In 2023 and 2024, Stevie Nicks performed shows for Two Icons One Night (with Billy Joel) and her own headlining solo tour.
Stevie Nicks has announced a handful of solo tour dates for 2023! The solo tour will occur at the same time as her TWO ICONS ONE NIGHT shows with Billy Joel.
Stevie’s first solo show will take place in Seattle, WA at the Climate Pledge Arena on March 15. Stevie shared the news on her Facebook page:
Surprise! Tickets for my 2023 tour go on sale Friday at 10am local time. Which show will we see you at? ✨ https://stevienicksofficial.com
~
Fan/Live Nation Presale: Thur 1/26 @ 10am
“Show Them the Way” (2020) is a standalone, digital-only track by Stevie Nicks.
“Show Them the Way” was released to digital streaming services on Friday, October 9, 2020.
“Show Them the Way” was inspired by a dream that Stevie had while in Chicago editing the PBS concert special Stevie Nicks Live in Chicago in 2008. After spending all day in the studio, Stevie went home and watched the Democratic primaries and documentaries about the civil rights movement. “I was like a student of history,” Stevie said. (Bell, 2020).
In the song, Stevie describes performing at a political benefit attended by historical figures Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., John Lennon, John Lewis, John F. Kennedy, and Bobby Kennedy. The song includes several verses and is anchored by the inspiring chorus: “Please God, show ’em the way / Please God, on this day / Spirits all, give them the strength / Peace can come if you really want it.”
Recorded remotely in the fall of 2020, the song features Dave Stewart on guitar and Dave Grohl on drums.
“I’m so proud of [‘Show Them the Way’] and in this time of strife for all of us (2020’s COVID-19 pandemic and the civil and political unrest in the U.S.), I’m hoping that the song might be something that will make people feel better and give them some hope.
“I made a video for this song that’s mostly photographs, but I shot a small portion of it in my entryway. I put on my boots for a couple of hours and for those hours I felt like myself again. I feel like Cinderella putting on her glass slippers. At five-foot-seven, I feel incredibly powerful, at five-foot-one in a pair of bedroom slippers or tennis shoes, I don’t feel so powerful” (Player, 2020).
“I did hold [‘Show Them the Way’] back for almost 13 years, and then I thought I wanted it out three weeks before [the 2020 U.S.] election, hoping that it might become like a theme song — something that maybe Joe Biden and Kamala Harris could play, something that was written for all the people that are running to take this country back. It’s the first time that I’ve really written a song that was not just a really good song, but it was a really good song with a purpose. And so I’m hoping that they keep playing it, and then it actually does what I sent it out into the world to do” (Parker, 2020).
On December 2, Stevie released a lyric video for “Show Them the Way” (Piano Version) and dedicated it to President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
“I dedicate this lyric video for “Show Them The Way” to our new President and Vice President ~ Joe Biden and Kamala Harris ~ and to all of the brilliant people they have already gathered to go on this adventure with them.
“This is the original version of the song. In the rock and roll version, I asked my producer, Greg Kurstin, to write a bridge in the middle of the song~ because I had one more thing to say. I sat at my desk and wrote the new words down on paper~ I wanted to make the prophecy~ before the end of September~ before the election~
…That they would win…
“When Greg sent me the new bridge~ I went to my living room and sang the new words…
Please God,
Show him the way~
Please God
Show her the way~
Oh Please God
Show them the way~
Please God~
I think God heard me. And now I can breathe again…finally.
