Lindsey Buckingham--Trouble (1981)

     From the early days of modern pop/rock, there have been the equivalent of the mad scientist, who loves to tinker with voices, sounds, and overall texture to produce their art. Phil Spector, Brian Wilson, Todd Rundgren just to name a few and one can put Lindsey Buckingham in that category as well.   
     Since his first solo album in 1981, (Law and Order) he has produced very listenable, melodically infectious music. Not all of it has sold well, but all of them have the mark of a pop craftsman.
     It shouldn't be surprising that he can do this work solo, since his stamp is all over post 1975 Fleetwood Mac. His superb guitar playing, vocals, producing skills, and vocals helped shape the sound of the modern Mac. Not to mention that it was his intervention which brought Stevie Nicks to the group. In the early 70's, the duo Buckingham Nicks was getting a little airplay, especially on FM stations. Mick Fleetwood would hear the song, "Frozen Love" off of that debut album and was very impressed by Buckingham's guitar work. Lindsay was asked if he would be interested in joining the group, replacing Bob Welch, but said that him and Nicks were a package deal. Mick said ok, and the two of them together would change the group, and the course of pop/rock history.

   

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BT Express--Do It ('Till Your Satisfied) (1974)

     For those who didn't live through it, (and for many who did) the disco era began with "Saturday Night Fever". Actually SNF was the apex of the era, since the sound from the dance floor began to filter on the charts for a couple of years before what is considered "the disco era". For me, this song was one of the songs that began that move.
     BT Express (which stands for Brooklyn Trucking Express) started out as the R&B group Madison Street Express in 1972 and changed the name with the release of "Do It". It reached #2 on the charts in the fall of 1974, and continued to charts for the next two years.

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