Review Summary: Same as the first album,but the filler is even more glaring.
Mr.Wonderful is the second album from Fleetwood Mac. In the vein of their previous disc, it doesn’t offer anything more than the debut, it doesn’t transcend our expectations. It is a fine blues release though, with mainly the same mistakes the debut had. It seems that the band wasn’t that mature yet to release two albums in the same year, but they did, and the result is this quite typical blues record.
Stop Messing Around starts the album with some nice leads as is the tradition of early Mac, but the song itself apart some fine instrumental playing here and there is rather pedestrian. Next comes I’ve Lost My Baby which is a slow, dragging song, and apart from the fine leads there is nothing to comment on the song. This is a general defect of the album, because the main highlight is Peter Green’s guitar playing and nothing else. Not even the voice. But Rollin’ Man has a fantastic call and response between the lead guitar and a trumpet ( or is it a sax? ) that gives the song a fresh feeling, different from the previous ones. The rhythm section is very fun, too. Dust My Broom is a good boogie, but is nothing breath-taking. Love That Burns is another slow blues, but this time it is improved by adding a nice subtle piano line and quiet trumpets. Possibly one of the highlights of the album. Doctor Brown is a boring boogie that has next to no imagination. Need Your Love Tonight is the same song but with some different lyrics and vocal intonations, I mean, for real now, after some time the record gets incredibly boring and predictable. If You Be My Baby is the same old boogie that we heard before on the album. See what I’m saying? There is really nothing to comment about the songs except the guitar playing which makes the record a dragging one-man show.
Evenin’ Boogie has finally some trumpet soloing and a fast pace that will make you pay attention to the record, but unfortunately the next track Lazy Poker Blues doesn’t offer anything apart from soloing. Coming Home is uninteresting and Trying So Hard To Forget offers the same effect that the penultimate track from the debut did. Acoustic blues with nothing else but a voice and a guitar.
Now, the filler is way to much to give this album a rating equal to the debut, and the lack of fun and spontaneity is even more glaring than on the first record, so this album sits behind the debut, unfortunately. It seems that these first two albums were made for the sole purpose of giving the band something to play on the live shows and improve it on stage. Come to think of it, these songs would be far more appropriate for a live performance than a studio recording. Anyways the highlights are :
Rollin’ Man
Love That Burns
Evenin’ Boogie