Good luck to you both. I know you will do great things. I feel it in my bones~
With love,
Stevie Nicks”
Show Them the Way (Official Music Video)
Show Them the Way (Piano Version) (Official Lyric Video)
VersionsShow Them the Way (6:31)
Show Them the Way – Acoustic Piano Version (6:22)
Produced by Greg Kurstin
Music video directed by Cameron Crowe
Please God, show ’em the way
Please God, on this day
Spirits all, give them the strength
Peace can come if you really want it
I had a fragile dream in a gray house in the Hamptons
I’d been there before, singing songs and doing benefits
Was in a room alone putting on my makeup
Like so many things that come to me, the dress came across the Persian carpet
As I fell into the dress, a thought came to me
Into my heart, I have a dream
And a door opened
I turned to face the music
I was ready for the Kennedys
I don’t know if it was 1960 or 1963
Everything was timeless, even me
I wasn’t old, I wasn’t young, I was just part of their dream
A shadow walked with me down the hall, it was Martin Luther King
All in shadow, all before me, overwhelmed by
Destiny, someone said, “Sing us a song
There’s a piano” and handed me a drink
The room was full of hope, a song would set them free
And I said
Please God, show ’em the way
Please God, on this day
Spirits all, give them the strength
Peace can come if you really want it
I sat at the piano, stared out of the shadows
I sang the words, “I have a dream”
He wasn’t my old friend John, I didn’t know him then
But he smiled at me, and I sang these words
Whatever it takes
Whatever it takes to be free
No, I didn’t know these men
But they knew me
It was all symbolic, nothing was as it seemed
They all left us in a single shot but they didn’t take the dream
They were there in that house, discussing the future
And drinking champagne, I was just a piano player
The voice, part of their dream
I was thirty five and maybe I was fifteen
It was just another night in the presence of Martin Luther King
I was just a dreamer, I was ready for the Kennedys
And I said
Please God, show ’em the way
Please God, on this day
Light the fire, start it over
Tell the world about the dream
Start it up and make it real
Please God
Show him the way
Please God
Show her the way
Please God
Show them the way
Please God
Back in the room where it all began
My heart began to heal, I believe it
I remember the beauty of the Hamptons
Shadows playing in the sun
A voice said, “The dream is not over, no
The dream has just begun”
I spun around to see another shadow
Slipping through the door
And my eyes opened wide, “What is this all for?”
And the shadow said, “Don’t forget it, don’t forget
What we were fighting for, don’t forget it”
And I said
Please God, show ’em the way
(It’s just another night)
Please God, on this day
(Martin Luther King)
Spirits all, give them the strength
(Sing us a song)
Peace can come if you fight for it
(Don’t forget it)
Think we’re just in time to say
(Ooh, and said, oh said)
Please God, show ’em the way
(All in shadow)
Please God, on this day
(All before me)
Spirits all, give them the strength
Peace can come if you fight for it
Think we’re just in time to say this
Set them free…
Room was full of hope
Please God, show ’em the way
(I believe it)
Please God, on this day
(Don’t forget it)
Spirits all, give them the strength
(Don’t forget what
We were fighting for)
Think we’re just in time to say
Peace can come if you fight for it
Peace can come if you try harder
Peace can come, ooh, if you really want it
The dream
Don’t forget it, please God
Show them the way
(Stevie Nicks/Greg Kurstin)
Stevie Nicks: Lead vocals
Greg Kurstin: Keyboards
Dave Stewart: Guitar
Dave Grohl: Drums
Sharon Celani, Lori Nicks: Backup vocals
Calm, beautiful, childlike victim
“All the Beautiful Worlds” is a track from 24 Karat Gold — Songs from the Vault (2014), Stevie Nicks’ eighth solo album. A 15-second preview of the song was released to Stevie Nicks’ official social media sites on Friday, August 22, 2014.
