Review: Fleetwood Mac Returns to Portland with Original Crew and Beloved Songs

Fleetwood Mac returns impressively with original crew and beloved songs
by Albert Rodriguez - SGN A&E Writer
Seattle Gay News

FLEETWOOD MAC
NOVEMBER 22
MODA CENTER
PORTLAND

Not that any tour delivering Fleetwood Mac to the Northwest isn't special, but their latest venture, which included stops at the Tacoma Dome and Portland's Moda Center recently, were especially momentous because it reunited the full band with the return of Christine McVie. This marked the first time in 16 years that the keyboardist-vocalist played a succession of live dates with the supergroup - and boy, did they make up for lost time! 

The show began, as it has in previous outings, with the strumming chords of 'The Chain,' from Fleetwood Mac's seminal recording Rumours, which to date has sold over 45 million copies worldwide, firmly staking its position on the list of all-time best-selling albums. Nine of the eleven tracks from the Grammy-winning record were performed at the concert, which was attended by a capacity crowd that ranged from teenagers to twentysomethings to gray-haired grandparents. 

It didn't take long for McVie to get back into the mix, diving into the second number, 'You Make Loving Fun.' But as much as we love McVie, it's Stevie Nicks who we adore and worship - the centerpiece of this nostalgic five-piece act. The spirited singer-songwriter wove her magic on a pair of Mac classics, 'Dreams' and 'Rhiannon,' drawing an invisible heart by her microphone at the end of the former, twirling in a circle during the latter. Dressed from head to toe in all black - in a form-fitting dress with ruffly bottom, overcoat, tights, ankle-length boots - Nicks looked exquisite, at times shaking a tambourine, other moments in her own little universe, as we expect and want her to be. 

Lindsey Buckingham, still devilishly handsome and brilliant on guitar, spoke sincerely to the audience, thanking us for sticking with Fleetwood Mac as it grew and persevered through the good times and the bad. 

Photos: Fleetwood Mac Live in Portland, OR November 22, 2014

Fleetwood Mac Live in Portland, OR
Moda Center - November 22, 2014
Photos by Jeff McCalib

View Gallery (22 Photos)

Review: Fleetwood Mac Live in Portland "I Know I'm Not Wrong easily the most amusing song of the night visually"

Live Review: Fleetwood Mac at Moda Center
Portland, Oregon - November 22, 2014
by Michael Mannheimer
Willamette Week

Growing up, I hated Fleetwood Mac. Maybe part of the problem was I usually lumped them in with the Eagles, a band that is truly terrible, or with my general distaste for classic rock dinosaurs, borne from a childhood spent listening to Phil Collins and Sting greatest hit tapes on every single family roadtrip. Nirvana and Pearl Jam and Hole hit right when I got my first Discman, and soon after, my older next-door neighbor was giving me Radiohead and Built to Spill albums. Fleetwood Mac weren’t just uncool: They were the bloated, overwrought excess of everything a young indie-rock fan and Spin subscriber stood against. But then in college, a close friend lent me a copy of Tusk, saying it was their White Album and also the one where the band’s drug use was a little too intense. I grew older, went through a few breakups, and grew to truly love my former enemies.

Fleetwood Mac have been touring a lot the past few years (including an appearance at the Moda Center just last year), but the big news here is the return of Christine McVie after a 16-year absence. Though billed as the “On with the Show” tour, there was nothing resigned about the performance Saturday night, except the few moments when the New Age-y visuals recalled a Cialis commercial. Snark aside, this really was a wonderful show. The whole band seemed genuinely stoked to have McVie back in the fold, as most of the pre-song banter featured Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham or even Mick Fleetwood gushing about being able to play with her again. Fleetwood Mac has played most of these songs hundreds of times but they were still loose and nimble onstage, occasionally stretching out a song but never indulging in that classic rock trope of just jamming forever, man.

The hits from Rumours—”Dreams,” “Go Your Own Way,” “Gold Dust Woman”—naturally got the biggest responses, and the band smiled its way through through every moment. They were augmented by three backup singers and two sidemen on guitar and keyboards, but the mix was always light, centering on Nicks’ husky voice, Buckingham’s exciting guitar playing and the subtle backbone of the rhythm section, which just kept on beating amidst a sea of 20,000 people singing along to every single word.

But for me, the real pleasure was when the band dived deeper into their back catalogue, dusting off gems like “Tusk” and Tango in the Night’s “Little Lies” and “Big Love,” which Buckingham performed solo while showing off his incredible fingerpicked guitar playing. I nearly died when he played “I Know I’m Not Wrong,” my favorite song off Tusk and easily the most amusing song of the night visually, with his dismembered floating head projected on the screen behind the band mouthing the words through a sea of colorful clouds. Buckingham really is an amazing performer—at 65 years old, rocking skinny jeans and a tight black v-neck, he seems much younger than most of his contemporaries. Though not usually recognized as a guitar hero, his solos were revelatory, never overshadowing the song but pushing each hit to new heights.

During the encore, I realized this might be the first show I’ve ever seen without an opening band. I mean, who could realistically open for Fleetwood Mac? When Mick launched into a call-and-response drum solo during “World Turning,” I initially wanted to hate on the showmanship, but I actually found it rather endearing, just like when he came out front to play a smaller kit during a nice late set stretch of songs that included “Over My Head.” Sure, it was a little cheesy. But sometimes, we have to know when we are wrong, and just embrace the kitsch.  

I Know I'm Not Wrong (Edmonton, AB Canada - Nov 15, 2014)

Photos: Fleetwood Mac Live in Portland November 22, 2014

After a 16-year absence, singer and pianist Christine McVie returned to the stage, performing with Fleetwood Mac at the Moda Center in Portland, Nov. 22, 2014. McVie, 71, stepped away from the limelight over a decade ago, but she didn't seem to have lost a beat.

McVie joined band mates Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham for the band's On With The Show Tour. They opened the show with classic Fleetwood Mac songs, "Chain", "You Make Loving Fun" and "Dreams" which were met with an ecstatic response from the audience.

View Photo Gallery (32 Photos) at Oregonlive.com
Photos by: Kristyna Wentz-Graff // The Oregonian

Live review: Fleetwood Mac plays hit after greatest hit (full setlist with notes)
by Jeff Baker
Oregonlive.com

"Sweet wonderful you," Christine McVie sang, all smiles. "You make me happy with the things you do."

That was pretty much the vibe at Fleetwood Mac's concert at the Moda Center on Saturday night; five senior citizens touring again for the first time in 16 years, playing their hits like time stopped and it was 1979 again, with more hugs and without all the cocaine. McVie's decision to return created a pocket of warmth on the left side of the stage and energized her bandmates, who couldn't stop talking about how happy it made them to play with "our beautiful Christine," as Lindsey Buckingham called her. Here's a review in the form of an annotated setlist, 20 songs deep:

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