Competition

[DavidMn]

I'm still kinda new here and trying to feel things out a bit, but one thing I've noticed, both before I joined and since, is that there seems to be a pretty good divide between the fans that like the pre 1975 lineup and post 1975. The same goes for the individual fans of Stevie and Lindsey. I totally respect anyone's opinion on whichever way they choose to go. But here's the way I look at it. Some people call themselves Stevieheads or Lindseyheads, some prefer the older lineup or the newer. For myself, I would have to say I'm a Fleetwood Mac head. I very much enjoy both the older and newer linups. not so much the Bekka and Dave years, and ad far aas Billy and Rick go, they're very good, just not quite up to par with Lindsey in my opinion. Anyway, My interest in the other band members, IE, Stevie and Lindsey is an outgrowth of my interest in the band as a whole. And while I very much enjoy seeing Stevie solo, and would enjoy seeing Lindsey solo, (Never have on that one) I would always choose to see them with Fleetwood Mac first. I'm curious to see what other people think about this. I will enjoy reading the responses.


DavidMn

"And He Was Just Like A Great Dark Wing...."

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by DavidMn

I'm still kinda new here and trying to feel things out a bit, but one thing I've noticed, both before I joined and since, is that there seems to be a pretty good divide between the fans that like the pre 1975 lineup and post 1975. The same goes for the individual fans of Stevie and Lindsey. I totally respect anyone's opinion on whichever way they choose to go. But here's the way I look at it. Some people call themselves Stevieheads or Lindseyheads, some prefer the older lineup or the newer. For myself, I would have to say I'm a Fleetwood Mac head. I very much enjoy both the older and newer linups. not so much the Bekka and Dave years, and ad far aas Billy and Rick go, they're very good, just not quite up to par with Lindsey in my opinion. Anyway, My interest in the other band members, IE, Stevie and Lindsey is an outgrowth of my interest in the band as a whole. And while I very much enjoy seeing Stevie solo, and would enjoy seeing Lindsey solo, (Never have on that one) I would always choose to see them with Fleetwood Mac first. I'm curious to see what other people think about this. I will enjoy reading the responses.


DavidMn

"And He Was Just Like A Great Dark Wing...."

And yet, through all that, you don't even mention Christine.
If you're wondering where most of this divisiveness comes from, IMO- full FM band fans are turned off by people saying that one member is the end all, and be all, member. There's one member who has quite a devoted following. She, once upon a time, was probably my favorite member. But, my taste grew, and I came to appreciate the contributions of the other members more. Now, she's no better than any of the others, IMO. And I personally feel it's a slap in the face of the others, when they place her lone arse on a pedestal.

[chiliD]

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

There's one member who has quite a devoted following. She, once upon a time, was probably my favorite member. But, my taste grew, and I came to appreciate the contributions of the other members more. Now, she's no better than any of the others, IMO. And I personally feel it's a slap in the face of the others, when they place her lone arse on a pedestal.

There you go...droning on & on & on about Christine again.

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by chiliD

There you go...droning on & on & on about Christine again.

Twas not the arse to which I was referring!

[Johnny Stew]

Originally Posted by chiliD

There you go...droning on & on & on about Christine again.

That was priceless.

To respond to DavidMN's question... I'm definitely a Fleetwood Mac fan, but I make no bones about the fact that I have a preference towards Stevie.

I really don't think there's a Fleetwood Mac fan in existence who doesn't have even the slightest preference towards one of the members over the others. It's only natural.
For example, did anyone really love ALL of the Beatles equally?

So, for my tastes, they're best with Stevie... but I love and respect all the incarnations of the band (including the Bekka/Billy/Dave lineup), and would rather listen to ANY Fleetwood Mac album from ANY Fleetwood Mac lineup, before listening to most any other band.

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by Johnny Stew

That was priceless.

Oh, there's a price, Bri Bri.

[WildInTheWind]

I am first and foremost a Stevie fan. It was her songs that turned me on to Fleetwood Mac. And I don't listen to any of the other members solo music, just Stevie's. I do like alot of Lindsey's FM songs, I'm not much of a Chris fan. She has a couple that I really love (Think About Me is probably my favorite of hers). I do like some of the pre-S&L stuff, never had any desire to listen to the post S&L so I never have.

