Bombs Away Dream Babies ()

'Bombs Away' was released during my senior year in high school (79-80), and though I was still more into buying singles than albums at that time, I picked up the album cheap because it had one of those "cutouts" on the cover. I've never had such a bargain since.

While lured to the album by 'Gold' (as a Fleetwood Mac fanatic, I recognized Lindsey and Stevie on there long before reading the credits), what I found I bought was a perfect soundtrack to the things that were my essence back in my heydays.

As a fervent long distance runner, I found inspiration in several Stewart songs. "Sucking wind, I'm slipping down the backroad once again, and I'm on the run...over the hill" was a perfect soundtrack for my cross country and track days. The same could be said for my liking the underdog role in big races, represented by 'Coming out of nowhere on the run.'

Also frustrated by my poor timing with the ladies, Stewart had the answers there as well, with "Spinning of the world" and "Lost her in the sun." Lindsey's harmonizing in many of these songs takes them to an even higher level and makes one now wish there'd been much more collaboration between he and Stewart. Their work on 'Heart of the Dream' just blows my mind away to this day, and is a pick-me-up when things are down.

'Gold' and 'Midnight Wind' have that Fleetwood Mac feel to 'em and also of the siren song that I feel California represents to some. And many of the other songs feature the guitar work that we know and recognize as LB's although it seems now that LB and JS were kindred spirits.

It's weird now that I find this site, and this opportunity to review this album. Just a couple months ago I was out bowhunting, sitting in a tree stand doing some reminiscing, and decided to make a list of those albums that were good all the way through. A lot of albums have some great songs, but few are solid top to bottom. Though I have in excess of 300 albums, my list was only 7-8 albums long, but Bombs Away Dream Babies was on it, and should be mandatory in any Fleetwood Mac fan's audio library. You won't be disappointed, no matter how difficult it is to find. I really feel it is a masterpiece.

Tusk ()

As a teen when Tusk came out, I was expecting/hoping for a Rumours II like everyone else. So my response was lukewarm at first, but getting to college a year or two later and broadening my musical tastes, I got the headphones on and took another good, hard listen. And I wasn't disappointed. Of course maybe that had something to do with the fact that one of the speakers on my home stereo in high school didn't work 90 percent of the time and I was missing a lot of the sound. Trust me, "stereo" is good, especially on this album.
In many ways, this has become my favorite FM album. Perhaps because there are 20 songs so there's more bang for the buck. But also because I think this release was ahead of it's time and remains fresh to this day. Quirky, meandering? Maybe, but I don't want to listen to 10 or 20 songs that all sound the same anyway. [In that vein, what is it with our rap kids these days? Oops, got off the subject.] Isn't it weird that what radio plays often doesn't match what a fan considers to be the best songs on the album? Stevie's 'Storms' and 'Sisters of the Moon' are easily more preferred than the still-good 'Sara.' 'Storms' is simply heart-wrenching, and has broader appeal since it isn't as spooky as some of her other favorites. 'Angel' is very good too, and 'Beautiful Child' is as well. In other words, all of SN's tracks are better than average, and there are other albums where I can't say that (some of her solo albums and Tango come to mind). Christine hits her stride best on 'Brown Eyes' and 'Honey Hi.' The latter is a showcase of harmonizing with all three vocalists in fine form. Her other four tracks are all good, but these two are among Christine's very best ever in my opinion. But this is an album where you get a hint of the future with Lindsey's efforts. 'Go Your Own Way' has always been my favorite song, period, of all time. But 'I Know I'm Not Wrong' gives it a run for the money. LB's work here and in 'That's Enough For Me' and 'The Ledge' and 'Not That Funny' just simply get one excited about the music. These tracks sound fresh today, over 20 years later. And there's a certain Where's Waldo flavor to these songs--plug in the headphones and you're likely to hear sounds you've never heard before or didn't pick up from the first listen to the album. Yes, there are a couple songs that I skip when I listen to the album these days--I never could get into 'Save Me A Place'--but LB more than makes up for it with his best offerings here. There are other gems, including the title track, and any Mac fan is encouraged to give this recording another listen. Like I said in the summary line, it has been underrated (the Creem reviewer must've been dropped on head as an infant) and overlooked, but don't fall for that--it's a great album and one I ALWAYS pack for long trips. It kills me that the critics are always looking for something 'different' or 'new', but in this case since it came from one of the monsters of the era, they wouldn't embrace it. Their loss.

Out Of The Cradle ()

I have this CD, yet have somehow found your way to this site...what is your problem? Seriously, this is a great work. A couple above average tunes, a bunch of very good ones, and four that just soar to new heights for me (Countdown, Turn It On, Don't Look Down and Soul Drifter). Countdown and Don't Look Down are more polished than some of my Lindsey favorites from Tusk, but still retain some of eccentric and quirky qualities that I admire. The lead-in to Countdown is out of this world, and the ooh-ooh-ooh's on DLD don't get old at all. While the one reveiwer said (paraphrasing now) that this had too much pain in it, I tend to find uplifing moments in the piece. Countdown and Don't Look Down surely are just that, and I feel Turn It On is very motivational (and if it's autobiographical, so be it). Soul Drifter is simply sweet, and was my then-wife's favorite. I'm not a musician, per se, so can't tell you precisely why I perceive this to be a masterpiece, but when one many plays all the instruments and it still sounds like this, you'd better get your copy and see for yourself.