Tag: pop music

And here I find myself exploring my Top 10 Fleetwood Mac tracks. A couple of surprises for me, many are not surprising. The winning album is 1975’s Fleetwood Mac which scores three of the Top 10 songs. Biggest surprise was that Rumours is only represented once. And most surprising? Neither of those albums show up in the Top 3! I was also surprised that 6 different Mac albums have songs in the Top 10. Much more spread out than I would have expected. Now let’s see how things play out, with Stevie Nicks kicking us off.

#10 – Angel (Nicks) Tusk (1979)

I’ve always loved this upbeat, jaunty Tusk cut by Stevie Nicks. If I were to describe “Angel” using shorthand, I would say it was Stevie Nicks’ version of a Christine McVie song! Stevie wanted to right a light-hearted rock & roll song when she started writing “Angel.” And while it starts out like that, lyrically and stylistically it gradually morphs into a more traditional Nicks number.

There are a couple of theories as to the themes of the song. I read somewhere that it “Angel” references Nicks’ affair with Mick Fleetwood. Another source cited “Angel” as the second song Nicks wrote about the Welsh Rhiannon legend. I do love the line, “I still look up when you walk in the room.” There are those people who have been in your life, whether long-term or short, that just capture your attention whenever they’re in the same room as you. Stevie does a great job capturing that reflection of a past relationship well.

Musically, it’s actually quite stripped down and bare. Simple bass, drums, electric piano kick things off, and pretty much carry the entire song. Lindsey adds his guitar licks throughout, but they are not flashy, and are there really to add texture. During the long coda, there are some layered, “ooohs,” to fill out the sound, but otherwise, it’s spare sound fits well on Tusk. The distortion on Christine’s electric piano at the start adds to that feel. John McVie’s got a great, rolling bass part throughout. I also enjoy the way the harmony parts throughout jump from person to person. Most notably it’s Lindsey, then there’s a section with Christine, then there are a couple of parts where Stevie overdubs herself. It adds a layer of interest for the listener.

Stevie is also known for her long, ad-libbed fades where she often introduces new heretofore unheard lyrics. “Angel” has one of my favorites, just before the fade out, “Oh they tried hard, but you’ll never catch me, yeah, yeah.” For videos Ive included the 2015 remastered track from Tusk, and also a live version from the Tusk tour. Stevie and the whole band actually look like they’re having a lot of fun performing the song, and it’s so funny how the audience just goes nuts whenever Lindsey and Stevie interact. And the three-part harmonies sound great. Glad to see this long-time favorite from Tusk made it to my Top 10.

#9 – Hold Me (McVie, C., Patton) Mirage (1982)

Mirage hasn’t aged as well as its earlier ’70’s counterparts. It’s overproduced and slick, nearly to the point of coldness, but “Hold Me”, its lead single, and another stellar Christine McVie/Lindsey Buckingham duet has a special place in my heart. I remember hearing it for the first time. It had been a long time since Fleetwood Mac had released Tusk (1979), at least for those days, and to hear Christine’s piano prominently featured in the opening bars thrilled me. Christine wrote the song with her friend Robbie Patton (whose second album she produced) and then reworked it with Fleetwood Mac. It was inspired by the recent ending of her relationship with former Beach Boy, Dennis Wilson. It is one of Fleetwood Mac’s most successful songs, spending four weeks at #4 on Billboard’s Top 100.

Underneath all the slick production, there’s a pretty standard Christine McVie “longing-for-love” song at the heart. An early version of the song was recorded that was sung as a solo part by Christine, and features Stevie’s harmonies much more up front, rather than washed into the mix. As often is the case, like “Angel” and many of Christine’s songs, the song if powered by the solid bass, drums, piano combo, so essential in Fleetwood Mac. Christine plays both acoustic and electric piano, and kicks things off with a highly recognizable piano riff that repeats in the break after the guitar solo. Some surprising power chords come in on the chorus, and lead up to a frankly soaring electric guitar color and some acoustic guitar flourishes high up in the mix before the chorus repeats to the end. Lindsey adds a lot of odd flourishes, like what sounds like the bark of a dog repeating in the chorus. It’s what takes this standard pop song and gives it some quirkiness. Surprisingly, for a song that did so well for the band, it’s not performed live too often. It was played during the Mirage tour, Buckingham and McVie’s recent tour, and then their latest tours without Lindsey, and Neil Finn on vocals.

