Time

October 1995 finally saw the release of a new studio album for the band, and for the sixteenth studio release we lost Stevie Nicks and Rick Vito, and gained in their place Dave Mason (former guitarist with Traffic) and Bekka Bramlett (daughter of sixties duo Delaney & Bonnie). They joined Billy Burnette and long-time members Christine McVie, Mick Fleetwood and John McVie to form another six-piece. Christine however had given up touring by this stage and was soon to quit the band, which collapsed altogether shortly after this release - before reuniting with the full Rumours line-up two years later on The Dance.

Back to this album though, and an open mind is required to listen to it - ie. don't be put off by the many negative reviews that you have no doubt read. You need to forget about Fleetwood Mac line-ups of old and remember that that is what they have always been about - constant change. The album scraped into the UK charts at #47, and didn't even chart in the US, but I feel this is probably due to lack of promotion and no single releases.

Billy Burnette delivers a more countrified sound on album opener, Talkin' to my heart, which he co-wrote with Deborah Allen and Rafe VanHoy. It's certainly a leap from anything he did on Behind the mask, although his vocals are instantly recognisable. Bekka's background vocals add a completely new sound to the band, who only ever had two female vocalists in its entire history until now, and the song itself is undeniably catchy and instant.

The first of five compositions by Christine McVie and husband Eddy Quintela is Hollywood (some other kind of town), which is another infectious vocal, that is unmistakeably Christine and an underrated gem that reminds me of some of her earlier work before Stevie Nicks joined the band. It is also evident from the lyrical content that she has had enough of the bright lights and wants to get out of the band. Blow by blow follows, which Dave Mason co-wrote and delivers like a catchy eighties rock track. It gives the band yet another new sound but it's welcome. Another version of the track had previously been featured in the 1994 World Cup.

Bekka Bramlett shows off her vocal range next on the Kit Hain composed Winds of change (not to be confused with the Scorpions song), which is a gorgeous country ballad that eases her nicely into the band. Her voice is powerful and flawless and I can't imagine why she hasn't become a massive star. Christine strikes gold again on I do, which was released as a promotional single only. Shame as it, along with a few others, deserved to be a massive hit.

Bekka then reveals her rocky side on Nothing without you, which she co-wrote with her father Delaney and Doug Gilmore. It's a show-stopping little country-rock number that is a massive grower. It then all gets serious on Dreamin' the dream, which she wrote with Billy, a beautiful tender ballad that has always been a stand-out track for me and could have been a #1 in my eyes. Stunning is the way I would describe her vocals on this.

Christine delivers another monster ballad on Sooner or later, another stand-out track, and the long instrumental fade-out at the end fills me with longing for more. Another immediately catchy track is I wonder why, a rock song that Dave gives a powerful performance on, aided by Bekka's glorious backing vocals. Nights in Estoril is just beautiful, and another credit to Christine on an album where she more than proves her worth without Lindsey and Stevie. It's sad that this is her last studio album with the band, but then who knows?

Billy delivers another great country rock vocal on I got it in for you, which is one of the heavier tracks on the album, and then Christine delivers her fifth and final performance with the goodbye song, All over again. It is absolutely gorgeous and another lost classic, even if it is tinged with sadness with her talking about 'finally breaking the chain', suggesting a clean break from the band.

These strange times is the album closer, which at over seven minutes is the longest track here. Written by Mick Fleetwood and Ray Kennedy, this is Mick talking about how bad his life is at this point and he gives reference to Peter Green on the line 'They said he was a man of the world'. Bekka's backing vocals and the mix of instruments make this a stunning track, which brings a lump to the throat and finishes the album on a completely different tone to how it began.

Strange then, that an album which is constantly reviewed in a negative light, and which Q magazine deemed no tracks worthy of downloading, is one where I have thoroughly enjoyed listening to every track on this occasion - and I have always been quite fond of it anyway, despite missing Stevie Nicks originally. Now I have come to realise that she is only part of an ever-changing chain and it is in fact Christine McVie who has proved to be a vital link during most of the changing periods. Bekka's contribution is stunning, and I'm sure another album with her, Dave and Billy would have gone down quite well. All in all, I think this is a totally underrated gem of an album that you have to give a chance to, and at least eight of the tracks would have been worthy singles.