Music Break - Happy 70th Birthday, Christine McVie

It's hard to believe, but Christine McVie turns 70 today.  It's even harder to believe that she left Fleetwood Mac 15 years ago.  But then, maybe there's something to be said for rockers who retire before they get old.

Before joining Fleetwood Mac, Christine Perfect played in the band Chicken Shack, recorded a solo album, appeared on some Fleetwood Mac albums as a guest musician, and then married their bassist John McVie.  Besides contributing some backing vocals and keyboards to their 1970 album Kiln House, she also drew the album's cover art.  As the group started rehearsing for the subsequent tour, they decided they needed a fuller sound and asked her to join.  This left her with a bit of a dilemma, since she had not yet recorded any of her own songs with Fleetwood Mac.  In order for her to take some turns as lead vocalist, they would have to play songs from her solo album or from her stint with Chicken Shack.  Get Like You Used To Be is from the latter variety, written with guitarist Stan Webb.  This rendition is from Christine's first tour with Fleetwood Mac, and includes Jeremy Spencer and Danny Kirwan on guitar.  Songs from this tour were later assembled into a live album entitled Madison Blues.  The YouTube user has labeled the video with Kirwan's name, but this is a Christine McVie song.

The first Fleetwood Mac album on which Christine McVie appears as a full member is Future Games, which was recorded in 1971.  Spencer had left the group and was replaced by American guitarist Bob Welch.  The only guest musician on the album is McVie's brother John Perfect, who plays sax and harmonica.  On her song Morning Rain, Welch plays an undistorted "clean" guitar, while Kirwan uses some distortion and wah-wah.

In early 1973, Fleetwood Mac released the Penguin album, with Bob Weston replacing Danny Kirwan on guitar.  Remember Me opens the album and includes Weston on slide guitar.

Later in 1973, the band released Mystery To Me, which concluded with the Christine McVie song Why.  This song features a slide guitar intro by Bob Weston, which reminds me a bit of Indian music.  The latter part of the song includes some harmony vocals to which Bob Welch may have contributed.  Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham would later add their voices to the live version of Why, when the two Bobs were no longer in the band.  (As far as I know, Buckingham never did try to re-create Weston's slide intro.)

I have mainly included Christine McVie songs from before Buckingham and Nicks joined Fleetwood Mac, because I think that these earlier songs are as good as her better-known songs from after they joined.  But I have to include something from that slightly more recent era.  Say You Love Me is from the group's 1975 eponymous album.  Buckingham contributes some catchy electric guitar parts and plays rhythm on the banjo, which meshes with McVie's piano.  He and Nicks also provide some excellent harmonies.