STEVIE NICKS - BELLA DONNA

Released forty-one years ago, Bella Donna was Stevie Nicks debut solo album which found her stepping away from the chaos that was Fleetwood Mac and releasing a hit-laden album that proved she could also fly solo as well as being a major part of the group.

With three songwriters in Fleetwood Mac, Nicks was frustrated as she was a prolific songwriter and many of her songs were not even considered for inclusion in their latest album Tusk. Over the previous six years with the band she had amassed an amazing amount of unused material. In an interview she spoke about the problems, "When we'd do an album, they'd hear fifteen of my songs and pick the two that were my least favourite. Some of my favourite songs wouldn't get used."

Following the release of Tusk in 1979 and the epic world tour that followed, Nicks returned to her Pacific Palisades home she shared with her new boyfriend, producer Jimmy Iovine. It was there that the seeds of a new album were sown.

By her own admission she was in a terrible shape following the tour. "I was so tired and sung out. I was so 'Landslide-ed' out and so 'Rhiannon-ed' out that I thought if I had to do that set one more time I was going to go nuts." It seemed the time was right to pursue a solo career.

Iovine agreed to produce her solo project and planned on a different approach to the one that Fleetwood Mac followed on their recordings. His idea was to go for a more live sound. He had previously worked with John Lennon, Bruce Springsteen and Meat Loaf. However, it was his work with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers that grabbed Nicks attention. She told Iovine that she wanted a 'girl version' of Petty's sound.

In September, at her house, Nicks and her girlfriends, Sharon Celani and Lori Perry, worked with Heartbreakers keyboardist Benmont Tench, who Iovine had asked to act as musical director on the project.

They rehearsed for two months as Nicks recalled, "We were like Joni Mitchell and Crosby, Stills and Nash, living in this great house and making music. It was one of those real rock 'n' roll experiences that you can never forget."

Tench recalled the rehearsals, "It was song after great song. I think she had enough for her first three solo albums and beyond." He went on to talk about how the girls worked together, "Lori and Sharon were so instinctive and so intuitive. They were all so tuned in to each other. At the drop of a hat they'd break into a-cappella versions of old songs like Chapel Of Love. They loved each other and loved to harmonize. They stood behind me at the piano, and when I heard their three voices together it was just: 'Wow', goosebumps."

Sessions took place at Studio 55 in Los Angeles. Built in 1940 by Decca Records it was the studio where the classic Bing Crosby festive standard White Christmas was recorded.

Recording began in November 1980 and would continue through to Spring 1981.Produced by Jimmy Iovine, the sessions marked the start of Nicks trend of calling on her musician friends. There was Tom Petty and Don Henley, who contributed vocals on a few tracks, along with session musicians Waddy Wachtel, Davey Johnstone, Bob Glaub, Benmont Tench and Russ Kunkel. Additional support was provided by a number of players including Mike Campbell, Donald 'Duck' Dunn, Dan Dugmore, Roy Bittan and Don Felder.

The recordings would also be the first to feature Nicks close friends and backing vocalists, Sharon Celani and Lori Perry, both of whom had worked with Nicks during the rehearsals for the album and would record and tour with Nick's in the years to come.

Talking about the sessions, Tench recalled, "We recorded all the songs essentially live with the whole band cutting at the same time, and Stevie, Lori and Sharon singing with us on the floor. We captured a beautiful feel. The same mood that was in her house made it to the vocal booth."

Bella Donna was released on 27 July 1981 and would reach #1 on the Billboard 200 and number three on the Billboard Rock Albums chart. In the United Kingdom it peaked at #3 while in Australia it repeated the US success hitting the top spot. The album spent almost three years on the Billboard 200 between July 1981 and June 1984.

It took less than three months to reach platinum status by the RIAA (Record Industry Association of America) and in 1990 was certified multi-platinum status for sales of over four million copies. 

For the albums cover photo Nicks turned to Herbert Worthington III who had taken the photos for Rumours. Taking a series of photos he managed to capture Nicks as a mystical woman in chiffon.

Talking about the images to Rolling Stone, Nicks said, "What I'm wearing is the exact opposite of my black outfit on Rumours. Over that it says: 'Come in from the darkness...', which is the dark side of anyone, the side that isn't optimistic, that isn't strong."

Bella Donna was a strong debut featuring some of Nicks best material and there wasn't a bad track on the album. 

The album opens with the title track, Bella Donna, a song she refused to give to Fleetwood Mac as she was saving it for herself. It meant so much to her that it became the title track of her debut solo album. As she told Rolling Stone in 1981, "Bella Donna is a term of endearment I use, and the title is about making a lot of decisions in my life, making change based on the turmoil in my soul. You get to a certain age where you want to slow down, be quieter. The title was basically a warning to myself and a question to others.

Co-written with Benmont Tench, Kind Of Woman actually had its roots back in 1973 during her time in Buckingham Nicks and around the same time she wrote Landslide. Apparently she wrote it while Lindsey Buckingham was touring with the Everly Brothers and how she imagined him meeting and getting involved with groupies while she was at home still doing her waitress job.

