What does this album cover represent? Fleetwood Mac is like a cool breeze at a jamboree just before it rains. I guess it's pretty accurate after all.In 1990 Fleetwood Mac found themselves in a position they had been in so many times before-struggling to hold on. In the band's long history, Fleetwood Mac had been on the bottom of the heap just as many times as they had been on top. From 1975 to 1987, Fleetwood Mac was a soft rock juggernaut with sold out tours, Platinum albums and Top 10 hits stemming from their ability to tie Classic Rock themes, Singer/Songwriter vibes and So Cal harmonies into an attractive package. The five band members of the era, drummer Mick Fleetwood, bassist John McVie, keyboard/vocalist Christine McVie, singer Stevie Nicks and guitarist/singer/producer Lindsey Buckingham had come to define a band that had an army of musicians beforehand.
In 1987 Fleetwood Mac made a major comeback with the Tango In The Night album, the Mac's first album of new material in five years. The lead single, Buckingham's "Big Love", was a Top 10 hit. They were planning a World Tour to take over the planet one more time. Then the bottom fell out, Lindsey Buckingham quit (allegedly violently by Mick Fleetwood) to pursue his solo career (culminating in 1992's Out Of The Cradle album).
Fleetwood Mac's motto had been "the show must go on" so they recruited two singer/ guitarists to replace Buckingham, Billy Burnette (ex-Mick Fleetwood's The Zoo) and Rick Vito (ex-Jackson Browne, Silver Bullet Band). This lineup went on tour which I got to see at the recently spared Cow Palace in Daly City (and was one of two shows taped for the Tango In The Night concert video). The show was fun and professional but the chemestry that happens with Buckingham was missing. Still, it was great to catch Stevie Nicks in between meds and the addition of Vito allowed some of the bluesier side of the band to come out.
Following a Greatest Hits set that included an Adult Contemporary hit "As Long As You Follow", the revised Mac went to the studio with a number of questions. Could they maintain their chart dominating ways? Would Stevie Nicks stay without Buckingham? Was Buckingham irreplaceable in the studio? To find out, they recorded Behind The Mask with producer Greg Ladanyi and here are the results, track by track:
Skies The Limit - The second single from the album was a quintessential Christine McVie track. Midtempo relaxed beat, cozy harmonies and McVie's warm voice singing about the ways of love. I liked the sort of jauntiness the song had and it allowed the band members to show their strengths without being flashy. A great start.
Love Is Dangerous - The new guys tended to pair off with the girl singers and Rick Vito found a match with Stevie Nicks. This surging blues rocker is reigned in by a softer guitar sound than usually comes with this type of song. Nicks and Vito trade off and share lead vocals giving the song a he said/she said feel. "Dangerous" used to receive a lot of airplay on rock radio in the waning days of AOR. Nicks must have been impressed because she hired Vito as her guitarist on following solo tours.
In The Back Of My Mind - Billy Burnette gets face time with this arty slow moving pop tune. Unusually dark in sound and theme for Mac, Burnette does a good job of bringing some depth to the band. It had one of those rhyme scheme choruses to emphasize the disturbed mindset of the song. Burnette used to take exception that this was taken as a solo song as he had written it with the band in mind.
Do You Know - While Vito and Nicks connected, Burnette teamed up with McVie for four minutes of Adult Contemporary glory. A solid ballad, I never understood why this wasn't released as a single because it had "drive time love song" written all over it. If you like the soft side of Mac, "Do You Know" is a lost treasure.
Save Me - The lead single from the album and maybe a misstep in that sense. "Save Me" is a fast paced lite rocker with Christine McVie's laid back vocal at odds with Rick Vito's dazzling fretwork. A tasteful rocker, ideal for the Golden Circle set, was enjoyable but did not convince the public that the band could go on without Buckingham. Though I enjoyed listening to this cassingle on a car ride to L.A. at the time and it had a nice B side with Rick Vito atmospheric cover of "Stop Messin' Around".
Affairs Of The Heart - Stevie Nicks had concerns about staying without Buckingham, as his ability to wrap her songs in a soft gauzy haze was part of the band's appeal. Without him, Nick's song came across harder and firmer but less distinct. The song and performance were fine, but without the extra production the song lacked some of the magical qualities of her prior tunes. And yet, I'm such a fan that it doesn't really matter that much because I still love the song.
When The Sun Goes Down - Burnette and Vito pair off this time to do a rewrite of the Travelling Wilbury's "End Of The Line". Not bad and had a bit of a fun feel.
Behind The Mask - Lindsey Buckingham contributed some guitar to this song, a Christine McVie led pop song with that feeling of hushed seduction she excels at. Still, it's just OK though it broadens the scope of the album a little by adding a second "dark" song. Probably the edgiest song on the disc narrowly beating "In The Back Of My Mind".
Stand On The Rock - Rick Vito again struts his blues rock thang with a lighter than needed guitar sound on "Rock". Vito mentioned at the time that he felt held back from rocking harder to meet the band's soft rock jones. Not terribly memorable except that it was Vito's only full lead vocal in the album.
Hard Feelings - The most impressive song by one of the new guys, Billy Burnette turned in this lush Beatlesque pop ballad. More Adult Contemporary greatness, Burnette nearly made a case for himself as Buckingham's replacement with this track. I played this one on my CD player a lot back then.
Freedom - Stevie Nick's second lead vocal was this fast pop rocker that was equal to "No Questions Asked" from the Greatest Hits album. Again a decent but not spectacular song by Nicks standards, it was still as enjoyable as the white winged dove. Her familiar rasp gave some much needed star power to the Mac at this point. A welcome pace changer bringing some rock and roll thunder to the second half of the album.
When It Comes To Love - Burnette and McVie share the lead on this one, another midtempo soft rock opus. One of the weaker songs on the album.
The Second Time - Sort of carrying on a tradition, Stevie Nicks sings backed by an acoustic guitar for the album closer with the self referrential name. The most memorable song on the album for me, a nice ending. Though I would often get it confused with the theme song to a TV show called Anything But Love with Jamie Lee Curtis and Richard Lewis at the time. Guess it was the whole acoustic vibe.
Behind The Mask was a solid, consistent album at a time they needed to blow the doors off the place. The Partridge Family atmosphere couldn't compete with the volitile creativity of the Buckingham era and after the tour, this version of Fleetwood Mac called it quits. A Nicks-less lineup would return with Dave Mason (ex-Traffic) in tow but nothing could wake the beast until 1997 when Buckingham and Nicks returned. I just realized, I miss this album. Back to the $1.00 bin!
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