Cult Album: Fleetwood Mac 'Tango In The Night'

 

TANGO’D…

 

Album Review of: 

‘TANGO IN THE NIGHT 

(DELUXE EDITION)’ 

by FLEETWOOD MAC 

(Warner Bros Records R2-554813 /018227946388) 

www.fleetwoodmac.com/tango 

As if scoring the biggest-selling white Rock LP of all time isn’t enough, to follow it with a fifteen-million-selling sequel is pure ostentation. By bolting the sweet LA songwriterly harmonies of the Stevie Nicks-Lindsey Buckingham duo onto the rusting rhythm section of three tired Blues-boom veterans, the Mac went unexpectedly floaty soft-rock stellar. They follow ‘Rumours’ (1977) with the more eccentric ‘Tusk’ (1979), get back on safe AOR form with ‘Mirage’ (1982), but go mega all over again when they get Tango’d (1987), their final ‘classic’ line-up outing. The various formats of this 3CD+DVD box-set are an embarrassment of radio-friendly riches. Of course you know the hits – “Little Lies”, “Everywhere” and the copulatory ooh-ahs of “Big Love”, it’s impossible not to. For those who really need more there’s the full remastered original album, plus the inevitable demos (including “Tango In The Night”), early versions (“Seven Wonders”), alternate mixes (“Isn’t It Midnight”), extended takes (“You And I”), dub twelve-inch remixes (Jellybean Benitez’s “Little Lies”), and instrumental demos (“Mystified”), as well as gathering previously non-album B-sides – Christine McVie’s “Ricky” and “Down Endless Street”, plus the “Book Of Miracles” instrumental and “Juliet” run-through of what would subsequently be Stevie Nicks solo album track. Classic Rock seldom came more classic, and chances are, it never will be again. 

Side One: 

(1) ‘Big Love’ (Lindsey Buckingham, 3:37) 

(2) ‘Seven Wonders’ (Stevie Nicks-Sandy Stewart, 3:38) 

(3) ‘Everywhere’ (Christine McVie, 3:48) 

(4) ‘Caroline’ (Buckingham, 3:50) 

(5) ‘Tango In The Night’ (Buckingham, 3:56) 

(6) ‘Mystified’ (Christine McVie-Buckingham, 3:08) 

Side Two: 

(1) ‘Little Lies’ (Christine McVie-Eddy Quintela, 3:40) 

(2) ‘Family Man’ (Buckinghan-Richard Dashut, 4:08) 

(3) ‘Welcome To The Room… Sara’ (Nicks, 3:37) 

(4) ‘Isn’t It Midnight’ (Christine McVie-Quintela-Buckingham, 4:06) 

(5) ‘When I See You Again’ (Nicks, 3:49) 

(6) ‘You And I, Part Two’ (Buckingham-Christine McVie, 2:40) 

Published in: 

‘RNR: ROCK ‘N’ REEL Vol.2 No.63’ 

(UK – May 2017)