Lindsey Buckingham gets all the credit. Stevie Nicks gets all the attention. But Christine McVie was the glue. She bridged the gap from obscurity to fame. Nicks twirled, but it was Christine with her understated beauty that enraptured us. And it was Christine’s track that broke the new Fleetwood Mac. Yes, “Over My Head” paved the way for “Rhiannon.” And Bill Clinton’s theme song, “Don’t Stop,” was not the work of an American, but a Brit, Christine McVie.

And for a while there, Christine was part of the Fleetwood Mac reunion, but then she dropped out. And too often band names are brand names and individuals are forgotten, but in Christine’s case, this is unjust.

But all her Fleetwood Mac tunes stay in rotation. And if you loved those, maybe you missed her 1984 solo album, produced by Russ Titelman, that had some traction but then disappeared, as if it were never made, but there are a few tracks that I’ll never forget, that titillate me to the core.

Like “So Excited”…

Well, I’m so excited
My baby is on his way

It’s the jangly guitar part and then the pure voice. The track exudes honesty, which is the heart of great music. You really feel like Christine has been waiting all day, cleaning the house, prepping her look, waiting for him to show up.

Who hasn’t done this?

It’s the essence of love. The anticipation!

I can’t eat
I can’t sleep
Since the first time that I saw you
Somebody tell me
What’s a poor girl supposed to do

Eureka! Why is it that we lose our appetite? Suddenly we can survive solely on the butterflies in our stomach. We feel detached from the world but more a part of it than ever before.

Well, I know my baby
He makes me want to scream and shout
Ooh, he shows me
Shows me what it’s all about

Funny how all the manuals tell you to be cool. Come on, every year there’s a best seller supposedly delivering the key to romance. That you should hang back, not show your emotions, not move too fast, that you need to make them prove their love and commitment.

Hogwash!

Love is a runaway train. A journey you’ve waited for your whole life that’s even better than you imagined. And when you’re caught up, you never want to let go. They say money is power. That’s completely wrong. Love is power. Never forget it.

And just as magical as the acoustic guitar is in “I’m So Excited,” the piano entrances you in “Ask Anybody.”

He’s a devil and an angel
Ooh, the combination’s driving me wild

Don’t we all know it! We fall prey to their wink, their charisma, but they don’t return our phone calls, we see them out with other people, we want to let go, but we can’t.

He’s a saint and he’s a sinner
Ooh, somehow he acts just like a beginner
I guess he’s still a child

Oftentimes they are. They’ve gotten by on their looks. They’re flawed. But we get caught up in their energy, we get on their trip casting aside doubt until…they let us down and we crash so hard we wonder if it was all worth it, even though we know it was…

Ask anybody
They’ll say I’m going wrong
They said I should walk out
But that’s not what I want

You ask for advice, but you don’t want to listen to it. What you really want is someone to be irrational, just like you, to tell you to go for it. And despite all the naysaying, you keep going back to the well, you can’t let the person go, until you’ve been so hurt that you admit to your friends they were right.

But that’s all right ’cause I know somehow
We can make it right and I’m putting up a fight
Somehow, somewhere he’ll change
And we’ll try it all over again without all the pain

She’s delusional. You’ve seen the movie. You’ve probably even lived the movie. It’s not until you’re old and gray that you finally realize that people don’t change, and that you certainly can’t change them via hope and sheer will. If only they were a little bit different…but they’re not.

And then there’s that wistful solo! The electronically treated sound that Titelman used to such great success on Steve Winwood’s “Back In The High Life.” And when it comes in again, unexpectedly, at the end of the song, you can just see it, her staring out the window, sitting in her kitchen, lying in bed, fully awake, engrossed by the thought of him, unable to let him go, even though she never really had him.

And speaking of Winwood, he vocalizes on “One In A Million.”

But none of the aforementioned tracks were hits.

But “Got A Hold On Me” was. Maybe because it’s the most Fleetwood Mac track on the album. It’s got Christine’s breathy vocal, a bouncy beat and a catchy chorus. It’s really good. But not as good as “So Excited” and “Ask Anybody,” which would have fit just perfectly on a Fleetwood Mac album from the seventies, when the band took chances and was not afraid to be dark and evidence its roots.

And maybe because “Christine McVie” was a relative disappointment, Christine retreated. To the point where the press still follows Stevie Nicks’s every move, but Christine’s been forgotten.

But for those of us who just didn’t listen to the songs on the radio, who bought the albums and read all the credits, saw the musicians as three-dimensional, Christine McVie was always the queen. She may not have been a witch, but we’d still shake if we approached her in a bar, we know she’d be honest and forthright and tolerate no b.s.

That’s a rock star.

Christine McVie blazed her own path, we were in love with her back then, and we still are now.

Rhinofy-Christine McVie

Previous Rhinofy playlists

It’s about the money, not the statement.

Do you write ten tunes in your head every two or three years? And in between have long stretches of absolute darkness? Do you not sleep for months and then get under the covers for weeks at a time?

