Rumours＜タワーレコード限定/Forest Green Translucent Vinyl＞

1968年のデビュー以降17枚のスタジオ・アルバムや数々のコンピレーション・アルバム、ライヴ・アルバムなど数多くの大ヒット作品を生み出し、ロック史にその名を刻む重要アクト、フリートウッド・マック。現在までに実に1億2,000枚を超える累計アルバム・セールスを記録し、世界で最も売れたバンドとしてその名を歴史に刻む彼らは、「音楽に多大なる貢献を果たしたバンド」としてBrit Awardで称えられ、またロックの殿堂入りを果たすまさに「伝説」のロック・バンドだ。

その彼らの黄金期に発表されたアルバム3作が、限定盤のカラー・ヴァイナルで復刻となる。

新生フリートウッド・マックとして大きな成功を収めた前作に続き77年に発表した『RUMOURS / 噂』は、31週にわたり全米No. 1を記録、音楽史上最も売れたアルバムの1枚としても知られる、歴史的名盤だ。
ミック・フリートウッド(dr)、ジョン・マクヴィー(b)、クリスティン・マクヴィー(vo, key)にスティーヴィー・ニックス(vo)、 リンジー・バッキンガム(g, vo)が加わった黄金のラインナップの黄金期が凝縮された作品であり、フリートウッド・マックを語る上でも、そしてすべてのロックを語る上でも、決して欠かすことのできない今作には、彼らにとって初のNo. 1シングルとなった「ドリームス」を筆頭に、「ドント・ストップ」や「ユー・メイク・ラヴィング・ファン」、「オウン・ウェイ」といった名曲が収録されている。

全米最高1位 / 全英最高1位 / 全世界で4,000万枚を超えるセールスを記録 / グラミー賞「アルバム・オブ・ザ・イヤー」受賞 (1977年作品)

Rumours is the kind of album that transcends its origins and reputation, entering the realm of legend -- it's an album that simply exists outside of criticism and outside of its time, even if it thoroughly captures its era. Prior to this LP, Fleetwood Mac were moderately successful, but here they turned into a full-fledged phenomenon, with Rumours becoming the biggest-selling pop album to date. While its chart success was historic, much of the legend surrounding the record is born from the group's internal turmoil. Unlike most bands, Fleetwood Mac in the mid-'70s were professionally and romantically intertwined, with no less than two couples in the band, but as their professional career took off, the personal side unraveled. Bassist John McVie and his keyboardist/singer wife Christine McVie filed for divorce as guitarist/vocalist Lindsey Buckingham and vocalist Stevie Nicks split, with Stevie running to drummer Mick Fleetwood, unbeknown to the rest of the band. These personal tensions fueled nearly every song on Rumours, which makes listening to the album a nearly voyeuristic experience. You're eavesdropping on the bandmates singing painful truths about each other, spreading nasty lies and rumors and wallowing in their grief, all in the presence of the person who caused the heartache. Everybody loves gawking at a good public breakup, but if that was all that it took to sell a record, Richard and Linda Thompson's Shoot Out the Lights would be multi-platinum. No, what made Rumours an unparalleled blockbuster is the quality of the music. Once again masterminded by producer/songwriter/guitarist Buckingham, Rumours is an exceptionally musical piece of work -- he toughens Christine McVie and softens Nicks, adding weird turns to accessibly melodic works, which gives the universal themes of the songs haunting resonance. It also cloaks the raw emotion of the lyrics in deceptively palatable arrangements that made a tune as wrecked and tortured as "Go Your Own Way" an anthemic hit. But that's what makes Rumours such an enduring achievement -- it turns private pain into something universal. Some of these songs may be too familiar, whether through their repeated exposure on FM radio or their use in presidential campaigns, but in the context of the album, each tune, each phrase regains its raw, immediate emotional power -- which is why Rumours touched a nerve upon its 1977 release, and has since transcended its era to be one of the greatest, most compelling pop albums of all time. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine