The Nicks Fix - Fleetwood Mac Fan Reviews

Say You Will FAN REVIEWS

11/26/03 NEC Arena Birmingham, England

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Natalie Pugh
Before I tell you the review I would like to share with you my personal thoughts about the day: This was my first ever Fleetwood Mac gig. I had been waiting since 1989 when I was 13 years old. That was when I first heard Stevie on the radio & this is what I think makes Stevie so special, I can remember where I was & what I was doing when I first heard her. I am a fan of many other artists but can not remember where I was when I first heard any of them. As I say I was 13 & I was in my bedroom . Anyway, a song came on the radio & I was so struck by the voice that I stopped what I was doing to listen properly to the rest of it & find out who it was. That song was Rooms On Fire by Miss Stevie Nicks. From then on I was hooked. My first album was therefore a vinyl copy The Other Side Of the Mirror & from then on I had to aquire anything Stevie had done. It was later on that I found out she had been in Fleetwood Mac, which my family had played when I was younger.It was then that I also discovered Lindsey. I had always loved guitars so he then became my guitar playing idol! Ever since that day I had waited to see them.

26th November 2003, Birmingham NEC: I had a 4th row seat but at 8pm the stewards let us go to the front. There I was standing right in front of Stevie's microphone. I had to pinch myself. The lights then went down....I cannot put into words how I felt right then. Mick arrives, John arrives & then after what seemed like forever, on came my hero & heroine, hand in hand. I can remember putting both hands over my face in disbelief at what I was seeing. For the first few songs it was like I wasn't really there. Stevie smiled & winked at me during Peacekeeper, a moment that will stay with me forever. It wasn't really until Gypsy that it really sunk in as I love that song & I started to well up! Then in Go Your Own Way Lindsey came right in front of us & I played his guitar..... I had got a smile from my heroine & plucked the strings on the guitar of my hero.......... After 13 years of waiting it had been well worth the wait, it was perfect in every way & as I commented to my friends later....that was the best night of my entire life & always will be, the first time I saw Fleetwood Mac.

The Concert Review. We had arrived at the venue early as my mum who is a cake maker & decorator had made a cake for Fleetwood Mac & wanted to drop it off to be passed onto them. It was fantastic, she had made all Fleetwood Macs albums (Stevie & Lindsey era) out of icing, including Stevie's Enchanted box set & Lindsey's Out Of The Cradle. We dropped it off at the stage door, I only hope the band got to see it. It was at the stage door that I met my friends from Fireflies UK (& if wasn't for them we probably would never have found the stage door!) We waited to see if we could catch a glimpse of any of the band. We were in luck as first to arrive was Mick & being an absolute star he came straight over to us & signed autographs. Most of us got our tickets signed by him. He was an absolute gentleman! We then wished we had hung onto the cake as we could have given it directly to him!

The concert itself. Fleetwood Mac were awesome. I had read the reviews of previous shows but nothing could prepare me for how fantastic they were. Every single song was fantastic. The main ones for me were:

The Chain. Rocked & I went straight into my air guitar routine!

Eyes Of The World. This song absolutely rocks live, fantastic!

Say You Will. Everyone at the front was copying Stevie's dance in this & she looked like she was loving it!

Gypsy, Big Love & Landslide. These are my three favourites & they played them in succession. Brilliant.

Come & I'm So Afraid. Now I always knew Lindsey was a great guitarist, but he absolutely blew me away in these songs. At one point I was just staring open mouthed in amazement as to how fantastic he was.

Stand Back. Now this was the one I was really looking forward to, being a huge fan of Stevie's solo music. It was fantastic live. Stevie looked like she was enjoying herself throughout the whole evening, but particularly looked like she loved doing this one.

World Turning. Rocked! Mick & his drum solo, brilliant!

The rest of the songs were superb to but if I was to comment on all of them I would be here all day. All I can say is I am still on a high from the concert. Fleetwood Mac did not disappoint. They were absolutely fantastic. I am going to see them at Manchester on the 3rd December & Earls Court on the 10th, but after seeing them at Birmingham, I only wish I was going to more concerts, they are worth every penny (or cent!)

Dave Jacobs
Dear all, Just thought I'd put in my two pence worth: I'm still on a high from last nights show, it was awesome! It was a first for me to see the band live, as it's not often they grace these UK shores. The sound was excellent for the venue considering how notoriously bad the NEC can be for acoustics. From the outset, the whole band seemed really fired up and the response from the audience was amazing. It was also Johns birthday, which Mick made a big point of after his drum solo! Stevie and Lindsey had the audience captivated - and the empathy between them was unreal! Stevie seemed really at home, and as usual her personality really filled the place. Mr B was also on top form, and was like a man possessed at times, thrashing his guitar and really giving it some. Stevies voice was perfectly beautiful as usual, and Landslide was delivered brilliantly. All the old stuff seemed to have a new and fresh lease of life, it has evolved. Gold Dust Woman was jaw dropping, the dynamics were phenomenal. Stevies voice on Rhiannon (which she sings lower than the record) was gravely and evocative. On one of the new tracks they not only have a percussionist, but a second drummer. I noticed that because he was sat behind Mick, they took off his gong so you could see him behind doing complimentary drumming to Micks. They also did a few songs I wasn't expecting which (without Mrs McVie), were brilliant and different. 2nd hand news and Silver Springs were surprises for me, and I wasn't disappointed. My only disappointment (which was minor) was that they didn't do Bleed to love her, which is one of my all time favourite songs. Nobody wanted it to end, it was so good - and the band obliged with an encore that had everyone screaming for more. People reluctantly left because of the traffic problems and icy windscreens - but everyone who ventured out was stunned. What a fantastic concert, I sure hope they come to the UK again - as it was something that would other bands to shame! Absolutely fabulous! It's a real shame they didn't film it, because it makes The Dance live vid look like a rehearsal in comparison! All the best.

more reviews coming......

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