Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

There are three generations of fans that never got to see Fleetwood Mac at their absolute undoubted pomp, at the moment where they had gold in their veins and the blood of destruction flowing through their hearts, and it is too that sense of mortifying time bound neglect that the feeling of never seeing the masters in their natural setting as the friction and love threatened to turn the band inside out, dawns upon the faithful.

There are many ways in which to look upon the former Blues band turned pop/rock sensations, several different eras in which to feel replenished and invigorated by the writing and the material, the subjects and personal emotions of the members of the band, and arguably the period that surrounds Rumours is one of the most illuminating for the five members: not only for them, but for rock history in general.

Rumours Live is a moment in time thankfully captured for posterity, a period on stage when the fierce nature of the writing and detailed recriminations were taken out of the studio and encouraged to live in the freedom of the fans’ minds as the energy flowed with unrestrained finery one late August day at The Forum just a few months after the studio album’s initial release.

There is a theory that Rumours has never been out of print, that it is on a continual cycle of being produced in a factory somewhere in deepest Europe, and so perhaps the honour might befall that of its live observation, the entanglement of expression being washed out in the open air and for the fortunate American crowd to savour.

The double album, almost 90 minutes in length, comprises of tracks such as Dreams, Rhiannon, Landslide, Never Going Back Again, You Make Loving Fun, Go Your Own Way, Blue Letter, the exceptional The Chain, and Songbird, and each one is a positive reminder of love and despair, of regret and optimism, created in one of the most infamous recording sessions in music history.

The album sets the scene, but it is the cohesion framed on stage that the album truly stirs joy within, and whilst the audio doesn’t capture the facial expressions as certain barbs are sung within the refrain of the live session, the ability to visualise the stage and those performing on it are forever engrained in the fans’ eyes and souls.

To have been in attendance at a certain gig is always a question mooted when on a long car journey, just which one would you have sold your soul to attend if you could go back in time; to hear Rumours Live will arguably sway your decision.  

Ian D. Hall