Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Stevie Nicks Calls New Album 'My Own Little 'Rumours''

Stevie Nicks says it wasn't her intention to take a decade between solo albums. 
Billboard.com


Nicks -- whose "In Your Dreams," the follow-up to 2001's "Trouble in Shangri-La," comes out May 3 -- tells Billboard.com that she was ready to start work on a solo set in 2005 after touring with Fleetwood Mac.

"I was definitely ready to do a record," Nicks recalls, "but the powers that be, the people that surrounded me, pretty much said, 'Don't bother. It's not a good time. The music business is in a terrible place. There's no money, and the Internet piracy is taking over.'

I didn't know what to say, because I'm not a computer person and I don't have a computer and I don't Facebook or whatever. So I just said, 'OK.' If I hadn't been so exhausted from 135 shows I might have bought back on that a little, but I just didn't."

The wait may have been worthwhile, however. Nicks calls making "In Your Dreams" with producer Dave Stewart (along with Glen Ballard) "the best year of my life" and refers to the new album as "my own little 'Rumours.'" The trio recorded the 13-track set at a house Nicks owns in Los Angeles, and though she has mostly written alone in the past, Nicks collaborated with Stewart on seven of "In Your Dreams' " songs.

"We wrote the song 'You May Be the One,' and my eyes instantly opened and I understood why Paul McCartney and John Lennon wrote together -- because they each had something the other didn't have," explains Nicks, who gave Stewart a binder of 40 poems before they started working together. "And with Dave and me, he had thousands of chords and this amazing musical knowledge, and I had thousands of pages of poetry -- and I know six chords. It was like an amazing little meeting of the minds, and I immediately went, 'Well this is just great!' "

Some of the songs on "In Your Dreams" date back a ways in Nicks' life, including the first single, "Secret Love," which she wrote in 1975 about a love affair, and "Moonlight," which she also started in the mid-70s but finished after seeing the "Twilight: New Moon" film in 2009. Other collaborators on the album include guitarist Waddy Watchtel, Mike Campbell of Tom Petty's Heartbreakers and Mick Fleetwood, while Nicks called upon Lindsey Buckingham to perform on and help her finish "Soldiers Angel," which she says "is truly my most sacred and revered song."

Maybe Lindsey and I will go off and rent a 
house in Wales and do a Buckingham Nicks album.

"We recorded it live and did some harmonies, and then he did some little lead guitar things and it was perfect," Nicks says. "There's no other players, just me and him. Not only did we create something that's probably as Buckingham Nicks as we have been since 1973, but... I think that song really brought Lindsey and I back together. He said to me as he was leaving on that second day, 'I feel like we're closer than we've been in 30 years.' It certainly opens a lot of doors."

When she'll go through them remains to be seen, however. She and Stewart filmed the "In Your Dreams" sessions; the footage appears in the "Secret Love" video and will be used in other ways down the line, and Nicks hopes "to go all over the world with this record." She adds that touring with Rod Stewart, as she did earlier this year, "might end up being done again because it did go very well."

And Nicks predicts Fleetwood Mac isn't done, though the group will have to wait for her and "In Your Dreams" as well as Buckingham and his forthcoming album "Seeds We Sow," which is due in September and which Nicks says is "really my favorite thing he's ever done -- and I wish he had saved all these amazing songs for Fleetwood Mac."

"When ('In Your Dreams') runs out of gas, as all records eventually do, then possibly Fleetwood Mac will regroup and do another thing -- whether it's a record or a tour, I don't know," Nicks says. "Or maybe Lindsey and I will go off and rent a house in Wales and do a Buckingham Nicks album. I have no idea, but I do know the music will continue."

18 comments:

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Rick said...

^^^ Wow! Thats the only negative thing I've heard about this album? Your one of few "anonymous"!!

Anonymous said...

No, it's just that some people have huge respect for Stevie's body of work and this CD is not her best, by far.

Anonymous said...

Well, I LOVE it.. did not love the soldier angel though.. but that is just my opinion.. everyone has their own.. the thing is to state it without being so nasty

Anonymous said...

You're definitely entitled to your opinion, but I strongly disagree. Not sure how I'd rank it yet amongst her other albums, but I think this is some of her best work to date.

And I'm saying this as a sometime fan of Stevie's who doesn't really enjoy Other Side of the Mirror or Street Angel much.

Anonymous said...

^Sorry, my above comment is directed at the person who says this album sucks, just to be clear.

Jamie said...

Yes I figured that :o) That was my comment.. wanted to put my name in now

Anonymous said...

Negative FAIR reviews are tolerable, but if they are to the extreme, they will be removed... Sorry!

The fist comment was overly negative. The album was available all but one hour to listen to before the poster decided to leave a comment... The album is about an hour long, so to leave such a negative comment clearly after only one listen to the album is beyond unacceptable... Let the music sit with you... listen to the album a couple of times... Absorb it. Then post a comment... Not after one listen. That's hardly fair!

Jamie said...

I just love, love, love this album. I think it is Stevie's best work ever - It's so complete, full of romance and storytelling. Also, it's full of Stevie's best vocal work I've ever heard decades. This definitely exceeded my expectations, which were pretty high considering the wait. I love it!

Anonymous said...

I'm glad you removed my comment too. I was only responding to this person because he or she keeps leaving terrible comments everywhere. This really could end up being Stevie's best album. There is just so much variety.

Anonymous said...

Loved the album. I can't wait for it to get here. This has been a very long wait ...but I know it will be worth the wait...I can't wait.

davie said...

