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FLEETWOOD MAC
RATING: 10
PLAY THESE: DON'T STOP, GO YOUR OWN WAY, THE CHAIN
SKIP THESE: NONE
Ah, the ubiquitous Rumours. To steal a joke from Wayne's World, this album must have been issued to every household in the suburbs in the late 1970's - it was that popular. I mean, this record was (and is) absolutely everywhere. Even today, you will probably find a vinyl copy in your parent's attic, in addition to that digitized version currently occupying a prominent spot on your dad's CD rack. When I was younger (about 12 years old, to be exact), I loathed this album for reasons I can't even begin to explain. Maybe there was something about the album sleeve that rubbed me the wrong way (probably Mick Fleetwood's stupid ponytail), or maybe my adolescent 80's metal fixation blinded me to its greatness. Then one day, for reasons I can't quite remember, I felt compelled to throw this album on the turntable. And, to my surprise, it was great! So great, that I bought it on CD and listened to nothing else for about a month straight. Even today, Rumours stands up as one of the best pop albums of the 1970's - it truly deserves to have sold the zillion copies that it has.
The band are all great players, especially underrated guitarist Lindsey Buckingham, and the vocals are fantastic (they even boast three lead singers). And everything on this album sounds perfect. Almost too perfect, mind you, but the production is so smooth that one can't help but admire it for its sheer quality and craftsmanship. The songs are all fantastic too. Overall, Buckingham's contributions are the strongest ('Go Your Own Way,' ('Secondhand News,' 'Never Going Back Again,' etc..), but the Fleetwood Mac women give him a run for his money, particularly pianist Christine McVie's uplifting baby boomer anthem 'Don't Stop,' as well as Stevie Nicks' airy-fairy 'Gold Dust Woman.' I'm not sure I really like Stevie's "highbrow" lyrics in the latter track ("Follow those who pale in your shadow," anyone?), but it is nonetheless a very compelling musical piece; I especially love the coda, when the band loosens up a bit and performs a spooky, improvised fade-out. Great stuff. The other really cool musical moment is 'The Chain,' a great song that gets even more interesting when that really cool signature bass solo kicks in. That Fleetwood Mac rhythm section really had it going on! They weren't very flashy, mind you, but they really knew how to get a great groove happening. I could go on and describe every single song here - all deserve praise - but I think I'll just end things by saying this is a great record, and if you are one of the few people who haven't heard it, please do yourself a huge favor and seek it out.