The only track on the album not written by Stevie Nicks was Stop Draggin' My Heart Around. Jimmy Iovine felt the album didn't have a hit single and through his work with Tom Petty asked him for a song she could include. At first she was annoyed about the thought of having somebody else's song on her album and she stormed out. She soon came back when she realised he was right. She apologised for being bitchy and knew that singing the song with Petty was something she couldn't turn down. Nicks knew how important the song was to the success of the album, "Had he not given me that song Bella Donna might not have been a hit. That song kicked Bella Donna right into the universe."

Think About It had been recorded during the sessions for Rumours but didn't make the final cut. That version was finally issued on the Rumours Deluxe Edition. It was written for Christine McVie when her marriage to John was falling apart.

With its country feel, After The Glitter Fades, dates back to the early-seventies and was written before she joined Fleetwood Mac and following her and Lindsey's move to Los Angeles. The lyrics referred to how bad it was going to be for them both in music and how hard the business was. However, they hadn't even made it that point, and she was still working as a waitress. It has been stated that Nicks wrote the song with Dolly Parton in mind.

The title Edge Of Seventeen was inspired by Tom Petty's wife Jane and something she said that Nicks misheard. She thought Petty's wife had said they had been together from the 'age of 17.'  The lyrics are a tribute to John Lennon, who was shot during the recording of the album, and homage to her Uncle Jonathan who passed away suddenly from cancer. Edge Of Seventeen is the song Nicks closes all her concerts with.

Telling the story about a woman getting involved with a man nobody thinks she should be with, How Still Is My Love, was one of Nicks favourite songs on the album. It could have been written about any of her lovers, Mick Fleetwood, Jimmy Iovine, Don Henley... no one really knows.

Leather And Lace is performed as a duet with Don Henley and is a song she wrote in 1976 at the request of country star Waylon Jennings for him and his wife Jessi Colter. At the time they were close to splitting up and they didn't record it so she kept it for herself. She wanted a fellow artist to perform the song with her. "I felt in my heart that either I had to do the song with Don, or Waylon had to do it with Jessi, or Waylon and I had to do it. Those were the only three possibilities.

Outside The Rain is a song that Nicks feels has a connection to Fleetwood Mac and is a bookend to Dreams. She has often said it was a song that the band would have liked to have recorded. In her solo concerts the song would often be performed alongside Dreams.

The album closes with The Highwaymen which is apparently about the Eagles, the male members of Fleetwood Mac and the masculine rock-stars of the seventies. Speaking to Rolling Stone in 1981 she commented, "They are the Errol Flynns and the Tyronne Powers of our day. So as long as I have to live with them, I try to make them into the most wonderful bunch of guys I can possibly think up."

A few weeks before the albums release Stop Draggin' My Heart Around b/w Kind Of Woman was released peaking at #3.

A further three singles were issued between October 1981 and April 1982. Leather and Lace b/w Bella Donna (October 1981) reached #6, Edge Of Seventeen b/w Outside The Rain (February 1982) peaked at #11 and After The Glitter Fades b/w Think About It (April 1982) stalled at #32.

Stevie Nicks headed out on a short promotional tour opening with a show at The Summit Arena, Houston, Texas on 28 November 1981 followed by shows in Dallas (Texas), Boulder (Colorado), Oakland (California) and Tempe (Arizona). The tour closed with five-nights at the Wilshire Fox Theater in Los Angeles, California.

Backing Nicks on the tour were many of the musicians who had worked on the album... Waddy Wachtel, Russ Kunkel, Roy Bittan, Benmont Tench and, of course, vocalists Sharon Celani and Lori Perry.

The final concert was recorded by HBO for a television special and would also be issued on VHS and Laser Disc as White Wing Dove - Stevie Nicks In Concert. Although the whole show was recorded only nine songs made it to the special and subsequent releases. Tracks included songs from Bella Donna - Outside The Rain (edited version), Stop Draggin' My Heart Around and Edge Of Seventeen along with Fleetwood Mac material - Rhiannon, Sara and Dreams.  One additional track, Leather and Lace, appeared on the I Can't Wait video which featured six of Nicks promo videos from the years 1981 to 1985.

The apparent reason for the short tour was the need for Nicks to return to Fleetwood Mac where, at the Chateau D'Herouville near Paris, they were recording basic tracks for their next album, Mirage. From my own research it appears the sessions in France were held in May-June 1981 and it is more likely Nicks rejoined Fleetwood Mac at The Record Plant in Los Angeles for the Mirage sessions at the end of the tour.

In November 2016, to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the albums release, Rhino issued the 3-CD Bella Donna Deluxe Edition.

Featuring a remastered original album on CD-1 with eleven bonus tracks on CD-2 and a third disc containing fourteen live recordings from 1981, the package also included an informative 24-page booklet with notes by Craig McLean, lyrics to the original album, credits and several photos.

The second disc, Bonus Tracks, included Think About It (alternate version), Bella Donna (demo), Edge Of Seventeen (early take) along with several tracks that didn't make the album, Gold And Braid, If You Were My Love and The Dealer. Two tracks, Blue Lamp and Sleeping Angel, had appeared previously on the Heavy Metal soundtrack and Fast Times At Ridgemont High soundtrack respectively.

The third disc, Live 1981, brought together the ten previously released on video live performances from the 1981 tour, including the restored full-length version of Outside The Rain, along with four previously unreleased performances of Angel, After The Glitter Fades, Bella Donna and How Still My Love.

