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1975's Fleetwood Mac introduced a new sound for the band founded by Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Peter Green, and Jeremy Spencer. The addition of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks to the lineup saw a marked shift towards mainstream pop-rock and earned the group its first No. 1 album. But the Mac had been reinventing itself virtually from the start. Now, its early years are being revisited on a pair of new releases from Rhino due September 4.
Fleetwood Mac 1969 to 1974 is a long-anticipated, 8-CD box set chronicling all seven studio albums recorded by Fleetwood Mac within that time period. In addition to a remastered version of each album, the set includes numerous bonus tracks and a previously unreleased 1974 concert taped just months before Buckingham and Nicks shook up the band's status quo. The box beings with the group's third studio album Then Play On - their last with co-founder Peter Green and first with Danny Kirwan - and ends with their final pre-Buckingham/Nicks LP. It includes:
- Then Play On (1969) and bonus tracks
- Kiln House (1970) and bonus tracks
- Future Games (1971) and bonus tracks
- Bare Trees (1972) and bonus tracks
- Penguin (1973)
- Mystery to Me (1973) and bonus tracks
- Heroes Are Hard to Find (1974) and bonus track
- Live at the Record Plant, Sausalito, CA 12/15/74
These albums reflect numerous personnel shifts, as band members including Christine McVie, Dave Walker, Bob Welch, and Bob Weston came and went. (Christine, of course, stayed.) With each new lineup came a gradual change in sound which would eventually take the band far from its blues-rock roots. Yet one thing stayed consistent: Fleetwood Mac's sharp, unerring musicality. These records, while not the behemoths of the subsequent era, were also consistently popular. Then Play On went to No. 6 in the U.K., and Kiln House placed there in the top 40, while every one of the eight albums charted in the U.S. including a top 40 berth for Heroes Are Hard to Find. "Oh Well" was a hit in both the U.K. and U.S., while "The Green Manalishi (With the Two-Prong Crown)" and the chart-topping "Albatross" were both U.K. top 10 smashes. Bare Trees introduced Bob Welch's "Sentimental Lady" which became a smash hit in 1977 when Bob Welch re-recorded it with producers Christine McVie (who had sung on the original version) and Lindsey Buckingham for his solo debut.
The previously unreleased concert from Sausalito, California's Record Plant features Fleetwood, Welch, and the McVies in support of Heroes Are Hard to Find and was originally aired on KSAN-FM in San Francisco. It includes performances of "Sentimental Lady," "Black Magic Woman," "Oh Well," "The Green Manalishi (With the Two-Prong Crown)" and more. UPDATE 8/10: Note that Disc 1, Then Play On, mirrors Rhino's 2013 expanded edition and the upcoming Celebration Edition, using the U.K. track listing and appending both parts of the "Oh Well" 45 as well as the single of "The Green Manalishi (With the Two-Prong Crown)" b/w "World in Harmony."
The box set will be joined by the vinyl release of Fleetwood Mac 1973-1974, a 4-LP/1-7" collection. It includes the 1974 concert plus Penguin (1973), Mystery to Me (1973) and Heroes Are Hard to Find (1974) in their original album sequences. Lacquers for the albums were cut by Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering from the original analog tapes. They will be pressed on 140-gram vinyl and housed in replica sleeves. The box's 7-inch single has the mono promo edit of "For Your Love" on one side and the previously unreleased outtake "Good Things (Come to Those Who Wait)" on the flipside.
UPDATE 8/10: Rhino's Steve Woolard has confirmed to IMWAN that Then Play On and its bonus material has been mastered by Chris Bellman. The remaining albums save Heroes Are Hard to Find are 16-bit conversions of the 24-bit masters created in 2016-2017 from the archived flat masters. The original EQ master was used for the remastering of Heroes. Bill Inglot and Dan Hersch have mastered the remaining bonus tracks and the live show.
A limited, colored vinyl version of this box will also be available exclusively from Rhino.com with Penguin in yellow, Mystery to Me in orange, Heroes Are Hard to Find in gold, and the concert on white vinyl. The single will be pressed on blue vinyl.
Look for both titles celebrating the early era of Fleetwood Mac on September 4 from Rhino at the links below! We've also included a discography with as much track annotation as is currently known.