Perhaps most memorable about “Hold Me” is it was the band’s first release post-MTV launch, and featured an elaborate video, shot in the Mojave Desert, in the middle of summer, with temperatures over 100 degrees! The surreal video, based on several Magrettie paintings, was apparently a nightmare to shoot. The relationships between band members were strained, and the videos director said they were not easy to work with. The entire band was never seen together in any scenes. Stevie Nicks was quoted: “It was so hot, and we weren’t getting along.” Lindsey Buckingham was still not over their breakup six years earlier, nor her subsequent affair with Mick Fleetwood with whom the rest of the band was pretty angry because he had then begun an affair with Nicks’ best friend who left her husband as a result. Director Steve Barron said, “Four of them, I can’t recall which four, couldn’t be together in the same room for very long. They didn’t want to be there. John McVie was drunk and tried to punch me. Stevie Nicks didn’t want to walk on the sand with her platforms. Christine McVie was fed up with all of them. Mick thought she was being a bitch, he wouldn’t talk to her.” To make matters worse, Christine added, “And I’d be the first one to admit that none of us were stone-cold sober. There was a fair degree of alcohol and drugs going on.” Sounds like a recipe for disaster, but the result is one of my favorite Mac videos.

Below is the video in question, and I’ve also included the early version referenced above.

#8 – Landslide (Nicks) Fleetwood Mac (1975)

One of Stevei’s most enduring, well-known songs, “Landslide,” like “Crystal” is about reflection… and turning points. Stevie wrote the song in 1973, as a 25-year-old who’d recorded an album with her long-time partner, and was then subsequently dropped from her record label. Lindsey was hired to tour with the Everly Brothers, and Stevie stayed with a friend in Aspen, Colorado, surrounded by the Rocky Mountains. During her stay, she pondered whether to give up the musician’s life to go back to school, or work full-time. Obviously, she ultimately decided to keep going, and three months later, Mick Fleetwood asked the pair to join Fleetwood Mac. The imagery in the song, of snow-covered hills, and landslides was inspired by her surroundings.

Musically, the song is just Stevie singing to Lindsey’s acoustic guitar accompaniment. I believe it’s a 12-string on the recording… the sound is very lush and full. There’s a gentle electric guitar solo (that in early concerts, Christine played on electric piano) but that’s it. A beautiful song for its simplicity.

“Landslide” has always been a popular song from the band. It had a resurgence in the late 90’s after the band’s reunion performance and subsequent live album, “The Dance,” where it was released as a single. It’s interesting to think about the song and its meaning for a 25-year-old Nicks, and a 50-year-old Nicks. I actually far prefer the original version of the song, with a young Nicks, whose voice was still strong yet vulnerable. The fragility was there, but so was the control. There’s a purity but also a wisdom in her singing on that 1975 recording. This was the Stevie Nicks before her voice suffered from extensive touring, before the cocaine abuse, before they elaborate mysticism became part of her persona. She was the young and scrappy daughter of a country singer who wanted to make it big. There is hope, and confidence both in “Landslide,” and it remains one of my favorite Mac tracks.

#7 – Think About Me (McVie, C.) Tusk (1979)

About three years ago I rediscovered this song and went nuts for it. I had forgotten all about it! This Christine McVie gem from Tusk is pure McVie, but with the Buckingham’s Tusk-era hard-edged fingerprints all over it. One writer from PopMatters praised the song as “the unlikeliest of things: a McVie rocker — A near-perfect punk number that snuck in below the radar” and that it was “anchored by her electric piano, Buckingham’s fuzzed-up ‘Day Tripper’-esque riff, and the most sarcastic lyrics of McVie’s career,” referring to the couplet, “I don’t hold you down/Maybe that’s why you’re around.” “Think About Me” was released as the third single from Tusk following “Tusk,” and “Sara,” and climbed to #20, but I think it’s an often forgotten hit from the Fleetwood Mac catalog.