What would I do
For just some time with you
Don’t give that to her
Baby, give that to me
What would will you do
When the thrill is gone, baby
Don’t give that to her
Baby, give that to me
Oh, where have you gone
Have you gone so far from me
Leaving your touch
On the edge of my heart
What will I do
In the still of the night, baby
Don’t give that to her
You remember my words
All the beautiful worlds
That I have seen so far
Have all fallen down
Oh, it used to be yours
Calm, beautiful, childlike victim
Calm, beautiful, childlike victim
I see through your smile
And I see through the heart of you
I know where it goes
And I know what it means
I know where you go
To the edge of the night, baby
Don’t give that to her
Baby, give that to me
All the beautiful worlds
That I have seen so far
Have all fallen down
Oh, it used to be yours
Calm, beautiful, childlike victim
Calm, beautiful, childlike victim
Ooh, you say you’re leaving, baby
You don’t want to tell me why
After all this time you think
You don’t even say goodbye
Oh, you say you’re leaving, baby
You don’t want to tell me why
After all this time you think
You don’t even say goodbye
I see through that smile
And I see through the heart of you
I know where it goes
And I know what it means
Well, I know where you go
To the edge of the night, baby
Don’t give that to her
Baby, give that to me
All the beautiful worlds
That I have seen so far
Have all fallen down
Oh, it used to be yours
Calm, beautiful, childlike victim
Calm, beautiful, childlike victim
Calm, beautiful, childlike victim
Well, I see through that smile
And I see through the heart of you
I know where it goes
And I know what it means
Well, I know where you go
To the edge of the night, baby
Don’t give that to her
Baby, give that to me
Don’t give that to her
Baby, give that to me
Don’t give that to her
Baby, give that to me
Well, I know where you go
And I know what you do
Don’t give that to her
Baby, give that to me
And I know what you do
Well, I know where you go
Don’t give that to her
Baby, give that to me
(Stevie Nicks) © 2014 Welsh Witch Music (BMI). Administered by Songs of Kobalt Music Publishing (BMI)
Stevie rehearsed “All the Beautiful Worlds” for her second solo album The Wild Heart (1983).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0yVwyNQQ4E
So continue on your destructive road
“Mabel Normand” is a track from 24 Karat Gold — Songs from the Vault (2014), Stevie Nicks’ eighth solo album. A 15-second preview of the song was released to Stevie’ official social media sites on Friday, August 15, 2014.
Through the show
She’s natural in her beauty
I guess you could say she’s an unapproachable comedienne
Haven’t much faith in her talent
She did her work, no comedienne
She’s not been the clown
She did her work
But her heart was quietly crying
I guess she even felt guilty
About even dying
Poor Mabel Normand
So my friend is continuing
On a destructive road
His life passes before him with unfortunate circumstance
His friends are at odds
And he is not winning
Why does someone always have to win
He says, “It’s patterns”
Strange things do follow
When you love someone
So you put them in exile
How ’bout I call you Beloved Exile
He called today
He says, “Don’t give up”
I ask him, “What are you talking about?”
I said, “Things are not the same”
Since you’ve been gone, Rome burned down
And it’s still all the same
So I moved away from the house to him
Nothing but waiting for messages
All through the days he doesn’t rise with the sun
And I prayed every day for the answer
In a still, and almost silent night
He began to hide his beauty
And I learned to say the words
Well, just whose side are you on anyway
And what does it matter
You change sides
What does it matter
Still you change sides
Every other day, you just change sides
Well, her life was a gas
Simply everything that happened
Well, they say it was sad
They say it was sad
So continue on your destructive road
Your life passes before me like an unknown circumstance
You and your friends are at odds
And you are not winning
Why does someone always have to win
And all those races that are run
They cause patterns
Strange things do follow when you love someone
So you put that someone in exile
And you say, “I’d write a book about it”
And call it Beloved Exile
Well, her life was a gas
Simply everything that happened
Well, the old lady said, “Yes, it was sad”
He fought a losing battle
One day at a time
She might even make it through tomorrow
Maybe even another show
Natural in her beauty
I guess you could say she was just unapproachable
Baby, you’re needed
Hasn’t much faith in her talent
Give it a whirl
(Stevie Nicks) © 2014 Welsh Witch Music (BMI). Administered by Songs of Kobalt Music Publishing (BMI)
“Mabel Normand” was rehearsed for Stevie’s third solo album Rock a Little (1985).
Mabel Normand was a comedienne and silent film star from the early 1900s.
“If You Were My Love” is a track from 24 Karat Gold — Songs from the Vault (2014), Stevie Nicks’ eighth solo album.
If you were my love however momentarily…
Stevie wrote “If You Were My Love” about the experience of working with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers for the first time in 1980. “It’s like a love song, but it’s not. It’s about going outside your own life and getting attached to something that isn’t yours. It’s been kind of like falling in love with another band — for a minute. It has nothing to do with — and truly, clarify this — there is absolutely nothing going on between me and anybody in that band. They’re all married. They’re all expecting babies. That’s what makes it very easy for me to be with them and be their friend, and almost be one of the guys” (Beck, 1981).
