Lindsey Buckingham Album: “Out of the Cradle”

Having just seen the 2003 Fleetwood Mac tour in Dallas, I was most impressed by the strength and intensity of Lindsey Buckingham's performance. At 54 years old, he can still "bring it" with the best guitarists around today, so I felt compelled to re-listen to his (still) latest solo work "Out of the Cradle" and share a short review.

Most fans of Buckingham discuss his virtuoso guitar performance on this CD, but few speak to his overall musicianship...he's one of the few latter day musicians that can walk into the studio and walk out with a complete album all on his own (he gets minor help on three songs). Prince of yesteryear was also one of these types and the similarities between these two brilliant and enigmatic artists is striking. Visionary music while still maintaining "listenability" is truly a gift that both has had over the years (in my opinion) and Buckingham certainly has maintained this on all his solo albums. This one still maintains a freshness and immediacy ten years following it's initial release.

Certainly his guitar performances stand out on this work (I'd say moreso than his previous solo works), but his song structure and production capabilities most impress me on this album. The underlying driving rhythm on songs like "Wrong" and "Countdown" coupled with the layered guitar work (both rhythm and solo) make this CD delightfully different than "Law and Order" and "Go Insane"...and much different than anything that I've heard from Fleetwood Mac (I haven't heard the new album yet,however). These facts further solidify what I've felt for years...that Lindsey truly is THE artistic backbone of Fleetwood Mac and is equally responsible for their remarkable success over the years.

If you get a chance to see the "Mac" in this latest tour, I'm sure that you'll agree that Lindsey Buckingham is still a standout performer and hopefully it will compel him to release a follow-up to this intriguing CD. Highly recommended!!

When rock fans list their guitar heroes, Eric Clapton and Carlos Santana are at the top of the list. Lindsey Buckingham has to be the most under-rated guitar hero on the planet. In comparison to his previous solo endeavours, which are even more warped than the solo material he put onto Fleetwood Mac's TUSK double-CD, this time he is doing what he does best: playing guitar. I can think of at least 8 solos on this record which sparkle, and that's not even trying. Mac fans will certainly love "Countdown." Lindsey, as he wrote this, was trying to find purpose after Fleetwood Mac, and made a point to wax sarcastic about the band, though almost in an undertone. Now, having praised Lindsey's lead guitar, let me add for the new fan that he also played 96% of the rest of the instruments, sang all the vocals, and produced it. Lindsey Buckingham is the best contender for James Brown's old title (now claimed by the Artist fka Prince) of Hardest Working Man in Show Business.

Lindsey Buckingham had contributed a great deal of his talent with Fleetwood Mac. His guitar playing is at once versatile and unique. A friend of mine had the introductions to &quo t;This is the Time&quit; and &quo t;Don't Back Down&quit; in the background on his answering machine when it 1st came out!

The acoustic intro to &quit;Don't Back Down&quit; gets the listener ready for the song (which features breathy harmonies from Mr. Buckingham) whereas the jaunty intro to "This Is the Time" contradicts a rather heavy sounding song about impatient passion (you go from Spanish guitar to bone crunching electric guitar!). "All My Sorrows" and "Soul Drifter" sound autobiographical summing up his melancholy and always moving ahead personality (and both feature fancy acoustic guitar work). "Countdown" has a George Harrison-esque opening lick with harmonies simmilar to the Beach Boys. "You Do or You Don't" and "Wrong" are perhaps the closest to something that could be recorded with Fleetwood Mac. "Street of Dreams" features Buckingham at his most melancholy with the stormy outro which is followed by the more therapeutic "Surrender the Rain" (with a spoken intro where Lindsey tells himself not to let his sadness get the best of him). "Doing What I Can" sounds a little like "Go Insane" (but lyrically on this song, he sounds perfectly sane!). Then there's the poppy "Turn It On" and finally Lindsey does an acoustic rendition of Rogers and Hammerstein's "This Nearly Was Mine" before seguing into the appropriate closing track "Say We'll Meet Again" (which is at once romantic and melancholy). This CD is hard to find in many stores.

You either love or hate the music of Lindsey Buckingham. When it comes to this artist as there is no middle ground in the opinion polls.

Lindsey, is an animal of his studio, an artist possessed by demons you and I can't afford. Sometimes the result of thousands of hours in solitude is a pop-masterwork, other times he produces the strangest sounding sound collages that are attacked with fury from music critics and the fools we be. Lindsey Buckingham, is without doubt one of the most interesting musicial characters of our times. this artist is indeed a "one-off"

This 1992 CD release entitled: "Out Of The Cradle" is a most accessible work. This record is easy on the ears, well crafted and full of interesting tones and colors. From the acoustic introduction that bleeds into: "Don't Look Down", this disc presents Lindsey at his very best. His guitar is brisk in the acoustic settings to downright blinding when he solos electric.

But playing and production aside, "Out Of The Cradle" has it's merits with the songs presented here. Many of these tunes are as good or better than his contributions to Fleetwood Mac during his tenure as the driving force of that great band between 1975-1988. "Wrong", "Countdown", "This Is The Time", "You Do Or You Don't", "Surrender The Rain", "Turn It On" and the lovely closing song: "Say We'll Meet Again". There are instrumental links to a few of the numbers persented here, and a spoken introduction to: "Surrender The Rain".

From upbeat and quirky to moody and introspective, this man can go either way quite easy. Lindsey, tends to pour out his feelings within his music. There is an honest feel to this material that echoes the best of any singer/songwriter of our day. Lindsey, will always live in the shadow of: Fleetwood Mac, and I believe after all these years, he understands why his solo music takes a back seat to the mega-sales of the Big Mac. The combination of those players in FM is so unique and the songs so popular to the masses, even as the musician who masterminded their sound, and wrote so many of their hit singles, has to take a backseat to their massive appeal.

Fleetwood Mac will indeed be back in 2009 {we still do not know what form the band will take on in the future.} Lindsey, will be there producing and singing and playing as he does better than just about anyone in the music industry. This veteran warrior will not back down. Lindsey Buckingham, is already up there at the top, and I believe he is going to stay there a little while longer.

This is a Fantastic CD.

Four Stars !!!

Buckingham proves himself as a great guitarist - if there was ever any doubt -- and a strong vocalist as well. You can hear a whisper of Fleetwood Mac (FM) in every song on the album and you know by listening to "Out of the Cradle" where FM gets a lot of it's body and soul. While I'd still rather hear him as a member of FM I actually enjoy this album more than FM's newest release "Say You Will". "Don't Look Down" and "Countdown" are two of my favorites on this album. But I was sold from the first guitar chord on the instrumental introduction so everything that followed was like the cherry on top!!