Speaking to US Magazine about the album in 1981 she said, “It’s difficult to be a girl in a big rock’n’roll group for six years. You’re very protected and dependent. For so long you’re not allowed to make your own decisions, that suddenly you don’t want to any more. Doing my solo album was the only step I could take to show I still had control.”

LINDA RONSTADT - SILK PURSE

This article, on the 1970 album Silk Purse, is taken from my e-book Linda Ronstadt-A Life In Music which was published back in 2009 (Note: Photos added for this article).

Although it must have seemed like she would never escape the folk music tag things would start to change with her next album. Following on from her first solo release the time came to record her follow-up album. Work on this project commenced in early January 1970 under the guidance of producer Elliot Mazer.

Mazer is probably best known for his thirty-year association with Neil Young and the best-selling album Harvest but he has also produced material by Janis Joplin and worked on the album and film The Last Waltz which featured The Band and a country music star who would become a major part of Linda’s career, Emmylou Harris.

After Dylan’s Nashville Skyline album, it became fashionable to record in Nashville. Elliot Mazer, a New York producer headed there along with four session musicians, guitarist Mac Gayden, bass-player Norbert Putnam, drummer Kenneth Buttrey and keyboard player David Briggs. The plan was to record an album of instrumentals.

To give the tracks a more country feel he called on several other musicians including Charlie McCoy on harmonica, guitarist Wayne Moss, a second keyboard player Ken Lauber, steel guitarist Weldon Myrick, Buddy Spicher on fiddle and, finally, banjo player Bobby Thompson. They recorded under the name Area Code 615, the telephone code for Nashville.

It was McCoy and Buttrey who developed the track Stone Fox Chase which became the theme tune to the long-running British music programme The Old Grey Whistle Test. Introduced by ‘Whispering’ Bob Harris the show would, in the mid-seventies, help introduce Linda to a British audience. Area Code 615’s album was recorded in a converted garage in Madison, Tennessee owned by Wayne Moss and named Cinderella Studios.

In an interview with Country Song Roundup in October 1970, Linda talked about the recording of Silk Purse. “We recorded some of it in Nashville, some in San Francisco, and some of it in New York. The guy that produced it is the guy that produced Area Code 615. So that’s how I ended up working with some of those Nashville musicians.”

Arriving in Nashville she immediately noticed the difference between the Nashville country music scene and the Californian country scene. She recalled that in Nashville they can make an album in just three days, assembly line stuff.

Paperwork logged with the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) gives more details about these sessions. Although it is unclear which sessions Linda attended the paperwork does give an insight into the recording of the album.

Sessions at Cinderella Studios on the 14th and 15th January produced Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?, Are My Thoughts With You? and Lovesick Blues. Two other songs, I Try Harder and Why You Been Gone So Long were also recorded although no tracks with these titles have ever been released. A month later, on 28th February, at Woodland Studios in Nashville work was completed on Long, Long Time and the following month, finished masters of both He Dark The Sun and Nobody’s were completed.

In March 1970, in advance of the album’s release, a single Lovesick Blues coupled with Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow? was issued but, following the unfortunate similar pattern of previous singles, failed to chart. There was a gap of nearly five months before the release of the album meaning any interest the single had created was lost by the time the album hit the shops.

Released in August 1970, Silk Purse (Capitol E-ST 407), showcased Linda’s country and honky-tonk prowess as well as stepping into new territory. The album was a mix of traditional country, I’m Leaving It All Up To You, Life Is Like A Mountain Railway and the Hank Williams classic Lovesick Blues. Mixed in were tracks that, at the time, were classified as ‘new country’ including Louise.

Silk Purse opens with Lovesick Blues which is handled well as is the Mickey Newbury track Are My Thoughts With You which features some excellent harmonica work. She manages to take the old Shirelles hit Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow? and turn it into a country song complete with steel guitar.

Gary White wrote two of the tracks Linda covered on the album. Nobody’s is a well sung soulful song that she handles well but the best track on the album is his Long, Long Time, with its beautiful string arrangement. It would bring her long-overdue success when issued as a single.

White joins her on Paul Siebel’s moving tale about a prostitute, Louise. Asked in an interview whether he knew anyone like Louise, he replied: “God, no! But there were these truck-stop places in the mid-South in my army career in which hookers worked from. You’d see these greasy spoon truck stops with a motel or hotel arrangement kind of thing and women would be working out of there, and that’s, I guess, where that all came from, but there was no one specifically in mind.” The song, delivered with a simple acoustic guitar backing, is definitely a highlight.

The Mel Tillis composition, fiddle-dominated track Mental Revenge, segues into another country standard, I’m Leaving It All Up To You. The former, with its distinctive alternating fast and slow tempos, had been covered by many artists, including Waylon Jennings, while the latter had been a 1963 #1 single for the Louisiana pop duo Dale and Grace.

He Dark The Sun, written by Bernie Leadon and Guy Clark and featuring Leadon singing harmony is followed by the bluegrass/ gospel track Life Is Like A Mountain Railway on which Linda is accompanied by The Beechwood Rangers.

