||24 Karat Gold|| Lindsey Buckingham & Stevie Nicks

4.

It was going so well, almost too well for a Fleetwood Mac show, especially with it being the first show of the tour. The venue, the fans and the crew had been subjected to a blistering set, the energy on stage captivating for both the fans who could see the rising tension and to everyone in the band itself. The resentment, the game playing and the competition as Stevie and Lindsey tried to outshine each other was riveting to all within the venue.  

Stevie knew Rhiannon was the next song on the set, she quickly walked towards the side of the stage once the lights had dimmed to change into her black, flowing shawl which was an essential for the twirling she would do across the stage during the song. As she wrapped the flowing chiffon around her shoulders she took triumphant strides back out onto the stage. This was her time to shine and to her, during this song, Fleetwood Mac didn't really exist. 

As Stevie walked onto the stage to take her place in front of Mick's drum kit, her back turned to the crowd, her whole demeanour changed as the whole band listened to Lindsey's voice as he spoke into the microphone. Instantly, she rolled her eyes. He always made her wait. 

"I would just like to say thank you to you all for coming out to see us tonight. Fleetwood Mac is a band that continues to evolve, continues to prevail through the good times and through adversity. Uhh... we keep, somehow, finding a path to grow and now, with the return of beautiful Christine McVie..." 

The fans erupt halfway through Lindsey's unannounced speech and he steps back from the mic, smirking as he points towards Christine. With the cheers echoing through the venue, he too joined in with giving her a round of applause and she rolled her eyes, smiling and waving at the fans. Stevie was still standing, her eyes staring into Mick's as they both wondered exactly where he was going with this speech. She kept her lips tightly shut, her eyes staring up at the lights above, wondering just when it would end. 

"With the return of Christine we have begun a beautiful, profound and poetic new chapter in the saga of Fleetwood Mac...and this is a chapter that will go on, for a long time and bear much fruit." 

Lindsey placed his hand over his heart, a glint in his eye before announcing "And I know, I'm not...wrong." 

His lips curled into a devious smirk before his hand wrapped around the neck of his Guitar, his fingers in position for the first chord of the song.  

"One, two, one, two, three, four!" he shouted before his Guitar erupted through the venue, the first three simple chords that opened the song I Know I'm Not Wrong only filling Stevie with the most rage she had ever felt for him. She viciously mouthed "What the fuck!" to Mick while he helplessly improvised, catching up with Lindsey to drum in beat with him. His eyes were wide, miffed and bemused at this move Buckingham had made. As he stared into Stevie's eyes, he knew that things would end in tears once everyone had made their way backstage after the show had ended. 

This action from Lindsey not only affected the band, it affected the stage crew, everyone was absolutely thrown by his quick change to the setlist. This song wasn't even supposed to be in the set and so the lighting crew had to improvise instead of relying on the presets they had worked out for the setlist. The sound crew too, had to mix his vocals on the spot because their mixing desk had already been set up for the next song, expecting Stevie's voice to be out front for Rhiannon. And lastly, Stevie had to physically and mentally force herself to turn around to face the crowd, standing in her Rhiannon shawl before picking up a tambourine, expected to enthusiastically shake it around while she joined Lindsey with the harmonies to a song she didn't want to play, a song that should have been Rhiannon and with a man she was losing patience with, a man who was the only man that could and would have the nerve to push her buttons while they were laid out in front of thousands of fans.