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Photos: Zack Lane/MSG Photos  

It’s rather ironic that Fleetwood Mac’s last tour was titled “On With the Show.” Three years after the triumphant return which finally reunited its five prime members, the band is back on the road, only this time sans Lindsey Buckingham after yet another very dramatic, very public exit. Tumult continually follows Fleetwood Mac; the band has always been—and will always be—a storm.

For their current go-round, called “An Evening with Fleetwood Mac,” Crowded House singer/rhythm guitarist Neil Finn and Mike Campbell (aka Tom Petty’s guitarist) stepped in to help pick up the pieces of the once-again divided band. From the opening kick drum and unmistakable twangy strums of “The Chain,” the band was clearly sending a message to the sold-out Madison Square Garden audience: Buckingham or not, his songs were all on the table. Luckily for us, they’d hand-selected such able musicians to fill in the gaps.

Buckingham was certainly missed; he’s the most energetic performer of the Fleetwood five, and while you can certainly hire a wowing player like Campbell to tear loose, there’s no replacing that complicated, sexy, intoxicating chemistry that Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, Mick Fleetwood, and Christine and John McVie share. That said, it didn’t take long for Finn and Campbell to turn up; the band gelled like they’d been playing together for much longer, dishing out hit after hit to a crowd with an insatiable thirst for more.

“Rhiannon” drew one of the biggest reactions; love for the track roared throughout the arena, palpably floating above our heads, the medicine for ailing souls. More than four decades later, Nicks is every bit the eternal romantic she’s always been. Though her twirls may have slowed, she continues to evoke passion with every gesture, sultry croon, and hair whip. She was mesmerizing (as always) and in her element.

With Christine McVie back full-time, tracks like “Little Lies” and “Everywhere” popped that much more to the legions of fans who yearned for her for years. Her calming vocals and soothing bops were the perfect complement to Nicks’ unbridled poetry.

And then there was “Go Your Own Way,” a stark reminder that something…someone…was missing. There’s an intrinsic relatability forged in the song’s DNA, with its commanding chorus and naked emotion that both fills your heart and shatters it in one fell swoop. But its true power comes from the history and lore of a former Fleetwood Mac making this performance a little half-cooked. The crowd didn’t care; undeterred, they belted along with Nicks and Finn anyway.

Despite a few similar blips, many of the set’s highlights came directly from Finn and Campbell. The former sang an acoustic version of his band’s biggest hit, “Don’t Dream It’s Over,” with Nicks joining him to polish it off. It was stripped down, it was beautiful, it was a moment.

Campbell slayed when the band dipped into its Peter Green era and pulled out “Black Magic Woman” (which Nicks sang from the perspective of a woman, of course) and “Oh Well.” Campbell was made to play the blues and when given the room, he flourished. (Aside: MSG should chill with the spastic cuts on the big screen and instead zero in on such expert-level mastery.) Later, Tom Petty’s face shined on the monitors as the band launched into a “Free Falling” cover led by Nicks and Campbell that caused the arena to erupt. Love was in the air again, this time band and fans alike.

While it’s disappointing they couldn’t keep the Dream Team together longer, it’s hardly the first time Fleetwood Mac has suffered through internal strife. Maybe it was the emotional hangover from the Petty tribute, but I was struck by the realization that we’re running out of icons. So, when Mick Fleetwood delivered a booming ten-minute-plus solo with the biggest grin on his face, and when Nicks bled her poetic prose on “Landslide,” it reminded me to cling to these living legends, to hang on every note, every gesture, every captured glance. Yet, in its latest iteration, Fleetwood Mac showed no signs of stopping. They never have.

On with the show.

—Nick Caruso