In 1971 Linda would re-record He Dark The Sun for the all-star album Fire Creek. Although it was printed on the sleeve as He Darked The Sun, it is unknown which spelling is correct. It was recorded in New York along with Living Like A Fool which also appeared on the album. Fire Creek, the idea of a promoter, would give musicians from some of the top rock groups the opportunity to jam with each other. There were members from Canned Heat, Three Dog Night, The Byrds, Flying Burrito Brothers and many more on what ended up as a double album. Jimmy Greenspoon, from Three Dog Night, recalled that Linda was, “...great to work with. She was a sweet and wonderful person with a great voice.” An alternate version of He Darked The Sun dubbed the ‘Nashville Version’ was issued in 2006 on The Capitol Years.

If for no other reason Silk Purse will always be remembered for its cover featuring a demure Linda dressed in an off-the-shoulder blouse and cut-off jeans sitting in a muddy pen surrounded by some pigs! The idea was a goof on her sexy image and a reference to Moonbeam McSwine, the girl in Lil Abner. She was now living in Topanga Canyon, twenty miles west of Hollywood and, as pointed out in Barney Hoskyns Hotel California, Topanga was Laurel Canyon with fewer houses and more space. People were moving there because they could pretend they were in Tennessee or Kentucky or anywhere they wanted to be.

It reminded her of Dogpatch and she would remind them of Moonbeam. “She was real foxy-looking, but she smelled terrible and no guys could get near her,” Linda once said. Mind you getting the photo wasn’t all that easy as she remembered, “I came into their pen with my earrings on and all my make-up. I sat down but they kept running away from me.” It probably didn’t help when she offered them a ham sandwich! She finally sat down with them and got to know them. “They were real sweet. They all wanted to come over and cuddle and put their heads in my lap.”

Alec Dubro, in his review of the album in Rolling Stone, felt that some people might find the cover pretentious but his own personal opinion was that it was just beautiful.

In October 1970, Penthouse compared her vocal style with her personality when they said “Linda Ronstadt’s vocal style is like her physical presence, brimming with passion and vulnerability, tremulous, yet possessed of a core of absolute strength.”

With Silk Purse, it seemed that Linda was finally moving away from her folk image and nearer to the kind of music she was keen to record. The un-credited sleeve-notes praised her, “Her soul shines through when she’s working hardest... when she can pounce on her music... create fireworks on stage... in recording studios...become part of Bob Dylan... sway with what Billie Holiday felt... take an ounce from Edith Piaf... crawl into a bushel with Jerry Lee Lewis... dig Hank Williams’ brand of blues and cry with Johnny Cash. She’s Linda Ronstadt. She believes in reincarnation... she has within her the force, the power of all that is music.” Despite still trying to find her way it is true that she was picking up on each artist’s strengths.

Dubro, again in Rolling Stone, echoed this, believing that she was doing the right kind of material and that, if she could find good songs and sort out the dull material, she could have a successful career.

Unfortunately, Linda didn’t share his confidence in her abilities and actually hated the album as she would recall to Ben Fong Torres in a 1975 Rolling Stone interview. “I hate that album,” she said. “I’m sure Elliot doesn’t think it’s very good either. I couldn’t sing then, I didn’t know what I was doing.” She attributed part of the blame to the musicians and style of music. “I was working with Nashville musicians and I don’t really play country music; I play very definitely California music, and I couldn’t communicate it to them.” On listening to the album, which admittedly is a mixed bag, it is hard not to feel that she is being overly critical of her own abilities and talent.

However, there was one song on the album that she did like, Gary White’s Long, Long Time, undoubtedly one of her greatest ever performances. It was a song that she really believed in despite people telling her it was a ballad and would send people to sleep. She fought hard for the song and, although not totally happy with her performance, was convinced it would be a hit and in the end she was proved right. 

Unfortunately Capitol Records did not share her enthusiasm and ignored the song, only releasing it as a single after Los Angeles radio airplay forced a change of heart. They may have agreed to its release but told Linda in no uncertain terms not to bring them another country single.

Released in September 1970 it became Linda’s first solo hit reaching #25. Meanwhile the album spent ten weeks just outside the top 100. Long, Long Time also gave Linda her first Grammy Nomination. Along with Dionne Warwick’s I’ll Never Fall In Love Again, Bobby Gentry’s album Fancy, Anne Murray’s Snowbird and Ain’t No Mountain High Enough by Diana Ross, she was a contender in the ‘Best Contemporary Vocal Performance, Female category. The song was up against strong competition and it was no surprise that Dionne Warwick walked away with the honour although Linda was no doubt pleased, and rightly so, with the nomination. She didn’t need to let this affect her as the years to come would find her making several thank-you speeches of her own.

FLEETWOOD MAC - MIRAGE

Forty years ago today (18 June) Fleetwood Mac released Mirage, the follow up to Tusk, and to celebrate I am looking back at the recording, release and success of the album.

Rumours had sold over 40 million copies worldwide, spent months on the charts in the USA and was a number one in many countries including Australia, Canada and, of course, the UK and USA. The follow up, Tusk, was a complete departure and from the record companies point of view was a flop, despite selling over 15 million copies and reaching the top spot in the UK album charts. It couldn't repeat the success of Rumours in the US where it stalled at #4.

Following the release of Tusk some members of the group had followed their own career paths, releasing solo albums.

Stevie Nicks had written a large number of songs which had not made it onto any Fleetwood Mac release. This was due to having three strong songwriters in the band and the impossible task of picking the best from each of the three for inclusion.

Released in July 1981 her solo debut album, Bella Donna, was a critically acclaimed success reaching number one in the USA and selling more than four million copies.

