Jayne Dawson Talks Stevie and Christine

[michelej1]

Jayne Dawson: I heard a rumour that older women are still rocking


12:24Wednesday 08 July 2015 Yorkshire Evening Post

http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.u...king-1-7348055


In early 1977 I heard the legendary Rumours album by Fleetwood Mac, and I thought it was a bit meh.

You know, it was okay... but it wasn’t about to crack any pots. I thought.

It was a bit American, a bit soft rock for my tastes.

Funny then, that it went on to be one of the biggest, best-selling, most famous, utterly legendary albums of all time, But, hey, you can’t call them all right.


If it makes any difference, I’ve changed my mind. I really like Rumours now. Every song on it thrills me. I don’t know whether it’s because it evokes my lost youth or whether it’s because it’s brilliant. I don’t care, I just love it.

Partly I didn’t like Fleetwood Mac back then because of Stevie Nicks. it wasn’t just the sound of the songs, it was the look of her.

She was too floaty, too hippy, too dippy California girl for tough little me.

Plus, if I’m really telling it like it was, she didn’t look like she had ever had to stand in front of the bathroom mirror for an hour putting concealer on her acne, and that made me quite jealous.

Not like The Jam. Their first big album came along a few months later and set my blood on fire.

They were edgy, jumpy, mean and sharp. They sounded exactly like a British working class teenager felt. They sang our pain. Plus, I could imagine them examining their spots in front of the bathroom mirror. What wasn’t to love?

They’re both still performing, the American soft rockers and the edgy Paul Weller, he who really was The Jam.

I’ve seen them both recently – I watched Paul Weller performing at Glastonbury. It was on the telly though because I have never been to an actual music festival in my life, and I was a bit disappointed.

I mean, he’s not exactly Mr Charisma these days is he? Stylish. I’ll grant you stylish, but somehow Paul Weller’s stage presence over the years has changed from being cool and cutting to grumpy and a bit boring.

And he was wearing a jumper. A jumper! How could he when he looks so good in a suit? It’s as if he’s a ... middle-aged man.

Fleetwood Mac, who played at the Arena twice last week, were not like that. They were amazing.

And, in a startling about face, I have to say it is mostly because of Stevie Nicks and her fellow band member Christine McVie. I barely noticed Christine in the old days. She was the plainer one, the sensible-looking one compared with the flamboyant Stevie.

But, boy, I noticed her on Sunday. I had seen Fleetwood Mac before she rejoined the band, and they sound a lot better with her than without her.





But mostly what gladdens my heart is that these two women are now old - and still rocking.

I love that. I love that more than anything. Christine McVie is fully 71 years old, but she is up on stage, still sounding great, looking good – she doesn't look like the plain sensible one anymore, she looks like she is having fun – and still belting out those brilliant songs, many of which she wrote.

There are loads of old male rockers still performing – now that no one makes money out of recording any more, they have no option really.

Every summer they haul 
their backsides onto an outdoor stage somewhere and try to remember the words of their 
old hits, every Christmas they 
put on a nostalgic seasonal 
show.

They can be bald, fat, stiff as ironing boards with their creaky old joints – but we accept them.

For women in music, as in every area of life, the standards are different.

We don’t overlook the ageing process in our aging female rockers, we judge it.

But Stevie, 67, and Christine, they are still up there and still out there. There making a pile of money for themselves but they are pushing the barriers for older women everywhere – and that’s no rumour.

[bombaysaffires]

so true. what other old chick rockers are out there on a regular basis and still selling out arenas? Tina Turner if she were still touring but she's not, and she's not the same rock and roll. Cher isn't rock. Heart is out there but not doing the mega tours like FM.

