RARE! Early Studio Recording of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Dreams’!

RARE! Early Studio Recording of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Dreams’! | Society Of Rock Videos

Keep it Simple, Stevie!

We love the funky, upbeat vibe of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Dreams’ and didn’t think it could possibly get any better – until we came across an even earlier, stripped down version.

This early studio version was an improvement on the too-simple original put forth by Stevie Nicks. Featuring only Stevie’s vocals, Christine McVie on keyboard, with Lindsey Buckingham framing the entire track with a simple, quiet electric guitar in the background, we get to hear the power in Stevie’s signature breathy vocals – not overshadowed by backing instrumentation or vocals. Instead of being fun and funky, this early version of ‘Dreams’ has an ethereal, dreamlike quality – and we love it!

The song that became a #1 hit for Fleetwood Mac almost didn’t get off the ground!

Christine McVie was less than impressed with Stevie’s original rendition, saying:

“I thought, ‘This is really boring,’ but the Lindsey genius came into play and he fashioned three sections out of identical chords, making each section sound completely different.”

We’re so glad Fleetwood Mac re-worked the song – we can’t imagine life without it!

‘Dreams’ was written when each member of Fleetwood Mac was going through a breakup and working in one room together wasn’t a remote possibility. Stevie wrote this in the studio next door, where Sly Stone was recording. He had a big, semicircular bed and red velvet all over the walls – a great vibe for a song about dreams. No wonder it reminds us of that hazy area between wakefulness and sleep, and we know you’ll love it too!

+ Dreams Lyrics +

Now here you go again, you say
You want your freedom
Well who am I to keep you down
It’s only right that you should
Play the way you feel it
But listen carefully to the sound
Of your loneliness
Like a heartbeat drives you mad
In the stillness of remembering what you had
And what you lost, and what you had, and what you lost

Thunder only happens when it’s raining
Players only love you when they’re playing
Say women they will come and they will go
When the rain washes you clean, you’ll know, you’ll know

Now here I go again, I see the crystal visions
I keep my visions to myself, it’s only me
Who wants to wrap around your dreams and,
Have you any dreams you’d like to sell?
Dreams of loneliness,
Like a heartbeat, drives you mad
In the stillness of remembering, what you had,
And what you lost and what you had and what you lost

Thunder only happens when it’s raining
Players only love you when they’re playing
Women, they will come and they will go
When the rain washes you clean, you’ll know

Thunder only happens when it’s raining
Players only love you when they’re playing
Say, women, they will come and they will go
When the rain washes you clean, you’ll know
You’ll know, you will know, you’ll know

(Phentermine)

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