Lindsey Buckingham's first solo album, Law And Order, could not repeat the success of Bella Donna and only reached #32 while Mick Fleetwood's solo effort, The Visitor, just scrapped into the top 50. In no way is this a reflection of the music, as all three artists would go on to release more solo albums and, in the case of Buckingham and Nicks, have very successful solo career.

No doubt there were songs on their solo albums that could have been held over for the next Fleetwood Mac project. From Bella Donna there was Edge Of Seventeen and Outside The Rain while Law And Order had Trouble and That's How We Do It In La.

When it came time to record a new Fleetwood Mac album the decision was made to travel to France and the Chateau D'Herouville. Located in the village of Herouville near Paris it was built in 1740 from the remains of an earlier 16th-Century chateau. Among its previous occupants was composer Frederic Chopin and it's association with music would continue in the 1960s. The chateau was purchased by film composer Michel Magne to use as his own personal workspace, although the place needed a lot of restoration work. In 1969, with funds available to begin restoration, he decided to incorporate a recording studio into the property. In the 1970s several big names in the pop world recorded at the studio including Elton John, who recorded three albums between 1972 and 1973, Honky Chateau, Don't Shoot Me I'm Only The Piano Player and Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. Other artists to use the facilities were David Bowie (Pin Up and Low), Pink Floyd (Obscured By Clouds) and Cat Stevens (Catch Bull At Four).

In an interview Christine McVie talked about the decision to go to France to record the new album, "We decided we wanted to be outside of Los Angeles because we wanted to be without any distractions. We wanted to be just the five of us, and work something out."

Stevie Nicks had good memories of France, as she recalled in the liner notes to the expanded edition of the album, "When I think of Mirage now I think of living in the castle  and visiting Paris. I think of white fishnet stockings, red high heels and going to get my hair done and having five different hairdressers working on me." She also talked about the Chateau, "I also remember living in the Chateau, which was romantic, though I remember for some reason there was no ice. And they thought it might be haunted because there were strange sounds in there. So to me, the Mirage sessions were beautiful and insane."

Sessions in France were held between May and June 1981 with all the backing tracks laid down. Lindsey Buckingham produced the sessions which were engineered by Buckingham along with Richard Dashut and Ken Caillat.

Full details about the recordings are not available, and while some vocals may have also been recorded in France, following the sessions the band returned to Los Angeles where, between June and December, they overdubbed their vocals and finished the album at Larabee Sound and The Record Plant.

Released on 18 June 1982, in both America and the United Kingdom, the album saw the group return to the top of the Billboard 200 for the first time since Rumours back in 1977. With five weeks at #1 and 18 weeks in the top ten, it would eventually be certified double platinum for sales of over two million copies. In the UK it peaked at #5 selling more than 300,000 copies and certified platinum.

The album cover featured Lindsey with Christine and Stevie while the back featured Mick and John, taken by George Hurrell. The insert included the lyrics to all the songs, credits and a painting by Mac James. 

The album opens with Love In Store, the first of four songs Christine McVie contributed. Others were Only Over You, for which she credits ex-lover Dennis Wilson for the inspiration, Hold Me and the albums closing track Wish You Were Here.

Stevie Nicks wrote three songs, That's Alright, which dated back to her Buckingham Nicks days, Gypsy and Straight Back. Written after her break-up with Jimmy Iovine, Straight Back, can also be seen as a statement on the problems she encountered leaving a successful solo career to rejoin Fleetwood Mac. Gypsy, a typical Nicks song, is definitely the highlight on the album.

The remaining five songs were written by Lindsey Buckingham, three with co-producer Richard Dashut, Book Of Love, Empire State, the 1950s pastiche Oh Diane and two solo efforts, Can't Go Back and Eyes Of The World. The latter was the closest Buckingham gets to the kind of song he contributed to Tusk.

Lindsey Buckingham felt Mirage was a step backwards, "We should have progressed but instead we just reacted against Tusk. It was pleasant but much too safe. Mirage was quite reactionary after Tusk. I think, because forces within the band and without were saying to me 'You went to far on Tusk'. That was kind of hard to deal with, taking the flak over Tusk."

There are some interesting lyrics in his song Can't Go Back which might be his own personal opinion and mixed emotions on the songs they were recording... "Standing in the shadows, The man I used to be, I want to go back" are the opening lyrics and are answered by a mix of male and female voices declaring, "Can't go back."

Looking back on the album he said, "It was hard to know where to go at that moment when you had just gone somewhere in one direction that felt right - then to have to sort of reel it back in a more forced way felt difficult. But I understood that I was only one member of a group so what was I going to do?"

Mick Fleetwood understood his concerns, "I think Mirage was more preconceived as a kind of band record organically representing where we left off with Rumours. So in retrospect it wasn't as daring an album as Tusk which understandably would leave Lindsey with some trepidation."

Several tracks were lifted for single release. Hold Me backed with Eyes Of The World was the first single, released the same month as the album, reaching #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 but failed to chart in the UK.

A video was filmed to promote Hold Me featuring the band in a surreal scenario. They are seen in a desert where John McVie and Mick Fleetwood are dressed as archaeologists, complete with khaki shorts and pith helmets, where they find the desert covered with pieces of broken mirror. Other scenes show Christine McVie, surrounded by paintings, looking through a telescope and searching for Lindsey Buckingham. Stevie Nicks is featured relaxing on a chaise-longue when Buckingham sees her and paints a portrait of her. All very surreal and typical Fleetwood Mac from the time.

Issued in August, Gypsy was coupled with a non-album track, Cool Water, as the second single in both the USA and UK where it charted in both territories at #12 and #46 respectively.

Once again a promo video was filmed which was shot in colour with sepia toned and black and white footage both used to good effect. Directed by Russell Mulcahy, at the time it was the highest-budget music video ever produced. It was also the first 'World Premiere Video' on MTV. Many locations, costumes and dancers were featured in the video. The filming of the video wasn't without its problems, as both Buckingham and Nicks were hardly speaking and in the video they are seen dancing together. Nicks recalled in an interview, "We weren't getting along well then. I didn't want to be anywhere near him. I certainly didn't want to be in his arms." She went on to say, "If you watch the video, you'll see I wasn't happy. And he wasn't a very good dancer." Just another day in the Fleetwood Mac drama.

A third single was issued in November in the USA bringing together Love In Store and Can't Go Back which peaked at #22 on the Billboard Hot 100. Although not issued at the time in the UK Can't Go Back was issued with That's Alright in April 1983 but stalled at #83 in the charts.

The UK had an additional single release when, in December 1982, Oh Diane was coupled with Only Over You and became the bands highest placed single from Mirage when it reached a respectable #9. Whether based on the success of the song in the UK it did finally receive a US release in February 1983 but failed to chart. Interestingly, the picture sleeve featured the Penguin logo for the first time in several years.

Following deluxe editions of both Rumours and Tusk, Warner Brothers released the 3-CD, 1-LP and DVD Mirage Deluxe Edition in 2016. The set included a remaster of the original album, thirteen live tracks and a selection of outtakes, early versions and previously unreleased songs. There was also a vinyl copy of the album and a DVD-Audio disc with 5.1 surround and 24/96 Stereo mixes of the original album. They missed the opportunity to include a DVD of the live concert that was issued on VHS back in 1983, which has never had a DVD or Blu-Ray release in the United States or United Kingdom.

The outtakes/early versions included two songs, Goodbye Angel and Teen Beat, which had previously been issued on the 25 Years: The Chain box set. Making their first appearance were alternate and early versions of most of the tracks that made the album along with several that didn't... If You Were My Love, Smile At You, Put A Candle In The Window and a jam on the old Fats Domino classic Blue Monday. A nice addition was the extended version of Gypsy that was used in the video.

There was also a 2-CD expanded edition with just the original album and outtakes discs.

For Record Store Day 2017 an album, Alternate Mirage, was released in a limited run of just 6,500 copies. Featuring twelve tracks, early versions and outtakes, that were originally released on the deluxe edition they were making their first appearance on vinyl.

Following the release of Fleetwood Mac (White Album), Rumours and Tusk the band toured the world promoting the albums. However, with Mirage the band only toured for two months, in September and October 1982, with just twenty-nine concerts in the United States.

Two of the final concerts in Los Angeles were filmed and released on VHS in 1983. The over two hour show was edited to just 80 minutes and the running order was also altered. As mentioned earlier the Deluxe Edition of Mirage included a third CD with live recordings from the concert. In 2021 the Fleetwood Mac Live Deluxe Edition featured three more songs from the concert, Second Hand News, Brown Eyes and Hold Me.

As John Milward wrote in the August issue of Rolling Stone, "Fleetwood Mac have never pretended to be heavy thinkers. But like E.T. or baseball's pennant race, Mirage is another of 1982s sunny entertainments: it sounds great in the morning and fine over a sunset with wine."

D-DAY LANDINGS IN NORMANDY

Having already been on two Leger Battlefield Tours, Tunnellers on the Western Front - The Underground War in 2015 and France Under The Jackboot - SOE, SAS & The French Resistance in 2017, I booked a third, D-Day Landings In Normandy. On this latest blog I look back on my recent trip, highlight some of the most memorable moments and include just a few of the hundreds of photos I took.

Following two cancellations due to COVID in 2020 and 2021 finally, in May this year, I was picked up locally in Worthing for the journey down to Folkestone and the Eurotunnel to Calais. It was then a 3.5 hour drive to Caen and my hotel for the next four nights. A refreshing pint was followed by preparations for the next few days of the tour and a nights sleep.

An early start saw us heading the short journey to Pegasus Bridge, originally the Benouville Bridge, the site of the first action of D-Day.

Led by Major John Howard, a force from the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry and a platoon of Royal Engineers, landed in fields close to the bridge in three Horsa Gliders at 00:16 on 6 June. The defending Germans were taken by surprise and within ten minutes the bridge was in Allied hands. 

Reinforcements from the 7th Battalion Parachute Regiment soon arrived. One member of the regiment was actor Richard Todd who would go on to play the role of Major Howard in the film The Longest Day.

The bridge was renamed Pegasus Bridge in late 1944 in honour of the operation and the name was taken from the shoulder emblem worn by the British Airborne Forces, Bellerophon riding the winged horse Pegasus.

The original bridge was replaced in 1994 and is now housed in the grounds of the nearby museum along with a replica Horsa Glider.

Inside the museum you can follow the story of the capture of the bridge with hundreds of items related to that first attack including uniforms, equipment along with scores of photos and information boards.. A very interesting museum that would take several hours to read and view every item.

Our first cemetery visit was to the Ranville War Cemetery where there are 2,236 commonwealth graves including Private Emile Servais Corteil. Serving with the 9th (Essex) Parachute Battalion, 19 year-old Corteil parachuted into Normandy on 6 June with his dog Glenn.

Both were killed later in the day, found together and buried at Ranville. In the church graveyard, next to the cemetery, is buried Lieutenant Herbert Denham Brotheridge. Mortally wounded crossing the Benouville Bridge during the opening assault it is believed he was the first Allied soldier to be killed in action on D-Day.

Heading back to Pegasus Bridge it was time for lunch at the appropriately named Three Gliders Cafe. Despite the awful weather there was still a chance to take a few more photos including the Cafe Gondree.

Located on the west bank of the Caen Canal, back in 1940 it was run by Georges and Therese Gondree who, as part of the French Resistance, passed on information about the German defence of the bridge to British intelligence. Now run by their daughter Ariette, it is still a popular cafe and visited by many of those who visit Pegasus Bridge.

Following lunch, and an improvement in the weather, it was time to visit the British and Canadian Beaches. Our first stop was Sword Beach, a five-mile stretch of the coast that was the objective of British troops.

A statue of Piper Bill Millin stands on the shoreline. The personal piper of Lord Lovatt Fraser, whose commando brigade landed on Sword Beach, Millin was the only soldier to wear a kilt on D-Day.

Although he was officially not allowed to play the bagpipes it was Fraser that asked him to play while the landings took place. He followed his orders and marched up and down the beach playing The Road To The Isles. A sitting target, apparently the Germans did not bother to fire at him as they thought he was mad!

A brief visit to the Canadian beach, Juno, was followed by one of the most emotional parts of the trip, The British Normandy Memorial at Ver-sur-Mer, inland from Gold, the second British beach. Unveiled on 6 June 2021 it is dedicated to the 22,442 soldiers, from more than 30 countries, who died under British command during the landings. The centrepiece is a bronze statue of three soldiers coming ashore on the beaches. It was so peaceful and beautiful and a fitting memorial to all those who gave their lives.

The memorial was partly funded by the British Government although a substantial amount was also made from charitable donations. Over £50,000 was raised by Harry Billinge MBE, a Normandy veteran, who collected in his hometown of St Austell. Anyone who saw him interviewed on Breakfast Television a few years ago will know how much the Memorial meant to him. Although he passed away in April 2022 he did get a chance to visit and he must have been so proud.  

At Arromanches, situated on the western end of Gold Beach, we viewed the remaining sections of the Mulberry Harbour. The temporary harbours were constructed to enable troops, vehicles and supplies to be bought ashore following the successful landings and until the capture of Cherbourg.

The various sections were floated and towed across the channel by tugs and when constructed made up almost 7 miles of piers and jetties. More than two million men, 500,000 vehicles and four million tonnes of supplies were bought ashore before the harbour was abandoned. Various sections can still be seen along the beach and out to sea.

A second harbour was built at Omaha Beach but a violent storm wreaked havoc resulting in most of the caissons being destroyed forcing the harbour to be abandoned after a few days. 

Our first day ended at the Bayeaux War Cemetery for a short visit before heading back to the hotel for dinner and a well-deserved rest.

Day two was centred around the American beaches of Omaha and Utah. Our first stop was the Normandy American Cemetery, overlooking Omaha Beach, where 9,387 are buried.

A semi-circular memorial features a statue representing 'The Spirit of American Youth' and a path from the ornamental lake leads to the graves. All the crosses face west towards their native land. The opening scene of the film Saving Private Ryan was filmed at the cemetery.

We had the chance to walk around the cemetery or walk the short distance to the beach, I chose the latter.

Omaha Beach became known known as 'Bloody' Omaha due to several things that went wrong that day. Although the airborne assault dropped more than 12,000 bombs, many missed their targets as did the naval bombardment meaning the German defences remained virtually intact. Due to the bad weather and rough seas many of the landing craft were blown off-course resulting in troops landing all over the beach and not where originally planned. There were also plans to use converted Sherman tanks that were amphibious and would be bought ashore to clear a path. Unfortunately many were sunk before even reaching the beach. 

Add to this the fact that the German defences were much stronger than anticipated with mines, strongpoints and several obstacles on the beach. More than 2,000 troops lost their lives on Omaha but, following fierce fighting, the beach was eventually secured.

At the Overlord Museum there was a chance to view many artifacts, both Allied and German, used during the Battle of Normandy. The collection was originally assembled back in 1971 by Michael Leloup and exhibited in Falaise. In 2013 it was moved to its new location at Colleville-sur-Mer. Amongst the many items are several armoured and military vehicles, all displayed in realistic scenes.

Our lunch stop was at St Mere Eglise, a lovely village that was the first liberated by air. The capture, by the 82nd Airborne, was strategically important as it was located on the main road between Carentan and Cherbourg, a supply route for the Germans.

A fire in a house, caused from the flares dropped by the Pathfinder squadron, meant that the parachutists were illuminated and sitting targets for the German gunners. Local townspeople formed a line with buckets to douse the flames and save the house which was across the square from a church that had it's own story to tell. 

