Fleetwood Mac
12 July 1994
Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Morrison, CO
Fleetwood Mac opening for Crosby, Stills & Nash at Red Rocks? Well, not the same Fleetwood Mac most people are accustomed to. Since Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham, and Christine McVie are out of the lineup, how can the remaining members call themselves "Fleetwood Mac"? Simple. The only two members who have stayed with the band since the 1960s, Mick Fleetwood and John McVie, are still with the band, some 25 years later.
Who then fills the vocal shoes of Nicks, Buckingham, and McVie? Three more or less already known names. 1) Dave Mason, respectable solo artist and former member of Traffic, 2) Bekka Bramlett, daughter of singer Bonnie Bramlett, and 3) Rick Vito, on tour with FM since about 1987.
So, without the songwriting talents of Nicks, Buckingham, and McVie, what songs could they perform? Well, a mixed bag. They started off with the Buckingham classic, "The Chain", and did quite well. Rick Vito handled the lead vocal parts for this song, as well as "Go Your Own Way".
Bekka covered a couple Nicks tunes.
Dave Mason chimed in with his 1977 smash, "We Just Disagree". Strangely enough, the same vocalist who backed him on the studio version, Michael Finnegan, played during the evening's next set with Crosby, Stills & Nash, but didn't back up Mason on stage. Would've been nice. Oh well. He also added his 1970 gem "Only You Know And I Know", which, interestingly, Bekka's folks Delaney and Bonnie had a cover hit with in the early 1970s.
So, "Fleetwood Mac" may have been somewhat misleading, but the current lineup did a remarkable job of putting together a fine, entertaining show, courtesy of their talent and experience. Promoters for this concert did the right thing by understating the name Fleetwood Mac, and by not trying to rip people off under the auspices that FM consisted of a lineup that no longer was. Radio promotions even went so far as to name the band as "Fleetwood Mac: Dave Mason, Bekka Bramlett, Rick Vito, Mick Fleetwood, John McVie."
Whatever they called themselves, I liked the set.
[***1/2] - Steven T.