The Music Of Fleetwood Mac By Candlelight At Lighthouse Poole Review

DISCLOSURE – TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW

Reviewed by Helen O

As a Fleetwood Mac fan, I jumped at the opportunity to watch and review The Music of Fleetwood Mac by Candlelight at Lighthouse Poole this evening. Billed as ‘The Ultimate Tribute to Fleetwood Mac’, it was a very high benchmark. I’d also never been to a concert by Candlelight before, so I was intrigued to see how it worked.

The show was held in the Concert Hall at Lighthouse Poole and we were seated in the stalls , to the right hand side of the stage; you get a brilliant view of the stage from wherever you sit in the Concert Hall. I always find the seats very comfortable, with plenty of leg room, so all we had to do was take a seat and enjoy the performance.

Fleetwood Mac were formed in London in 1967, with several incarnations and changes in line-up over that time, but after almost 60 years, their songs still sound as fresh as ever. Having sold more than 120 million records worldwide, it makes them one of the world’s best-selling bands. With 18 studio albums, 10 live albums and 23 compilation albums, full of amazing music, there is so much material to work with.

Tonight, The Music of Fleetwood Mac was performed by a cast of 4 West End Singers (3 gents and a lady), along with a very talented live 5 piece band. Performing a concert, filled with all the fan-favourite Fleetwood Mac hits. I respected the fact that the singers didn’t try to imitate Fleetwood Mac as a conventional tribute act would, rather delivering their own versions of these beloved hits. However, if you had come to see the show and expected a Fleetwood Mac tribute, as billed, you might be disappointed.

Bursting onto the stage singing Chains, set a high bar for the evening’s entertainment, we were then treated to some of what I felt were lesser-known Fleetwood Mac songs, but I’m a relative novice and their music does span 50 years. The performance featured songs performed by all 4 singers, but also allowed each singer to take on a solo or two. I felt that some of the singers were stronger than others, particularly Sandra Regan, who had a phenomenal range to her voice.

I personally preferred the songs performed by all 4 singers, as I enjoyed the harmonies and how their voices blended together. With the solos, I found the music drowned out some of the lyrics and you couldn’t hear them so clearly.

There was a nod to the Peter Green era, with Fleetwood Mac’s bluesy beginnings, which was brilliantly performed and supported by Carl on the guitar.

The second half started with high energy and all the singers performing Dreams. In fact, I felt the second half had more energy than the first half, with the audience getting to their feet, dancing and clapping. This is most likely as the performance included all of the more commercially known hits, such as Don’t Stop, Everywhere, Go Your Own Way and Little Lies. By the end of the performance, the entire concert hall was on their feet having a ball.

As for the candlelight, this was actually provided by LED candles (probably because real candles would pose too much of a fire risk). The jury is still out on whether this added much to the performance, other than looking nice on the stage.

The show ran for approximately 2 and a half hours, including a 20 minute interval, which was just enough time to grab a drink and take a comfort break, in preparation for the second half.

With a ticket price range from £22 to £38.50 each, I think the cheaper end of the price range represents good value for money for an evening’s entertainment, but I think the higher end is more than I would expect to pay for the performance tonight.

Rating: 3.5/5

RRP – Tickets range between £22 and £38.50 each

Buy tickets here: https://www.lighthousepoole.co.uk/event/the-music-of-fleetwood-mac-by-candlelight/ The Music of Fleetwood Mac by Candlelight was appearing at Lighthouse Poole for one night only, as part of their UK tour Remaining tour dates can be found here: https://concertsbycandlelight.com/show/fleetwood-mac-by-candlelight/

Address: Lighthouse, 21 Kingland Road, Poole, Dorset, BH15 1UG