Neil Finn on Fleetwood Mac internal politics

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by UnwindedDreams

However, Lindsey was ranked higher than Mike Campbell and Joe Walsh on RollingStone’s greatest guitarist lists.

You mean the list that ranked Joan Jett higher than either Lindsey Buckingham or Mike Campbell? The list that has Eric Clapton behind Jack White? The list that has Joni Mitchell at #9? That list? That’s the hill you’re willing to die on? THAT list? LOL!

[UnwindedDreams]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

You mean the list that ranked Joan Jett higher than either Lindsey Buckingham or Mike Campbell? The list that has Eric Clapton behind Jack White? The list that has Joni Mitchell at #9? That list? That’s the hill you’re willing to die on? THAT list? LOL!

SteveMacD as pacific as ever
I know too bad Rick Vito and Ted Nugent didn’t make the list!
Joni is a perfect guitarist!

[justcrazylove]

Originally Posted by UnwindedDreams

There will always be those who feel and believe that Lindsey was the worst addition to FM because he didn’t play instruments well, he had a vision for Tusk that had songs where the songs are solo (though The Ledge to me sounds like Stevie is singing high vocals but I don’t claim to know if it’s her), that he would not play songs from the FM catalogue that he didn’t have a hand in (other than Oh Well for Unleashed). However, Lindsey was ranked higher than Mike Campbell and Joe Walsh on RollingStone’s greatest guitarist lists. With Lindsey in the lineup, they brought back songs like Sara, Silver Springs, Not That Funny, Eyes of the World, Beautiful Child, I Know I’m Not Wrong, Storms, Sisters of The Moon, Say You Love Me ‘09, Bleed To Love Her, and Seven Wonders, Without You and not to mention SYW songs and Sad Angel. I wish there were more 75-2013 gems added in the tours from 97-2017. I was not a fan of Lindsey before his firing in 2018, but unless something comes out that he told Stevie she had a huge belly or that she can’t sing anymore, or recent physical abuse in the 2000s and not violence from a 1980 concert or 1987 meeting for which he never went to prison for…I think Lindsey will be remembered for being the person who was right. Fleetwood Mac did a final arena and stadium tour, which would have been the same arenas and stadiums had it been with Lindsey but not with the original band.

And Neil is not saying he wishes he could make music with Mick, John, Stevie, and Mike… he’s saying he wants to meet Lindsey - that guitar player who can’t play, sing, or write music.

What the actual...??

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by justcrazylove

What the actual...??

(That was a dig at me and a misrepresentation of my opinions about Lindsey.)

[UnwindedDreams]

Christine's final interview comments:
"I'd always want Lindsey back," she said. "He's the best. Neil [Finn] and Mike [Campbell] were such a cheerful couple, but Lindsey was missed."


If Mick, John, and Stevie hated Lindsey well before 2018, I suppose they couldn't fire him because Mike Campbell was in The Heartbreakers. Or the Me Too Movement didn't exist.

[jbrownsjr]

Lindsey's playing and artistry has a lot of character and some very fast soloing skills. He stood out in a very quirky band. At one time he had great vision and arranging skills with Ken and Richard. He was an absolute gem for this band. Those visions and guitar riffs were limited, in my opinion. As time went on, his motif's kept showing up everywhere. (or, playing Trouble or NGBA at slow speed).. uhhh..

And that's not a bad thing, I just don't see the "visionary out there" stuff like he does. I think of David Bowie or Prince when I think in those "rock visionary terms".

It just shows how good the core was to play to with all different styles and characters. And.... allow them sound amazing. Green, Spencer, Kirwin, Welch, Buck, Vito, etc. You have to be pretty flexible to handle all that for 50 years!

I feel like FM was a lot farther in talent and musicianship than B/N. The lift in success was mutual. Two women, 3 writers, 3 singers, great harmony, sex appeal, the 70;s, explosive live shows, and rumours. (The album and the drama.)

Lightning strikes, maybe once. maybe twice.

[jbrownsjr]

Imagine Christine McVie telling Lindsey he needed to sound like Bob Welch?

[Villavic]

Originally Posted by jbrownsjr

Imagine Christine McVie telling Lindsey he needed to sound like Bob Welch?

Even though Lindsey was not in 1974 what Neil was in 2018, I can already imagine the face Lindsey would have made.

[jbrownsjr]

Originally Posted by Villavic

Even though Lindsey was not in 1974 what Neil was in 2018, I can already imagine the face Lindsey would have made.

Imagine when Lindsey joined in 1975, Christine saying "We need you to play as if you were Bob."

