* LISTEN TO THE SONG IN ORDER TO GET THE FULL EXPERIENCE *
Landslide by Fleetwood Mac was released in 1975 after being written by 25-year-old Stevie Nicks. Fleetwood Mac, a British-American rock band, was formed in London in 1967. Nearly 50 years later, Landslide has 507,288,861 streams on the platform Spotify and is ranked third on the Billboard Hot 100 for all Fleetwood Mac songs.
Over the years, Landslide has grown very important to my immediate family with each of us having many memories with one another. This song helps reflect the journey our family has gone on as each of us has grown and matured in the time that we have known each other.
Growing up my dad refused to listen to “our” music, meaning Disney or kids’ music, so my sister and I grew up listening to bands like U2, Fleetwood Mac, or the Foo Fighters. So I have known the words to most songs by these artists from a very young age.
One of my first memories of this song was when we got our Suburban that had a movie screen drop-down for the back seats. The U2 CD happened to include all of the live videos from their concerts and not just music, hence, this was a fan favorite for all parties involved since we still got to watch something as he got to listen to some great music. Nowadays I could have general accuracy when guessing a still shot from any of the songs on that cd (not that I have practiced but a genuine guess). I hated it when I was younger but am now very thankful to know the lyrics to so many great songs from growing up with them.
This song has an entirely different meaning in my life, as this was originally associated with my dad and car rides, but is now tied to my mom. In this song, Stevie Nicks is singing about her children and the harsh reality that watching them grow up is also meaning she is growing older. This song brings my mom close to tears and always leaves her holding my hand to remind herself, yes this may be sad- but at least I still have my daughter. As the chorus reads:
“Cause I’ve built my life around youBut time makes you bolderEven children get olderAnd I’m getting older too”
The same Leah and “Mom” that is previously shown. However, over the years the song has certainly grown in importance just as we have continued to age.
This song is a comfort to me as it is like a hug from my parents when we are apart and even when we are together it just brings us closer together to remind us of all of these great moments we get to share with one another. Our lives are a direct reflection of this song as no matter what time in my life I am listening to this song, it allows me to take a step back and remember we are only getting older so it is time to live life to the fullest in this very moment.
Landslide is one of the first songs I learned when learning fingerstyle guitar. So, I had always payed much more attention to the instrumental part of this song as opposed to the lyrics. After reading this post I went back and listened to the song and really focused on the lyrics. I already thought the song was a work of art, but now that I fully understand the lyrics I can really appreciate the masterpiece it is. I really like how you relate the song to a hug from your parents. Also, your final sentence in the post is very powerful.