Additional personnel: The U.S.C. Trojan Marching Band.

Producers: Fleetwood Mac, Richard Dashut, Ken Caillat.

Engineers: Ken Caillat, Richard Dashut, Lindsey Buckingham.

Recorded at The Village Recorder, Los Angeles, California.

This deluxe edition of Tusk includes a bonus disc featuring roughs, outtakes and demos.

Fleetwood Mac: Lindsay Buckingham (vocals, guitar); Christine McVie (vocals, keyboards, synthesizer); Stevie Nicks (vocals); John McVie (bass); Mick Fleetwood (drums, percussion).

Additional personnel: The U.S.C. Trojan Marching Band.

Producers: Fleetwood Mac, Richard Dashut, Ken Caillat.

Engineers: Ken Caillat, Richard Dashut, Lindsey Buckingham.

Recorded at The Village Recorder, Los Angeles, California. Originally released on Warners Bros. (3350). Includes liner notes by Parke Puterbaugh.

Personnel: Lindsey Buckingham (vocals, guitar); Christine McVie (vocals, keyboards, synthesizer); Stevie Nicks (vocals); Mick Fleetwood (drums, percussion).

Audio Remasterers: Dan Hersch; Bill Inglot.

Liner Note Author: Parke Puterbaugh.

Recording information: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA; Home; Village Recorder, West Los Angeles, CA.

Photographers: Jayne Odgers; Norman Seeff; Richard Aaron; Sam Emerson; Peter Beard; Laura Levine.

More than any other Fleetwood Mac album, Tusk is born of a particular time and place -- it could only have been created in the aftermath of Rumours, which shattered sales records, which in turn gave the group a blank check for its next album. But if they were falling apart during the making of Rumours, they were officially broken and shattered during the making of Tusk, and that disconnect between bandmembers resulted in a sprawling, incoherent, and utterly brilliant 20-track double album. At the time of its release, it was a flop, never reaching the top of the charts and never spawning a true hit single, despite two well-received Top Ten hits. Coming after the monumental Rumours, this was a huge disappointment, but the truth of the matter is that Fleetwood Mac couldn't top that success no matter how hard they tried, so it was better for them to indulge themselves and come up with something as unique as Tusk. Lindsey Buckingham directed both Fleetwood Mac and Rumours, but he dominates here, composing nearly half the album, and giving Christine McVie's and Stevie Nicks' songs an ethereal, floating quality that turns them into welcome respites from the seriously twisted immersions into Buckingham's id. This is the ultimate cocaine album -- it's mellow for long stretches, and then bursts wide open in manic, frantic explosions, such as the mounting tension on "The Ledge" or the rampaging "That's Enough for Me," or the marching band-driven paranoia of the title track, all of which are relieved by smooth, reflective work from all three songwriters. While McVie and Nicks contribute some excellent songs, Buckingham owns this record with his nervous energy and obsessive production, winding up with a fussily detailed yet wildly messy record unlike any other. This is mainstream madness, crazier than Buckingham's idol Brian Wilson and weirder than any number of cult classics. Of course, that's why it bombed upon its original release, but Tusk is a bracing, weirdly affecting work that may not be as universal or immediate as Rumours, but is every bit as classic. As a piece of pop art, it's peerless. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

No home should be without at least one copy of TUSK. Fleetwood Mac's magnum opus of 1979 is considered by some to be their greatest work. And while you are probably familiar with the hits, you may not realize that this recording is full of gems like Christine McVie's gorgeous "Brown Eyes" and Lindsey Buckingham's rousing and infectious "I Know I'm Not Wrong." Of course, even the Nikei industrial average would sound beautiful if it were sung with Christine's wonderful voice. And Lindsey Buckingham's home recordings that show up here are a virtual blueprint for the indie-rock home-recording scene that would flourish nearly 20 years later. While some records from this period seem campy and quaint in retrospect, TUSK still sounds terrific, thanks to those Dashut/Buckingham production values. But what's up with that marching band on the title track?

No home should be without at least one copy of TUSK. Fleetwood Mac's magnum opus of 1979 is considered by some to be their greatest work. And while you are probably familiar with the hits, you may not realize that this recording is full of gems like Christine McVie's gorgeous "Brown Eyes" and Lindsey Buckingham's rousing and infectious "I Know I'm Not Wrong." Of course, even the Nikei industrial average would sound beautiful if it were sung with Christine's wonderful voice. And Lindsey Buckingham's home recordings that show up here are a virtual blueprint for the indie-rock home-recording scene that would flourish nearly 20 years later. While some records from this period seem campy and quaint in retrospect, TUSK still sounds terrific, thanks to those Dashut/Buckingham production values. But what's up with that marching band on the title track?

In the spring of 2004, Warner Strategic Marketing reissued as remastered expanded editions Fleetwood Mac's first three albums with Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. Tusk restores "Sara" to its original running length (on the previous CD edition, it was offered in a truncated single edit in order to fit the whole album on one disc), and is given a bonus disc with 21 tracks, which is longer than the original double album. Of these, two are previously released single versions of "Think About Me" and "Sisters of the Moon," and of the remaining 19 tracks, only two are previously unheard songs -- and both of those are covers, of Jorge Calderon's "Kiss and Run" and the Beach Boys' "Farmer's Daughter" (the former is a rough studio jam, the latter is polished and very good). The rest of the bonus disc contains demos, alternate takes, and working versions of songs from Tusk. Unlike the Rumours bonus disc, where the alternate takes often sounded like unpolished versions of the final takes, these are often really rough takes, which makes them more interesting listens. What's particularly fascinating is to hear several of Buckingham's songs develop from these demo and alternates to the finished versions on the album. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" is singled out with no less than three versions, and it's compelling listening to hear it grow and mutate from each take. Given that it consists of almost nothing but demos and alternates, the bonus disc is more for the historical record than for listening for enjoyment, but it does offer considerably valuable insight into the creation of the great, unwieldy album that is Tusk, which is what makes this one of the finest expanded reissues of a classic record yet released. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine