How do you do, fellow kids? Do you enjoy the work of ‘70s pop super-group Fleetwood Mac? I know we all do! Well, let’s talk about a song from a 30-year-old album, how’s that sound?
The album in question is Tango in the Night, the last studio album by the classic Rumors-era line-up of Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Christine McVie, Stevie Nicks, and Lindsay Buckingham. It was their first group release since 1982’s Mirage; its members had spent the intervening years on an unannounced hiatus making solo albums, and Buckingham made the break official after the album’s completion (and before its tour, which was aaaawwwkaward).
Tango would become their second biggest-selling album, shy only of the unmatchable juggernaut that was Rumors, selling over 15 million copies worldwide. Next month, just in time for its 30th anniversary, Rhino Records is putting out a deluxe anniversary release – several releases, in fact, in multiple formats with various bells and whistles. And now we’re hearing to one of those extras: an early version of “Seven Wonders.”
“Wonders” wasn’t one of the album’s big hits – those were “Little Lies” and “Everywhere,” though Buckingham’s impassioned solo acoustic take on “Big Love” made it a favorite in later years — and it’s not one that’s aged particularly well, given its reliance on very late-‘80s synths and electric drums. This alternate version is a bit more timeless; minus those elements, it sounds more like something from Mirage. Give it a listen:
The Tango in the Night deluxe edition is out March 31.
(h/t Pitchfork)