It jumps on top of you with bombastic intro that I just love. There a rat-a-tat of snare drum, then Buckingham’s grungy guitar and Christine’s distorted electric piano lay the groundwork, with John McVie’s fantastic bass guitar riff heralding the gorgeous vocals. It’s funny, I always remember this as another fantastic McVie/Buckingham duet, but in fact, it’s not. It’s really Christine on lead vocals, and Lindsey and Stevie providing their trademark three-part harmonies with her on the chorus. In fact, an early version of the song on one of their compilation albums feature just Christine and Stevie singing. There are multiple remixes of this song, and i couldn’t decide which one to leave here, but the more I listen to it, the grungier it gets, and I love that. It really is a nice rascal of a song. I really thought it might get into the Top 5, because I just love this song, but no dice. And at 2 minutes and 42 seconds it’s just way too short.

#6 – Songbird (McVie, C.) Rumours (1977)

Christine’s gorgeous, and generous ballad is certainly her signature number as the concert closer for almost every tour that band has embarked upon. There is certainly no better note to leave a concert on than this sweet piano ballad about love. A heartfelt and powerful expression of love, “Songbird” is about no one and everyone, according to McVie. She goes on to explain that it’s about the members of the band who were going through hard times with longtime couples breaking up. The “songbirds” are the members of the band, and the song is about how much they mean to McVie, and the need for them to get along with each other and keep singing and playing together. It’s a lovely balm to counterbalance the anger of some of the other songs on Rumours.

McVie wrote the song late in the Rumours recording process. Producer Ken Caillat loved the track and suggested she record it alone in a concert style approach. It was recorded live at the Zellerbach Auditorium, on March 3, 1976, with Christine playing the piano and singing while Lindsey strummed the acoustic guitar offstage to keep time. 15 microphones were set up around the auditorium to capture the live feel. To create the appropriate ambience, Caillat ordered a bouquet of flowers to place on her piano. He then requested three spotlights to illuminate the flowers from above. When McVie arrived at the auditorium, the house lights were dimmed so her attention was immediately brought to the illuminated flowers on the piano. I’ve included the album version as well as the live version from “The Dance.” There’s nary a difference over the years. She sounds as beautiful as ever.

As we close in on the Top 10, it’s the last time we’ll see all three of our songwriters appear. One of them is going to be locked out of the Top 10. We’ll also see a surprise appearance of a track from Mystery to Me. And things are certainly going to start getting Christine McVie heavy, as in this case, with three of these five songs coming from her.

#15 – Over My Head (McVie, C.) Fleetwood Mac (1975)

To the band’s surprise, Warner Bros. selected “Over My Head” as the lead single of the newly transformed Fleetwood Mac’a 1975 album, Fleetwood Mac. It was the song the band thought was least likely to be released as a single. The strategy worked, as “Over My Head” became the first single to hit the Billboard Top 100 since “Oh Well” in 1969, which climbed to #55. “Over My Head” was also the band’s first Top 20 single ever, reaching that pinnacle in early 1976.

The song is penned by Christine McVie, and is classic 70’s era McVie through and through. She composed it on a small, portable electric piano, in a tiny apartment in Malibu, CA where she lived with her then-husband, John McVie. While it’s a fairly straightforward, soft-rock, pop song, what makes it so special is the amazing texture in the recording. As a kid, I used to love the novelty of the song already in progress and fading in. Christine’s Vox Continental organ and Lindsey’s low-key, chugging rhythm guitar provide the major drive for the song, with Christine’s electric piano punching accent chords. John McVie’s rolling bass sets the easy rhythm of the tune. Lindsey’s harmonic flourishes and Fleetwood’s unique bongos are the finishing touches to build a rich, palette.

“Over My Head” also features one of my favorite, and to infrequent Mac moments: when Christine and Stevie sing together. Their harmony on the bridge is especially fun in the live version of the song (which I’ve also included – minor point of interest, the live performance features one of the only times I’ve noticed Buckingham using a pick to play guitar). Of Christine’s vocal performance, Billboard magazine said, “a completely distinctive voice, with a sexy huskiness that is unique in pop today.” So true. Lyrically there’s nothing terribly surprising going on here. Christine is lamenting the fact that she’s involved with a man who runs hot and cold, and she can’t decide if it’s worth it to stick around. She is in over her head.

