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John McVie... How did I miss him?

#81
WI Short Scaler said:
I'll take some slagging for sayin it but I've always been a fan of FM only after Stevie and Lindsay joined. The earlier Peter Green formation never did anything for me.

Rumors is such a fantastic LP and once we added a female voice we were able to add some FM to our setlist, which I love. McVie is so solid and playing his bass lines is great fun.
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We all have our preferences. I've got no beef with your opinion.
 
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#82
I have not read every post on this thread but for me waht really heightened my appreacitation of John McVie was learing to play Go Your Own Way for a covers band I was in at the time. I just thought it's such a perfect bass line for that song.
 
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#84
klaatu said:
I'm sure many here know of this early Fleetwood Mac song. Back in the day, late 60's and early 70's there was a place in Springfield, MA called the Woodrose which was a theater that was nice for concerts. So this was usually played on the PA system before the shows.

Fleetwood Mac-Albatros - YouTube
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One of those great singles that you had to buy a compilation to get your hands on (back in the day). Here's another one of that type. I love the hybrid bass/piano/sax instrument in the initial drawing!



Here's the drawing cut from the video

sBBzeMU.jpg
 
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#85
As long as we're talking about Fleetwood Mac, here are two faves from the schizophrenic: Mystery To Me. Fleetwood Mac v1 on side one, and Fleetwood Mac v2 on side two. At the time, I SELDOM flipped the disc over to play side two. Listening to the 'death' of a band I loved was tough. They eventually got their musical sea legs, but at the time MTM was released, I felt that FMac had died.



 
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#86
nozkcb said:
Been playing bass for about 40 years. Have had many influences from the super, mega chops flashy masters of the bass, to some of the world's most Renown Studio session players as well as a handful of and players from rock, pop, Jazz and Country, but for some reason, until recently I didn't have a good appreciation for John McVie's work with Fleetwood Mac.

Maybe it's because he doesn't do anything flashy or because he just stands there and plays the bass. I'm not sure how I missed it until I started working with a group that is doing a handful of Fleetwood Mac songs, and once I started to really pay attention to what he's doing, I discovered his playing is a huge part of what made those songs what they are. And no, it's not just that bass riff in The Chain. A lot of very tasteful and internal parts of Fleetwood Mac songs came from his hands.

I wonder how many others have underappreciated him as a player and an big part of what made the band songs so good?
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I also overlooked McVie, I was more influenced by McCartney, Entwistle, Jim Lea, Martin Turner, Dennis Dunaway etc. I didn’t really take notice till I took a gig in a Fleetwood Mac tribute and had to learn the catalog. No one knows it but John's driving the bus no doubt about it.
 
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#87
SpazzTheBassist said:
John McVie is a good player. Considering how far back in the beat Mick Fleetwood plays (and Im not talking about fatbacking a snare to make it funkier - I mean he sits so far back that he practically drags), McVie was always Swiss time perfect to give that drag feel a much needed boost. McVies note selection was always Goldilocks perfect

The only thing I never liked about McVie was his tone and I often wondered how this guy managed to make an Alembic not sound like an Alembic :D
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yes, hard to think about one without the other, a perfect team. the results are greater than the sum of the parts.
 
#89
Fleetwood Mac is one of my all-time favorite bands. And looking back I realize that the dead-on bass lines of John McVie is a big part of what I have always found satisfying. His playing always supports the song and never overshadows the parts provided by any of the others. It's really one of those times when each person in the band contributes to a blend that could not be achieved when other players try to fill their shoes. And while I always thought Lindsay was the weak link in the group, even someone filling in for him does not produce the same outcome. The sound of those five members together just cannot be accurately produced by others. Of course, John, Stevie, Christine, and Mick are my favorites, but it's the entire package that makes them great.

Thump on,

One_Dude
 
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#90
jerry said:
McVie's playing was already heading in a more pop direction with his playing on albums like Bare trees and Future Games, and from what I've heard did not take kindly to any pressure from Lindsey on his bass parts. he does share credit on The Chain, probably because of his coda riff. Such a great player with killer instincts for what bassline fits the song without ego.
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I remember Lindsay doing an interview when Tusk came out, and he was complaining that his songs didn’t sound like what he heard in his head. Mick said, “Maybe you don’t want to be in a band, then.”
 
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