Song of the Day - Dreams - Deep Dish/Stevie Nicks/Fleetwood Mac

Me, Eddie and Dita in Nashville last year

Today's song comes as a special request and I am only too happy to oblige.  For reasons which I'll explain later on John's World, I've had a very special house guest over the weekend.  I like to say that Eddie is our fourth, though history-wise, he'll argue that he is our second.  Most of you know a lot about my two besties Dita and Blanche from many of my posts on here.  Well, Eddie, or Rose, would be mentioned much more here as well if he lived in New York, but alas he lives about 1,300 miles away in Florida, so it's only about once or twice a year that any of us get to see him.

Out of the four of us,, Eddie and I are the two music men of the group.  That is, we're the two for whom music is a really big part of our lives, and we've shared many a conversation on the best of the newest music to come out at any given time.  As Madonna is my muse, Stevie Nicks is Eddie's.  For as long as I know him, Eddie has always been THE Stevie Nicks aficionado, able to share the latest news and goings on in her world.  As people think of me when they hear anything Madonna, so it is with Eddie and Stevie.  

Upon going to bed last night, I had mentioned getting up early to post my Song of the Day, Eddie requested that I post something Stevie Nicks or Fleetwood Mac.  Now I am a fan of both, but I mentioned aloud that I'd been doing this Summer Jams theme on John's Music World, and I wasn't sure if any of their tunes would fit the theme, but then I thought of this one.  The Deep Dish version of Mac's classic Dreams is a great interpretation of the original and a dance floor classic into and of itself, and thus today's choice.  If you don't know it, click play and check it out.  It works really well! And as for Eddie, enjoy my friend...     

Fleetwood Mac: Together Again and On Top of Their Game

It wasn't a concert I was overly enthusiastic about going to, but I'm so glad I went.  For virtually anyone around my age, the songs of Fleetwood Mac were an indelible part of growing up.  Songs like Rhiannon, Go Your Own Way, Don't Stop, and so many more are permanently tucked away inside the furthest reaches of my brain, bringing forth fond memories of younger days.  So even though I was never a huge fan of the band, I always have been a fan, and when my friend Eric asked me to join him at Nassau Coliseum for what turned out to be a night of celebration, I was only too glad to join in.

Fleetwood Mac, in its present, reunited incarnation, first came together in 1974 and almost immediately they became a success with their first eponymous album, which produced the hits Say You Love Me and Rhiannon.  The road since then has been a tumultuous one, with lineup changes, departures and feuds, solo successes and such, but today the five-some of Stevie Nicks, Christie McVie, Lindsay Buckingham, John McVie and Mick Fleetwood have reunited once again for their On With the Show Tour, celebrating the return of Christie and a celebration of their 40-plus years together.

The evening was a beautiful thing to witness, a three-hour set of performances of all their great hits over the years and then some.  The band members were talkative and playful with the audience, and they really seemed to be enjoying their time together on stage, which made for a most enjoyable night. Buckingham was the most lively of the bunch, reminiscing fondly about how grateful he was for the all the days of Fleetwood Mac, and his enthusiasm showed in his performance, especially on the tune Big Love.    

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For virtually every song the band was spot on, from the comfortably cozy Dreams to the funky, head-bopping You Make Loving Fun to the uplifting Go Your Own Way.  One highlight for me was Stevie Nicks' rendition of a song I'd never heard before called Gold Dust Woman, from the classic Rumours album.  Stevie was like a woman possessed as she crooned and moved her way through the dark, slow moving groove.  I tell you, it was one of my favorite moments of the show and I'll be downloading this one as soon as I'm done with this post.

All in all, Fleetwood Mac provided about 16,000 people with a pleasurable walk down memory lane, and I couldn't help but feel grateful for having the opportunity to witness this great band back together again and on top of their game.  If you ever get the chance to catch them, definitely do so, and to whet your appetite, here's the setlist:

The Chain

You Make Loving Fun

Dreams 

Second Hand News

Rhiannon

Everywhere

I Know I'm Not Wrong

Tusk

Sisters of the Moon

Say You Love Me

Seven Wonders

Big Love

Landslide

Never Going Back Again 

Over My Head

Gypsy

Little Lies

Gold Dust Woman

I'm So Afraid

Go Your Own Way

(Encores)

World Turning

Don't Stop

Silver Springs

Songbird

And here's a clip of Gold Dust Woman from Atlanta, GA:

  

Song of the Day - Landslide - Fleetwood Mac

I took my love and I took it down

I climbed a mountain and I turned around

And I saw my reflection in the snow-covered hills

Till the landslide brought me down

Oh mirror in the sky, what is love?

Can the child within my heart rise above?

Can I sail through the changing ocean tides?

Can I handle the seasons of my life?

Better late than never, ay?  Today's Song of the Day is very late, due to unforseen circumstances and partially because of Fleetwood Mac themselves, but I couldn't miss a day.  Besides, this is a very special song, not only because it is beautifully written, but because it takes me to a point in my life, just like Stevie when she wrote it, of a harsh realization that would change my life forever... 

Well I've been afraid of changing

Cause I've built my life around you

But time makes you bolder

Children get older

And I'm getting older, too

I take my love, and I take it down

I climb a mountain and I turn around

And if you see my reflection in a snow-covered hill

Will the landslide bring you down?

Song of the Day - Rhiannon - Fleetwood Mac

Tonight I will be heading to the Nassau Coliseum with my friend Eric to see none other than Fleetwood Mac.  Though I've seen Stevie Nicks in concert before, I am sure this one's going to be an entirely different kind of show and I am really looking forward to it.  Here's one of my favorite songs of theirs, and one of their biggest hits, in a video that I hope to be some sort of preview of what I'll be seeing this evening.  Stay tuned...