Tuesday, February 07, 2012

RUMOURS Track by Track with Ken Caillat... Reflects on 35th Anniversary

Fleetwood Mac's classic album Rumours track-by-track
Producer Ken Caillat reflects on 35th anniversary

"Records like Rumours don't happen anymore," says Ken Caillat, who along with Richard Dashut and Fleetwood Mac produced the 1977 mega album that has sold a mind-boggling 44 million copies. "We spent a year and a lot of hell working on it. Lives were changed, people changed, everything became different. Something like Rumours could never happen these days. A record label would have shut us down after two weeks."

The soap opera that attended the making of Rumours has been extensively documented - married band members John and Christine McVie broke up, as did lovers Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks; even Mick Fleetwood's marriage dissolved, as well - and Caillat confirms that 1976 was a wild ride. "There were fights, breakups, drinking, drugs... We all indulged in substances. But I had to be a therapist and record producer. When everything was insane, I had to be sane. If there was a rule book, nobody game me one."

Although 1975's self-titled release was rising up the charts during the making of Rumours, Caillat says that the band was still learning how to play together. "Basically, you had two teams: Christine, John and Mick, the three Brits, were pros, and the two Americans, Lindsey and Stevie, had their shorthand, but they were still new to the group. During the making of Rumours, they became a real band, one that was very intuitive, musically and otherwise.”

This intuition lent itself to songwriting. Rather than work with demos, the group's principle writers - Buckingham, Nicks and Christine McVie - would present live fragments of ideas for the group to build work on. "Richard and I had to capture light in a bottle," says Caillat. "The band would be tuning up, and before you knew it, a song was going down. John and Mick would hear something, they'd start playing, and we had to react fast. That kind of creativity doesn't happen these days - it's frowned upon. In 2012, a band has to have a committee approve their songs. Can you imagine Fleetwood Mac making Rumours under such conditions?"

Released on 4 February 1977, Rumours hit like a meteor, permanently altering the landscape of all involved. "Like Richard Dashut, I went from being a mid-level engineer to a Grammy-winning producer in one year," says Caillat. "The record was like Jaws and Star Wars combined. Everybody saw those movies, and everybody during that time bought a copy of Rumours."

In his forthcoming book, Making Rumours: The Inside Story Of The Classic Fleetwood Mac Album, Ken Caillat and Steve Stiefel recount the producer's year behind the glass in brilliant, page-turning detail. "It's amazing how everything came flooding back to me once I started the book," says Caillat. "It's one thing to remember cutting a number one song, but to think about what I was wearing that same day, that's incredible.

"But that's the kind of record Rumours is: You remember your first time hearing it. You even remember where you were when when you heard it. Not every album has that power. This one does. I was just lucky to be a part of it."

On the following pages, Ken Caillat takes a track-by-track look back at Rumours. To order his book, Making Rumours: The Inside Story Of The Classic Fleetwood Mac Album, click here.

Full Article at MusicRadar

Person to Person: Check out George Clooney's home once owned by Stevie Nicks


George Clooney has opened up his Los Angeles home to CBS News, showing off his kitchen (where he orders dinner), his screening room and bar, for a revival of the classic celebrities-at-home program Person to Person.

The Descendants star has lived in the 7,354 square foot mansion since 1995 which he bought for $2.2 million from singer Stevie Nicks.

The new Person to Person episode, airing on CBS Wednesday, February 8th at 8:00pm ET will also feature Jon Bon Jovi's 16-acre New Jersey estate and Warren Buffetts office.

Monday, February 06, 2012

Pop star Lissie will sing Fleetwood Mac’s Go Your Own Way in TV Ad

Photo by Andrew Calder
Twinings Tea 

US Pop star Lissie will sing a version of Fleetwood Mac’s Go Your Own Way in the latest TV ad for UK tea company Twinings.  The ad is due to launch in March and the song will be available to download on iTunes from 19th February.

Market Week

You may recall back in the summer of 2010 - Classic Rock Magazine referred to Lissie as the "New Stevie Nicks" in an article.  You can find that here.



Lissie Prepares Covers EP
'Covered Up With Flowers' due on February 19th
Includes Fleetwood Mac's "Go Your Own Way"

Clashmusic

Sunday, February 05, 2012

Chart Update: Fleetwood Mac | Stevie Nicks Australia, Netherlands, UK & New Zealand

Not a lot of changes vs last week... The Very Best Of in The Netherlands moves up 22 places on the catalogue chart to #13.  Rumours re-enters the US Top 10 on the iTunes download chart - most likely because of the discounted price in lieu of its 35th Anniversary this weekend.
AUSTRALIA - February 6, 2012

Top 100 Album Chart
# 44 (37) Fleetwood Mac - The Very Best Of

Top 50 Catalogue Album Chart
# 4   (3)  Fleetwood Mac - The Very Best Of
# 9   (4)  Fleetwood Mac - Greatest Hits
# 25 (27) Stevie Nicks - Crystal Visions... The Very Best Of
# 43 (24) Fleetwood Mac - Rumours

Top 40 Music DVD Chart
# 16 (16) Fleetwood Mac - The Dance

THE NETHERLANDS - February 4, 2012

The Top 50 Back Catalogue Chart
# 13 (35) Fleetwood Mac - The Very Best Of

UK - January 28, 2011

Top 40 Catalogue Chart
#17 (21 ) Fleetwood Mac - Rumours

ITUNES TODAY:

Top 10 Rock Albums - USA
# 5 - Fleetwood Mac - Rumours

Top 10 Pop Albums - NEW ZEALAND
# 9 - Fleetwood Mac - Greatest Hits

Saturday, February 04, 2012

Fleetwood Mac's Most Successful Album "RUMOURS" turns 35














RUMOURS TURNS 35 TODAY!  

