Then Play On, and it is my favorite album of all-time and I want to be buried with it!

PS, Mick Fleetwood needs to have the remainder of the BBC recordings re-mastered and release them. What happened to all of Dinky Dawson's live recordings too? I'm sure he has a ton.

First post on the Ledge for me. This thread seems like a great place to start for a longtime lurker - and fan of all FM eras - who thinks the pre-1975 Mac is criminally underrated.

My favourite pre-75 album is definitely Future Games. It has such a wonderful atmosphere and some sublime songwriting. It may not be the best album from the period, but it's the one that has always meant the most to me.

Then Play On, Bare Trees and Heroes would all be a close second place. In fact almost all of them could be really. (Though a special mention goes to Bare Trees for having the greatest cover artwork in my opinion.)

Actually, reading some of the other posts in this thread just goes to show just how great (and consistently great) FM were in this period. There are so many different replies and almost every album is someone's favourite. It still amazes me that many commentators simply brush over pre-1975 FM (or at least the 1970-74 period) as if it's not worth bothering about.

Why the slight dig to Mick Fleetwood, as to infer that he was disingenuous and just a money grabber? ( a common mindset among some ledgies) Your comment sounds slightly spiteful. :shrug: However, I do respect you for expressing your opinion.

When Bob Welch left, the band was in a very precarious position. Mick had no foresight as to how successful they were going to be when he hired Lindsey and Stevie; there was no guarantee. But thankfully he soldiered on, keeping the band alive despite the odds. The Blues era was long over. The band had to evolve to stay relevant in the current market, and fortunately, with Mick's instincts, he found the right people at the right time.

Regarding money --if you were in a position where you had opportunity to make a fortune, would you not take it? The artistry and integrity of the music was not comprised by (or for) their commercial success. Musicians aren't just in it for the money, but they have to make a living just like everyone else. It's cool that Mick has been able to revive and relive his blues roots in his adjunct band with Rick Vito, a great blues influenced guitarist.

Welcome to the Ledge, Earl Gray (great name!).

I feel exactly the same. I thing that "middle child" period of musical riches gets severely overlooked. Reasons for it might be because their initial blues era is well defined, as is their Rumours era. Their transitional era was less defined, with a ever changing roster of musicians and musical styles. Yet, that's exactly why I love those albums; for the varying styles. I'm sure fans of the band during that time were very confused, never knowing what they were going to get.

Good for you, PH. Why some ex and present FM members are freely derided as scoundrels and others are unquestionably lauded as saints by some ledgies, most of whom don't know them personally, puzzles me.

Well, it's a fan site and fan is short for fanatic, and fanatics are the most motivated? Works in politics and among music lovers (haters?). I tend to be an extreme omnivore and get crossed up with the more 'pure' fans, so I'm ultimately in for everything and not just a narrow part of something.

Unfortunately because there is so much wonderful variety with this group/name I find it harder to compete one part off against other parts! I value Kiln House, and Future Games, and Bare Trees, and Penguin, and all of it... the later collections of BBC and Chess studios and radio station sets... okay, I could live without the For Your Love and Roadrunner covers (album filler), but that's about it. I would say they just don't really bring anything much to those two particular numbers.

Future games and Bare Trees do have a sort of early '70s 'concept' feel to them for me that makes them more 'albums' than collections of tracks. The whole hangs together nicely.