Martinez Tribune The website of the Martinez Tribune.
BY KARYN A. POKLETAR
Former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Lindsey Buckingham is back with his eighth solo LP. The songwriter has returned, following a litany of personal challenges: open heart surgery, a divorce after 21 years of marriage and exile from the Mac mother ship with the self-titled Lindsey Buckingham.
Buckingham is on his own again after being booted from the Fleetwood Mac family in 2018. The group, notorious for interpersonal turmoil, gave fans a shock by firing Buckingham. The artist had been a central part of the band’s classic line-up and unimaginable success for 43 years. Buckingham boasts a stellar career as the unique, fingerpicking, guitarist/vocalist/songwriter of Mac, beginning in 1975 while he was in a duo with Stevie Nicks (personally and professionally involved since 1969). Nicks and Buckingham joined the ensemble, via an invitation from Mick Fleetwood. Over the years, the band has yielded avalanches of successful pop songs amidst raging personal politics.
There is much to be said about this 37 minute, self-titled, quirky, pop album. Buckingham’s creativity, guitar plucking and song writing ability still flow like a river as is evident by the artist’s lead single “I Don’t Mind.” His distinctive, jingle-jangly, guitar playing is oh-so-mesmerizing, super pretty, clean and always identifiable. Technically, this is a near perfect tune. A vibe of mysteriousness and rhythm-forward cadence in the first few bars, draw us into its charm. Buckingham’s voice starts midrange, California-sun-warmed, as the troubadour dips into his baritone register “Oh, my love, the sky is burning//So much left to do//You and I will still be learning//Always something new.”
This four-minute song is hypnotic as the guitarist casts his spell and clearly reminds you of Fleetwood Mac’s unceasing productivity. There is a lively valence and danceability throughout the song, even though the lyrics contrast and admit to sadness in the chorus “Weeping willow//On my pillow//I don’t mind.” Buckingham chose a beautiful metaphor because the Weeping Willow tree, when it rains, looks like tears are dripping off its bending branches. Is the pillow, where he is also weeping, a revelation of his journey?
A chorus of acceptance regarding his broken family and being discharged from Fleetwood Mac before the group was slated to go on tour is evident throughout the record. There is likely to be strong objection to Swan Song’s mix; a hyperspace, attack-time on the boxy sounding, percussive slapping, is so distracting. It’s a weird blend. Buckingham croons dreamily, winding through the exhausting, unsubtle compression that is laid over some delectable guitar riffs. One wonders if the lyrics “Is it right to keep me waiting?//In the shadow of our swan song?” refers to a reunion with Mac in the future.
On the zippy, empowering track, Blue Light the songwriter lyrically works, cheerfully, through life’s challenges. This ditty begins with a childlike, skipping-through-the-playground feel, as the simple, clockwork of a melody keeps time. With clever juxtapositions “Still crying about joy//Still laughing about pain//Bathed in the fire//Burned by the rain.” Buckingham works out something personal in this song. It’s indubitably bright musically, even though he contends with unravelling his confusion, and making sense of what is not clear to him. He admonishes fans to practice determination and victory over (our universality of) human quandaries; like those of health, difficult working relationships or a crumbling marriage. At 71, the artist’s creative days and optimistic takes are not over, as he sings “Sometimes our hearts may break//And we might lose our sight//But we’ll never, never, never, never, never give in//To the house, to the house of blue light.”
The multitalented child of the 60’ sings of his wife’s desire to uproot the family and move to Santa Rosa. The singer refuses to comply. “Oh no, I can’t let it go, I can’t// Now you want to leave it behind//Looking for something you won’t find.” The composer resumes with the phrase ”Oh, no, this can’t be so, I can’t.” He’s telling us of life changing, marital discord. Muddy and warm is the guitar on the final track, Dancing. This would have been a better song if it was accapella or if the volume knob was cranked more to the right, balancing out the mix of its breathy soundscape.
It’s an interesting album that contributes to his legacy as a solo artist, but far from a masterpiece. The songster is a bit scarred, as he deconstructs life while seemingly concluding that it isn’t all gloomy.
Was Buckingham’s dismissal from Fleetwood Mac strategic? Possibly. A reconciliation between him and the group, culminating in a 2022-23 worldwide tour would sell out. The legacy of Fleetwood Mac would be revived. Fans will gladly fork out $400 per ticket, just to see the onstage tension between these artists.
Could this be a master marketing move? The real question is…do we even care? Does it matter to lifetime fans if this break up is contrived? Not a bit; as long as the radio keeps spinning out hits and venues provide concerts, we’ll be content.