Fleetwood Mac's best selling album and second with Lindsey and Stevie was released on Feb 4, 1977.  Right from the get go the album was a huge commercial success and likely one of their most important albums recorded as it allowed them to continue to record for years to come according to Mick Fleetwood.  

All of the songs detail the relationship struggles between the three principal writers, Lindsey and Stevie who were in the midst of breaking up, and John and Christine McVie who were going through a divorce.  The writing coupled with the amazing production work on the album were a recipe for success. 

Anticipation back in 1976/77 ran so high for Fleetwood Mac's Rumours after the monstrous success of 1975's "Fleetwood Mac", their first number one album in the US, that advance orders exceeded 800,000 units, the largest to that point in Warner Bros. history. Released February 4, 1977 the album debuted on Billboards Top 200 LP's and Tapes chart on February 26, 1977 at #10 - it took another 5 weeks for it to reach #1 for the first time.  The album would go on to spend 31 non-consecutive weeks at #1 in the US over the course of 1977 and 1978 with it's longest stretch at number one being 19 weeks between July 16, 1977 and November 19, 1977. The album would spend almost a year in the Top Five, the longest stint in the 1970's - aided in no small part by the release of four successful singles that all hit the Billboard Hot 100 Top 10.  Rumours became Fleetwood Mac's first number one album in the UK when it reached the the top in January, 1978.  Rumours eventually became the best selling album the world had seen up until 1984 when Michael Jackson's Thriller took over the number one spot.  Today it stands as the 10th best selling album certified in the US at 19x platinum.  In the UK the album stands as the 8th highest certified album at 11x platinum - with Adele's 21 currently number one.  In Australia the album was last certified in July, 2011 at 13x platinum.  To date the album has reportedly sold over 40 million copies world wide.

The album reached No.1 in numerous countries with platinum sales awards soon to follow.  Fleetwood Mac embarked on a world tour shortly after the albums release that took them around the world.  They spent the good part of 1977 and 1978 on the road promoting the album and by March of 1978 the album had sold an impressive 10 million copies around the world.
Photo by Bill Hansen
Four Top 10 Singles
The ball got rolling in December, 1976 when Go Your Own Way was issued as the first single.  A succession of singles would be released through 1977.


GO YOUR OWN WAY
The single debuted on Billboards Hot 100 at #71 on January 8, 1977.  It would go on to reach it's peak at #10 on March 12, 1977 where it would spend 2 weeks.  It charted for a total of 15 weeks.

DREAMS
The second single issued was Dreams. It debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at #77 April 16, 1977.  Dreams would eventually reach #1 on June 18, 1977 in it's 10th week of release.  This is Fleetwood Mac's only Number 1 in the USA.  It spend a total of 19 weeks on the chart.

DON'T STOP
Third single from Rumours to be released was a song written by Christine McVie.  It debuted on the Hot 100 July 9, 1977 and reached #3 on the charts - spending a total of 18 weeks on the chart.

YOU MAKE LOVING FUN
The final single released from Rumours was another of Christine's. It landed on the Hot 100 October 15, 1977 spending a total of 14 weeks and peaked at #9.

Countless awards followed most notably Rumours taking home the "Album of the Year" award at the 1978 Grammy Awards.



To this day the album continues to constantly appear on charts around the world indicating new generations are discovering what the older generation already knows... It's one amazing album! 

Happy Anniversary Rumours


$7.99 on itunes
To commemerate the 35th anniversary - Rumours is on sale on itunes for $7.99 through Feb 5th.  If you haven't taken the plunge and immersed yourself it it's greatness... go for it!
itunes




Wednesday, February 01, 2012

Chart Update: Fleetwood Mac "Rumours" & "Greatest Hits" USA


After Fleetwood Mac's "Rumours" album re-entered Billboards Top 200 Albums Chart last week at #117 on a sales spike, the album drops off the chart this week - but remains one of the top 200 selling catalogue albums, along with "Greatest Hits".

"Rumours" sold 1,993 copies for the sales week ending Sunday January, 29th declining 51% from the previous week when it sold 4,037 copies.  Not enough to make the Top 200 but enough to keep it on the Catalogue Chart.  Total US sales since Nov. 1991 when sales began being tracked by soundscan = 2,927,056.

"Greatest Hits" sold 1,418 copies for the week up to the 29th declining 9% from the previous week when it moved 1,561 copies.  Total US sales = 4,522,537 since Nov. 1991.

"Landslide" sold 5,111 digital copies up to the 29th down 23% vs the previous week where it sold 6,616 downloads.  Total US sales = 804,841

Billboard Top 200 Catalogue Albums Chart:
For the week ending January 29, 2012 and chart date Feb 11th.
(previous week in parenthesis)

#  93 (19)  Fleetwood Mac - "Rumours"
# 195 (165) Fleetwood Mac - "Greatest Hits"

Top 200 Digital Tracks Catalogue:
# 141 (100) Fleetwood Mac "Landslide"