Buckingham Nicks ~ The Album That Disappeared

Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham were deeply in love when they wrote and recorded the songs that appear on their one and only duet album, entitled Buckingham Nicks. The album was released in September of 1973. It sold hardly at all, but impressed Mick Fleetwood enough that he invited Lindsey, a guitar wizard, to join Fleetwood Mac. Lindsey agreed, but only on the condition that Stevie be included in the deal. At this point in their lives Stevie was still waiting tables to support the two of them while Lindsey spent most days honing his guitar skills, and occasionally painting houses. Despite having made a record, they were desperate for a break. And desperately loyal to each other.

They were in their early twenties, and Stevie was so poor she was seriously considering a move back in with her parents. Joining Fleetwood Mac was life-changing. Having their songs transformed by Mick Fleetwood’s powerful drumming, John McVie’s solid bass work, and Christine McVie’s added harmonies was more than they dreamed. They abandoned their careers as a duet in January of 1974 and the rest is history.

What is also history, in a different way, is the Buckingham Nicks album. It was withdrawn from the Polydor catalogue due to poor sales, and though FM fans have clamoured for its re-release for years, that hasn’t happened. The few vinyl copies that remain in circulation command astronomical prices. A used copy in very good condition recently sold on Discogs for $365 Canadian. A scratched album in a tattered cover will still bring $75.

There are some bootleg CDs (sourced from vinyl) manufactured overseas that vary in quality and correspondingly in price, that with duties and layers of dealer distribution are a questionable buy. CDs were marketed in South Korea back in 2016 and the year following in Japan by the Big Pink label. The Asian releases are well regarded for decent sound quality.

I once had an opportunity to purchase a vinyl copy myself. It was three or four years ago in Calgary at a reputable new/used record shop. They were asking $90. Of course I passed up the chance to own an album I’d been seeking for years. Too expensive, I thought. Of course I regret it. But really, I was okay with spending $7-$10 at Starbucks practically every day so a week of overpriced coffee wouldn’t have been much of a sacrifice. And yes, I am a serious record collector with a great turntable and a collection of more than 1500 albums. Of course I regret it.

Recently though, I came across a posting of the entire album on YouTube. Scroll to the bottom of the post for your listening pleasure. The sound quality is quite acceptable.

Buckingham Nicks was replete with gems: Lindsey’s superb guitar playing, the confessional and moving songwriting, the complexity of the song structures, the high harmony vocals – this was the basis for the self-titled white Fleetwood Mac album, and the foundation for the passionate intensity of Rumours. And yet this album stands on its own as an early ’70s lost masterpiece. It includes the song “Crystal”, which appeared in very similar form on the duo’s first album with Fleetwood Mac.

Two other standouts were “Don’t Let Me Down Again”, which FM often performed live, and the closer “Frozen Love”, which featured Lindsey’s stellar guitar work; it is this cut that attracted Mick Fleetwood. Several tracks featured stalwarts Waddy Wachtel on additional guitar and drum legend Jim Keltner, as well as percussion virtuoso Jorge Calderon. Polydor put money and time into production but failed to promote the record for reasons unknown.

The rights to this important album are co-owned by Stevie and Lindsey. Both must agree to a re-release, but somehow that meeting of the minds hasn’t happened. Some say the master tapes have been lost, so a reissue wouldn’t meet present-day standards. Others say that one or both of them are intractable. There was a longstanding rumour that the partial nudity on the album cover embarrassed them both, but if true, that could easily have been overcome with new artwork. Something else is responsible for the album’s continued disappearance. They no longer play music together nor do they maintain any sort of relationship. There’s a song about that, and it’s a Fleetwood Mac tune. On second thought, there’s more than one song about the situation…