#14 – Don’t Stop (McVie, C.) Rumours (1977)

Possibly one Mac’s most enduring songs, and a great moment of optimism on the otherwise fractious Rumours album, “Don’t Stop” is another Christine McVie-penned tune, and following in the footsteps of Fleetwood Mac’s “World Turning,” is the second in what would become a series, of McVie/Buckingham duets. McVie revealed that Buckingham helped her craft the lyrics in the verses because their personal sensibilities overlapped. Some say the song is Christine’s message to John after their divorce, although usually Christine just talks about it being generally just an song about optimism.

To create the sound for “Don’t Stop,” McVie played the piano part on both a conventional, acoustic piano, and also a specially treated “tack piano,” where nails are placed on the points where the hammers hit the strings, producing a more percussive sound. It’s often used in the honky tonk style of piano playing, and it’s surprisingly effective, giving “Don’t Stop” a decidedly honky-tonk feel. Christine has fun with the piano part throwing in some flashier bits that she rarely does. It also features a nice, melodic lead guitar solo from Buckingham. Lindsey and Christine alternate verses, and share vocal duties on the chorus. Stevie provides back-up vocals during the closing bars. In the live version, all three vocalists sing the choruses in unison. Otherwise, it’s a highly enjoyable, upbeat pop track, with a catch hook.

“Don’t Stop” was the third single from Rumours, following “Go Your Own Way” and “Dreams.” It climbed all the way to #3. The song had a second life when Bill Clinton used it as his Presidential campaign theme song in 1992. Upon winning the election, Clinton persuaded the Rumours lineup of the group to perform the song for his inaugural ball in 1993, the first time they had played live together since 1982.

#13 – Crystal (Nicks) Fleetwood Mac (1975)

Here’s a case of a song ending up much higher on my list than I would have predicted before I started listening to all these songs again to see how I would react. “Crystal” is an interesting anomaly for Fleetwood Mac, as it was written by Nicks, but sung by Buckingham. It was also a previously recorded and released for the Buckingham Nicks album but rerecorded by Fleetwood Mac for this album. American record producer Keith Olsen produced both the Buckingham Nicks and Fleetwood Mac albums, and he insisted both times that Lindsey sing the lead vocal. Stevie would not get to sing the lead part on the song she wrote until she recorded a third version for the original soundtrack to the film Practical Magic in 1998.

I always think of “Crystal” paired with “Landslide,” a more famous Stevie Nicks track. Both use imagery that suggests water, reflections, and light, and deal with deep but ephemeral concepts as time and love. “Crystal” seems to be about how a person experiences love through their lifetime. The lyrics are simple and beautiful, and the line that always resonates with me is, “And I have change, oh but you, you remain ageless.” Such a beautiful line and sentiment. I love the Fleetwood Mac version of this song the best, and Lindsey sings it with such tenderness; perhaps the warmest vocal recorded vocal performance of his career. It’s interesting to note that the Fleetwood Mac version of the song is recorded in a different key than the original, with Lindsey singing even higher in his range. It’s so interesting to hear Stevie’s dreamy lyrics sung by someone else. It really works on this one. Then when Stevie comes in with the harmony vocals, it just soars. They two of them always harmonized gorgeously.

I love the way McVie’s bell-like electric piano weaves into the song around Lindsey’s gentle acoustic guitar work in the first verse. Christine also does a great job with the mellotron, an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed England, in 1963, to really fill out the song, and provide the haunting post-chorus licks, and fading solos at the close of the song. The mellotron has such a lovely, mournful sound and I love the way Christine’s closing solo parts sound like it’s just drifting through mountains on the wind. It’s really a very keyboard heavy song, with the piano and mellotron providing all the layers, and the acoustic guitar adding texture. It’s just exquisite.

#12 – Second Hand News (Buckingham) Rumours (1977)

I feel bad for Lindsey. He really gave so much to Fleetwood Mac, and in some ways was instrumental to their massive success… or at least to their stretching, musically with Tusk and beyond. And yet he doesn’t manage to break into my Top 10, with “Second Hand News” making the highest mark here at #12. His songs are superb, I just like the ones above his better.

