Law and Order (album)
Law and Order is the first solo album by Fleetwood Mac guitarist/vocalist/songwriter Lindsey Buckingham, released in 1981. "Trouble", featuring drumming by Fleetwood Mac bandmate Mick Fleetwood, reached No. 9 on the U.S. charts; the album itself reached No. 32 on the Billboard 200. Lindsey appeared on Saturday Night Live on February 6, 1982 and performed "Trouble" and "Bwana" with Mick Fleetwood's Zoo.[2]
| Law and Order | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 3, 1981 | |||
| Recorded | Winter 1980-Summer 1981 | |||
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| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 36:13 | |||
| Label | Asylum (US/Canada) Mercury (outside US/Canada) Warner Bros. (reissue) | |||
| Producer | Lindsey Buckingham Richard Dashut | |||
| Lindsey Buckingham chronology | ||||
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| Fleetwood Mac albums chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Law and Order | ||||
Following the relative commercial failure of Fleetwood Mac's Tusk album, where many of the tracks were recorded in Buckingham's home studio, Mick Fleetwood informed Buckingham that the band was not interested in recording subsequent releases in the same manner. This was the impetus for Buckingham to create Law and Order. "In that moment, I realized, 'If I wanna continue to take risks [and] try to define myself as an artist in the long term, I'm gonna have to start making solo albums.'"[3]
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [4] |
| Record Mirror | [5] |
| Robert Christgau | B+[6] |
| Rolling Stone | [7] |
Jon Pareles of Rolling Stone, in a 4/5 star review, wrote that "based on the evidence of Law and Order... Lindsey Buckingham's biggest contribution to Fleetwood Mac has been his unabashed fondness for pop music at its most hokey and hooky."[7] On the other hand, Robin Smith of Record Mirror panned the "miserable" album in a 1/5 star review, saying that it "sounds like the out takes of Mac's worst studio sessions delivered around [Buckingham's] reedy little voice."[5]
In a retrospective review, William Ruhlmann of AllMusic gave the album 3.5/5 stars, saying that it "comes off as a high-quality demo of largely unfinished material".[4]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Lindsey Buckingham, except where indicated.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Bwana" | 3:08 | |
| 2. | "Trouble" | 3:56 | |
| 3. | "Mary Lee Jones" | 3:15 | |
| 4. | "I'll Tell You Now" | 4:21 | |
| 5. | "It Was I" | Gary Paxton | 2:39 |
| 6. | "September Song" | Maxwell Anderson, Kurt Weill | 3:17 |
| 7. | "Shadow of the West" | 3:59 | |
| 8. | "That's How We Do It in L.A." | 2:53 | |
| 9. | "Johnny Stew" | 3:09 | |
| 10. | "Love from Here, Love from There" | 2:50 | |
| 11. | "A Satisfied Mind" | Red Hayes, Jack Rhodes | 2:49 |
Personnel
Main performer
- Lindsey Buckingham – vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, drums, percussion
Additional personnel
- George Hawkins – bass on "Trouble"
- Mick Fleetwood – drums on "Trouble"
- Carol Ann Harris – harmony vocals on "It Was I"
- Christine McVie – harmony vocals on "Shadow of the West"
Production
- Lindsey Buckingham – producer, recording, Polaroid art
- Richard Dashut – producer, recording
- David Brown – recording
- Sabrina Buchanek – recording assistant
- Judy Clapp – recording assistant
- Dennis Mays – recording assistant
- Larry Emerine – mastering
- Stephen Marcussen – mastering
- Precision Lacquer (Hollywood, California) – mastering location
- Larry Vigon – art direction, design
- George Hurrell – front cover photography
- Sam Emerson – back cover photography
Singles
| Song | US Hot 100 | US Mainstream Rock | ARIA |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Trouble" | No. 9 | No. 12 | No. 1 |
| "It Was I" | No. 110 | - | No. 74 |
Music promo videos
Two promotional music videos were shot for Law and Order, "Trouble" and "It Was I", both directed by Jerry Watson and produced by Paul Flattery. "Trouble" featured friends of Buckingham playing either guitar or drums. They included Mick Fleetwood, Bob Welch, and Bob Weston from Fleetwood Mac and singer-songwriter Walter Egan.[8]
References
- "Lindsey Buckingham singles".
- "SNL Season 07 Episode 11 - James Coburn, Lindsey Buckingham - NBC.com". NBC. Retrieved 2020-02-27.
- Chiu, David (2021-09-15). "Lindsey Buckingham looks for life after Fleetwood Mac". Newsweek. Retrieved 2021-09-17.
- https://www.allmusic.com/album/r31798/review
- Smith, Robin (7 November 1981). "Lindsey Buckingham: Law and Order". Record Mirror. p. 19.
- "Robert Christgau: CG: Lindsay Buckingham". www.robertchristgau.com.
- "Lindsey Buckingham: Law and Order : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". www.rollingstone.com:80. Archived from the original on 23 April 2009. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
- "Trouble Video". Go Your Own Way : The UK Resource for All Things Fleetwood Mac, Lindsey Buckingham & Stevie Nicks. Retrieved 2021-09-29.