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The Best of Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac

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Pretty much the only unfortunate side-effect of the massive artistic and commercial success the Lindsey Buckingham/Stevie Nicks era of Fleetwood Mac was the obscuring shadow it cast upon the earlier eras of the band. No one has even attempted to compile the greatest moments from the early Seventies version of the band, and while blues lovers have revived interest in the original Peter Green-led Fleetwood Mac, it has still been impossible for the non-obsessive completist to find a convenient single-disc introduction into this wonderful, formative era of the band. A large part of that was due to label-hopping and rights issues: the Peter Green era spreads over three different record labels, and while the "strictly blues ma'am" Blue Horizon material was the often tossed onto cheapie compilations, the more pivotal Immediate and Reprise cuts remained out in the cold.

Finally - FINALLY - this set rights all those wrongs, and presents the novice with an almost flawless, complete view of Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac. EVERY important recording, every important aspect, of the early Fleetwood Mac is included here.

What does that actually mean? Well, this set includes the best cuts from their first self-titled album (giving equal time to both Green and the Elmore James-obsessed Jeremy Spencer with "My Heart Beat Like A Hammer," "Shake Your Moneymaker," and "Looking For Somebody"), as well as highlights from the disappointing follow-up Mr. Wonderful ("Stop Messin' Round," "Rollin' Man"). Almost all of the band's Blue Horizon singles are here: "I Believe My Time Ain't Long" is missing, but "Need Your Love So Bad," "Black Magic Woman," and the #1 UK instrumental hit "Albatross" are all present and accounted for.

However, what makes this collection unique is that finally we have a CD that goes on from that point and collects the groundbreaking post-Blue Horizon work: "Man Of The World," "Oh Well" (both parts), and "The Green Manalishi" are finally put together with the early Green-era blues stuff to give you complete view of what this band was doing in 1969. Even better, the compilers of this album decided to bite the bullet and pay Reprise records for the rights to use "Rattlesnake Shake," the key track off the band's one obligatory Green-era album Then Play On. (My only criticism is that I would have preferred more from Then Play On, e.g. "Show-Biz Blues," "Before The Beginning," or "Underway," but I'm in a forgiving mood.)

Finally, a huge bonus that hardcore fans will appreciate is the inclusion of the obscure 1971 single "Dragonfly." Technically it postdates Green's departure from the band, but he's always had high praise for it and it has heretofore been utterly unavailable on CD. All praise to the compilers for hunting it down and including it.

Anyway, for all the reasons mentioned above, THIS is where you start to learn about early Fleetwood Mac. Some Green-era fans may quibble about the absence of a particular favorite - "Love That Burns" is one that many devotees will miss, and as I said above I would have liked "Show-Biz Blues" to be included - but the all the critical high points are here. After years of frustratingly incomplete "greatest hits," somebody took the time to get it right.

Billed as : " Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac Featuring Jeremy Spencer " this exciting blues based band were voted the most popular band in England ( Yes, they even bested the Beatles in many poles in 1968-69. )

Today's version of Fleetwood Mac bears no comparision to this the ORIGINAL band,

Led by Peter Green , Fresh from his stint with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Fleetwood Mac debut album was released in Feb 68 and climbed the charts reaching #4 in the UK. In the era of the Grateful Electric Airplanes this debut record of Raw Blues remained in the British Album charts for an astonshing nine months.

Guitar duties were shared with Peter by Jeremy Spencer. An avid devotee of bluesman Elmore James, Jeremy's vocals and stinging slide Guitar make their mark on many cuts featured here. John McVie handled Bass Guitar Duties and a Six-foot six maniac named Mick Fleetwood bashed away on a special built oversized Drum Kit.

In concert this band earned a reputation for blowing away any other band that dared get in their way. And yes they could jam on a tune like " The Green Manalishi " for 30 minutes at a go ( See the Boston Tea party tapes for live proof . )

What you have here are 18 of the most popular of all early Fleetwood Mac recordings. At 78 minutes there's alot of music jammed on this disc making this a good value for your buck.

The highlights here are of course " Black Magic Woman " , " Alabatross " , " Man of the World " , " Oh Well " , " Shake Your Moneymaker ", Rattlesnake Shake " , The Green Manalishi ( With the Two Pronged Crown ) and " Need Your Love So bad.

There's a tune by the band " Chicken Shack " called " I'd Rather Go Blind" featuring the singing talents of a certain " Christine Perfect " later to marry John McVie and change her name and by 1971 was a full time member of the band .

