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A review by saareman
Fleetwood Mac's Tusk by Rob Trucks
2.0
A Gonzo Journalist's Tusk - 33 1/3 #77
A review of the original Continuum paperback edition (November 16, 2010) of the hardback original (November 2009) now published by Bloomsbury Academic.
As best as I know, the term gonzo journalism was invented by [a:Hunter S. Thompson|5237|Hunter S. Thompson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1206560814p2/5237.jpg] (1937-2005) to describe the type of reporting he did for Rolling Stone magazine back in the day. These were the articles from 1970 to 2004 collected in [b:Fear and Loathing at Rolling Stone: The Essential Writing of Hunter S. Thompson|12422967|Fear and Loathing at Rolling Stone The Essential Writing of Hunter S. Thompson|Hunter S. Thompson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347639149l/12422967._SX50_.jpg|3398602] (2011). So-called Gonzo Journalism went beyond the so-called New Journalism and not only insinuated the reporter into the story, but made them the actual main subject.
This oddball entry in the 33 1/3 series of books on significant rock and pop LPs/CDs says very little about Fleetwood Mac's follow-up to its massive breakthrough album of Rumours (1977). There are repetitive quotes from several interviews with FMac's Lindsay Buckingham stressing how he wanted the band to take a more experimental direction and not just record a Rumours 2. He managed this by recording some very offbeat demos at his home studio and then asking the band to replicate them as closely as possible.
Admittedly there is some sort of manic grandeur to the title song and its use of the horns and drums of the USC Trojan Marching Band which enters to build the song to its finale. But mostly the album has a schizoid quality to it as the 11 soft rock songs of Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie alternate with the 9 rough and ready tracks of Buckingham.
These occasional bits about the actual album are interrupted by stories of writer Rob Trucks days of growing up, the music he listened to, the girls / women he dated / married, the NYC apartment he lives in and its neighbours, the baseball writing that he does and so on. Then there are alternating chapters with other musicians who talk about being influenced by the unpredictable nature of the Tusk record. The most interesting of these was the information that the alt-rock band Camper Van Beethoven recorded an entire cover version of the original FMac album, something that I had not previously been aware of.
The front covers of the original Fleetwood Mac (1979) and the Camper Van Beethoven (2003) "Tusk" albums. Images sourced from Discogs.
But overall, I think you'd learn more about the Tusk album from reading its Wikipedia entry. In 33 1/3's Tusk you will learn about Rob Trucks' life though.
Soundtrack
Listen to the complete 2015 remastered original Tusk (1979) album via a YouTube playlist which begins here or on Spotify here.
Listen to the complete Camper Van Beethoven cover of the Tusk (2003) album via a YouTube playlist which begins here or on Spotify here.
Bonus Tracks
Listen to the 6 hour 5-CD Extended Deluxe version of FMac's Tusk (2015) which includes alternate tracks, remixes, demos and live recordings from subsequent tours on Spotify here.
Trivia and Links
Fleetwood Mac's Tusk was published as part of the initial group of Continuum 33 1/3 series of books surveying significant record albums, primarily in the rock and pop genres. The series is now published by Bloomsbury Academic. The GR Listopia for the 33 1/3 series is incomplete with only 139 books listed as of October 2024 (and the number ordering is incorrect). For an up-to-date list see Bloomsbury Publishing with 198 books listed for the Main Series as of October 2024. The Main Series does not include the 33 1/3 books in the Global series which focuses on music from the regions of Europe, Oceania, Japan, Brazil, South Asia and Africa. You can search through those at the World Music listing here.
A review of the original Continuum paperback edition (November 16, 2010) of the hardback original (November 2009) now published by Bloomsbury Academic.
Why don't you ask him if he's going to stay?
Why don't you ask him if he's going away?
Why don't you tell me what's going on? - excerpted lyrics from the song "Tusk."
As best as I know, the term gonzo journalism was invented by [a:Hunter S. Thompson|5237|Hunter S. Thompson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1206560814p2/5237.jpg] (1937-2005) to describe the type of reporting he did for Rolling Stone magazine back in the day. These were the articles from 1970 to 2004 collected in [b:Fear and Loathing at Rolling Stone: The Essential Writing of Hunter S. Thompson|12422967|Fear and Loathing at Rolling Stone The Essential Writing of Hunter S. Thompson|Hunter S. Thompson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347639149l/12422967._SX50_.jpg|3398602] (2011). So-called Gonzo Journalism went beyond the so-called New Journalism and not only insinuated the reporter into the story, but made them the actual main subject.
This oddball entry in the 33 1/3 series of books on significant rock and pop LPs/CDs says very little about Fleetwood Mac's follow-up to its massive breakthrough album of Rumours (1977). There are repetitive quotes from several interviews with FMac's Lindsay Buckingham stressing how he wanted the band to take a more experimental direction and not just record a Rumours 2. He managed this by recording some very offbeat demos at his home studio and then asking the band to replicate them as closely as possible.
Admittedly there is some sort of manic grandeur to the title song and its use of the horns and drums of the USC Trojan Marching Band which enters to build the song to its finale. But mostly the album has a schizoid quality to it as the 11 soft rock songs of Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie alternate with the 9 rough and ready tracks of Buckingham.
These occasional bits about the actual album are interrupted by stories of writer Rob Trucks days of growing up, the music he listened to, the girls / women he dated / married, the NYC apartment he lives in and its neighbours, the baseball writing that he does and so on. Then there are alternating chapters with other musicians who talk about being influenced by the unpredictable nature of the Tusk record. The most interesting of these was the information that the alt-rock band Camper Van Beethoven recorded an entire cover version of the original FMac album, something that I had not previously been aware of.
The front covers of the original Fleetwood Mac (1979) and the Camper Van Beethoven (2003) "Tusk" albums. Images sourced from Discogs.
But overall, I think you'd learn more about the Tusk album from reading its Wikipedia entry. In 33 1/3's Tusk you will learn about Rob Trucks' life though.
Soundtrack
Listen to the complete 2015 remastered original Tusk (1979) album via a YouTube playlist which begins here or on Spotify here.
Listen to the complete Camper Van Beethoven cover of the Tusk (2003) album via a YouTube playlist which begins here or on Spotify here.
Bonus Tracks
Listen to the 6 hour 5-CD Extended Deluxe version of FMac's Tusk (2015) which includes alternate tracks, remixes, demos and live recordings from subsequent tours on Spotify here.
Trivia and Links
Fleetwood Mac's Tusk was published as part of the initial group of Continuum 33 1/3 series of books surveying significant record albums, primarily in the rock and pop genres. The series is now published by Bloomsbury Academic. The GR Listopia for the 33 1/3 series is incomplete with only 139 books listed as of October 2024 (and the number ordering is incorrect). For an up-to-date list see Bloomsbury Publishing with 198 books listed for the Main Series as of October 2024. The Main Series does not include the 33 1/3 books in the Global series which focuses on music from the regions of Europe, Oceania, Japan, Brazil, South Asia and Africa. You can search through those at the World Music listing here.