The Nicks Fix - Fleetwood Mac Fan Reviews

Say You Will FAN REVIEWS

9/12/04 Tweeter Center Camden, NJ

Newest reviews posted at the top.

Jackie Turner
I took my 13 year old, Megan, to her very first concert ever and there's no better one in the whole world to initiate a young girl to her first concert experience than the Mac themselves. What a truly magical night it was....Stevie looked more beautiful than I've ever seen her and Lindsey...well he's just straight out of GQ magazine....how handsome can a guy get??? He's totally on fire with that guitar...and I know it's been said a gazillion times but he and Stevie just make the perfect couple.....nothing against Kirsten but I really do wish they'd wake up and realize how much in love they still are...it's so obvious. I've been a fan since I was 12 and am now 40 and that wish will never go away. The show was stunning and during Sara I called my Dad so he could hear it. My Dad's the the Chemistry Professor from the Fan Club show and I'm the daughter and so obviously the shows and music mean so much to us....as it was this music that made my Dad and I find our way back to each other and we are eternally greatful for that. I don't think there was a dry eye in the place during Say Goodbye and Stand Back rocked the house down....I had to take my Stevie boots off for that one!!! I was also fortunate enough to meet up with a god friend of mine and my Dad's from Virginia Beach, Jeannie, and it was so great to see her too and all of her friends....going to a Fleetwood Mac show is truly like a family reunion....there's no voilence -- just love....what magic.....thank you Fleetwood Mac for making my daughter's first experience a memorable and very special one....we love you forever.....please get back in the studio soon.....=)

Lisa Cramer
I was lucky enough to experience my 4th and last "Say You Will" concert from the front left of the stage...and how sweet it was, indeed. I enjoyed taking in the expressions on the various band members' faces, watching Stevie periodically wander over to the side of the stage where she spoke and even danced with her neice, Jesse. I was also one of many Mac fanatics who strummed Lindsey's guitar during "So Afraid". While he made lots of eye contact with the fans, Stevie seemed to stare straight ahead basking herself in the music, her lyrics, and her vocal expression. John barely looked up, while Mick relished in the delight of the crowd's energy, egging us on with wild man faces. I couldn't see the songbirds, Jana and Sharon from where I was standing but they didn't miss a beat. Taku was giving it his rhythmic all...seemingly enjoying every shake, tap, and hammer. The beads of sweat literally dripped from Lindsey's face as he wiped his brow with a towel then threw it into the crowd. Stevie spun around 10 times during "Stand Back" and even slipped in one of those oh so famous Stevie kicks at the end. This band was on fire! There was so much detail I could take in from my view...and I savored every last moment. They enchanted us, they rocked us, delighted us, and cast their magic spell on us...they even brought some of us to the point of tears. Only us true Mac fans can lose themselves in the poetic justice, musical drama, love, and magic that surrounds a Fleetwood Mac performance...and I am one of those truly lucky people. Thank you, Fleetwood Mac, for everything...and them some. We truly love you guys - your musical presence has certainly left its mark.

Lisa H.
Finally! My friend and I had front row tickets for the September 12 show in Camden, NJ. When the show was cancelled in June, we wondered if it would ever come to fruition, and our patience was definitely rewarded! The band allowed the first five rows to stand at the stage and also allowed cameras! It was a wonderful show, as expected, and Stevie and Lindsey were both in amazing form. Lindsey is the biggest ham and a true entertainer. He held my hand once, and I got to touch his guitar. "Sara" was the highlight for me for this show. Stevie put her hair up in a twist, donned her platform boots, and wore the most lovely red silk Chinese shawl. Uncompromisingly beautiful was the duet on Lindsey’s "Say Goodbye." Lindsey introduced the song and said that he wrote it for Stevie. It gave me goose bumps. My only disappointment was that Stevie did not use the stage. She stayed at her microphone stand, and made no attempt to reach out to the fans who waited so long for a touch of her hand. That’s alright. There’s always a next time, and I look forward to a solo tour. Thanks, Stevie and Fleetwood Mac, for coming back to Philadelphia on this tour. I had the best time! "All I ever wanted was to know that you were dreaming..."