The album is an antiquated construct that fits the modern era not at all but it sustains because it’s the only way artists and labels have figured out how to make money.

Oh, so you want an album deal? How would you like to be on RCA Records right now, with their Timberlake juggernaut? Hey, I dare you, name one song beyond “Suit & Tie”!

Oh, you want me to admit I was wrong. That we’re all not tired of JT, that he’s a god.

I’ll admit that there’s still life in the old system. Saturation publicity. Getting a fraction of the public excited enough to purchase an album without hearing it first. A frenzy. But that’s not love so much as impulse. Like a one night stand instead of a love affair.

And who knows, maybe people will have a love affair with “The 20/20 Experience,” doesn’t bother me.

But I will tell you there was “The 20/20 Experience” and… Yes, if this is a paradigm for the future, where are the other successes? Justin Timberlake won the lottery and you’re still broke, scraping up cash to buy tickets.

And RCA is thrilled. Because they just made their quarter, maybe their whole damn year. Because a label doesn’t care what sells, only that something sells. So if you’re another act on RCA today, you’re getting short shrift, all the energy and dollars are going where the cash is, “The 20/20 Experience.”

Yes, you want to be a priority. Why do you want to put your fate in the hands of others?

And why do you want to make an album?

You say it’s about the statement, but you didn’t make one. The truth is you’re just inured to the old way. You’re stupid. You’re afraid of the future.

The labels do it because that’s where the money is. Which is why they made people buy the album for the single back in the last century. And as soon as people got the option to get only what they wanted to hear? Via Napster and iTunes? Singles soared and albums tanked. Because no one wants to hear that much bad music.

It’s a circle jerk perpetuated by those on the artistic and business side of the music industry. The public doesn’t want albums. Oh, don’t tell me about Aunt Liz who still buys CDs. Hell, I’ll tell you about Cousin Joe who still uses a flip phone, who thinks the ability to send e-mail and surf the web on a hand-held device is unnecessary.

Sure, there are always segments of the public left behind, living in the past. If you want to appeal to them, be my guest. Hell, that’s the specialty of the music industry, living in the past and crying about the future, which is how all the established players missed EDM. They couldn’t see how to monetize it. Meanwhile, the deejays are laughing all the way to the bank, they could care less about recorded music sales.

If you have an ongoing relationship with your fan base, tweeting and Facebooking and Tumblring, why do you only release music every year or two? That makes no sense. Your fans want something new, but you won’t give it to them. Because you can’t fathom the future.

Yup, what’s killing the music business is the fact that the fans are more savvy than the industry.

The fans know you can’t get a good ticket.

The fans know most of the album sucks.

The fans have money and want to spend it, on you, you’ve just got to figure out how to do it.

That’s the lesson of Amanda Palmer. She figured out how to give fans what they want, engagement and access and music, and she monetized all of it. And following in her footsteps are…

Almost nobody.

Palmer gets off her label, you want on.

Palmer releases material constantly, even a single last week.

You’re polishing your turd of an album.

But one day someone like Justin Timberlake, someone that big, will not be a pussy and will embrace the new world, will invent the new paradigm.

In the meantime, you’re gonna send me e-mail telling me how ignorant I am, hating on me, so you can feel better about yourself.

Like I care.

THEN

We had to drive to the record store on Tuesday to buy the new releases.

NOW

The new releases are available at midnight on the internet.

THEN

If you didn’t get to the store early enough, the new release sold out. Or never came into the store to begin with.

NOW

Music never gets delayed in shipment and there’s an infinite supply.

THEN

Every record store had different inventory.

NOW

All internet sites have essentially the same inventory.

THEN

You’d drive from store to store searching for a catalog item.

NOW

All the catalog is available at your fingertips on the internet.

THEN

You had to go to the bookstore to get the new release.

NOW

The new release is available at midnight, usually on Tuesday, like with music everything’s available and there’s an endless supply.

THEN

You were sour grapes, saying you couldn’t get a deal and no one could buy your music.

NOW

You can make your tunes available for next to nothing via CDBaby and Tunecore. If no one buys them, the onus is on you.

THEN

You had to buy it to hear it.

NOW

Everything is available to hear for free, whether on YouTube or streaming music services like Spotify.

THEN

It was expensive to record.

NOW

It’s cheap to record.

THEN

There were three network TV channels.

NOW

There are five hundred channels and there’s always something on.

THEN

You had to catch it live.

NOW

You can get it On Demand or record it for later viewing on your DVR.

THEN

You were limited to the radio stations in your market.

NOW

You not only get terrestrial stations in your market, the entire world’s radio is available online, usually for free. And you’ve got algorithm-based services like Pandora and no ad, hand-curated radio like Sirius XM.

THEN

You had to pay a lot of money to get pristine sound.

NOW

Stereo is good and cheap.

THEN

There were skips and other defects.

NOW

The sound is pristine.