Stevie has rehearsed “If You Were My Love” many times over the years; first for her first solo album Bella Donna (1981), Fleetwood Mac’s Mirage (1982), and her fifth solo album Street Angel (1994).
In 1993, Stevie recorded and completed the track for Street Angel, but removed it after revisiting the album with producer Thom Panunzio.
In 2014, Stevie finally released the track for 24 Karat Gold — Songs from the Vault, her eighth solo album.
Tonight there are no saviors
This night outside my window
It wasn’t anyone’s fault
When the moon rolls over the mountain
You are lost in your dreaming
Where is the wild white rose
I try to explain it
To someone who was crying
If you were my love
My hands reached for somethin’
Someone that could tell me
Wasn’t anyone’s fault
Not anyone’s fault
With our crosses to bear
And our dreams that still live on
With our crosses to bear now
And our dreams that still live on
If you were my love
However momentarily
Ooh, if I were the one
Who watched over your sleeping
You would never
Have been frightened
At all
At all
With our crosses to bear
And our dreams that still live on
With our crosses to bear
And our dreams that still live on
If you were my love
However momentarily
Ah, if I were the one
Who watched over your sleeping
You would never
Have been frightened
At all…
At all…
At all…
At all…
Faithful…
(Stevie Nicks) © 2014 Welsh Witch Music (BMI). Administered by Songs of Kobalt Music Publishing (BMI)
Beck, M. (1981, September 1981). Marilyn Beck: The magical life of Stevie Nicks. Chicago Tribune-New York News.
Nicks conjures the old black-lace magic and makes it feel new.” —Rolling Stone
24 Karat Gold ~ Songs from the Vault is Stevie Nicks‘ eighth solo album, her first since In Your Dreams (2011). It was released as a limited edition, double-vinyl set on September 30, 2014 and as an expanded CD with an oversize photo booklet on Tuesday, October 7, 2014.
Comes with two bonus tracks, alternate track sequence, and oversized photo booklet
“Most of these songs were written between 1969 and 1987. One was written in 1994 and one in 1995. I included them because they seemed to belong to a special group. Each song is a lifetime. Each song has a soul. Each song has a purpose. Each song is a love story. They represent my life behind the scenes — the secrets, the broken hearts, the brokenhearted and the survivors. The music is not new. It is like going through my mother’s things and finding the things she did not share with me because she left so suddenly. These songs are the memories; the 24 karat gold rings in the blue box. ~ These songs are for you.”
“I used to make cassettes of my songs and hand them out. But to know that these songs have finally been recorded with the same love they were originally created is joyous for me. I picked 12 songs from about 40 demos made from ’69 – ’87 and one each from 94 and 95.
“I began thinking about making this record in February of this year because I had about five months before Fleetwood Mac rehearsals started in August. We didn’t have a year to hang out and work on music like I usually do. I had about 40 songs originally done in demo form from 1969-1987 and ’94 and ’95. I thought we could certainly make an album from this collection – probably three albums. Many of the songs were already out there on the internet and fans have been asking for them for years through fan sites and letters. I used to make cassettes of my music and give them to anybody. But to know that these songs were finally going to be recorded with the same love they were originally done when they were demos – that was joyous for me. I narrowed it down to 30 and had to keep weeding out. I think Waddy hit it on the head when he said, “Stevie really writes one very long song. They’re all involved with each other.
Each song is a lifetime… Each song has a soul… Each song has a purpose. Each song is a love story… They represent my life behind the scenes, the secrets, the broken hearts, the broken hearted and the survivors… These songs are the memories – the 24 Karat gold rings in the blue box… These songs are for you.
“From the very beginning of the first song I wrote before I turned 16 to the last song I ever wrote, there’s a certain thread that I use because it’s just what I do… The songs are all about love and heartbreak – how to pick up the pieces – how to keep moving… I’m really chronicling love from the very beginning. When you write a song and it doesn’t go on a record, it floats around in your life for years. You think about it and go over it until it becomes part of your world. These songs are now 24 Karat Gold.It all started when I fell crazy in love with a really super handsome kid from Arcadia High School who is still my really good friend today… Even now when he walks through the door, it’s like the same as when I saw him walking down the hall in 10th grade… He started me out as a songwriter… From that second onward I told my parents I was going to be a famous singer songwriter. I was 15 1/2.