[catinthedark]

Originally Posted by Johnny Stew

To respond to DavidMN's question... I'm definitely a Fleetwood Mac fan, but I make no bones about the fact that I have a preference towards Stevie.

I really don't think there's a Fleetwood Mac fan in existence who doesn't have even the slightest preference towards one of the members over the others. It's only natural.
For example, did anyone really love ALL of the Beatles equally?

So, for my tastes, they're best with Stevie... but I love and respect all the incarnations of the band (including the Bekka/Billy/Dave lineup), and would rather listen to ANY Fleetwood Mac album from ANY Fleetwood Mac lineup, before listening to most any other band.

My answer was going to be almost identical to Johnny's (except for the part about the Bekka line up)... so thanks for saving me the typing!

Yeah, I definitely have a stronger love for Stevie, but when you consider how great my love is for Fleetwood Mac (yes, the line up featuring Stevie and Lindsey), I don't think you can argue I'm "dissing" the band in favour of her. My love of Stevie does not diminish my love of Lindsey or Christine or John, or Mick. I have never understood why there are such deep divisions between the camps. We are all entitled to have a favourite artist - for some people, it may not even BE a member of Fleetwood Mac. There are plenty of crazy huge Tori Amos fans around here, for example. Their love of Tori does not in any way threaten my love of Stevie... To each his or her own, I say. Love them, hate them, whatever. But no one's opinion is wrong.

[SteveMacD]

I really enjoy all of the eras of Fleetwood Mac, including the post-1987 incarnations. In fact, I really can't say there's a Fleetwood Mac album I haven't enjoyed. But, I too have noticed various divides. I think there are a lot of pre-1975 fans who equate the "Rumours" band with ABBA-esq sell-out pop. Likewise, there are post-1975 fans who feel that the band's earlier music wasn't as well crafted as the "Rumours" band. And, both groups tend to dump on the post-1987 material as being generic. Then you've got the chiffonheads, the Buckinghamaniacs, and the Green die-hards, all of whom feel that their favorite member is THE reason the band was great.

Personally, I think it's all rubbish. The band has been great in pretty much every incarnation because Mick and John have gone to great lenghts over the years to find people who were talented and fit in with the rest of the band. Sometimes it has been a success, sometimes it hasn't. But, it has always been interesting, moreso than any other band, IMO.

[Johnny Stew]

Originally Posted by catinthedark

My answer was going to be almost identical to Johnny's (except for the part about the Bekka line up)... so thanks for saving me the typing!

Happy to have saved you the typing, Cat!
No love for the 'Time' lineup though?

Originally Posted by catinthedark

I have never understood why there are such deep divisions between the camps.

Eh, some fans are still just trying to beat horses that died years ago.

Christine and Lindsey have quite a number of their own fans who think they hung the moon (or are the be-all and end-all of Fleetwood Mac), just as Stevie does. But double-standards often rule the roost.

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by Johnny Stew

Christine and Lindsey have quite a number of their own fans who think they hung the moon (or are the be-all and end-all of Fleetwood Mac), just as Stevie does. But double-standards often rule the roost.

See, I disagree, at least as far as Christine is concerned. Chiffonheads and Buckinghamaniacs are able to say that they only like the band when so-and-so is in the band. Considering that Christine has been on all but two or three albums, either as a member or session player, it's not so easy to make the distinction between being a Christine fan and a Fleetwood Mac fan. It's almost like somebody saying that they're a Byrds fan, but they only like Roger McGuinn.

[catinthedark]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

See, I disagree, at least as far as Christine is concerned. Chiffonheads and Buckinghamaniacs are able to say that they only like the band when so-and-so is in the band. Considering that Christine has been on all but two or three albums, either as a member or session player, it's not so easy to make the distinction between being a Christine fan and a Fleetwood Mac fan. It's almost like somebody saying that they're a Byrds fan, but they only like Roger McGuinn.

But why must we make the distinction at all? That's what I don't get.

Why can't we all just get aloooooong?

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by catinthedark

But why must we make the distinction at all? That's what I don't get.

Because there IS a distinction. In fact, you made a distinction when you said you were a Fleetwood Mac fan when Stevie and Lindsey are in the band. That's okay, and there's nothing wrong whatsoever about that. However, there is a major distinction there.