Michele
‘It’s been too many years . . . or maybe it hasn’t been enough’. So said Lindsey Buckingham as he gazed at Stevie and struggled to find the right words to introduce "Say Goodbye." I feel the same way about Fleetwood Mac. It seems like forever and yesterday all at once. How can you ever get enough of something that always makes you feel like the first time? So, the penultimate show of the Say You Will tour has come and gone. Before the concert commenced, there was a Peter Pan-esque girl sitting on the end of the stage chatting cheerfully with the fans standing on the floor. I wondered if she could be Molly or Jessie, one of the kids singing on the SYW single and featured on the Destiny Rules video. Later, from Stevie's "Landslide intro," I gather (though I don't know) that it was Jessie, Stevie’s niece. Her hair is different from the way it looked in Destiny Rules. It was short, dark, with blond spiky streaks. Another guest star was on stage before the show. Stevie's little doggie! It was carried by one of the assistants and got lots of kisses and hugs from the people drifting across the stage, touring the set and preparing it. As the "Chain" started and the lights were still off, I was grateful for once that Lindsey had on that all-too-familiar white shirt. It made it easy to see him in the shadows. Sitting there for an hour before the show begins is NOTHING like the wait seconds before the light comes up. They walk onto the stage and you see those famous silhouettes. You want the show to start right then and there, the seconds are interminable. The way the heart beats in anticipation is similar to the pounding of John's opening bass. The show was terrific. Everyone was in good voice and great spirit. I wait to see if Stevie is going to say "Welcome New Jersey" or what, but she just says "welcome everybody." Stevie turned to Lindsey at the end of "Dreams" as usual, he voiced the words with her nodding his head and making animated mouth motions, away from his mic "women they will come and they will go" She ended "Dreams" with a double: know-knowwwww. Several song finales seemed to go on longer than usual, for instance the endings to "I Know I’m Not Wrong," "Say Goodbye" and even "World Turning" after the drum solo. So, in a way the song seemed longer than usual. Although, I clocked it and it was about 2:38 hours. For the "Peacekeeper" intro, Lindsey's speaking voice sounded a bit hoarse and husky when he said that this has been a long, strange trip for them. But perhaps, he was just being sexy, because his singing voice was strong and vital. He talked about this being the end of the tour, but also still described "Peacekeeper" as a "new" song. Hey, Linds it'll be 2 years old soon. It’s much older than Stella! I thought "Rhiannon" was very strong. Stevie threw two "silly dreamers" in there. "Sara" was as beautiful as ever. Stevie turns round and round as she floats over to Lindsey's mic. It's a walking spin. The thing that’s so gripping about the video playing on the movie screen backdrop is that it capsulize the passage of time (and tumult) so well. Seeing the young band up there on the screen and in person, the two images so different yet eerily the same – Stevie singing the same words 25 years ago, an impish Lindsey scooting across the stage with his side burns and mascara, looking so different but exhibiting the same personality traits. The whole thing visually and succinctly expresses how much it means that they are still standing there together after all this time. Nothing could bring it home more. The song is both sad and exuberant (as when Stevie turns towards Mick and dances with her back to the audience, her arms raised over her head, with one end of her red shawl swinging in each hand), full of loss and triumph. Whoever thought to put the music together with the video like that deserves an award. For "Landslide," Stevie said that as most of us know, the last show of the tour is the day after tomorrow and that will be it for awhile (I'm glad she doesn't say anything that would suggest that it's the last FM show forever). She says that they have done about 135 since the tour started last year. She thanks us for supporting the band all these years. She explains that she always dedicates the song to someone and tonight she wants to dedicate it to her niece Jessie who she says she is definitely training to take her place. During the guitar interlude when Stevie moves behind Lindsey and places her hand on his shoulder, his finger seemed to slip or something. It seems like a note was missed or delayed. When they hold hands, she presses his to her cheek. When they set up for "Say Goodbye," Lindsey says that he gave a certain introduction to the song at the last show and he's not sure whether Stevie liked it or not [now I really wish I had been at the Borgata!] Stevie's back is to me and I can only see her hair. I can't see what she is saying to him. She is shaking her head and gesturing. I get the impression that she is indicating that he can do whatever intro he wants, because it's his song. She stretches out her arms to Lindsey who is looking at her, laughing, talking and pausing, "you didn't like it? [her head wags]. . . Well that's good. . ." Words seem to fail him. It's been too many years. . . Or it hasn't been ENOUGH years. I wrote this song for Stevie [lots of applause]. Everyone in the band had separated, but we were still working together and it was difficult to get closure. I wrote this song after I left the band in 1987, when I was finally able to find that peace and closure. It's called "Say Goodbye." Lots of applause. I think the tentative, intimate intro got people more interested in the tune than they otherwise would have been. The music starts, Lindsey tries to insert an extra word as he sings, here and there. At the end, he utters the last words in a broken, almost choked whisper. He stays at his mic looking at Stevie longer than usual at the close. I liked hearing the intro and am disappointed I wasn't in Atlantic City to hear THAT one, for comparison purposes. I’d love to have seen Stevie’s face and wonder what she did to make Lindsey think she wasn’t happy about the words he chose. As for Lindsey's performance of the song, as opposed to it’s intro, the delicate nuances he adds to it were appreciated. I found them touching in one sense and comical in another. In Stevie's place, if my mic was detachable I'd bop him on the head with it. The thing is, the song is not up to the ceremony. It's like taking the most luscious, creamy and decadent chocolate icing and slathering it onto a . . .carrot. Stevie introduces Beautiful Child by saying they recorded it in 1979 in Los Angeles. It took 13 months because it was a double album and she's been talking about the recording process during the tour. That 13 months was like a lifetime in and of itself. The album was called "Tusk" and Mick had these big ivory tusks on either sound of the soundboard. They called the soundboard Tusk and if the board went down, they said "Tusk" was down. She just thought we'd want to know this tidbit. She said that they were at the top of some beautiful African mountain and "Beautiful Child" is one of the tribal songs they created there. Mick's "World Turning" solo didn’t vary muchl. I don't hear anything new he's thrown in: "are you with me Taku . . . Say You Will, Say You Will . . . You're all alone in the middle of the night and you hear heavy breathing and you wish there was someone with you to share it. You feel like you're all alone in the world." Then he chants Lindsey's name and starts twirling his fingers round and round on his head with one hand, while pounding his stomach with the other. Business as usual. But it’s an outdoor venue, part of it is covered and the back is lawn. We hear the sound of propellers flying over head and Mick incorporates that into his paranoid, drum banter. "I think the helicopters are here to arrest us!" As Lindsey returns to the stage, he has developed a habit of throwing the towel he has been using while waiting in the wings out to the girls at the foot of the stage. For the "World Turning" introductions, Mick calls Brett golden-hand. He says that he and the other 3 band members seemed to be forever intertwined in the music they love making together. He says that Stevie is the lady of the band and John is always on his right hand, the backbone of the band. For "Tusk," after the vocals have ended, instead of jumping on John like he usually does, Lindsey just stands panting with his arm around him for awhile. He claps John on the back several times. THEN, he starts jumping. Unhooks the cord and swings it from his guitar. Goes over to Stevie, they raise their fists towards each other. He extends his arms and she encircles him. It seems their dance lasts a few turns more than usual. For GYOW, as Lindsey goes to the edge of the stage to interact with the audience, Stevie briefly serenades Jana and Sharon and then stands in front of Taku for an extended period of time, swirling her torso, hair flying in circles. He stands up with red maracas in hand, dancing in response to her. Taku and Stevie, having their own concert. At the end of "Don't Stop," Stevie stands in front of the drum kit facing right, arm extended into the air. Lindsey moves in back of her to rest his head on her shoulder. I imagine her hair must be soaking wet from his sweat -- but what a lovely way to ruin your coiffure! Stevie dedicates "Goodbye Baby" to someone whose name I didn’t know, but it sounded like "Chris Irison." She dedicates it "with all of our love," so it's someone the whole band knows. At the end of the show Stevie says thank you for coming. They will never forget tonight [which reminds me of a Chris song – it’s been 18 months and I still miss her]. Lindsey gives his thank you and points out that he knows some of the people in the audience have been to a bunch of shows. Mick says that this will be one of their last appearances for awhile and points out that they were supposed to be there earlier [the Camden show for June 3 having been cancelled] and didn't make it. He wants to thank everyone for coming. He says be good to yourselves and, more importantly, be good to each other. Then he moves over to where Stevie has been standing in the wings. His red hat matches her red shawl. They make quite a couple. After approaching her, he reverses and returns to the audience as if there is something he has forgotten: AND REMEMBER THE MAC IS BACK! Stevie raises her arm in salute. Well, that's all for everyone --except for the lucky folk in Michigan. Wish I could take the last train to Clarkston, because if the last show holds special meaning and emotion for the band, I know it would be special for me as well. But duty calls a Tuesday concert is out of the question. All I can do is ask the people who do attend to report back and tell us every last gesture and word spoken. Hearing the "Say Goodbye" introduction tonight, half familiar, half not, I realized that the smallest deviation tells so much, means so much. I guess that's what keeps me wanting more.

