Published on May 6, 1999
One could be forgiven for making the incorrect assumption that
Fleetwood Mac was formed in 1975. After all, that’s when the fruits
of almost a decade’s worth of work finally began to come to
fruition, and the band was launched into superstar status.
But there are some of you, like Ian Macintyre of Canada, who are
aware that Fleetwood Mac existed long before their 1975 self-titled
album. In his entry to one of our contests, Ian suggested we check
out their 1973 release
Mystery To Me; in his e-mail, Ian wrote, “This gem from the
Bob Welch era is just a masterpiece.”
First, a caveat. It’s been a long time since I listened to the
early works of Fleetwood Mac, so I’m not in any position to compare
this album to, say,
Penguin or
Heroes Are Hard To Find, much less
Then Play On. In fact, prior to Ian’s suggestion,
Then Play On was scheduled to be reviewed next, simply so I
could give myself a re-education in this band.
Having said all this, I’m not sure I’d use the term
“masterpiece” to describe this outing – but it’s not terribly far
from the mark. Featuring some songs that I know I’ve heard at some
point in my life, Mick Fleetwood, John McVie and company mark their
progress toward pop music superstardom – and their move away from
the blues scene that first launched this band – with some solid
efforts that beg for your attention.
Guitarist Welch, the first American member of Fleetwood Mac
until his departure following 1974’s
Heroes Are Hard To Find, was one of the keypins to Fleetwood
Mac at this point in their career. His style of light pop, as heard
on “Hypnotized,” seems to bring Fleetwood Mac into a serious
groove, and is a mode that I could have easily gotten used to.
Likewise, “Forever” – a song co-written by Welch, guitarist Bob
Weston and bassist John McVie – has all the right things happening
for it: a catchy beat, infectious chorus, and a well-written song
behind it all.
The other keypin was (and would remain for a long time)
keyboardist/vocalist Christine McVie. Her songwriting contributions
to
Mystery To Me are not to be overlooked at all; tracks like
“Believe Me” and “Just Crazy Love” offer windows to the sound that
would become the hallmark of this band. Likewise, the moody “Why”
is a precursor to the emotional outlets that Fleetwood Mac songs
would become, and is one of the most beautiful songs this group has
done.
There are a few minor potholes on
Mystery To Me. For starters, I question why a band with so
many strong songwriters would need to rely on a cover – in this
case, The Yardbirds’s “For Your Love”. And while it does take a
listen or two to get used to this particular flavor of Fleetwood
Mac’s music, I found it took longer for me to warm up to the second
half of the album. It was still very much worth listening to, but
the vibes songs like “The City,” “Somebody” and “Miles Away” put
out weren’t immediately obvious.
What is obvious about
Mystery To Me is that this album could well be one of the
“hidden treasures” we often talk about. This is an album that has
gotten buried by works like
Rumours, even though some of the songs on this disc – in my
opinion – smoke the more famous ones. If you’re interested in
hearing the band behind the hype, then
Mystery To Me is probably a great place for you to start
discovering who Fleetwood Mac were before they became rock
gods.