He didn't even like playing the old hits, let alone sounding and mimicking Bob.
That's such an insulting thing to say to an artist. That truly would be karaoke.

[anusha]

I actually enjoyed hearing what Neil had to say about his time in Fleetwood Mac. I’ve been a huge Neil/Crowded House fan for decades, but I could not bring myself to see that tour. I’m sure that Neil was paid well for his efforts with him, and probably more than he would earn on any of his own tours these days. Not to mention, it was a chance to play areas that he might’ve never gotten to play on his own and tour in a super luxurious way. And maybe even if you got 5% of the audience who didn’t know him before to check out his music, that would also be a win for him.

I think we’ve been trying to read the leaves on the Lindsey firing and hiring of Mike and Neil came to be. I’m sure I’ve said this earlier, but I think that Stevie has probably always had some thought that her life would be easier if she didn’t have to deal with conflict with Lindsey in FM. I think there were enough changes in the industry and the world at large that helped around 2017–2018 And made it possible for her and her management to push Lindsey out. Before, then, as much as Lindsay annoyed her, she probably felt he was necessary for the tours to be financially successful, because FM lean on the Stevie Lindsey dynamic to sell tickets since The Dance.

But, in the late 2010s, you saw other bands be able to go on the road with replacement members after core members died or left, especially the Eagles with Vince Gill. And they still did a ton of business. Then you had Lindsey pissing off Irving Azoff and Stevie by calling The Classic shows a cash grab. It was the truth, but it’s the part that most people don’t say out loud. Also, Stevie was getting a big profile with younger artists like Harry Styles and HAIM, and Working on American horror story. So her level of audience compared to the band as a whole was growing. Then you add to that a lot of the me too revisiting of bad male behavior in the past — And Lindsey has had some bad episodes in terms of treatment of women. I think the fact that you have someone like Vanessa Carlton tweeting about Lindsey in that context shows that it’s probably something that Stevie had in mind at the time that she pushed for Lindsey to be fired. I’m not saying Stevie did it to stand up for women or anything (After all, she knew about all this stuff for decades and continued to profit off of having him in the band), this was purely self interest, but a lot of people who do self interest in things like to wrap it in a cloak of self-righteousness. And I’m sure Stevie did that because she realized that kicking out somebody that she’s known since she was a teenager and he was a big part of her success, that’s a lot to ask an audience to tolerate when you’ve spent the better part of five decades talking about the everlasting connection between the members of the band. But I don’t think she regrets it to this day because ultimately she didn’t need Lindsey anymore and she doesn’t need him now to tour and make money and be adored. She only regrets that there was a blip in time where people called her out for firing him. But even that is long gone For the general public.

I’m only sad for Mick, John, and Chris, because their final tour as FM was overshadowed by the Stevie Lindsey drama again. But even they took it to the bank, so I don’t feel that bad. Everyone here made their choices.

[jbrownsjr]

Originally Posted by anusha

I’m only sad for Mick, John, and Chris, because their final tour as FM was overshadowed by the Stevie Lindsey drama again. But even they took it to the bank, so I don’t feel that bad. Everyone here made their choices.

Christine was sooooo tired of it. (John, too.) She was more than eager to tour BuckVie, make music. But, getting involved in that drama again at her age (and her condition). Hell no. She deserved every penny!

[Villavic]

Originally Posted by jbrownsjr

Christine was sooooo tired of it. (John, too.) She was more than eager to tour BuckVie, make music. But, getting involved in that drama again at her age (and her condition). Hell no. She deserved every penny!

If she was that tired, she should have refused to go on the tour. That's why at first I was actually upset with the whole band when Lindsey was fire. And when I read she said she accepted to do the tour because she was buying a house, I got more upset.

I would have preferred OWTS tour to be the swan song instead of the 2018 tour without Lindsey.

[jbrownsjr]

Originally Posted by Villavic

If she was that tired, she should have refused to go on the tour. That's why at first I was actually upset with the whole band when Lindsey was fire. And when I read she said she accepted to do the tour because she was buying a house, I got more upset.

I would have preferred OWTS tour to be the swan song instead of the 2018 tour without Lindsey.

You missed the point completely. She was tired of those two's drama. I can't imagine why.

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by jbrownsjr

You missed the point completely. She was tired of those two's drama. I can't imagine why.

She still should have stood up for the legacy of the band. ESPECIALLY after just coming off of BuckVie.

[BigAl84]

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

She still should have stood up for the legacy of the band. ESPECIALLY after just coming off of BuckVie.

Yeah, that's still a hard pill to swallow all this time later. She and Lindsey could have made a second album in the year she spent on the road schleppin' the hits!