[elle]

Originally Posted by bombaysaffires

so true. what other old chick rockers are out there on a regular basis and still selling out arenas? Tina Turner if she were still touring but she's not, and she's not the same rock and roll. Cher isn't rock. Heart is out there but not doing the mega tours like FM.

you added "selling out arenas" which is not fair to other great (and some of them even older!) chick rockers out there. neither Stevie nor Christine are selling out arenas, Fleetwood Mac is.

i'm just gonna put here the first article that came out by google search -

http://classicrock.about.com/od/newr...assic-Rock.htm

how can you forget Joan Jett, Pat Benetar, Chrissie Hynde, Suzi Quatro, and yes, very much Wilson sisters? they are all out there and rocking and looking fantastic, touring extremely hard, in great physical shape as much as Christine (who is in astonishing physical shape!!). and all these women are jumping all over the stage and rocking it up and in much much better physical shape than Stevie Nicks who part of the time has to be hand-held to move around the stage.

and really is Stevie more of a rocker than "pop" stars like Tina Turner or Cher (who is still selling out arenas, same ones as FM - on her own!). Christine was blues, and than great pop, not really a rocker. she comes across as a rocker chick much more now, as the article implies, than she did in her younger days. and then you have pop stars like Cyndi and Madonna etc... let's be realistic about a lot of "soft rock" of FM.

so do not minimize and narrow down girl power to just FM girls!!

[bombaysaffires]

Originally Posted by elle

you added "selling out arenas" which is not fair to other great (and some of them even older!) chick rockers out there. neither Stevie nor Christine are selling out arenas, Fleetwood Mac is.

i'm just gonna put here the first article that came out by google search -

http://classicrock.about.com/od/newr...assic-Rock.htm

how can you forget Joan Jett, Pat Benetar, Chrissie Hynde, Suzi Quatro, and yes, very much Wilson sisters? they are all out there and rocking and looking fantastic, touring extremely hard, in great physical shape as much as Christine (who is in astonishing physical shape!!). and all these women are jumping all over the stage and rocking it up and in much much better physical shape than Stevie Nicks who part of the time has to be hand-held to move around the stage.

and really is Stevie more of a rocker than "pop" stars like Tina Turner or Cher (who is still selling out arenas, same ones as FM - on her own!). Christine was blues, and than great pop, not really a rocker. she comes across as a rocker chick much more now, as the article implies, than she did in her younger days. and then you have pop stars like Cyndi and Madonna etc... let's be realistic about a lot of "soft rock" of FM.

so do not minimize and narrow down girl power to just FM girls!!

oh my.... I think I hit a nerve......

I know you don't like Stevie, so...

I agree there are a lot of chicks still out there rocking. But very few with the same high profile as our girls. Famous, yes. Rocking, yes. But not touring and generating press at the same level. And yes it's because the full band is together; no one in FM ever generates the same level of interest and sales as the full band. My comment wasn't putting anyone else down, it was just an observation. In rock and roll, there are no other women in bands touring on the same scale.... call me crazy but I put FM on tour right up there with the Stones or the Eagles etc. and there aren't other chicks in rock at that level. Cher totally does big tours but it's a different kind of show--- it's a very Vegas-y show. That's not bad; it's just not a 'rock' show and I was scoping my scale to that.

[michelej1]

I would agree that Cher is not a rocker. Although she did kind of rock "Bang Bang My Baby Shot Me Down" (written by Sonny) and I was rather proud.

She had an album with Greg Allmann and that's about as rock as she's ever gotten.

Michele

[bethelblues]

Wait, Tina Turner is a "pop" star?!? Isn't she the undisputed Queen of Rock and Roll? No solo act has sold more concert tickets. Have you ever seen her show? She rocked, and rocked hard. Sure, some of her studio versions (especially in the 90s) were more commercial-driven, but if you saw her live performances they were "nice and rough." I don't know anyone who was as consistently good live, singing and dancing, and who never resorted to lip-synching. Lindsey would know too...he opened for her in the early 90s. So many of her songs are classics, and she is one of the greatest voices ever (see "River Deep, Mountain High," which is incredible).

[aleuzzi]

Originally Posted by elle

you added "selling out arenas" which is not fair to other great (and some of them even older!) chick rockers out there. neither Stevie nor Christine are selling out arenas, Fleetwood Mac is.

i'm just gonna put here the first article that came out by google search -

http://classicrock.about.com/od/newr...assic-Rock.htm

how can you forget Joan Jett, Pat Benetar, Chrissie Hynde, Suzi Quatro, and yes, very much Wilson sisters? they are all out there and rocking and looking fantastic, touring extremely hard, in great physical shape as much as Christine (who is in astonishing physical shape!!). and all these women are jumping all over the stage and rocking it up and in much much better physical shape than Stevie Nicks who part of the time has to be hand-held to move around the stage.

and really is Stevie more of a rocker than "pop" stars like Tina Turner or Cher (who is still selling out arenas, same ones as FM - on her own!). Christine was blues, and than great pop, not really a rocker. she comes across as a rocker chick much more now, as the article implies, than she did in her younger days. and then you have pop stars like Cyndi and Madonna etc... let's be realistic about a lot of "soft rock" of FM.

so do not minimize and narrow down girl power to just FM girls!!