Andrea
I love this band! Sunday’s show was a long time in coming… FM was slated to play the Tweeter Center in early June, but the show was postponed. We anxiously waited several weeks before the rescheduled date was even announced, so I am hugely grateful that the band extended their tour so that we could see them after all. The concert was well worth the wait! Fleetwood Mac, band among bands, looked and sounded GREAT. They delivered a high energy show that showcased so many of their wonderful songs from past to present. I loved the performance of “Sara” which managed to blend past and present… Stevie was dressed in a costume and hairdo that resembled an early 1980s video of the same song, projected simultaneously on screens in the backdrop. As she spun, and the band played on, it felt like a dream, seeing FM then, seeing FM now, seeing them then, seeing them now… That was inspired. I’ve seen the SYW tour 3 times in the Philadelphia area – early on in the tour, smack-dab in the middle of the tour, and now just prior to the close of the tour. All shows were outstanding, and each unique in its own way. The band truly seemed to SAVOR the audience’s enthusiastic response to their musical performances. Stevie’s costumes were upgraded for this show, very nice. The Stevie/Lindsey harmonies are, as always, heavenly. The songs, what can I say about the songs? They have formed much of the soundtrack of my life since the late 1970s. It was delightful to hear them in person, to sing along without a care, to enjoy every second of a show featuring wall-to-wall music that transcends time… Speaking of harmonies, the live version of “Say Goodbye” is 100x better performed live than on the CD… Really terrific. Hat’s off to Fleetwood Mac for such a successful and entertaining tour. Here’s hoping that Stevie, Lindsey, John, and Mick enjoy some well earned R&R, but then head back into a recording studio SOON to write the next chapter of the Fleettwood Mac songbook. Bravo!!

