Christine McVie / Fleetwood Mac Mention by Bob Lefsetz

Bob Lefsetz is the author of "The Lefsetz Letter." Famous for being beholden to no one and speaking the truth, Lefsetz addresses the issues that are at the core of the music business: downloading, copy protection, pricing and the music itself.


1. Sugarland "Love On The Inside"

Sales this week: 171,383
Percentage change: -45
Weeks on: 2
Cume: 485,117

You could say this is the power of a number one single, the positively inane "All I Want To Do".

You could say that country fans haven’t learned how to download.

You could say that this is the power of the Nashville barons over their format.

I’ll say it’s the power of rock and roll.

Sugarland is a real band, with real songs. Not manufactured by some men behind the curtain, pulling the strings. One thinks of Fleetwood Mac… A bunch of journeymen who finally found the right formula. Christine McVie wasn’t the best-looking girl on the block, but her understated emotionality got under your skin and made you want to get closer to her, not to fuck her, but to be her boyfriend. Similarly, there’s something about Jennifer Nettles that give you the impression she’s been rode hard and put up wet. But it’s just those miles that intrigue us. She’s had to use more than her looks to get by, her feminine wiles.

People want songs played by real musicians that they can sing along with. Never forget that. Everything else is a fad.