“Second Hand News” was always intended to kick-off Rumours. It’s high energy, galloping energy, combined with it’s euphoric kiss-off both jump-started and encapsulated was the album encompassed: the painful dissolution of several relationships that led to an international smash hit. According to Fleetwood Mac biographer Donald Brackett , Buckingham is finding redemption with other women after his failed relationship with Nicks. He sings that although he does not trust his lover and cannot live with her, he cannot live without her as well. “Been down so long, I’ve been tossed around enough. Aw couldn’t you just let me go down and do my stuff?” He just wants to feel good with some lady companions after the ordeal he went through with Nicks.

Buckingham brought an instrumental version of the song to the band early in the process entitled, “Strummer.” (Purportedly he withheld the lyrics to the song as long as possible because he knew Stevie wouldn’t like them.) Buckingham utilized Scottish and Irish folk song influences, and originally the song was to have been set to a march rhythm. Then Buckingham heard the Bee Gees “Jive Talkin'” he wanted to find a more disco groove. In addition, Lindsey added a drum track by pounding on the back of a Naugahyde chair that happened to be in the studio. John McVie originally recorded a flowing, melodic bass part, but while he was on vacation, Buckingham replaced it with a very simple, quarter note bassline. It ultimately worked for the song, and it would herald Buckingham’s eventual totalitarianism in the studio during the Tusk sessions. McVie did rerecord the bass part to Buckingham’s specifications, but added a few flourishes of his own.

I love the galloping rhythm of the opening, and the break-neck speed in which it progresses, aided by Fleetwood’s rolling snare drum. Lindsey’s trademark acoustic flourishes add the texture, and the harmonies supplied by Nicks bring it all together. Christine doesn’t play on the song, but she adds layered, wordless, background vocals that serve the same purpose as her keyboards. In some early concerts, as seen below, Christine McVie played the drum to add additional percussive power as there were no keyboards in the song. In later concerts she added an organ part, that actually seems a little out of place in the song. It’s really a great song and worthy of opening this classic album.

#11 – Just Crazy Love (McVie, C.) Mystery to Me (1973)

Talk about a surprise! I had no idea this song from 1973’s Mystery to Me would almost end up cracking the Top 10! I just love this euphoric, joyful, fun song by Christine McVie. She really doesn’t just let go like this very often, and I love listening to it.

Musically, Christine pounds out some piano, while guitarists Bob Welch and Bob Weston supply some bluesy licks on the verses, and big power chords in the chorus. Then-husband Jon McVie takes a stroll through the melody with his base, all anchored by Fleetwood’s steady, but innovative drumming. And above it all, Christine sings beautifully, clearly having fun with the melody that jumps up an octave and back with lost in between while she just relishes this new relationship she’s in.

There’s not much to the song lyrically. She’s just giddy about a new man, and hopes that it turns serious. Even if her friends tells her she’s being foolish, it just feels right to her, and she’s so happy about it. Apparently Christine performed this song at some of her solo gigs in the early 80’s, and I saw her on that tour, but she didn’t play it in Boston. Can’t find a live video of it anywhere, unfortunately, but here is the audio track!

A couple of Stevie’s big hits show up just before we crack the Top 20. It seems they should be higher on this list, it’s just that Fleetwood Mac has recorded so many damn good songs I couldn’t get them all into the Top 20! The songs in this batch really start to see all the stunning craftsmanship from the Fleetwood Mac and Rumours days. And so much nostalgia listening to all of these songs agin.

#25 – Blue Letter (Curtis, Michael; Curtis, Richard) Fleetwood Mac (1975)

Another great rocker from Lindsey Buckingham off the Fleetwood Mac album, and one of the rare times the band performed a song written by non-members. Michael & Richard Curtis were friends with Lindsey and Stevie during the Buckingham Nicks era, and they wrote this song for the recording duo for their sophomore album, which was never recorded. They offered the song to the pair as part of Fleetwood Mac, and the band decided late in the recording process to add it to the album. “Blue Letter” and “World Turning” were two of the last songs to be added, adding a slightly more high energy, rock ‘n roll edge to the album.

Powered largely by the Fleetwood Mac rhythm section, with a decidedly 70’s organ part and chunky guitars pushing the song along. “Blue Letter” features another nice blend of the three part harmonies that non one can do like Fleetwood Mac. It’s a quick number, but decidedly catchy and it has become a staple for many of their live concert tours.