Jennifer Tini
The Mac is back!!!! Well, the weekend that has just passed was another wonderful experience for me... I saw Fleetwood Mac for the fourth and fifth time on this tour and these were the two best shows yet. Atlantic City and Camden were two of their last shows... so sad to think it has to come to an end, yet I thank God for allowing me to be a part of it! The band once again was able to weave their web around the audience, leaving us all spellbound by what we had just experienced. Mick played us all so well when he came out for his solo towards the end; John stayed in the background but it was clearly evident how much he adds to this band; Lindsay was, is, and will always be one of the best guitar players, grabbing our attention every time; and Stevie, the timeless enchantress she remains, captured our hearts one last time. The most touching song that no one has heard live in a very long time, was "Sara." There was footage of her from the late 70's/early 80's when she sang this song, in her red cape and hair pinned up, playing in the background. So you were watching her then and now ~it was so amazing! No one knew the truth- did she look more beautiful then or now... I vote for now! "Timeless" is the only word I can use to describe her. Every other song had just the same impact, especially "Beautiful Child"...I couldn't wait to hear it again! The only disappointment of the night was not hearing her and Lindsay sing "Silver Springs." But, I must tell you, "Sara" made up for it as did "Say Goodbye." We will miss them traveling all around. They are welcome back to the East Coast anytime! Please, make it sooner rather than later!! God Bless always!

Chris
Amazing, that's all I can use to describe this show. there can be no better words that can be used to explain spending a night with these guys! Stevie had said that they are a few shows away from finishing a 135 shows, you could never have told that last night. Her voice was fantastic, her stage motion , outstanding, her seeming less enjoyment of being there was timeless! I know one fan that has seen 21 differant shows and last night seemed to cap them all with out a doubt. there are really no words that describe how every single time these guys play the fans are treated to something that lasts a lifetime. Stevie, thanks so much for all you have shared!

Maureen
Wow! What an awesome concert on Sunday night. It was a long wait. We bought our tickets on March and the show was postponed in June due to Stevie's illness. It was a blessing in disguise. The few weeks since the end of the tour gave Stevie's voice a break and she sounded wonderful----best ever out of 9 shows I've seen. Lindsey was incredible on the guitar as usual. He and the rest of the band seemed sad that the tour was coming to a close. He seemed very nostalgic and hugged and kissed Stevie a lot. Stevie looked beautiful. Her black lace gloves and scarf made her outfit. Sara was haunting and she put her up on top of her head to sing it. Goldust Woman and Standback were the standouts. John changed his hat from black leather to white. Mick was very entertaining. Only disappointment was no Gypsy and no Silverspring. Hopefully next time.

more reviews coming......

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