“You usually don’t write songs about being super happy… When you write a song or a book, it’s usually when someone walks away. I think that’s the first moment you start to think about it not working out and you start to write. The relationship may go on for longer but you’ve already started writing in your head because you see the future… Other times, you know a relationship won’t work from almost the beginning but you wouldn’t trade what you shared for a million dollars…
“It’s not acting… It’s never acting… It’s the reason I go onstage and sing Edge of 17 every night since ’81 or Gold Dust Woman. I just take myself back to that time when it was written… Sometimes I can’t remember what happened yesterday but I remember so well what happened through the whole period of time that I wrote these songs.
“Fast forward to 2014, I said to Dave (Stewart, co producer), “How do we make a record in a few months?” And he said, “We go to Nashville for two weeks.” So we all got on a plane – Waddy (Wachtel co producer/Stevie’s musical director), Dave, Lori and Sharon (long time background vocalists), my assistant Karen and I headed to Nashville from LA. By this time, I had narrowed it down to 17 songs. I knew we had to smash the recording of them into ten days. Later I’d figure out which 14 would make the record. We went in on Monday morning and did two songs – even got a good vocal… Then, two more each day through Friday. Then we went into the smaller room to do little touches. We flew back to LA and started working at my house for three weeks doing background and guitar overdubs. It was really coming together.
“The only way this would have been possible was because of the amazing “Nashvillians” (as I named them) the brilliant musicians who we worked with in Nashville. Dave said that these guys can record all these songs in two weeks. I had my doubts because I don’t know any band in the world that could record all these songs in two weeks. It was like Annie Oakley rode in and hired a gang. We were a whole different can of beans than they were used to working with for sure. They were a great band – tantamount to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers… They reminded me of Tom’s band because they were so good and they played together so well. We were awestruck for the whole time just watching them. For me to stand in the vocal booth and be able to see all of them – that they could learn the songs that fast – it blew my mind… I told them, “I’m making a great record. Don’t care if it’s a hit record. And they were all on board. We recorded live and just about all the final vocals are live… This was going to be a fast moving train… That is how we roll and that IS how we rolled. And we did it.
“Ages ago I wanted to learn how to become a photographer. I don’t sleep at night so I thought, who am I going to ask to stay up all night and then do a show tomorrow night… I’m not going to get Christine (McVie) to be a model… She’s going to say, “Are you crazy? I’m going to the bar, bye.” And so it began… I had a long cord that plugged into the Polaroid which I put on a tripod with the button in my hand… I’d be completely dressed – red lipstick and hair and long white gown in the middle of the night… I’d start moving furniture and lamps around and kept changing the lighting… Lots of times I ran out of film and would send people out to buy more in the middle of the night but the end result was I taught myself about lighting and how to take a great picture. I realized the songs and pictures from that time all fit together and from these I would select the art work for the album. They were of a time. I had stored them all in shoe boxes and they still look great. Many have a golden tone to them which is perfect for the title of the album. And all the shots are not just me but certain people in my life who surrounded me as I was writing these songs… Everybody is represented here… These songs and photographs came from all these people. This is not a solo effort… We just got the last photo release signed by Jimmy Iovine… Without the pictures of Jimmy, I would have had to throw out the whole idea because he was so important with “Belladonna” and my solo career… If it hadn’t been for Jimmy, I don’t know if it would have ever really gone anywhere.
“I even did some of the calligraphy for the packaging. My trusty assistant Karen found the most amazing calligraphy pen and I decided to write all the titles of the songs. I never thought I could do it but the pen was indeed magical and I thought it was an extra added touch to include the calligraphy as part of the package for 24 Karat Gold.”