You're right about Christine. In the olden days, she didn't come off as a rock chick. That's what I absolutely loved about her. She was like no one else in rock music. She stood to the side of the stage, a bit aloof, but always heavily engaged in the music making and the contribution to the collective sound. She approached the world from a side angle, as opposed to tearing it up front and center. And this to me is more radical than being the rock chick, who is, by definition, expected to be the front stage centerpiece. Christine was one of the boys, quietly doing what no woman in rock had done before her--play with the best of them as one of the best of them.

Nowadays, she is more extroverted and seems to relish the interaction with crowds, etc. This is also exciting because it shows her own personal growth. A hard won reward for years of personal and professional struggles. But even now she is still one of the boys. And even now there are very few women like her.

I haven't even mentioned her voice, which has such an identifiable signature...

[Macfanforever]

Yes.There are still rocking along as others are rocking off in their rocking chairs into the sunset and quit.


This sentence is so funny.


"She was too floaty, too hippy, too dippy California girl for tough little me".


LOL..............................................

[redbird]

Yeah, I don't know on what planet Tina Turner doesn't qualify as a "rock chick", especially considering how popular music has shifted since rock's heyday.

[elle]

Originally Posted by bombaysaffires

I think I hit a nerve......

yup!

you know that i in many cases love and agree with a lot of stuff you say, and also admire your nerve in saying stuff that will stir up some of the very protective FM fans. but yeah when people seem to need putting other [at least as important] women down to prove that 1 or 2 are soooooo important, i just don't get that.

Originally Posted by bombaysaffires

My comment wasn't putting anyone else down, it was just an observation. In rock and roll, there are no other women in bands touring on the same scale.... call me crazy

Originally Posted by bombaysaffires

what other old chick rockers are out there on a regular basis and still selling out arenas? Tina Turner if she were still touring but she's not, and she's not the same rock and roll. Cher isn't rock. Heart is out there but not doing the mega tours like FM.

i read saying "what other chick rockers" as putting everyone else down, same as saying there are "no others", as you repeated in the other quote. you follow that by listing other rock chicks and listing why you think they are not at the same level. it may be your observation, and we are just pointing out it's a wrong one - as the quotes below also opine.

Benetar, Heart etc are all constantly touring, everywhere as far as the number of dates and places. Cher is touring same arenas as Mac. you or i may notice Mac because we follow what they are doing, but i notice these others without following what they are doing - they just pop up on ads and posters in my metro station, social media, radio ads, etc... same as the mac. are you saying Chrissie Hynde is not in great shape still out there as cool as can be rocker chick fronting her own band? you see Patti Smith all over the place without even paying any attention. or Joan Jett!! just inducted in RnRHOF with everyone griping how long ago that should have happened! it was all over the news. did you see her lately? epitome of rocking chick, looking in great shape and you'd never guess her age!

Originally Posted by bethelblues

Wait, Tina Turner is a "pop" star?!? Isn't she the undisputed Queen of Rock and Roll? No solo act has sold more concert tickets. Have you ever seen her show? She rocked, and rocked hard.

Originally Posted by redbird

Yeah, I don't know on what planet Tina Turner doesn't qualify as a "rock chick", especially considering how popular music has shifted since rock's heyday.

exactly!

so yes, majority of these women trailblazers are still out there, still in great shape and still rocking and that's so amazing to see and enjoy without any need to try to prove that some of them are better than others!!

[elle]

also, what i find a bit annoying, while Stevie is on many of these lists of greatest women in rock, women trailblazers in music etc, Christine seems to be on a much lesser number, and that just seems so wrong.

Suzi Quatro is also the one many times not as visible, and she was really one of the first, but i guess she was never as big in the US as in Europe?

[michelej1]

^I may have been young but, baby, that's not what I wanted to be ...