A lot of water has passed under a good many bridges since Lindsey Buckingham and Christine McVie paired up for any significant creative endeavors, from Buckingham’s continued evolution as a solo artist to McVie’s semi-retirement from the road and studio to a new Fleetwood Mac album and tour with little involvement from her and, finally, her 2014 return to the band. If the announcement that this particular twosome was pairing up for a tandem album was a shock, the results are even more surprising.
There’s a breezy pop lilt running through much of Lindsey Buckingham Christine McVie that predates their huge success, as if the duo was drawing on influences and experiences from hazy ’60s memories. “Sleeping Around The Corner,” originally a bonus track from Buckingham’s Seeds We Sow in 2011, opens the album with the kind of wide-eyed innocence found on AM pop radio playlists half a century ago, while McVie channels her inner Cilla Black on the gorgeous and evocative “Game Of Pretend.” Meanwhile, “Lay Down For Free” could have been conceived when Buckingham was playing guitar and trading harmonies with Don Everly in the early ’70s.
There are flashes of later inspirations as well. “Feel About You” features lyrical and jangly musical references to Buckingham’s production/performance turn for pal Walter Egan on his Not Shy album. With “Too Far Gone,” Buckingham goes full-metal Tusk on guitar and percussion while McVie inhabits the obsessive love song with her requisite smoky passion. The album concludes with the slinky snake charm of “Carnival Begin,” an aching reverie that stylistically touches on Mac’s Bob Welch era before drifting out on Buckingham’s stinging guitar coda. Lindsey Buckingham Christine McVie could be viewed as a scrapbook of past glories or a signpost to future intentions, but the overwhelming success of this unexpected Mac mashup is clear evidence that it’s more than a one-off idea.
—Brian Baker