“Rock legend Stevie Nicks nets her sixth top 10 solo album, as her quasi-archival release 24 Karat Gold: Songs From the Vault set starts at No. 7 (33,000). The set consists of newly-recorded material that was written and recorded in demo versions in earlier years. 24 Karat Gold follows Nicks’s In Your Dreams, which debuted (and peaked) at No. 6 back in 2011 (52,000 sold in its first week).” (Billboard, October 15, 2014)
The Dealer
Lady
24 Karat Gold
Starshine
Nicks, S. (2014). Recording the album. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgXnFrIwGCM [deleted video]
Nicks, S. (2014). A woman’s record. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeRvExQilAI [deleted video]
< In Your Dreams | Rarities >
Soundstage: Stevie Nicks Live in Chicago (2009) is Stevie Nicks’ first concert release since Stevie Nicks Live at Red Rocks (1987). Stevie performed many of her biggest hits, such as “Dreams,” “Stand Back,” and “Edge of Seventeen.”
On October 25, 2007, Stevie Nicks recorded PBS Soundstage before a live studio audience at WTTW’s Grainger studio in Chicago. She recorded the special concert while on tour for Crystal Visions…The Very Best of Stevie Nicks, her third solo retrospective release. Stevie performed her Fleetwood Mac and solo hits and covered Dave Matthew’s “Crash into Me” and Bonnie Raitt’s “Circle Dance.” She also performed “The One,” a duet with Vanessa Carlton.
On July 17, 2008, PBS premiered the concert as a two-part special; Part 1 airing on the premiere night and Part 2 airing a week later on July 24, 2008. The network broadcast 16 of the 18 songs that Stevie performed for the concert, but omitted “Dreams” and Beauty and the Beast.” PBS also shuffled the order of the songs for the two-part special.
One of the highlights of the concert was “Sara.” According to Stevie, director Joe Thomas wrote her a cheeky, one-page letter explaining the importance of recording “Sara” for the broadcast. She agreed to perform the song, humorously referring to Thomas’ efforts as a “guilt letter.”
In 2008, Stevie and Joe worked on a CD to promote The Soundstage Sessions. They tweaked the existing recordings at Ocean Way Recording in a Nashville, adding string arrangements and new vocals.
On Tuesday, March 31, 2009, Reprise Records released Stevie Nicks Live in Chicago on DVD, with an accompanying 10-track CD, The Soundstage Sessions. On the same day, Stevie made a rare public appearance to sign autographs at Barnes and Noble in New York’s Union Square.
There are two versions of the DVD and Blu-ray. The PBS edition, Stevie Live!, includes 16 songs from the original two-part special, but omits “Dreams” and the orchestra version of “Landslide.” The Reprise Records edition, Stevie Nicks: Live in Chicago, includes 17 of the 18 songs that Stevie performed at the concert. Strangely, neither edition contains the footage for “Beauty and the Beast,” though its audio track appears exclusively on Reprise’s accompanying 10-track CD, The Soundstage Sessions. Though PBS aired scenes during the end credits of what appears to be Stevie bowing after singing “Beauty and the Beast,” the actual performance footage remains officially unreleased.
Dreams & Landslide (Orchestra Version) omitted
Bonus track: Landslide (Orchestra Version)
Produced and directed by Joe Thomas
Stevie Nicks‘ sixth solo album, Trouble in Shangri-La (2001), explores the ups and downs of fame. Nicks herself has described the album as a reflection of the challenges involved in staying at the peak of one’s career, or “Shangri-La.”
Stevie Nicks has never sounded more grounded or passionate than on Trouble in Shangri-La, which is her best and most varied work as a solo artist.” –Us Weekly
Disappointed with the uneven Street Angel (1994) and recovering from Klonopin addiction, Stevie Nicks spent seven years sporadically working on her next album, Trouble in Shangri-La.
During that time, she had dinner with Tom Petty to ask if he would write a song for her; the two dined at the Ritz-Carlton in Phoenix on April 24, 1994. Petty declined but encouraged her to start writing again. This conversation ended up inspiring two songs: “That Made Me Stronger” and “Hard Advice” (from her album 24 Karat Gold: Songs from the Vault).
Petty’s pep talk motivated Nicks to write “Love Is,” her first song in months. She later wrote the album’s title track, “Trouble in Shangri-La,” in 1995. While not specifically about the O.J. Simpson murder trial happening at the time, she related to the difficulties of a public relationship. These two songs, “Love Is” and “Trouble in Shangri-La,” ultimately became the “bookends” of the album and gave her the inspiration she needed to complete the project.
