Straight between the eyes ()

There’s a refreshing amount of force on this album, guitar & drums right up front and not shy. Yet it doesn’t rob one bit from the smooth melodic sound that's become characteristic of the band by now. Speaking of guitars, Bob Weston isn’t usually mentioned in ‘classic’ Fleetwood Mac discussions, but its his rippin’ & roarin’ which keeps this album a few steps above average. He asserts himself in the music exceedingly well.

The opening song, “Emerald Eyes”, grabs the listener on first play. This short ballad comes across real strong at just the right moments, then it leaves …..Exactly what a good hit single would do. Its odd they instead chose the bombastic, over-vocalized “For Your Love” cover as the album’s single — it should have been “Emerald Eyes”, a song I’ve played over & over again. Other good tracks on this album are simply fun-to-listen-to rockers, “The City”, “Miles Away”, and “Hypnotized”.

Mystery to Me lacks the range and variety of Bare Trees, but in its own way leaves a powerful mark in Fleetwood Mac’s middle period. It’s a power that was really never heard again.

fleetwood macs best album ()

maybe this is fleetwood macs best album at all. though only two writers in the band mystery to me is totally inspired. bob welch contributes his best material ever and bob weston is the ideal replacement for danny kirwan as lead guitar player.
christine mcvie, extremely good looking in this period is their crown jewel. believe me and why are two all-time classics.
this line up could have made it. thats how i feel about them.

is mystery really that good? ()

besides then play on and perhaps bare trees mystery to me is the most popular and estimated album by the pre-buckingham-nicks-fleetwood mac.
it is indeed a good album, no doubt. hypnotized, believe me, miles away and keep on going are very strong songs. but there is something about the atmosphere that does not really satisfy me. i cannot describe this. i prefer both penguin and heroes because i just feel happy and free while listening to them. maybe i am a bit annoyed as i adore heroes and noone really remembers this great album.

A forgotten gem ()

Isn't it amazing. Here you go through life knowing that Fleetwood Mac of course had early heydays in late 60ies, then of course mega stardom after 1975s eponymous album. And then, suddenly one stumbles over this album. A revelation. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but Mystery To Me is a blueprint for Rumours. I love Rumours, Tusk, Tango...,Fleetwood Mac and Mirage, but I never imagined that they had made a record of such warmth and depth. Not cool calm and collected, but warm calm and collected. Put on the record/cd/down load and close your eyes and think of a warm summer afternoon in '73 when music was emphatically more organic and blissfully attentive and present.

How have I never heard this before? ()

I'm a college student that has an unconventional love for Fleetwood Mac. I was rummaging through a record store dollar albums and found this in VG++ condition. I never heard any of the songs before and I figured it was from the era between Peter Green and Nicks/Buckingham. I wasn't expecting much, but after playing through just once. Mind is blown.

Fleetwood Mac... when I thought I heard all you had to offer this just proves me wrong.

Great '70s Music ()

When I heard this album I was blown away by the music and the lyrics. The impact it has made on me remains today. I was just thumbing thru my collection and ran across it again; and I'm stuck here and I don't want to move. The music just takes me back (graduated from high school in 1972); that was a great year and it was a great time for Fleetwood Mac.

A Fleetwood Mac classic ()

Bought my first copies in 1973 the year I graduated from High school. Got the album,and the 8 track, have the cd today.This the best album of the Bob Welch era,I think the best Fleetwood Mac album ever.Mick Fleetwoods unselfish crisp drumming matched with John McVies pounding bass runs(Miles away, For your love, Hypnotized),are as tight as a watch, listening to these two on this album will blow you away.John McVie has never cut loose like this since.Match all this with Bob Welch's underrated guitar work this album goes from straight forward rock,to some good funky type stuff,to some Christine McVie songs, all good(especially Why).You have to listen to this more than a few times to hear all the little things going on as they jam.Bob Welch's throws the spaciest licks through there, he gets such great tone.Anyway Fleetwood Mac went commercial after 1976, which was good for them, but when Bob Welch left it wasn,t good for many.This early 70's version was very unique and I still miss it.I have never played this album for any new(Buckingham,Nicks)Fleetwood Mac fan,who wasn,t surprised on how good Fleetwood Mac was, since most never heard anything they knew was Fleetwood Mac,pre 1976.The only thing I don't have are any live recordings of these songs.I don't think they exist.I did have experience of seeing some of them performed live in S.F.,Winterland, and Sac., Memorial auditorium in 1974,or 75. Can,t remember the exact year but I definately will never forget the show.