Stevie has been in three incarnations of Fleetwood Mac, Lindsey two, and neither has been too far removed from the "Rumours" band. Stevie was in the band with Christine, Lindsey, Billy, and Rick. Lindsey was in the band only with Christine and Stevie. So, when you ask them about Fleetwood Mac, all they think about is the "Rumours" band.

Christine has been a member of nine incarnations of Fleetwood Mac. She has been in the band with Danny, Jeremy, Bob Welch, Dave Walker, Bob Weston, Stevie, Lindsey, Rick, Billy, Bekka, and Dave Mason, as well as doing a lot of session work for Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac. So Christine fans have a much wider frame of reference with regards to Fleetwood Mac, and tend NOT to make the distinction of any particular era. So much so that "Why" from "Mystery To Me," which obviously does not feature Stevie or Lindsey, is often listed as the big favorite amongst Christine fans. So, while Chiffonheads and Buckinghamaniacs can focus on just a small part of Fleetwood Mac's history, Christine fans really don't have that luxury.

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

Because there IS a distinction. In fact, you made a distinction when you said you were a Fleetwood Mac fan when Stevie and Lindsey are in the band. That's okay, and there's nothing wrong whatsoever about that. However, there is a major distinction there.

Stevie has been in three incarnations of Fleetwood Mac, Lindsey two, and neither has been too far removed from the "Rumours" band. Stevie was in the band with Christine, Lindsey, Billy, and Rick. Lindsey was in the band only with Christine and Stevie. So, when you ask them about Fleetwood Mac, all they think about is the "Rumours" band.

Christine has been a member of nine incarnations of Fleetwood Mac. She has been in the band with Danny, Jeremy, Bob Welch, Dave Walker, Bob Weston, Stevie, Lindsey, Rick, Billy, Bekka, and Dave Mason, as well as doing a lot of session work for Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac. So Christine fans have a much wider frame of reference with regards to Fleetwood Mac, and tend NOT to make the distinction of any particular era. So much so that "Why" from "Mystery To Me," which obviously does not feature Stevie or Lindsey, is often listed as the big favorite amongst Christine fans. So, while Chiffonheads and Buckinghamaniacs can focus on just a small part of Fleetwood Mac's history, Christine fans really don't have that luxury.

Very well put. Thanks.

[Johnny Stew]

Originally Posted by SteveMacD

See, I disagree, at least as far as Christine is concerned. Chiffonheads and Buckinghamaniacs are able to say that they only like the band when so-and-so is in the band. Considering that Christine has been on all but two or three albums, either as a member or session player, it's not so easy to make the distinction between being a Christine fan and a Fleetwood Mac fan. It's almost like somebody saying that they're a Byrds fan, but they only like Roger McGuinn.

There's no arguing that that line of thinking ("Fleetwood Mac is only good when so & so is there") is definitely more pervasive in the Lindsey and Stevie fan camps (and even the Peter Green camp, from what I've experienced)... but I've also noticed many Christine fans saying that the lineup on 'Say You Will' and the most recent tour weren't really "Fleetwood Mac" as far as they're concerned, because Chris wasn't there, and, without Chris, Fleetwood Mac is nothing.

So even though there was a Fleetwood Mac before Christine, and one after Christine... they have little use for the band without her.
The number of fans expressing that opinion might be less than those who express the same opinion regarding Lindsey and Stevie, but there is still a faction who feels that way.

They're entitled to that opinion, of course, and I'm not looking to argue the validity of it, pro or con. As I said, we ALL have our favorite member(s), without whom, Fleetwood Mac wouldn't have quite the same appeal for us.
I just think... as I've stated many times in the past... that it's a demonstration of some serious tunnel-vision to accuse the Stevie Fans for feeling that Stevie is the best thing Fleetwood Mac ever had, as if her fans are the only "guilty" party.

We create the deepest divides when we condemn other fans for the same behaviour we're ALL guilty of.

This is a horrible analogy, but it's sort of like the divide within Christianity. Catholics, Presbyterians, Methodists, Baptists, Protestants, etc.... they all believe in and worship Jesus, and yet, none of them can agree on HOW to worship, and they all think they do it the "right way."
They get lost in the details and lose sight of the bigger picture.

We're all essentially Fleetwood Mac fans here... who cares if some of us like one member/lineup better than the others.
Of course, it does make for some pretty lively debates... but no one should really take that stuff too seriously.