“Ooh…  you’re not going THERE are you?”

“Why yes…  yes I am….

(imaginary conversation in my head when thinking of my next blog topic)

Weeeeeeeellllll…  kinda sorta…  actually I thought about facing off between Rumours and the self titled Fleetwood Mac album (first two Buckingham/Nicks platters) but after having watched “History Of The Eagles”, I thought to myself…  hold on there!  How about a Showdown between two of da biggest bands of all times!  Not only dat, but two of the top selling artists and albums of all times!  Yeeeahhh boyyyeeee!  Both albums released within weeks of each other; Hotel California at the tail end of 1976 and Rumours in February 1977 with both albums featuring songs that were played incessantly during my formative years as a budding music junkie and are still extremely popular to this day.  Sounds like a topic!

(imaginary conversation continues…)

“C’mon maaaaaan…  The Eagles???  Fleetwood Mac???  yer kidding me, right?  How about a showdown between Back In Black and Dark Side Of The Moon if you want best selling albums of all time?  Stick with the rock, maaaaaan” (bangs head and flashes devil horns)

“Ahhh, no dude…  think about it…  you love THOSE bands yet you have a healthy respect for the Mac and The Eagles and actually have a bit of love for them as well.  Besides, this article will get more hits than one about those other two” (eyes dart nervously, secretly hopes he is correct)

OK enough already!  Showdown is on!  Let’s break it down…

Fleetwood Mac “Rumours”

What can I say about Rumours?  Everyone knows the story…  guitarist/songwriter/singer Lindsey Buckingham and singer/songwriter Stevie Nicks join the band in 1975, success follows, and as writing commences for their next album in 1976 band relationships are splintering: Couple Buckingham/Nicks were on the serious outs during recording sessions and bassist John McVie and his wife, keyboardist/vocalist/songwriter Christine McVie were going through a rough patch of their own and heading to divorceville.  Amazingly, band drama and tension creates an odd combination of friction and magic that plays out in the lyrics of many songs featured on the album, which quickly goes multiplatinum and over the years has come to be lauded as one of THE best albums of all time and is STILL played on classic rock radio to this day.

Enough with the backstory, what about those songs?  In one word…  incredible.  I’ve probably heard each song on the radio over these past 40+ years multiple times (“Oh Daddy” being the rarest, but I’m pretty sure I’ve heard it)-  how often can you say that?  Many of these songs are classics; maybe not every single one toots your horn but there is not any I generally skip on those rare occasions I listen to it.  To hit some highlights, Lindsey Buckingham was en fuego on this disc:  his fiery playing and venomous delivery of “Go Your Own Way” is monstrous, his vocal starting off a bit distant cool yet increases in intensity throughout the verse and into that glorious chorus while tossing in some stinging guitar work during the fadeout of the song.  Throw in the bouncy “Second Hand News” and “Never Going Back Again” and you’ve got a near joyous and fun Lindsey, all heartfelt vocal and fingerpicked brilliance.  But then opposite that you’ve got “Dreams”, arguably my favorite Mac composition and definitive fave from Stevie Nicks, a song brilliantly subtle and moving courtesy of her gentle singing voice, memorable chorus, and estimable groove from John McVie and Mick Fleetwood (listen to that bass!).  And did I say “bouncy”?  Don’t forgot Mrs. McVie’s tunes; “Don’t Stop” being a bout of ooey-gooey positivity featuring a great singalong chorus quickly chased by the equally Smoove “You Make Loving Fun”- how in the hell can a band seemingly on a personal downward trend toss out brilliantly effervescent tunes like these?  And maybe the biggest band statement of all is the core of the album-  as a whole, “The Chain” may be THE Mac song that represents the heart and soul of this unit.  Take one part strident rocker, another part impassioned vocals from Buckingham/Nicks/McVie, and third part near autobiographical lyric and you’ve got one fantabulous tune from a group who, even though all are going through their own individual bouts of pain, suffering, and heartache, likely realize a certain musical bond (“The Chain”) is what will keep them together.  It is the only song on the album credited to all five as a whole.