#24 – The Chain (Buckingham, Fleetwood, McVie, C., McVie, J., Nicks) Rumours 1977

“The Chain” is the quintessential Fleetwood Mac song for so many reasons. It’s the only song with writing credits to the entire band. It highlights all the things that make Fleetwood Mac the band they are. The lyrics perfectly capture what the band was going through during the recording of Rumours. It’s symbolic of what the band has endured through the decades, with perhaps the sad exception of Lindsey’s forced departure a couple of years ago.

I recently found new appreciation for “The Chain” by really listening to it again after years of kind of just having it in the background of my mind. It’s really quite an amazing song, from the swamp rock twang of the guitar opener, to the outstanding vocal harmonies that no other band does quite the same way. The song was pieced together from bits and pieces of previous songs. Lindsey recycled a guitar lick from “Lola (My Love),” a track from the Buckingham Nicks album, and the iconic bass/drums break mid-way through the song was written by John McVie and Mick Fleetwood for Christine McVie-penned, never-released song called “Keep Me There,” that also provided the chord progression throughout. Stevie supplied the original lyrics that were reworked by she and Christine to the dark, yet powerful motifs that showed how out of the tumult and heartbreak came music that was so transcendent and universal that it acted as a chain that would keep them together.

“The Chain” really shows off all the band members doing what they do best. Lindsey’s guitar work, both in the dark, twangy intro, and during the blistering, incendiary solo is at its best. Christine provides a haunting, layered organ backdrop that builds to a simmering counterpoint during the final third of the song. Mick and John anchor the song with their impeccable rhythm section, with John’s iconic bass line providing perhaps the most memorable moment in the song, and Fleetwood’s powerful and intelligent drumming perfectly matching each of the song’s segments. And the vocals. Each vocalist brings their all, with their unique flavors. Lindsey and Stevie’s voices, so similar in some ways, entwine like vines, while Christine’s soaring harmonies add an ethereal quality that sends shivers up the spine.

Not my favorite Mac song, by any means, but I’m so glad it made the Top 25, as an important and emblematic moment in Fleetwood Mac history.

#23 – Honey Hi (McVie, C.) Tusk (1979)

This gem of a Christine McVie song seems just to have just been slipped onto Tusk without anyone noticing. In some ways it feels more like a snippet of a song, rather than an entire, finished song. It’s pretty short and almost feels like a jam session around a fire on the beach. It’s a got a super thrown together vibe, in the best way, although I’m sure it was very tightly produced.

From the get go, “Honey Hi” intrigues me, the way it fades in, like “Over My Head.: You don’t get too many fade ins, as I said before, it’s almost like you’re walking down the beach and you hear this music in the distance and you come up on a ragtag bunch of musicians just strumming along. It’s another song driven by Christine’s tuneful electric piano, something that always appeals to me, and I love the way Lindsey’s acoustic guitar weaves in and out, sometimes acting like a rhythm instrument, other times adding little flourishes to augment the simple melody. Mick’s percussion really adds so much texture and mood to the song. Bongos, rhythm sticks, a little tambourine, and occasional bell… so subtle and beautiful. Then there are the exquisite vocals. First, Christine’s amazing voice is perfect on this song, so pure and on point. And the when the three of them join their voice in superb harmony, you just can’t beat it. Christine, Stevie and Lindsey have such distinct voices, but the way they blend is nothing short of magical

The lyrics are pretty simple too. She’s traveling, probably on tour, and she’s reaching out to her partner who’s at home, telling him how much she misses and loves him. Simple, beautiful sentiment. I’ve included three videos for this song (overkill, I know). The first is the straightforward song. The second is likely an early demo of just Christine on the piano and singing, with some percussion. You get to really hear the great piano part. The final is a version of the recorded song with Christine’s piano and the harmonies taken out, so you can really listen to the gorgeous guitar licks from Lindsey, and you can really listen to how lovely Christine’s voice is.