The last cut on the disc is a remake of Albatross By Chris Coco featuring " Peter Green " and it's a liitle more "spacey " and two minutes longer than the original version but it"s good and proves that Peter Green is indeed still with us here on this planet .

If you are a big Stevie Nicks fan this is not for you. But if you are into the Blues and like late sixties British Rock a bit on the Hard Side you will love this great collection by the original Fleetwood Mac.

Best of Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, an import collection from Holland covering the early years of the band, is an excellent compilation for the fan who likes his blues raw and intense. Be aware: This is not the Buckingham/Nicks multiplatinum Mac, with it's (comparatively) gentler tales of relationships gone wrong and poets of the heart. This is also not the underrated, mid-period Mac, featuring Bob Welch and Christine McVie, with it's sweet odes to extraterrestrial activities and sentimental ladies. No, this is the earliest Mac, with it's biting chords, in-your-face vocals, and ultra-intense, self-introspective journeys of heaven and hell. In particular, "Green Manalishi" and "Oh, Well (Part II)" are soul-searching anthems too intense for everyday consumption. Think Neil Young's Tonight's the Night, Savoy Brown's Kings of Boogie, or even Derek and the Domino's "Layla" and you have the idea. Luckily, all the songs are not so gut-wrenching; "Rattlesnake Shake" and "Shake Your Moneymaker" are classic, swaggering blues, while "My Heart Beat Like a Hammer" features guitarist Jeremy Spencer at his Elmore-James-sounding best. (Spencer and third guitarist Danny Kirwan are both featured here, but Spencer's alter-ego Earl Vance is not!) As for fearless guitarist and leader Peter Green, "Albatross" and the original, pre-Santana "Black Magic Woman" show off his chops to perfection. There are a few cuts which don't belong here, such as "Need Your Love So Bad," and a Chicken Shack song, a cover of Etta James "I'd Rather Go Blind," sung by Christine McVie. And if you are going to feature some of Peter Green's work today (as in the final cut, a remake of "Albatross" with Chris Coco), how about featuring a few Peter Green Splinter Group cuts instead? In any case, this is still a very enjoyable album, particularly if your soul is ready for the searing pain and intensity that a little introspection can bring!!!

There have been compilations before of Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, the band he formed after leaving John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, but this latest one puts right most of the wrongs and omissions of those.
Everything you expect is here including Oh Well Parts 1 & 2 in its full 9 minute glory and without fading out in the middle, where you had to turn over the single, as previous collected versions had; and the previously unreleased US Version of Need Your Love So Bad, which is a superb extended six minute piece, with strings arranged by Mickey Baker (who played guitar on Little Willie John's original). Stop Messin' Round was on the flipside of Need Your Love So Bad, but it is here in the slighter shorter version used on the album Mr. Wonderful.
The towering magnificence of The Green Manalishi is also re-established by its inclusion. The compilation ends with a token track by Chicken Shack, because of Christine McVie's involvement with the band, and the then-recent hit remix of Albatross by Chris Coco, both of which I could have done without in this particular context, perhaps replaced by their first single, Rambling Pony/I Believe My Time Ain't Long.

I'm with David W. Darby (see his "Nice compilation, but not complete or flawless" review) on this one. While this set is easily the best single disc compilation of Peter Green-era Fleetwood Mac released to date, hitting nearly all of the highlights with inclusions from several different record labels, it nevertheless still falls ever-so-short of being the perfect set that it could have been. For starters, I would gladly dump the Chicken Shack tune and the re-make of "Albatross" in exchange for "Long Grey Mare," "Show-Biz Blues," and "Love That Burns," which, in my estimation, was the best track on the second album. And "Homework," it could be argued, was the highpoint of the double Blues Jam in Chicago LP, with absolutely smokin' lead guitar from Greeny, yet unfortunately was not included. And how about "Jumping At Shadows," one of my very favourite slow blues tunes with more exquisite guitar from Mr. Green? I realize that one can't have everything, but I'm guessing most long-time fans of the band would make the same trade and ditch those fairly meaningless tunes stuck at the end of this disc.

that's what bb king is supposed to have said to clapton and george harrison who were amongst the audience, at one of his london shows in the sixties!

green's solos apparently gave king the "chills"!

not unbelievable. peter green was a talent par excellence and his band members venerated him.

green was no van halen. if anything he was slower than the slowhand! but green could express more emotion/passion with one note what many axemen couldn't accomplish with many more. simply put he knew what to play when.

and his vocal prowess matches his axe slinging. he is easily one of the most distinctive emotional and passionate vocalists one will hear in rock/blues.

blackmagic woman, albatross, man of the world, need your love so bad, love that burns are all stand out tracks.

i envy those who've not heard green before - pleasure in waiting! also check out his work with john mayall : a hard road - which is musically a much superior album to the hyped up "beano" which atbest shines only in parts.

green as with other prodigies/geniuses, abandoned his music carrer only after a few years in it. he grew long nails so as to not play guitar. took up grave digging! how cool can you get?

