Original Album Series

This is an interesting collection of five Fleetwood Mac albums that were recorded before Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks joined the band. The albums are Then Play On, Kiln House, Future Games, Bare Trees, and Mystery to Me. They may not be as flawless and polished as the Buckingham Fleetwood Mac albums, but there are many beautiful melodies and rhythms. I had these albums in LP form when I was in college, but lost them somewhere along the way. Now I have them in one CD package. I am happy with my purchase.

Nice set. 4 different guitar players on 5 CDs. Good quality

The 5 albums included in this set vary greatly. The earliest is "Then Play On", without question Fleetwood Mac's best album, & their final studio effort with founding guitarist, Peter Green. I think it may be in the top 10 (or certainly top 20) albums of all time! One of the great "what ifs" of rock history is what Fleetwood Mac would have become if Green had not left the band after "Then Play On". This set includes the version of this album released in the US, not the somewhat different original UK release. I recommend also buying the expanded version of "Then Play On", which includes everything from both versions & additional material. "Kiln House" followed "Then Play On". With Green gone, the remaining guitarists, Danny Kirwen & Jeremy Spencer had to pick up the slack. Spencer was into rockabilly & early rock-and-roll, and many of the tracts, especially the first half, show this influence. Not bad if you like that sound, but not really much like anything else Mac did, before or since. I prefer Kirwen's contributions, which are more interesting, although I think he did better work later. Spencer left after "Kiln House" and John McVie's wife Christine joined the band, as did guitarist Bob Welch. The songwriting on the tracts on the next 2 albums, "Future Games" and "Bare Trees" were more-or-less evenly divided between Kirwen, Welch & Christine McVie. Their styles are different, but blend together fairly well. I think the songwriting on "Bare Trees" is better overall than on "Future Games" but both have some really good stuff. You can really see Welch, in particular, grow as a songwriter over the course of these 2 albums & the final one included here, "Mystery to Me". Kirwen was fired before "Mystery to Me" was recorded, leaving Welch as the only guitar player in the band for that album. I had heard that "Mystery to Me" was mediocre at best, but I was very pleasantly surprised. It is my second-favorite of these 5 albums, behind only "Then Play On", although the latter is head-and-shoulders above the others. Welch stuck around for a couple more albums after "Mystery to Me", then left for a successful solo career, albeit not success on the order of the later pop-oriented Fleetwood Mac, after Lindsey Buckingham & Stevie Nicks joined the band. This collection is a must have for fans of Fleetwood Mac, or for those interested in the history of rock music generally. These discs cover the mid-career Mac, after the early British blues-rock of the original Peter Green era, and before the mega-hit days of the Buckingham/Nicks era. Fascinating to see how the band evolved over these years.

First off, Bare Trees used to be my favorite Mac album; I had heard parts of Then Play On before, maybe the whole thing once or twice at parties 45 years ago. Really listening to it all now it has to be a top ten of all time. Peter Green and Danny Kirwan(Kirwin?) were comets that flamed brilliantly and burned out too soon, but they were at their brightest here and together. I tend to take Fleetwood and Mac for granted, but they made it all happen on all these records. The rest of the set shows the fascinating progression of the band through it's various incarnations and personnel with, yes, Fleetwood and Mac always at the center. A great collection for the price.

Excellent music from their pre-pop era. You can easily track their development as a band. Progressing from a blues orientation through rock to a more radio oriented rock soundRecommend

I love the Music on the disc.

Fleetwood Mac Part 1 was pretty much a straight Chicago Blues band recording six blues albums, all available on cd. This band featured Peter Green and Jeremy Spencer for the most part. It was good, sometimes great,British Blues. The five albums in this cd box set represent the middle passage of Fleetwood Mac. Fleetwood Mac Part II adds Bob Welch and Christine Perfect [ formerly of the Brit Blues Band "Chicken Shack" ] and now known as Christine McVie. "Then Play On" is just a spectacular album and effectively both closes the blues phase of Fleetwood Mac while introducing a more introspective, gentle sound. Of the remaining four cd's my favorites are "Bare Trees", simply a gentle peaceful album and "Mystery to Me". Both cd's showcase great Bob Welch songs: " Emerald Eyes", "Hypnotized" and "Sentimental Lady". " Kiln House" and " Future Games" are under recognized gems. Fleetwood Mac Part II provides a late 60's/early 70's feel. These middle phase cd's are either underestimated or overlooked by fans who mistakenly believe Fleetwood Mac started with Stevie Nicks and "Rumours".This is a wonderful era for Fleetwood Mac. Bob Welch is great on guitar and vocals. It is ridiculous Bob Welch was not inducted into the Rock'n'Roll Hall Of Fame with Fleetwood Mac. Recommended to serious fans of the best phase of Fleetwood Mac. Note: There is little in the way of remastering these albums. Therefore, the music sounds exactly the same as it did 40 years ago. Nice.

They play well. Just dont like the casing is not secure or durable