I am a die hard Stevie Nicks fan, she is pretty much all I listen to these days... I've been listening to the album since yesterday and a few of the tracks are really starting to grown on me but I do have to agree with what some people are saying on here that this is not her at her best. Though I do think that It is important to stay open minded and realize that perhaps at this point in her life she is trying something a bit different. I like how lyrically she seems to be growing and it's a lot more confessional than the usual imagery and words she has sometimes 'hidden' behind for decades. Although I love it all. I love Stevie, I love her heart and so I love pretty much everything she does because she puts her heart into it. I don't think the problem here is Stevie or the songs.. I think that for a lot of us LIndsey Buckingham brings something to Stevie's music that nobody else can.. I think that her songs on Say You Will are some of the best of her career. They are beautifully done and so intense and melodic. They just flow.

It just feels that the songwriting here on IYD is a little forced. There is a bit of the natural flow and genuis of what Stevie does is missing a little bit. It does seem like on some tracks they were sitting around trying really hard to find a vocal melody or write a song.. It seems a little forced at times.

But in saying that, I will keep listening to it and listen to these fabulous stories and take them in. I love the vibe here and I still think this is a beautiful album.

IT's funny, because the best songs are all songs that she wrote years ago.. when Vampire's Dream starts.. those twinkling keys.. the melody.. is haunting... it is a very old demo... maybe that's why? I don't know.. there is definitely something missing for me here...

Some magic..
But it's still better than 99 percent of what's out there today.
So happy she's back.

Anonymous said...

I like what Stevie brings to this album, vocally and lyrically, though I'm not a huge fan of Dave Stewart's style. All-in-all this has its moments. I'm still waiting for her to record an album of jazz standards... maybe in ten to twenty years she can deliver that one from her wheelchair, in between gasps from an oxygen mask...

Anonymous said...

I LOVEEEEEEEE HER NEW CD!!!!!

John Seger said...

My Review:
With "In your dreams," Ms. Stevie Nicks is back in peak form. Her voice sounds refreshingly vital and urgent. Every single song is amazing, and the theme of love is intertwined magically throughout. The new top 20 adult contemporary single, "Secret Love" opens the set with a very sweet and radio friendly hook. Then "For what it's worth" launches into a folk guitar driven ditty that is so Stevie. "Moonlight" reworks her demo, "Lady from the mountain," a fan fave, with a new chorus that sounds like two songs in one, yet it fits so snugly and perfectly. Dave Stewart is the perfect choice to produce this artfully stunning music. Dave "gets" Stevie, and he presents this music with just enough modern production to keep it sounding current, while never tampering with Stevie's classic rock sound. It's perfectly progressive without sounding trendy. And with each listen, this collection just becomes more and more addictive. "Wide Sargasso Sea, " based upon the classic novel by Jean Rhys begins softly and slowly, building into a smashing rocking and rolling frenzy complete with Nicks' trademark urgent wailing by the end of the song. Annabel Lee is epic, giving props to Edgar Allan Poe. "Soldiers Angel" is her love song to our wounded soldiers in the military. "New Orleans" dedicates healing, strength and love to that city that is still rebuilding from the tsunami disaster. "Ghosts are gone" is a flat out rocker that recalls classic Nicks. "Italian summer" is gorgeous, with it's violins, romantic vibes, and Stevie's seductive voice ending the song by holding a long final note that sounds simply gorgeous. This album is amazingly artistic, with Stevie Nicks in peak form. While the reviews say this is Stevie Nicks' best album since "Bella Donna," let me say "Trouble in Shangri la" was also revered as such. So, in closing, I will say this is Stevie Nicks at her best, ranking amongst her best material. Although 10 years was a very long time for fans to get a new solo set from Nicks, it was well worth waiting for. Let us hope we won't have to wait 10 more years for the next album. This proves Stevie Nicks is in no way done. She is back, in peak form, and has much more music to share with the world. Rock on Ancient Queen.

Tony said...

Everyone needs to calm down a bit. 10 years of anticipation and a year of teases and leaks have built up a level of expectation from fans that no one could meet. Read the reviews from objective music critics--they are great! And I am thrilled for her!!
I have been listening to the RS stream over and over. First listen, I loved Moonlight, Annabel, saragasso, New Orleans, Italian Summer, secret love, and Soldiers Angel. These 7 songs are classic Stevie--poetic, beautiful, heartfelt and in some cases heartbreaking. Was I upset that I didn't feel an instant connection to all13 songs? No. It's impossible to feel that sustained level of enthusiasm for EVERYTHING. On the second listen, however, I really liked the rest as well. Cheaper, For What its worth, ghosts are gone, IYD, u may be thx one and everybody loves you are straight forward rock, stripped down emotionally revealing songs of love and complicated relationships. It's like 2 albums in one--the songs I instantly connected to were the mystical, romantic poet side if Stevie, and the other songs I really enjoyed the more I listened too are the rock and roll chick side of her--the side of her critics were clamoring for in the eighties wgen she was criticized for being too ethereal . Criticisms I always thought were unfair and I laugh at now. There is enough of both sides of Stevue for all to enjoy on this cd.

Anonymous said...

Moonlight(A Vampire's Dream) is a rockin great song. Love the cd. Excellent job. A nice modern twist to it as well. Can't wait for the tour(hopefully a world tour). Love you Stevie!!! Great job!!!

Anonymous said...

The new CD is wonderful. Everyone has their own personal favorite Stevie Nicks songs. Which is as it should be.
My dream CD, is one with just her original demos. No studio additions or Lindsay Buckingham tampering. Just simple Stevie. There is a video of her on YouTube, of Escape From Berlin that is unbelievable. Just Stevie at the piano with Lori and Sharon.
She is amazing in any form!!

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