Silver Springs (1977) – Fleetwood Mac

A friend forwarded me this song the other night and I was taken aback by its sensitivity and touching melody. I really like Stevie Nicks’ impassioned singing here, with her quivering, lingering voice. The song comes in waves of that unmistakable and powerful Fleetwood Mac sound, especially in the chorus, “Time cast a spell on you,” and it’s pretty cool as a listener to just let it wash over you. The piano playing is gorgeous, coming in ripples over the rest of the music. A wonderfully layered song.

Silver Springs is yet another song about the breakup between Nicks and Fleetwood Mac guitarist Lindsey Buckingham, both pictured above in their stirring live version, which I’ve also linked below. The song was originally used as the B-side to Go Your Own Way, the subject of my previous Mac post. That song, also centred on their breakup, caused plenty of tension within the group, particularly for Nicks. Go Your Own Way was written by Buckingham, while today’s featured track was written by Nicks, along with one of the band’s most popular hits, Dreams.

Stevie Nicks said about the song:

“I wrote “Silver Springs” about Lindsey. And we were in Maryland somewhere driving under a freeway sign that said Silver Springs [sic]. And I loved the name… Silver Springs sounded like a pretty fabulous place to me. And ‘You could be my silver springs’ – that’s just a whole symbolic thing of what you could have been to me..”

It’s remarkable that a romantic breakup within a band could produce such a run of great songwriting from different sides, with the public given a front-row seat to the group’s fractures, vulnerability, and emotional exposure. It’s like a soap opera, but set to music. It must have been difficult over the years to keep revisiting these emotional outpourings, especially since they remain among Fleetwood Mac’s most beloved songs.

Conflicts over Silver Springs later led Nicks to leave Fleetwood Mac in 1991. She clashed with the band -particularly Mick Fleetwood – over her insistence on including the song on her solo compilation TimeSpace. The dispute centred on artistic control and royalties and ultimately contributed to her departure.

The song was originally intended for the band’s 1977 album Rumours, but was left off and used as a B-side, as mentioned earlier. A live version of Silver Springs was released as a single from the band’s 1997 reunion album The Dance. This version was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals in 1998. The live video below was recorded at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California, in May 1997.

You could be my silver spring
Blue-green colors flashin’
I would be your only dream
Your shinin’ autumn ocean crashin’

And don’t say that she’s pretty
And did you say that she loved you?
Baby, I don’t wanna know

So, I begin not to love you
Turn around, see me running
I say, “I loved you years ago”
Tell myself you never loved me, no

And don’t say that she’s pretty
And did you say that she loved you?
Baby, I don’t wanna know, oh, no
And can you tell me, was it worth it?
Baby, I don’t wanna know

Time cast a spell on you
But you won’t forget me
I know I could have loved you
But you would not let me

Time cast a spell on you
But you won’t forget me
Well, I know I could have loved you
But you would not let me
I’ll follow you down
‘Til the sound of my voice will haunt you
Oh, give me just a chance
You’ll never get away from the sound
Of the woman that loved you
Was I just a fool?
I’ll follow you down
‘Til the sound of my voice will haunt you
Give me just a chance
You’ll never get away from the sound
Of the woman that loved you

Time cast a spell on you
But you won’t forget me
I know I could have loved you
But you would not let me
I’ll follow you down
‘Til the sound

References:
1. Silver Springs (song) – Wikipedia