Fleetwood Mac 1969 To 1974 (Reprise/Rhino, 2020)
8CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
4LP/7": Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
Disc 1: Then Play On (Reprise RSLP 9000 (U.K.)/RS 6368 (U.S.), 1969) and bonus tracks
- Coming Your Way
- Closing My Eyes
- Fighting for Madge
- When You Say
- Show-Biz Blues
- Underway
- One Sunny Day
- Although The Sun Is Shining
- Rattlesnake Shake
- Without You
- Searching For Madge
- My Dream
- Like Crying
- Before The Beginning
- Oh Well (Pt. 1) (single A-side - Reprise RS 27000 (U.K.)/0883 (U.S.), 1969)
- Oh Well (Pt. 2) (single B-side - Reprise RS 27000 (U.K.)/0883 (U.S.), 1969)
- The Green Manalishi (With the Two Prong Crown) (single A-side - Reprise RS 27007 (U.K.)/0925 (U.S.), 1970)
- World In Harmony (single B-side - Reprise RS 27007 (U.K.)/0925 (U.S.), 1970)
Disc 2: Kiln House (Reprise RSLP 9004 (U.K.)/RS 6408 (U.S.), 1970) and bonus tracks
- This Is The Rock
- Station Man
- Blood On The Floor
- Hi Ho Silver
- Jewel Eyed Judy
- Buddy's Song
- Earl Gray
- One Together
- Tell Me All The Things You Do
- Mission Bell
- Dragonfly (single A-side - Reprise RS 27010 (U.K.), 1970)
- Purple Dancer (single B-side - Reprise RS 27010 (U.K.), 1970)
- Jewel Eyed Judy (Single Version) (single A-side - Reprise 0984 (U.S.), 1970)
- Station Man (Single Version) (single B-side - Reprise 0984 (U.S.), 1970)
Disc 3: Future Games (Reprise K 44153 (U.K.)/RS 6465 (U.S.), 1971) and bonus tracks
- Woman Of 1000 Years
- Morning Rain
- What a Shame
- Future Games
- Sands Of Time
- Sometimes
- Lay It All Down
- Show Me a Smile
- Sands Of Time (Single Version) (single A-side - Reprise 1057 (U.S.), 1971)
- Sometimes (Alternate Version)
- Lay It All Down (Alternate Version) (from 25 Years The Chain - Warner Bros. 45129, 1992)
- Stone
- Show Me a Smile (Alternate Version)
- What a Shame (Full Version)
Disc 4: Bare Trees (Reprise K 44181 (U.K.)/MS 2080 (U.S.), 1972) and bonus tracks
- Child Of Mine
- The Ghost
- Homeward Bound
- Sunny Side Of Heaven
- Bare Trees
- Sentimental Lady
- Danny's Chant
- Spare Me a Little Of Your Love
- Dust
- Thoughts On a Grey Day
- Trinity (Mono Version) (from 25 Years The Chain - Warner Bros. 45129, 1992)
- Sentimental Lady (Single Version) (single A-side - Reprise REP 1093 (U.S.), 1972)
- Homeward Bound (Live)
Disc 5: Penguin (Reprise K 44235 (U.K.)/MS 2138, 1973)
- Remember Me
- Bright Fire
- Dissatisfied
- (I'm a) Road Runner
- The Derelict
- Revelation
- Did You Ever Love Me
- Night Watch
- Caught In The Rain
Disc 6: Mystery To Me (Reprise K 44248 (U.K.)/MS 2158, 1973) and bonus tracks
- Emerald Eyes
- Believe Me
- Just Crazy Love
- Hypnotized
- Forever
- Keep On Going
- The City
- Miles Away
- Somebody
- The Way I Feel
- For Your Love
- Why
- For Your Love (Mono Promo Edit) (promo single A-side - Reprise K 14315 (U.K.)/REP 1188 (U.S.), 1973)
- Good Things (Come To Those Who Wait) *
Disc 7: Heroes Are Hard To Find (Reprise K 54026 (U.K.)/MS 2196 (U.S.), 1974) and bonus track
- Heroes Are Hard To Find
- Coming Home
- Angel
- Bermuda Triangle
- Come a Little Bit Closer
- She's Changing Me
- Bad Loser
- Silver Heels
- Prove Your Love
- Born Enchanter
- Safe Harbour
- Heroes Are Hard To Find (Single Version) (single A-side - Reprise K 14388 (U.K.)/RPS 1317 (U.S.), 1974)
Disc 8: Live At The Record Plant, Sausalito, CA - 12/15/1974 (previously unreleased)
- The Green Manalishi (With The Two Prong Crown)
- Angel
- Spare Me a Little Of Your Love
- Sentimental Lady
- Future Games
- Bermuda Triangle
- Why
- Believe Me
- Black Magic Woman/Oh Well
- Rattlesnake Shake
- Hypnotize
(*) previously unreleased
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About time these were upgraded! Glad they appended all the relevant non-albums tracks, too. The Record Plant show is a great demonstration of the last lineup with Bob Welch, with his extended solos on several songs.