THEN

You didn’t know about the new releases unless you went to the store or religiously read the music press.

NOW

New release schedules are plentiful and free.

THEN

Your car broke down.

NOW

Your car never breaks down.

THEN

You had cathode ray TV.

NOW

You’ve got hi-def flat panel TV.

THEN

There were limited news sources.

NOW

There are seemingly unlimited news sources. You can read various opinions and make up your own mind.

THEN

Cancer was a death sentence.

NOW

More and more people survive cancer.

THEN

Everything was expensive.

NOW

Everything is cheap. And powerful. You get a hand-held computer for under $200, oftentimes free with a mobile contract.

THEN

You needed an expensive desktop computer.

NOW

You only need a tablet and a smartphone.

THEN

Your computer crashed.

NOW

Your computer doesn’t crash, at least not Macs!

THEN

Shopping was limited to your neighborhood.

NOW

A cornucopia of goods from all over the world is available at your fingertips.

THEN

Music cost a different amount at every store.

NOW

Music costs the same everywhere, and it’s cheap. You can’t charge more than your competitors because their store is just a click away.

THEN

Ignorance was hard to prove.

NOW

Google reveals facts instantly.

THEN

You were limited to the courses at your school.

NOW

You can take courses from all over the world, even the Ivys, frequently for free.

THEN

Automobiles were notorious pollution devices.

NOW

Cars put out fewer emisisons than ever and hybrids and electrics are a viable alternative.

THEN

Start-ups failed because they had no reach.

NOW

Your potential audience is the world. You can create something that changes society and makes you rich in the confines of your own home.

THEN

Talking heads had credibility on TV news.

NOW

Every field has an expert online who really knows the score, unlike the nitwit newsreaders on televsion.

THEN

You could pull the wool over the public’s eyes. George Bush’s administration could say that Iraq had WMD and there was no counterbalance of truth.

NOW

The gotcha web dig deeps and pulls out truth. If you’re a lying, cheating scumbag, everybody’s gonna know.

THEN

People only knew the two-dimensional cardboard you.

NOW

Everybody’s three-dimensional as a result of a plethora of information about them online.

THEN

You lost touch with those you grew up with.

NOW

You never lose touch with anybody you ever had contact with.

THEN

Long distance phone calls were expensive.

NOW

Long distance phone calls cost no more than local, and they can even be completely free.

THEN

Videophones were the future.

NOW

Videophones are here and free, via Skype and Facetime.

THEN

Dumb was cool.

NOW

Smart is cool.

They’re dropping like flies.

That’s what they don’t tell you when you’re younger, that you’re lucky to make it to old age intact. You think you’re healthy and then you’re not. But the real story is mutations are plentiful in your body and as time goes by you wear down like an old car. You may love your Accord, but after a couple of hundred thousand miles even Hondas fall apart, you need a new transmission, you need new bearings. But unlike automobiles, most people parts are not replaceable. Wanna know why your favorite band can’t reunite and tear it up like it used to? Because someone didn’t survive and those who are left…half of them have health issues. It’s worse if you’re a musician, the wear and tear of the road, the abuse of the system, but it’s true of all of us. That’s one thing the youth have over the old, their health. My dad used to ask me about my health every time we spoke. I didn’t get it, I took my good health for granted. If only the cancer hadn’t cut him down at the young age of seventy, then I could call him up and say YOU’RE RIGHT, I FINALLY UNDERSTAND!

Andy Johns had the misfortune of having a relatively pedestrian name compared to his older brother Glyn. Come on, you remember Glyn, but Andy?

But when you go through his credits, you’ll be absolutely wowed.

Yes, it’s about songs.

But it’s also about sound!

Andy Johns engineered the heaviest track of all time, Led Zeppelin’s “When The Levee Breaks.” Listening on headphones is like being hit over the head with a sledgehammer, but it feels so good.

And then there’s Jethro Tull’s “Stand Up.” I don’t know why Ian Anderson’s band has been maligned and forgotten, true aficionados consider the debut the gold standard, but I always loved this, the follow-up, best. It sounds like it was cut on a dark foggy street, straight out of Sherlock Holmes. It’s a classic from start to finish, but I especially want to point out the closing cuts on both sides, “Look Into The Sun” and “For A Thousand Mothers.” I can hear the sound of the former without listening to it! Right now it’s playing in my head! It’s as if it’s only the music and you… It takes an engineer to get it right.

And how about “The Stealer,” by Free? Almost nobody knows this positively classic recording. It’s power and sex and sound all wrapped into one. If I do nothing else but turn you on to “The Stealer” with this missive, my mission will be a success.

The list goes on and on, from “John Barleycorn” to “Stephen Stills” to Eric Clapton to Blind Faith to the Rolling Stones…

This guy was there.

And I’ve got no idea what killed him.

And I didn’t even know him.

But his music? That’s part of my DNA!

Andy Johns credits

Andy Johns on Spotify playlist