I was quite throughly impressed upon my first listen to this set, considering there has never really been a comprehensive single disc set featuring the mark I line-up of the band. Bascially, it's a single disc comp of the Blue Horizon box set, but has some nice single mixes and some nice bonus materials. Enjoy the US version of "Need Your Love So Bad," as well as the blistering "Shake Your Moneymaker." Included as well is the epic (read: SEVEN MINUTE) "Albatross" consisting of both parts of the double sided single. Loved my first taste of Chicken Shack with Christine Perfect doing "I Would Rather Go Blind," which inspired me to buy more Chicken Shack. Plus, the fantastic version of Chris Coco's remix of "Albatross." You get a kind of "bookend" of their storied career. If you further enjoy Peter Green, check out his solo catalogue and his Splinter stuff. Otherwise, this set rocks!

I had never listened to early Fleetwood Mac until I heard the song Oh Well on the radio. I had to call them and ask them who it was. I could not hardly believe it when they told me it was Fleetwood Mac. I then purchased this CD and was amazed at the way they used to sound before they became a pop band. Very bluesy. It is a great CD and I would highly reccomend it.

There have been compilations before of Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, the band he formed after leaving John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, but this latest one puts right most of the wrongs and omissions of those.
Everything you expect is here including Oh Well Parts 1 & 2 in its full 9 minute glory and without fading out in the middle, where you had to turn over the single, as previous collected versions had; and the previously unreleased US Version of Need Your Love So Bad, which is a superb extended six minute piece, with strings arranged by Mickey Baker (who played guitar on Little Willie John's original). Stop Messin' Round was on the flipside of Need Your Love So Bad, but it is here in the slighter shorter version used on the album Mr. Wonderful.
The towering magnificence of The Green Manalishi is also re-established by its inclusion. The compilation ends with a token track by Chicken Shack, because of Christine McVie's involvement with the band, and the then-recent hit remix of Albatross by Chris Coco, both of which I could have done without in this particular context, perhaps replaced by their first single, Rambling Pony/I Believe My Time Ain't Long

Up until now it's been impossible to find a sensible and comprehensive overview of this "first iteration" of Fleetwood Mac's music... but here it is. Including virtually all of their best tracks, it pretty much perfectly captures what they were all about. A million miles away from their second (or was that fourth?) iteration that took the world by storm in the mid 70's & early 80's, this is a very different proposition. Featuring Peter Green's exceptional blues guitar playing & singing supported by the mercurial Jeremy Spencer's slide guitar and, latterly, Danny Kirwin's third lead guitar - none of who made it past their late 60's/early 70's implosion - and backed up by John McVie & Mick Fleetwood's ultra-tight rhythm section, they were, quite justifiably, one of the most successful groups to emerge from the UK's mid 60's R&B scene.

Like all "Best of..." compilations it arguably misses a couple of their lesser known "stand-out" tracks, in particular "Long Grey Mare" & "Without You", but just about everything else is here plus, as an added bonus, Christine McVie's wonderful rendition of "I'd Rather Go Blind" from her earlier Chicken Shack days and the excellent and previously difficult to find Danny Kirwin penned 1971 single "Dragonfly". And, on the way, you get all the hits, including the stunningly powerful "Oh Well Part 1" & "The Green Manalishi", the heart rending "Man of the World" and the beautiful, extended USA version of "Need Your Love So Bad", plus some real hidden gems, in particular Peter Green's outstanding vocals and guitar-work on his brilliant "I Loved Another Woman" and his fabulously "raw" harmonica playing on "Looking for Somebody".

So, if you're looking for "Rhiannon" & "Tusk" you've dropped into the wrong section of Fleetwood Mac's notoriously complex back catalogue, but if you're looking for some superb UK blues and R&B then you're most definitely in the right place.