A Fleetwood Mac classic ()

Bought my first copies in 1973 the year I graduated from High school. Got the album,and the 8 track, have the cd today.This the best album of the Bob Welch era,I think the best Fleetwood Mac album ever.Mick Fleetwoods unselfish crisp drumming matched with John McVies pounding bass runs(Miles away, For your love, Hypnotized),are as tight as a watch, listening to these two on this album will blow you away.John McVie has never cut loose like this since.Match all this with Bob Welch's underrated guitar work this album goes from straight forward rock,to some good funky type stuff,to some Christine McVie songs, all good(especially Why).You have to listen to this more than a few times to hear all the little things going on as they jam.Bob Welch's throws the spaciest licks through there, he gets such great tone.Anyway Fleetwood Mac went commercial after 1976, which was good for them, but when Bob Welch left it wasn,t good for many.This early 70's version was very unique and I still miss it.I have never played this album for any new(Buckingham,Nicks)Fleetwood Mac fan,who wasn,t surprised on how good Fleetwood Mac was, since most never heard anything they knew was Fleetwood Mac,pre 1976.The only thing I don't have are any live recordings of these songs.I don't think they exist.I did have experience of seeing some of them performed live in S.F.,Winterland, and Sac., Memorial auditorium in 1974,or 75. Can,t remember the exact year but I definately will never forget the show.

Remembering the Past ()

Ok-This album has ALWAYS been my favorite from Fleetwood Mac. Yes, even after Stevie and Lindsey joined the band. I was only 11 or 12 when I first heard it, and have been loveing it ever since. I had the opportunity to see the band a couple of years ago in Minneapolis. They didn't play anything from this album, and I was so disappointed. I really had no idea that they would not include any of these GREAT songs. It's too bad, and most people have no idea what "Mystery to Me" is and how truly beautiful the sound is. It has a wonderful mix of blues, reggae, rock, all blended so nice, you will be mezmorized!

Too Good ()

This album is so frickin' good. It's in my cd player and I just keep playing it over and over again. Every song is awesome. I especially like the happy bass line and chipper chord voicings in Forever and the powerful signature wave of sound that busts out of Keep On Going at all the right times. Even their remake of For Your Love doesn't sound too incredibly unlike the Yardbirds' hit version but it some how takes on that robust enchanting tone that's so rich in this whole album. Get this album NOW!

One of the most underated albums ever ()

I still listen to this album several times a year in 2006. I am 45 years old and was in high school in the US when Rumours came out. I am blown away how this album has been ignored (except for hypnotized). This album NEVER gets played on US radio. "Why" is easily one of the greatest all time blues/love songs to never be played on the radio. Emerald eyes is an amazing song also. I am trying to find a singer in California who can sing like Christie McVie. I am going to start covering all her songs on this album.

Quite a good one. ()

Bob Welch's material dominated this album, but that's definitely not a bad thing. I love his Emerald Eyes and Hypnotized. Christine finally received room for at least four songs on an album and they are all great, especially Believe Me and Why. This isn't the best album FM has had, but it's definitely worth buying/downloading/whatever else.

The Rumoursof the Bob Welch era ()

The above might sound like a grandiose statement but it's the truth. Like Rumours, Mystery has a well balanced running order. Although none of the song were hit singles, There were several tracks that should have been. The prime examples are Just Crazy Love and Hypnotized ( a song that garnered a lot of FM airplay back in the day) The Mac is well into its move from blues to the melodic sound that would make them popular a few years later. Bob Welch plays a major role in defining the band's sound just as Lindsey Bucking ham would 4 years later. All in all, a great listen and a good place to start if you are only familiar with the Buckingham Nicks era and you want to delve further into the group's back catalog.

Fleetwood Mac's most underrated album ()

By the time this album was recorded and released, it was obvious that the Mac had completely abandoned their blues roots. Fleetwood Mac had evolved into a completely different band and this is attributed to the many personnel changes within the band and that american guitarist Bob Welch had inevitably taken on the leadership role which transformed Fleetwood Mac's sound to a more softer californian rock sound.

The opening track "Emerald eyes" is a perfect example of the sound that Fleetwood Mac were exemplary of during this period. "Emerald eyes" is one of the strongest tracks on the album. It had hit potential but it was overlooked as a single in favour of the cover version of the Yardbirds hit "For your love". Welch contributed most of the material on this album and probably his best ever. 'Miles way', 'Somebody' and the haunting 'Hypnotised' were all examples of Welch's impeccable work and that the Mac were also evolving as band in the studio as the production of the band's album tracks were stronger than ever. This trend of improved production was consolidated from their previous album "Penguin".

There are also some weak points. Tracks such as "The city" and "Forever" contained some very poor production work.

Emerald eyes would have to contain the best production on this album and for that reason it tends to stand out from the rest of the songs. It was a good song to open the album with. Miles way, Somebody and Emerald eyes would have to be my favourite 'Welch' tracks.

