Interesting timing for this release, unplanned I'm sure. But it
comes hot on the heels of Buckingham's latest split with Fleetwood Mac,
and given their ages, perhaps the last straw in the fractured fairy tale
of Buckingham's tenure. He's been ambivalent about the group since the
mid-80's anyway, as this wide-ranging, lengthy collection shows. There's
three 70-minute CD's worth of music, which shows how much he's wanted
to follow his own path.
The stage was set for
Buckingham's solo work with the Tusk album. After the inconceivable
success of Rumours, money was never going to be an issue, nor fame, so
he felt far less pressure to crank out hits. Tusk saw him starting down
an idiosyncratic path. When that sprawling double album proved less than
popular with many fans, solo albums became his outlet. Still, over the
years he's had to hand back tracks to Fleetwood Mac when they felt like
releasing new albums, so it's never felt like he really had a complete
career in either camp.
If you're looking for
Mac-like hits, there aren't many that would have worked on radio.
Trouble was his lone solo success, a quirky, bright track with catchy
moments, a piece of candy really. Love Runs Deeper, from 2008's Gift Of
Screws is a great rock track and deserved to be a hit, but somehow
stalled at radio. It's one that sits with his very best tracks, with a
huge chorus and lots of Stevie-like backing vocals. That's rare for his
solo work though, as Buckingham preferred to go for surprises,
confections and delights. For the most part, these were the sounds he'd
fine experimenting by himself. As has become obvious, he's a lousy
bandmate, and wants to create by himself, for himself.
Talent?
Oh my gosh, lots of that. Listening to some of the live tracks spread
throughout the collection, there's great guitar mastery. His imagination
is boundless, and the songs range from dreamscapes to confrontational,
in-your-face boldness. Conventional tracks seemed to just not interest
him. Since so much was solo work, there's a little too much drum
machine, and lots of that fiddling, fast guitar he does, so he could use
more variety, but every track is interesting, which is saying a lot.
For
those who prefer more of his popular songs, disc three is devoted to
live tracks, featuring several of his Mac hits. That includes Big Love,
Tusk, Go Your Own Way and I'm So Afraid. Sometimes it almost feels like
he's playing with us, saying he can do that pop stuff any old time. As
much as that has infuriated his band, and frustrated fans over the
years, there's still lots to appreciate in this challenging career
collection.
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