| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [1] |
| Robert Christgau | C+[2] |
| Rolling Stone | [3] |
| Record Mirror | [4] |
Live is a double live album released by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac on 8 December 1980. It was the first live album from the then-current line-up of the band, and the next would be The Dance from 1997. The album was certified gold (500,000 copies sold) by the RIAA in November 1981.[5]
Live consists of recordings taken primarily from the 1979-1980 Tusk Tour, together with a few from the earlier Rumours Tour of 1977, And a Buckingham Nicks Track "Don't Let Me Down Again" from the 1975 Fleetwood Mac Tour. According to the liner notes, two songs were recorded at a Paris soundcheck and three at a performance at Santa Monica Civic Auditorium "for an audience of friends and road crew."
Of particular note are three new songs - Christine McVie's "One More Night", Stevie Nicks' "Fireflies", and a well-harmonized backstage rendition of The Beach Boys' "The Farmer's Daughter". The latter two were released as singles; "Fireflies" reached the top 60 in the US, while "The Farmer's Daughter" reached the top 10 in Austria. "Fireflies" was Nicks' rumination on the tumultuous recording of the "Tusk" album and her observance that the band stayed intact nevertheless. Her lyrics referred to band members as the "five fireflies." "The Farmer's Daughter" appears to have actually been recorded at The Village Recorders studio where Tusk was recorded despite the liner notes - it appears in the Tusk re-release of 2004 nearly identical sans crowd noise. "Don't Let Me Down Again" is a song from the Buckingham Nicks album and was actually recorded earlier than the rest of the tracks - the recording was made in 1975 in Passaic. The band covered "Farmer's Daughter" at the request of Buckingham, who deemed the Brian Wilson tune obscure enough to include on the album.[6]
Also notable are two Lindsey Buckingham guitar showcases. The first, "I'm So Afraid", was popular as a concert finale during this period. The second was Buckingham's take on former Mac guitarist Peter Green's signature number, "Oh Well" (originally a 1969 single release).
Track listing
- Side one
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recorded: | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Monday Morning" | Buckingham | Tokyo (1977) | 3:51 |
| 2. | "Say You Love Me" | C. McVie | Kansas City, Missouri (1977) | 4:18 |
| 3. | "Dreams" | Nicks | Paris (soundcheck) (1977) | 4:18 |
| 4. | "Oh Well" | Green | St. Louis, Missouri (1979) | 3:23 |
| 5. | "Over and Over" | C. McVie | Oklahoma City (1980) | 5:01 |
- Side two
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recorded: | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Sara" | Nicks | St. Louis (1979) | 7:23 |
| 2. | "Not That Funny" | Buckingham | Cleveland, Ohio (1980) | 9:04 |
| 3. | "Never Going Back Again" | Buckingham | Tucson, Arizona (1980) | 4:13 |
| 4. | "Landslide" | Nicks | London (1980) | 4:33 |
- Side three
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recorded: | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Fireflies" | Nicks | Santa Monica Civic Auditorium (for crew and friends) | 4:37 |
| 2. | "Over My Head" | C. McVie | Nashville, Tennessee (1977) | 3:27 |
| 3. | "Rhiannon" | Nicks | London (1977) | 7:43 |
| 4. | "Don't Let Me Down Again" | Buckingham | Passaic (1975) | 3:57 |
| 5. | "One More Night" | C. McVie | Santa Monica Civic Auditorium (for crew and friends) | 3:43 |
- Side four
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Recorded: | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Go Your Own Way" | Buckingham | Cleveland, Ohio (1980) | 5:44 |
| 2. | "Don't Stop" | C. McVie | Paris (soundcheck) (1977) | 4:05 |
| 3. | "I'm So Afraid" | Buckingham | Cleveland, Ohio (1980) | 8:28 |
| 4. | "The Farmer's Daughter" | Studio D, Village Recorders, Los Angeles, April 1979 | 2:25 |
Personnel
Fleetwood Mac
- Lindsey Buckingham – guitar, vocals
- Stevie Nicks – vocals
- Christine McVie – keyboards, vocals
- John McVie – bass
- Mick Fleetwood – drums, percussion
Additional personnel
- Ray Lindsey – additional guitar on "Go Your Own Way"
- Tony Toadaro – additional percussion
- Jeffery Sova – additional keyboards
Production
- Richard Dashut – producer, mix-down engineer, live engineering
- Ken Caillat – producer, live recording, mix-down engineer
- Fleetwood Mac – producers
- Biff Dawes – live recording
- Trip Khalaf – live engineering
- Carla Frederick – studio recording assistant
- Rich Feldman – studio recording assistant
- David (Dominguez) Ahlert – studio recording assistant
- Ken Perry – mastering
- Larry Vigon – art direction and design
- Chris Callis – cover and collage photography
- Sam Emerson – collage photography
- Sharon Weisz – collage photography
Charts
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | US Billboard | 14 |
| 1980 | UK Album Chart | 31 |
Singles
| Peak Date | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| February 28, 1981 | "Fireflies" | Billboard Hot 100 | 60 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[7] | Gold | 100,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[5] | Gold | 500,000^ |
| ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
- ^ Ruhlmann, William. "Fleetwood Mac: Live". allmusic.com. Allmusic.
- ^ Music critic
- ^ Tucker, Ken (February 19, 1981). "Fleetwood Mac: Live". rollingstone.com. Rolling Stone.
- ^ Smith, Robin (December 6, 1980). Fleetwood Mac: Live. Record Mirror. p. 20.
- ^ a b "American album certifications – Fleetwood Mac – Live". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH.
- ^ "Lindsey Buckingham - BAM Interview (Jan 1981)". www.fleetwoodmac-uk.com. Retrieved 2020-02-03.
- ^ "British album certifications – Fleetwood Mac – Fleetwood Mac Live". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Fleetwood Mac Live in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.