Big Macs? That depends on who's cooking them...

Tribute albums by various artists are notoriously difficult to get right. Seeing how every artist is more or less left to their own devices, there is no unifying concept other than the songs itself. Maybe the sound and style of the original artist, but that wields its own set of problems, namely : if you ape that sound or style too closely, what is even the point ? Many a tribute compilation has slid into second-rate karaoke like that. And then there is the problem of variety. Deviating from the original’s template can bring variety and true re-imaginings of the originals, but is a buying audience even willing to have that in spades ? After all, we buy the tribute album to get songs that we know and love, preferably in versions we can recognize as being those beloved songs. So, subtle tweaks and variations are probably a good idea, but be too radical in your reworking and the exercise – at least to a lot of listeners – loses its purpose. Be too close to the orginals, when you can easily have those instead, and it leads to a different kind of pointlessness.

Only a few compilations have gotten this right, and those paying tribute to Fleetwood Mac aren’t among them. Legacy – A Tribute To Fleetwood Mac's Rumours is a case of artists being too reverential to the originals and slipping into second-rate karaoke. It doesn’t help that the roster is a murderer’s row of middle of the road mainstream artists, bordering on adult contemporary mainstays, that more or less exemplify mainstream pop rock radio in the mid-90s. Put unimaginative karaoke in the hands of these folks, and it’s a total snoozefest. A second compilation, from which my version borrows its title and most of its tracks has a much higher hit rate, probably due to it coming out about fifteen years later and being done by a more diverse roster of artists, including a who's who of hip indie artists, from Antony and Bonnie 'Prince' Billy to St. Vincent and Tame Impala. It does get very heavy on electronics at times, and some songs from the original comp went too heavy into re-make/re-model-territory for my personal taste, but the keepers really are keepers. Just Tell Me That You Want Me also had – as a nod to tradition, maybe? - some inclusions of old warhorses on the artist roster that left me baffled (Billy Gibbons?), but I kept Marianne Faithful's version of “Angel” and the Lee Ranaldo/J.Mascis collaboration on “Albatross”.

                                When none of the band or artist pictures talk to you...

So, all in all, I retained about two thirds of the original Just Tell Me That You Want Me : A Tribute To Fleetwood Mac comp, added a mere two tracks from the aforementioned Legacy (“Second Hand News” from the now all-but-forgotten Tonic and Jewel's “You Make Loving Fun”) and then added two other Mac covers I had lying around. One is the excellent version of "Dreams" by Whiskeytown, circa Stranger's Almanac. Plus a rowdy punk version of "Go Your Own Way" by Seaweed to close out proceedings. This leaves us with an album whose more electronic-based numbers give it a fresher edge, while being more balanced and a little more kick ass with the contributions from the 1990s roster.

Say what you will (ha!) about the Mac after Buckingham and Nicks joined, but they sure as hell had the songs with which you can't argue. This One Buck records version of Just Tell Me That You Want Me : A Tribute To Fleetwood Mac will remind you of what was great about that run, in a number of different voices and styles.

So, go and tell me that you want 'em....