetwood is a part time Hawaii resident and put in an appearance at the Hawaii State Legislature last year lobbying for a privacy bill with fellow rocker Steven Tyler of the band Aerosmith.