Stevie Nicks Comes to Town

Marlie Soderquist, staff writer

Famous for her years in Fleetwood Mac and break-out hits such as “Landslide” and “Edge of Seventeen”, Stevie Nicks brought a bit of rock ‘n’ roll to Charlottesville on March 26.

Nicks started performing in the 1960’s, beginning her career in Buckingham Nicks, a rock duo made up of herself and Lindsey Buckingham. The duo’s album was not very successful, so both went on to sign with Fleetwood Mac in 1975. Nicks became an overnight sensation. Since then, she has had six top-ten albums and eight Grammy nominations. She was also dubbed the queen of rock ‘n’ roll by Rolling Stone Magazine.

Proving her reign, Nicks performed an electrifying show Saturday night. This is her second visit to the John Paul Jones Arena. She performed at the arena with Fleetwood Mac in 2016. Nicks was touring with The Pretenders, an English-American rock band, but they were not able to perform because the lead singer was ill. Nicks performed many popular hits but also sang songs from what she called her “gothic chest of songs” that were never heard before this concert tour. At 68 years old, Nicks said she feels her concerts should be filled with what makes her the most happy. Revisiting these songs allowed her to rekindle the past.

To set the vibe Nicks opened the show stating, “It’s a trip, it’s a journey come with me.” followed by her signature twirl. She made tributes to Prince and gave thanks to Tom Petty as well as Fleetwood Mac. A story of the songs origin or its inspiration accompanied each song.

To finish the show Nicks encore included two songs, “Rhiannon” and “Landslide”. Before leaving the stage, she held peace signs to the crowd reminding everyone to “Turn your radios up and your TV’s off!”