ALBUM: Stevie Nicks, ’24 Karat Gold – Songs From The Vault’
For a long time, Stevie Nicks seemed frustrated that many of the demos she recorded over the years were easily available on the Internet. Given that she used to frequently hand out tapes of her latest songs to her friends, it’s no surprise that quite a few eventually made their way into the hands of excited fans. Aside from the fact that it’s been a treat to hear many of these unreleased, unfinished gems, it turns out that it may not have been a bad thing for Nicks after all. Last year, a YouTube video of an old Buckingham Nicks demo led to Fleetwood Mac finally recording the song “Without You” for its Extended Play EP — and it also seems to have awakened her to many of these forgotten tracks apparently lost in her “vaults.”
Nicks’ new record, 24 Karat Gold – Songs From The Vault, is filled with songs that dedicated fans will be more than familiar with in demo form, but it turns out that many of them are even better as finished, fully fleshed-out recordings. So maybe Nicks was right after all.
The new album reunites Nicks with producer Dave Stewart: it was obvious the pair had huge chemistry on their last record together, In Your Dreams, as it was the first time that Stevie had clicked so completely with a collaborator since Jimmy Iovine, who produced her first two solo albums in the early 1980s. In Your Dreams took over a year to finish, but the real revelation with 24 Karat Gold is that it sounds even better than Dreams, despite the fact it was quickly recorded in just two weeks in Nashville before Nicks had to rush back to Fleetwood Mac tour rehearsals. There’s no doubt that Nicks has made some great solo records since her glory days as a pop superstar in the 1980s, but this new album is the one that comes closest to capturing the magic of her greatest releases, Bella Donna or The Wild Heart. Yes, it’s that good.
Firstly, it’s the most natural record she’s made in a long time. This may well be due to the speed it was recorded, meaning that the songs weren’t overthought or overproduced, but it’s no doubt also thanks to the talented musicians backing her this time, many of them old friends. Aside from some top Nashville session players this also includes her faithful guitarist and band leader Waddy Wachtel (who also worked for many years with Warren Zevon and Linda Ronstadt) and two of Tom Petty’s Heartbreakers: Mike Campbell and inimitable Benmont Tench, who no Nicks record is truly complete without.
The songs themselves date back to 1969 (the jazzy old Buckingham Nicks track “Cathouse Blues”) and the most recent is from 1995 when Tom Petty gave Nicks his infamous talk telling her to get back to writing (“Hard Advice”). There’s also a surprisingly good cover of the Vanessa Carlton track “Carousel.” The best track, though, may well be its first single, “The Dealer,” which, thanks to Benmont Tench’s distinctive Hammond organ, sounds as good as anything on Bella Donna. “Lady,” originally called “Knockin’ On Doors,” is an early 1970s piano ballad about her and Lindsey Buckingham’s frustrations trying to make it in the music business pre-Fleetwood Mac. Stewart wisely chose to keep it as simple as possible and not over-embellish, as sometimes he tends to do, and the end result is starkly beautiful and shows off Nicks’ still powerful voice in the best possible way.
The most rocking song on the record is easily the punky-titled “I Don’t Care,” its hard rock guitar riffs written by Mike Campbell during the mid-’80s. It’s Nicks’ homage to her heroes Led Zeppelin but is probably one of the more slight tracks on the album despite the thrill of hearing her sound so defiant. More effective is “Mabel Normand,” her moving tribute to the tragic silent movie actress and director. It’s a huge leap from the demo circulating, upping the pace of the original to build the intensity and allowing her to deliver one of her best vocals on the album with some evocative stream-of-consciousness lyrics. Similarly, “If You Were My Love” originally had more of a bluesy feel but here almost becomes a gorgeous hymn, and the gentle country of “Blue Water” has some nice backing vocals courtesy of Lady Antebellum.
“Belle Fleur” seems to be a nod to Joni Mitchell’s Ladies Of The Canyon (“Mountain Ladies, live in the Canyon”) and so fittingly has some nice Laurel Canyon-style folk rock touches, while the standout harmonies on “All The Beautiful Worlds” and the driving piano riff of the title track are sure to be impressive live.
What is most remarkable about 24 Karat Gold though is that is manages to stay true to the sound and feel of the era of each of its tracks, yet still sounds completely contemporary. It’s hard to believe some of these tracks never made it onto an album before, but one thing’s for sure, Stevie Nicks sounds more timeless than ever, and the end result is one of her best albums yet.
