Our Fourth Primetime Backyard Sing-A-Long: FLEETWOOD MAC - THE DANCE

Lisa K. and I had our first Primetime Backyard Sing-A-Long five years ago, and after a brief hiatus because of Covid, it has become one of our most popular events. So we're back this year (with Andy helping us out) to continue the tradition with the band that dominated my cassette player from around 1977 to the mid-1980's.

Many people don't know or don't remember that the personnel lineup for what most of us consider "Fleetwood Mac" was not the first incarnation of the band, nor did it feature the unique sound we now know as the Fleetwood Mac sound, with its soaring, moody and haunting harmonies.

Fleetwood Mac was formed in 1967 by British blues guitarist Peter Green. The band, which took its name from combining the surnames of drummer Mick Fleetwood and bassist John McVie, was all male, and included other notables such as Bob Welch, who would later haunt the steam-covered windshields of many a parked car with his iconic hit Sentimental Lady, a song that was originally sung by this original variation of Fleetwood Mac. This song aside, Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac leaned heavily on electric blues, and Green himself wrote and Fleetwood Mac performed the original recording of Black Magic Woman, the song later made legendary by Mexican-born Santana, whom I once had the terrifying pleasure of video recording and live-mixing for a charity event in San Antonio in the mid-1980's. But that's a story for another time.

Around 1970, Green and many of the original band members left the band. While there are conflicting reports as to the reasons for their departure, it is well known that Green was using many drugs at the time. But the official story was that Green, entranced by the peace and love vibe of Woodstock, and who tried to actually put together a European Woodstock-like festival at this time with Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones, also wanted the band to donate all their money to charity. The remaining band members disagreed, and Fleetwood and McVie went on and started looking for new band members and even a change of direction for the band. This was when John McVie's wife Christine joined Fleetwood Mac as a vocalist and keyboardist, and the sound of Fleetwood Mac started its slow transformation into what we now consider the Fleetwood Mac sound. The biggest issue for the group was replacing Green's legendary guitar skills, and many guitarists tried and failed. Many of the new band members followed Green into drug dependency, and touring became increasingly problematic. Personal conflicts, including a few intra-band marital affairs that would later be referenced in several of Fleetwood Mac's future hits, caused the cancellation of the band's tour in 1973 and a lawsuit over whether the band's manager had the rights to the band's name. Ultimately Fleetwood and McVie prevailed, and the search for a stable roster continued.

That transformation was complete when, in 1974, Welch left the band citing exhaustion, and an American folk duo with a single failed album to their credit joined the band. The name of that duo was Buckingham Nicks. Originally, Fleetwood was only interested in the duo's guitarist Lindsey Buckingham to join the band, but Buckingham said he and Nicks were a package deal. And when Fleetwood reluctantly agreed, Fleetwood Mac as we know them today began a truly meteoric rise to the top of the charts and rock and into rock and roll history, being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. Rumours, the band's most successful and widely heralded album full of songs about the bands struggles with relationships and drugs, sported no fewer that 7 chart-topping hits back in a day when albums generally only had ten total songs. At one point, songs from Rumours held five of the top ten slots on Billboard's Top-40 chart.

In the early 1980's, the band, still suffering numerous interpersonal conflicts, went on hiatus while many of its members, most notably Buckingham, Nicks, and Christine McVie (now no longer together romantically) pursued successful solo projects. Fleetwood and John McVie's drug problems continued, with Fleetwood eventually declaring bankruptcy and checking himself into rehab. It really did look like the end for this iconic band. While there were various personnel incarnations that tried to recapture the Fleetwood Mac magic through the years, the absence of one or more of the "classic five" (and especially Buckingham) never quite worked out despite some critical acclaim for some of the new band members and even a command performance for President Bill Clinton after choosing Don't Stop as his official campaign song.

Then in March 1997, the classic lineup of Fleetwood, both McVie's, Buckingham, and Nicks reformed once again for the first time in a decade, and even the band members admitted that enough water and years had passed for their tumultuous collaboration to once again capture the magic.

This month's sing-a-long was their first live concert of the reformed band, and they sounded as tight and good as they ever had despite the intervening years.

So come join us for a wonderful night of singing out loud to our heart's content and dancing like no one is watching to all the Fleetwood Mac hits, including Dreams, Gold Dust Woman, Gypsy, The Chain, Big Love, Landslide, Say You Love Me, Rhiannon, Go Your Own Way, Tusk (a personal favorite mostly because I really dig the beat), Don't Stop, and many more.

And by the way...Fleetwood Mac songs are some of the most misquoted lyrics in music history. You'll be amazed and delighted at just how many lyrics you've gotten wrong over the years and that you now will know what they were actually singing.

Presenting our fifth year of Primetime's popular Backyard Movie Series, where we'll all get together during good weather armed with our bug spray and lawn chairs to watch a variety of movies. I have the movies. I have the projector. I have a sort of giant (for a backyard at least) 10 foot screen. I even have a long, narrow but semi-deep backyard with a giant oak tree that will silently watch over us as we relive our youth at the drive-in and as we make fun of those making out on the back row.

There will be free hot dogs, movie candies, movie nachos, and popcorn. Feel free to bring other stuff if you want, including your own lawn chair. I have some spares and some blankets, but not enough for a full house. BYOB. I'll have some soft drinks and water as well.

We'll socialize for about an hour before the movie, which will start promptly at dusk (about 8:20) if not a few minutes before. There will be my usual Alamo Drafthouse style preshow with lots of Fleetwood Mac-related ephemera. Preshow will start when it gets dark enough to see the projector (around 7:20). Watch the weather and dress appropriately.

RAIN POLICY - I'll post here if we have to reschedule for weather or other unforeseen events. Just check here before you head this way.

CARPOOLS - My parking around here really is limited thanks to overbuilding on nearby lots, so carpooling is encouraged.