The Eagles “Hotel California”

Like Rumours, Hotel California has its own story…  but what is fact and what is fiction?  Depends on who you believe, so let me set the record straight…  no, Bernie Leadon was not fired from the band for stealing Glenn Frey’s groupies.

What?  That’s not right?  Huh….

Sorry, fake news alert…  let’s take you to the REAL story.  Supposedly, Hotel California was about…  oh, I don’t know…  could it be…  SAAAATAAAAAN?  Yes boys and girls, rumours (ha ha, I see what you did there!) had it that The Eagles were Satanists and the song “Hotel California” was a hotel where real devil worshipping occurred and lots of drug filled orgies happened.  You don’t believe me?  Why, take a look at the back of the album, waaaay at the top in the middle window…  who do you think that is?  That’s Anton LaVey!  You don’t know who Anton LaVey is?  He’s the leader of the Church of Satan silly!  Why would he be on this cover if this wasn’t “HIS” church?  Listen to those lyrics about “stabbing it with their steely knives but the just can’t kill the beast”!  Hmmmm?  HMMMMMMMMMM???????

Stop it.  No, that’s NOT Anton LaVey, that’s just some dude named Elvis who works at a Burger King in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Who cares!  At any rate, Hotel California is an outstanding album featuring many classics that (like Rumours) were all over the radio in the late 70s, the 80s, the 90s…  well, you get the drift- classic rock radio features plenty of songs from this album and who could blame them?  The title cut is absolute brilliance, far and away my favorite Eagles cut of all time based on the guitar work from Messrs. Don Felder and the esteemed “new boy in the band” Joe Walsh- that beautiful ringing melody and that lead guitar trade off at the tail end of the song is sheer ear candy.  And those lyrics!  Wonderfully cryptic and obtuse, Don Henley penning a tune based on a Frey idea of a man stumbling into an out of the way hotel featuring an odd cast of characters and a scene where he’s informed that he “could check out anytime you like, but you can never leave”.    Such vivid imagery and subtly creepy content amazingly countered by hypnotic guitar wizardry makes for one excellent tune.

But what about the rest of the tunes?  “New Kid In Town” is a brilliant Frey cut, his smooth vocal with countryesque musical leanings is utterly sublime; “Life In The Fast Lane” is pure Joe Walsh, all killer riff and stellar guitar work coolly crooned by Henley; and you want more of that Walsh\Felder combo?  How about “Victim Of Love”?  A bit of semi-chicken pickin’ on the intro riff and some punchy chords, this may be the band’s most underrated rocker.  But man, don’t stop there- toss in the wistful near ballad “Wasted Time” featuring another excellent vocal from Henley backed by some fine string arrangements from Jim Ed Norman (a vibe well represented in future Henley solo cuts); and what may be the most unsung tune of them all on the album in Walsh’s “Pretty Maids All In A Row”, a song so nakedly beautiful courtesy of Joe’s plaintive vocal, the waltzlike time in which it’s played, and the gorgeous backing vocals of his bandmates.  Throw in a thoughtful and almost “longing for the past” lyric that’s executed so brilliantly and you’ve got the hidden gem on one very fine album.

The Winner?  

Rumours

Before I get into the why, I’ll fully admit that my favorite song from either record is “Hotel California”.  The haunting melody, fabulous guitar work, and captivating lyric is a deadly triple combination (is that a thing?) that is just stunning in its execution.  Also full on admission is that my favorite musician BY FAR between the two bands is the utterly incomparable Joe Walsh.  The man has written sooo many classics and produced so many great riffs that he stands above some very fine musicians here.

But yeah…  Rumours…  it all comes down to this- well, two things in particular- the melodies and the songs.  Throw in compositional variety as a third and this album is hard to top.  You’ve got some really good to excellent songs on Hotel California but it’s of a different vibe altogether, maybe a bit darker and more cynical that’s great in its own way but Rumours has a better mixture of light, shade, and rhythm (chalk that up to bassist McVie and drummer Fleetwood).  You got joy, you got anger, you got confusion, you got beauty, you got pain, you got hate, you got love, and you got damn near every other emotion buried deep within each song and soul of each musician featured on this Mac album.  If I were going to be stuck on a desert island and I had my choice of these two discs to take with me, it would be Rumours…  no questions asked.