This would have to be the first album where all Chrisitine Mcvie contributions are impeccable. There is not one bad moment from Christine on this album. From 'Believe me' to 'Why' Christine is in top form. This album would have to be the beginning of Christine Mcvie as a credible singer/songwriter who contributes very strong material for Fleetwood Mac. From this point on, Christine Mcvie's career in Fleetwood Mac progresses as she can do no wrong.

The track "Hypnotised" has an obvious hypnotic effect on the listener. It is one of the most enigmatic, haunting, eerie and darkest songs I have ever heard. You have to listen to it to understand and appreciate it for what it is. The song can literally put you into a trance! It is that scary! Welch had a tendency to compose music like that. This kind of musical style would be pursued on "Heroes are hard to find" album and even with his solo career. This eerie dimension to Welch's songs was also evident on Fleetwood mac album "Penguin". This eerie, spooky and enigmatic mood created in his songs is also attributed to his vocals. Bob Welch can sing in a very haunting, probably not as haunting as Stevie Nicks, but still his voice has an hypnotic effect. But when you listen to tracks like Emerald eyes you perceive Welch's voice in a completely different manner. His vocals comes across as warm and comforting.

The track "Why" penned by Christine Mcvie is typical of her songwriting style. The track has a pretty melody and there's a melancholy mood in the song which is created by Christine's keyboard/piano playing. This would have to be Christine's most creative period within the band upon till the release of this album.

The gradual and dramatic change in Fleetwood Mac's approach to production and the musical direction that the band had taken is evident that the Mac were trying to crack the US market. Unfortunately this meant that they had abandoned their blues fans when they abandoned their blues roots and success in the UK was far fetched.

This journey of constant change and growth only led to bigger and better things.

Hypnotized ()

You want more Bob Welch? You got more Bob Welch on "Mystery To Me". This starts off with the fabulous "Emerald Eyes". Christine's "Believe Me" is an amazing, bouncy song which is one of her best songs. Then comes the filler "Just Crazy Love" which is just a simple ballad and a weak effort by McVie. Then comes the numinous "Hypnotized" and the bouncy-with-a-reggae-feel "Forever". Christine sings Welch's "Keep On Going" nicely but it's not a memorable song and neither is Welch's "The City". "Miles Away" and "Somebody" are both rock numbers and both great songs by Welch. "The Way I Feel" is a decent ballad by McVie and "For Your Love" is decent. And then there's "Why". It's just such a beautiful song. This makes up for her three weaker songs (minus "Believe Me"). Welch and McVie show what they are capable of doing with "Mystery To Me" and they show it well.

One persons filler is anothers reason for buying ()

I got into Fleetwood Mac because of this album and mostly because of the song "Forever". I heard this song and bought the record. Still listen to it quite often. I went and bought most of the other Macs that were around at the time and enjoyed this album tremendously. I think every song is well done. Until the White Album this was their best.

a ground-breaking, musician's favorite ()

in the middle of the 70s, when pop music had lost a sense of direction, disco ruled, and concept-rock had passed into self-indulgence, Fleetwood Mac pointed a new direction out to pop musicians with this album, with some daring production moves which were probably underappreciated by the general listening audience. 1) Mick Fleetwood, god of the steady and inventive drum-beat, used a rythm-synth! while drummers around the world cringed at the thought of being replaced by boxes with knobs, Fleetwood layered licks and riffs on top of an obviously automatic track (Emerald Eyes), and showed that the master was not afraid. 2) in the midst of the middle-era of the guitar god, the guitar tracks on the album are mixed as much to blend as to lead, to build texture rather than assert melody. 3) while basically a concept-less album, the "snap-shot" songs of personal moods and feelings set the tone for later FM albums.

Bob Welch at the peak of his powers ()

What Rumours was to the Buckingham Nicks line-up, MTM is to the Bob Welch era. Welch turns in some stellar performances on songs such as Emerald Eyes,Hypnotized and Miles Away. Christine keeps maturing as a wtiter. Had just crazy love been released as a single, I believe it would have been a hit. I has all of the hallmarks of hits such as Don't Stop and You make Loving Fun; a moving but relaxed groove and memorable hooks. Let's not forget the foundation that is laid down by the namesake rhythm section.

The Mac's best in the early 70s ()

This is arguably Fleetwood Mac's best album released between the departure of Peter Green and the arrival of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham. All the members turn in great performances. Mick and John's rhythm section is exceptionally strong. Bob Weston, whose tenure with the Mac was far too brief, does some amazing guitar work on songs like "Miles Away" and Yardbirds cover "For Your Love." Bob Welch's biggest hit with Fleetwood Mac, "Hypnotized," is on this album. And Christine writes some of the best songs of her career here, especially my personal all-time favorite Mac tune, "Why," which has a beautiful intro by Weston. There are only a couple of "filler" songs, like "Forever" and "Somebody." Other than these, the entire album is excellent. Mac fans who are only familiar with the Rumours line-up should definitely check out this album if they want to broaden their FM horizons.