#22 – Rhiannon (Nicks) Fleetwood Mac (1975)

If ever there was a song that really put Fleetwood Mac (and Stevie Nicks, for that matter) it was “Rhiannon,” Nicks’ song about a Welsh Witch, despite only climbing to #11 on the U.S. Billboard charts. For fans of the band who have seen them in concert, the band’s blistering performance of “Rhiannon” is one of the live show’s centerpieces, where as the song builds to a climax, the intensity of which is not found on the recording, it feels like the vocalist is exorcising an dark spirit. As a pre-teen, like many young people, I was enchanted by Nicks, and especially this song. I’m sure it was my favorite song on the album when I first heard it. Stevie’s mysterious and flamboyant presence was surely compelling.

“Rhiannon” was written before Nicks joined Fleetwood Mac, in the Buckingham Nicks days, but it was never recorded until the 1975 Fleetwood Mac album. Nicks was inspired to write the song after reading a novel in the early 70’s about a woman named Rhiannon who takes possession of another woman named Branwen. After she wrote the song, she did some research into the Welsh mythology and was so taken by it, she began to work on an extensive project about the character that was never completed. Another of Nicks’ Fleetwood Mac songs, which appears higher on this list is from that project.

This is a perfect example of how Fleetwood Mac, as a band, really enhances their members’ contributions. The production on the studio version of this song is impeccable, and the musicianship that each member brings to it is just perfect for the finished product. Once again, you just cant beat Fleetwood and McVie’s rhythm section. The drums pulse with a tribal rhythm like a heartbeat, with a rolling bass line to as a counterpoint. Christine’s bell-like electric piano drifts throughout the song like a bird in flight, catching your attention then wheeling away. Lindsey’s guitar makes for the songs most recognizable riff, and while he provides an explosive solo at the end of the live version, the restraint he exhibits on the recording serves the song beautifully. I truly swoon over the way the guitar and piano parts weave around each other creating a mystical aural tapestry. And finally, with no surprise at all, the three contribute gorgeous vocals to augment Stevie’s riveting and haunting performance. “Rhiannon” also features the first of Stevie’s now famous “fade-out” lines, where she introduces new lyrics as the song fades away.

I’ve included the studio version below, as well as the live version from The Dance that includes a gorgeous introduction featuring Christine on the grand piano, a version that is more similar to how Stevie wrote the song to begin with, and a live version from the Mirage tour that really shows off Stevie’s intense performance.

#21 – Dreams (Nicks) Rumours (1977)

The fact that “Dreams” is Fleetwood Mac’s sole #1 single in the U.S. has always boggled my mind. While I enjoy the song, and when i really stop to listen to it, I think it’s one of their finest (just short of the Top 20, after all) recorded number. Chalk that up to Lindsey Buckingham’s masterful reworking of the original song contributed by Nicks, and the amazing production from the Rumours production. As reported in “Blender” magazine, Christine McVie described the song as having “just three chords and one note in the left hand” and “boring” when Nicks played a rough version on the piano. McVie changed her mind after Buckingham “fashioned three sections out of identical chords, making each section sound completely different. He created the impression that there’s a thread running through the whole thing. And there is a perfect example of how Fleetwood Mac is a better band when Lindsey Buckingham is a member.

Some of the things I love about the song are the way the verses are so sparse and open, really highlighting Stevie’s vocal performance, which is lovely. There’s the steady heartbeat of the drums and bass, while Christine’s electric piano provides the structure, and Lindsey’s fluid electric guitar provides the color. It’s a pretty standard formula for Fleetwood Mac, particularly the Nicks-penned number, but it clearly works. Then the chorus hits and bongo drums, an airy organ lick, and an acoustic guitar suddenly fill out the sound providing a lush background to the once again stellar three-part harmonies of our amazing vocalists, their unique, distinctive voices blending to create a seamless tapestry that is at once unified and disparate.

Lyrically, “Dreams” can be paired with Buckingham’s “Go Your Own Way,” (which will be making an appearance further up on this list) to show the slow unraveling of their relationship. “Now here you go again, you say you want your freedom. Well who am I to keep you down.” She accepting that things are over, but also providing a cautionary tale that it’s not going to make him happy, “But listen carefully to the sounds, of your loneliness, like a heartbeat drives you mad in the stillness of remembering what you had and what you lost.” It’s really a beautifully poetic summation of Stevie’s point of view around the collapse of their relationship.