A paratrooper, John Steele, was left hanging when his parachute became entangled on the steeple, leaving him there while the fighting continued below. He was eventually cut down by the Germans and taken prisoner. There is some dispute as to how accurate the story is but today an effigy of Steele hangs on the steeple and is a popular attraction.

Following lunch we continued the story of the US Airborne forces with a visit to the site of the Richard Winters Leadership Memorial. Winters was the commanding officer of Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division on D-Day.

He led a thirteen-man attack on fortified gun positions which had been shelling the US troops on Utah Beach. We visited the location of this action. The HBO mini-series Band of Brothers told the story of Easy Company.

Our final beach visit was Utah, the westernmost of the five landing areas of the Normandy Invasion. The beach, which covered an area three-miles wide, was secured with less casualties and was far more successful than at the neighboring Omaha Beach.

There are several memorials in the area, bunkers and gun emplacements as well as a museum. The museum is actually built around the remains of a German strongpoint. Like other museums in Normandy this one features vehicles, uniforms, armaments, historic documents and much more. A panoramic view of Utah Beach can be viewed from inside the museum and a glass extension houses a B-26 Marauder bomber. I enjoyed all three museums we visited during the tour and only wish I could return one day  and spend more time at each one reading all the information boards and taking a longer look at the exhibits.

The day was bought to a close with a visit to the German cemetery at La Cambe. The largest German cemetery in Normandy it contains over 21,200 military personnel. Initially German and American dead were interred in neighbouring fields at La Cambe but the Americans were later returned to the USA or buried at the Normandy American Cemetery. After the war 12,000 German dead were moved from various sites to La Cambe.

We visited the graves of Michael Wittmann who was a Waffen SS tank commander known for his ambush during the Battle of Villiers-Bocage on the British 7th Armoured Division on 13 June 1944.  During the attack 14 tanks, 15 personnel carriers and two anti-tank guns were destroyed. He was killed, along with the rest of his crew, on 8 August 1944 and he is buried with the other four crew at La Cambe.

Another busy but interesting day and it was time to head back to the hotel and dinner.

In the evening I headed by tram from our hotel into the centre of Caen for dinner and I want to take this opportunity to thank Mark and Karen Evans, David Ross and Andrew Ross who were happy for me to tag along. Caen is a beautiful city and I'd love to visit again one day and spend more time looking around.

On our third day we headed inland to visit the sites of battles in the Bocage countryside including Tilly-sur-Seulles and Fontenayle Presnel.

Our first stop was at the Abbaye d'Ardenne located in Saint-Germain-la-Blanche-Herbe. It was here on 7 June, Canadian troops were held prisoner by the SS under the command of Kurt Meyer. Later that night eleven prisoners were taken into the garden and shot in the head. The next day a further seven were executed and two more a few days later.

The atrocity was treated as a war crime and Meyer was tried. He was sentenced to death although his sentence was reduced to life imprisonment. He only served nine years!

Most of our visits on this day told the story of the Battle of the Falaise Pocket. Fought in August 1944, and following the Allied landings and breakout from the beaches, the German forces were encircled in a pocket south of Falaise. Over several days the Germans attempted many counter-attacks to breakout to the east and while many did escape more than 50,000 were captured. With the collapse of the German positions in Normandy the allies were free to move eastward and eventually liberate Paris.

At Hill 112, high ground that overlooked Caen and the surrounding area, we visited the memorial to the servicemen of the Wessex Regiment who fought and took the hill. Also located here was a Churchill Tank.

We then moved onto the Polish Memorial at Hill 262 (Mount Ormel Ridge) which commemorates the actions by the Polish 1st Armoured Division to defend the important position. The Germans launched fierce attacks but, despite heavy losses for the Polish troops, were unable to overrun the position and it resulted in the collapse of the German position in Normandy.

The final encirclement of the Germans took place in what has become known as 'The Corridor of Death.' With the Americans attacking from the south and west, Canadians and Poles from the North and the British from the North-West the Falaise Pocket had been sealed at enormous cost to the Germans. Men, horses and equipment littered the area and pilots of the Typhoons overhead would say they could smell the death rising up into their cockpits. The area looks so peaceful now but with the help of old photographs the reality of what happened was clear to see.

The last remaining German Tiger 1 tank left in Normandy can be found at Vimoutiers where it was abandoned by the retreating German Army. On our journey back to the hotel this was one of our final stops on the tour.

Our tour finished at another War Graves Cemetery where our guide Terry played a recording of a poem and The Last Post. Standing in the graveyard listening and looking around all the graves couldn't help but bring a tear to your eyes and an appreciation of all those that gave their lives so we could enjoy the freedom we have today. A very emotional end to the day.

The following days coach journey home was a chance to reflect on everything we had seen during the tour.

I must thank our guide Terry Whenham and coach drivers, Nicola Spencer and Mark Robinson, who all did an amazing job throughout the tour and made it even more special.

This has been a brief look at my trip and only scratches the surface of what happened during those days in June 1944. There are many books on D-Day and for a more detailed look at the events of 6 June 1944 it is worth checking them out. Of course I also recommend the films The Longest Day and Saving Private Ryan along with the HBO mini-series Band of Brothers all of which are available on DVD/Blu-Ray.

Like the previous tours this latest trip was at times, sad, emotional but definitely educational. I'd have no hesitation in recommending Leger Battlefield Tours and hoping to book another trip soon.