Your text mentions "Man of the World," but I don't see it in the track listings. It's disappointing that it hasn't appeared as a bonus track on "Then Play On." Licensing, I expect; I think it was originally recorded as a one-off for a different label. Can anyone confirm that?
Yes, "Then Play On" mirrors the track listing of Rhino's previous expanded edition (and upcoming standalone Celebration Edition). "Man of the World" isn't controlled by Rhino/WEA. Apologies if the text may have been misleading.
"Man Of The World" was released by Immediate Records. It was after that they move to Reprise Records!
All of these albums have some gems. So cool to get “Good Things Come To Those Who Wait” On “Mystery To Me”. Original pressings of the album listed the song on the cover as well as the lyric sheet, but in its place was “For Your Love”. Didn’t think “Good Things” even existed! Can’t wait for this set!
Finally! Automatic Purchase!
It is nice to see these albums from this period getting a proper rerelease. There is some excellent music contained on these discs but I do feel that this is a lost opportunity. There is a distinct lack of bonus tracks, especially ones that have not been released in other places. It is not as if these albums are long either. Penguin clocks in at 36 minutes. What about radio sessions? Mac were still going into the BBC in 1971. What about additional live tracks, demos and songs that that fans know are in the archive? There have been some archival releases such as Madison Blues, Show-Biz Blues and the Vaudeville Years that could have been used, especially as these are now hard to find and long out of print. For Rumour we get the most basic of demos. For these albums, not a lot. A great price for what you get but surely they could have supplied long time fans with more content.
I totally agree with you, Squire. You mentioned about those BBC recordings going to 71. A show called the sounds of the seventies featured FM in the summer of 71. The band played Show Me a Smile, Future Games, and Woman of a 1000 Years. Does it exist? Where is it?
Rhino website shows a different track listing for Then Plan on, with 16 tracks and a track listing similar to the US LP-version / first cd release. You have included the (better) track listing of the 2013 remaster. I guess we have to wait and see which one is correct.
Thank you for bringing this to our attention, Gerbrand. The 16-track version (omitting "Without You" and "One Sunny Day") is the one confirmed by Rhino. We are reaching out for additional information.
I hope that the tracklisting from the old CD is a mistake. The 2013 CD has the correct running order and segues, and the old one is a poor representation of the album that should have been discontinued long ago in favor of the newer one.
Hi Brian, yes, we can now (at last!) confirm that THEN PLAY ON will be identical to the 2013 edition.
Thanks Joe for the confirmation. Seems logical, also given the fact the same tracklisting will be used for the Celebration edition.
This is nice to have. There are Hi-Rez streams and downloads of these albums,which I think are fairly recent, my guess these are the same, just in CD format.
Then Play On in this set seems disappointing to me. I think the Rhino CD is the most sensible as far as sequencing is concerned. The UK version/Rhino CD just flows better than the USA version, that's why I never went for a Reprise vinyl of it. And someone at Warner couldn't bother to get the permission to put Man of the World somewhere on the set? Que Sera Sera
We can (finally) confirm that THEN PLAY ON is identical to the expanded 2013 edition.
I preordered the CD set several weeks ago from importcds.com but they have yet to ship. They have not responded to my email from 3 days ago either. Does anyone else have the same issues? I can’t find a phone # for them. TIA
Update: item is backordered per email from importcd.com
It looks like it is backordered everywhere. I ordered mine from popmarket on Aug 4 and it's backordered. I looks like Rhino underestimated it's customer base again.
Cancelled my importcds order and went with Amazon. Enjoying this long-awaited Collection!
Thanks, Earl. I'm going to do that.
Great to see these wonderful albums upgraded and re-released. I only just heard about this box set today (Aug. 14, 2021), and only a few moments ago ordered my own copy from Amazon.
My one question is: Why was the "Penguin" album seemingly overlooked in terms of adding any bonus tracks? Were there none?
Thanks!