Under the Skin is the fourth solo album by American musician and Fleetwood Mac vocalist/guitarist Lindsey Buckingham, released on October 3, 2006. The album, long delayed by Fleetwood Mac's reunion tour in the 1990s and 2003 album Say You Will, was his first solo release in 14 years.[7] Under the Skin peaked at number 80 on the Billboard 200 album chart in October 2006.[8] "Show You How" was also released as a single but failed to chart.
| Under the Skin | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 3, 2006 | |||
| Recorded | 1995–2004 | |||
| Studio | L.B.'s house Ocean Way Recording (Hollywood, California) | |||
| Genre | Acoustic Rock | |||
| Length | 45:01 | |||
| Label | Reprise | |||
| Producer | Lindsey Buckingham; Lindsey Buckingham and Rob Cavallo on Tracks 9 & 10. | |||
| Lindsey Buckingham chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Under The Skin | ||||
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| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 80/100[1] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| Classic Rock |   [3] |
| The Guardian | [4] |
| The Music Box | [5] |
| Rolling Stone |  [6] |
Music
editPredominantly an acoustic album, the album does not feature many instruments besides acoustic guitar and percussion. Buckingham sought to forgo the more ornate elements on his previous albums in favor of orienting compositions around vocals and a single guitar.[9] "Down on Rodeo", which was written about Buckingham's brief relationship with Anne Heche,[10] and "Someone's Gotta Change Your Mind" are the only two songs on the record with contributions from outside musicians. Those two songs were originally recorded ten years prior at Ocean Way Studios in Hollywood and were considered for Fleetwood Mac's Say You Will album in 2003.[11] The same two songs along with "To Try For the Sun" were also included on a Gift of Screws bootleg that was leaked online in 2001.[12]
Buckingham recalled that Under the Skin received a lukewarm response from Warner Brothers, who expressed a lack of interest in promoting the album. "When I turned in Under The Skin, their general response was 'Yeah we'll put it out, but don't expect us to do too much.'"[9] Warner Brothers requested the addition of more conventional rock songs to make the album more marketable.[13]
Critical reception
editAccording to the review aggregator Metacritic, Under the Skin received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 80 out of 100 from 15 critic scores.[1] AllMusic writer Thom Jurek noted how several songs felt autobiographical and described the album as "the most nakedly visible and tender recording he's ever dropped."[2]
Chris Willman of Entertainment Weekly complimented Buckingham's "frantic" guitar fingerpicking and said that his production work enhanced the sound of his nylon-string guitar. Willman added that despite the album's nominally stripped back nature, some of Buckingham's recording techniques, including the use of mulitracked vocals, prevented the album from being truly unplugged.[14] Brian Hiatt of Rolling Stone thought that Buckingham achieved "maximum effect from minimal arrangements" and said that "Down on Rodeo" resembled a "lost Fleetwood Mac hit."[6] Mat Snow of The Guardian called the album "a small masterpiece of tightly balanced musical contrasts."[4]
Track listing
editAll songs composed by Lindsey Buckingham except where noted.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Not Too Late" | 4:42 |
| 2. | "Show You How" | 4:21 |
| 3. | "Under the Skin" | 3:56 |
| 4. | "I Am Waiting" (Mick Jagger, Keith Richards) | 3:34 |
| 5. | "It Was You" | 2:48 |
| 6. | "To Try for the Sun" (Donovan) | 3:14 |
| 7. | "Cast Away Dreams" | 4:28 |
| 8. | "Shut Us Down" (Lindsey Buckingham, Cory Sipper) | 3:57 |
| 9. | "Down on Rodeo" | 4:27 |
| 10. | "Someone's Gotta Change Your Mind" | 4:48 |
| 11. | "Flying Down Juniper" | 4:43 |
| 12. | "Go Your Own Way (Live)" (iTunes-exclusive bonus track) | 4:56 |
| 13. | "Say Goodbye (Live, featuring Stevie Nicks)" (Barnes & Noble-exclusive bonus track) |
Personnel
editMain Performer
- Lindsey Buckingham – vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, percussion
Additional personnel
- John McVie – bass (9)
- Mick Fleetwood – drums (9, 10), percussion (9, 10)
- David Campbell – orchestration (10)
Production
edit- Lindsey Buckingham – producer, recording (1–8, 11), mixing (1–8, 11), additional photography
- Rob Cavallo – producer (9, 10)
- Ken Allardyce – recording (9, 10)
- Mark Needham – mixing (9, 10)
- Brian Gardner – mastering
- Bernie Grundman Mastering (Hollywood, California) – mastering location
- Frank Ockenfels III – photography
- Stephen Walker – art direction
- Tony Dimitriades – management
- Robert Richards – management
Music promo videos
editThree promotional music videos were shot for Under the Skin, these included "It Was You", "Show You How" and "Shut Us Down". Both "It Was You" and "Show You How" are available for digital download via iTunes, but the video for "Shut Us Down" remains unavailable.
Charts
edit| Chart (2006) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[15] | 80 |
References
edit- ^ a b "Under the Skin - Lindsey Buckingham". Metacritic.
- ^ a b "Under the Skin - Lindsey Buckingham Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved June 3, 2019.
- ^ Bosso, Joe (December 2006). "Lindesy Buckingham Under The Skin". Classic Rock. p. 89.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|url=(help) - ^ a b Snow, Mat (September 28, 2006). "Lindsey Buckingham, Under the Skin". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
- ^ Metzger, John (October 2006). "Lindsey Buckingham - Under the Skin (Album Review)". www.musicbox-online.com. Retrieved June 3, 2019.
- ^ a b Hiatt, Brian (October 16, 2006). "Rolling Stone - Lindsey Buckingham". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 28, 2007. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
- ^ Hyden, Steven (2021-11-10). "Lindsey Buckingham Reviews His Albums With And Without Fleetwood Mac". UPROXX. Retrieved 2021-11-14.
- ^ Billboard Album Chart - Lindsey Buckingham
- ^ a b Bosso, Joe (September 29, 2008). "Lindsey Buckingham: "Fleetwood Mac still have a lot to say"". MusicRadar. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ Lapatine, Scott (December 10, 2018). "Lindsey Buckingham Reveals Stories Behind His Solo Songs And Whether He'll Ever Rejoin Fleetwood Mac". Stereogum. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
- ^ "Lindsey Buckingham - Original Skin - GUITAR WORLD ACOUSTIC, Nov 2006". fleetwoodmac-uk.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
- ^ "The Gift of Screws Sessions". www.fleetwoodmac-uk.com. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ Powers, Ann (October 3, 2006). "The rock star hits midlife". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ "Under the Skin". EW.com. Retrieved 2024-03-05.
- ^ "Lindsey Buckingham Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 28 January 2023.