Going their own way

By CHRISTINA VANCE, Californian staff writer

Bakersfield loves Fleetwood Mac now, and they would probably love them again.

The popular '70s rock band played Centennial Garden Wednesday night to an enthused crowd.

The band's set began with a pounding rendition of "The Chain."

The audience climbed to its feet and cheered as a single blue spotlight shone on Mick Fleetwood behind the drums. He was wearing a vest, a bandanna and the grin of a slightly deranged grandpa.

The band's current lineup also included Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks and John McVie. Singer Christine McVie opted not to join this tour.

But all the other band members tackled both old and new songs with gusto. In her signature black dress, ribbons and tambourine, Nicks threw out her nasal trademark vocals for "Dreams" on the band's second number.

Early in the show, Buckingham thanked the audience for coming out and acknowledged the band's rocky history.

"It's been a difficult and always a strange trip, but the point is, here we are," he said.

For many of the fans, there was no breaking the chain of their love for the band.

That goes for the DNA chains as well.

"She made me a fan," Stephen Provencio, 26, said with a smile and nod at his mother next to him.

Bernice Provencio said she has been a fan of the band since the '70s. She's into music from the 1950s to the present, and her son likes Bjork and Tori Amos.

But Wednesday marked the first Fleetwood Mac concert for them both, and they said it was a long time coming.

Elsewhere in the crowd, Michelle Hineman said the concert was just one of many. It was a first for her daughter.

Hineman shared Provencio's longtime fandom of the band, getting hooked on the group at 9 years when her big brother played Fleetwood Mac records.

She saw her first Fleetwood Mac concert at age 17 in Fresno. Then she passed the bug onto her 14-year-old daughter, Candice Garrett.

"I brought her into the world, and she was raised on it," Hineman said.

Mother and daughter wanted to hear different songs on Wednesday, but both agreed that Buckingham was "hot."

Fleetwood Mac went on a 40-date summer tour across the country. The shows' popularity prompted the band to add more stops, including the one in Bakersfield.