Saturday, September 17, 2011

Review: Lindsey Buckingham should have shut up & let his guitar do the talking

Lindsey Buckingham may be more in touch with his feminine side than any other male guitar hero.

"Most of the night, Buckingham’s guitar work was heavy on mesmerizingly swirling repetition but he cut loose and soared with rock ‘n’ roll abandon on "Go Your Own Way" to the delight of the Mac-loving fans, who offered several standing ovations during the concert."

He manifested his considerable guitar prowess Friday night at the packed Pantages Theatre. And he also talked about his feelings. His life. His philosophies. His career. His new album. Himself. Too much.

Buckingham is a piece of work. No need to critique and psychoanalyze your songs before you play them, dude. Just shut up and play.

He did play. Plenty. It was a mix of stuff from his solo career and from the Fleetwood Mac catalog. He didn’t say much at all about the Big Mac except after some guy shouted out something about where’s Stevie Nicks, Buckingham said, "Unfortunately for that one gentleman, Stevie’s not in [this band]. What show is he at?"

Full review at Star Tribune
by Jon Bream

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

I agree, but still... Ouch.

Anonymous said...

Sounds like Lindsey is channeling his inner Barbra Streisand.

I love it when an artist lets his/he personality come out between songs if it's done naturally. If there's an agenda behind the words, the emotions seem forced and manipulative.

Stevie's always been particularly good when addressing the audience. If she has a cause to promote, she makes it clear it's important to her, but she always keeps it brief.

Never seen Bono or U2, but from what I've read, he's another artist that uses the stage (and ticket sales) to push his agenda.

I'm not saying it's good or bad...but an artist risks alienating audience members by forcing their personal beliefs/values to ticket-paying audiences who are there to hear them sing.

Technically, "real" music artists lyrics should be their message.

Anonymous said...

I also agree with the article. Not just on Lindsey's need to go on and on about his thoughts, but the endless showboating is just annoying. Just happy to see some picked up on it and put it in print....

Anonymous said...

You guys are dicks! Come on man, it's just an artist that gets an opportunity to tell listeners where his thoughts were when a particular song is written and why it sounds the way it does (from his perspective.) You fuckers just don't get it. Sometimes an all inclusive show isn't just the music, it's the interaction in PLAIN ENGLISH. Have a nice day! :)

Anonymous said...

Oh, and yes, his guitar does do the talking...otherwise you and I wouldn't be having this conversation. The man is a musical genius.

Anonymous said...

Seriously, I just can't figure out a lot of the "fans" who post comments here. Such bitter, petty, infantile stuff. I guess it's pretty commonplace on the net though. It just seems people would much rather be rude or negative than say anything positive. With "fans" like this, Stevie and Lindsey sure don't need any enemies-Grow up! If anyone should just shut up it's some of the idiotic posters on this website!

Jay said...

Talking to the audience is just a way for the artist to connect with his fans. Bream's review is completely rude and unnecessary. I think it was VH1 Storytellers that first got normally quiet musicians to open up and invite fans into their songwriting process, much like actors and filmmakers sit down to explain their inspirations and techniques. God forbid artists like Lindsey want to give fans a full experience rather than just playing songs we already own. If you don't want a little bonding time with Lindsey, stay your ass at home and play the CD! Grouches!

Jay said...

BTW, why does everyone comment as Anonymous? Leave your name so we can yell at you properly ;)

Anonymous said...

Wow, that was a great concert! Intimate setting with so much energy. I hope I was able to offset the "Where's Stevie?" comment with:"We Love You Lindsey"! Which we do!! What an amazing guitarist and artist- and still sexy at 62 :)

Robert said...

The problem isn't that Lindsey talks. It's that he talks in......platitudes. It's too cliche, too rehearsed. It really adds very little. There's a way to talk and be playful and still be relatable.

Anonymous said...

I think it's worth mentioning that artists sometimes stop and talk to the audience as a way of catching their breathe and slowing the adrenaline a bit during a 2 hour show. Older artists do this more than younger artists because they need to pace themselves. It's actually the sign of a seasoned veteran artist when he/she knows how to pace themselves. I always welcome the opportunity to hear someone, whose music I love, take a few minutes to talk about their songs.

Anonymous said...

Agreed -- The Grateful Dead used to go on all night without a word.

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