Following the success of Fleetwood Mac‘s 1997 reunion album, The Dance, Stevie Nicks put her solo album, Trouble in Shangri-La, on hold. The reunion inspired her to write new songs for the album, including the ballad “Touched by an Angel.” The momentum from The Dance led to more touring and the release of Nicks’s retrospective album, Enchanted: The Works of Stevie Nicks, in 1998.
After promoting Enchanted, Nicks went back to work on Trouble in Shangri-La. She teamed up with Sheryl Crow, who produced five tracks for the album, including “Candlebright” and “Sorcerer.” But Crow’s touring schedule for her own album, The Globe Sessions, often pulled her away from the project.
Stevie Nicks began writing additional songs for Trouble in Shangri-La, while on vacation in Maui at the end of 1999. In this serene, “jade green” environment, she was able to leave her work with Fleetwood Mac behind and focus on new songs. “I wrote it in Hawaii two years ago,” Stevie said in 2001. “At that point, in order to write the rest of the songs for [Trouble in Shangri-La], I really had to leave my Enchanted box set and Fleetwood Mac behind. Hawaii was very different than any place I’d ever been. Very green — jade green — very calm, very Zen. And I realized that if you take yourself to a great environment, you can just about get over anything.”
She wrote the song “Bombay Sapphires” during this time and considered having Sting perform the harmony vocals. The musical similarities between her song and Sting’s “Shape of My Heart” could be a reason she thought of him for the harmony part. However, her management suggested she collaborate with fellow Reprise label-mate and rising star Macy Gray instead. Macy, who had just won a Grammy for her hit single, “I Try,” hit it off with Stevie, and she recorded high harmonies on “Bombay Sapphires.” Macy also wrote a song for Stevie called “Smitten,” though it’s unknown if either of them ever recorded it (Rolling Stone, 2000).
During her time in Hawaii, Nicks heard TLC‘s song “Unpretty,” which was produced by R&B producer Dallas Austin. Impressed with his work, she asked Austin to produce some tracks for the album.
“Sheryl Crow actually started [producing the album] first,” Austin explained. “I came in [when] I think Sheryl had to go on the road, and Stevie was in Hawaii one day and she put on the TLC record. [I’ve heard] she said, ‘Hey, this is the guy. I need to find this guy. He could do a lot of stuff. It sounds like [certain] Fleetwood Mac influences.’ So I finally went out to meet her. Sheryl had done two songs, but I’m not sure if she’s gonna finish them or if Stevie’s gonna finish them, or how it’s gonna work, but the songs she did sound great.” (MTV News, 2000).
In March 2000, Nicks flew to Atlanta to work with Austin at his recording studio. Although Austin reportedly completed tracks for the album, Nicks ultimately decided not to use them. “The whole album was going a certain way, and Dallas had to move on,” Nicks said. “He can’t spend a year doing an album. I came back to L.A. and started to do other songs with Sheryl, and I realized the record was going in a completely different direction. The songs didn’t fit. The songs that I did with him were very R&B, and then I’m dueting with [country’s] Natalie (Maines), and all of a sudden this record was not making any sense at all.” (Cohen, Tribune, 2001).
Nicks also worked with producer Rodney Jerkins (Destiny’s Child, Whitney Houston, Brandy, Monica) for a short time. (New York Magazine, 2000).
To get the album back on track, Nicks worked with producers David Kahne, Pierre Marchand, Rick Nowels, Jeff Trott, and John Shanks to bring her original vision for the album to life.
Stevie Nicks recorded songs for Trouble in Shangri-La that were not included on the final album. These included “My Heart,” which she reworked for In Your Dreams (2011); “Touched by an Angel,” which appeared on the Sweet November Motion Picture Soundtrack (2001); and “Thrown Down,” which she re-recorded for Fleetwood Mac’s Say You Will (2003).
“Touched by an Angel” preceded the release of Trouble in Shangri-La by six months, first appearing on the Reprise Records promo CD for the 2000 ACLU Bill of Rights Awards Dinner on December 14, 2000. The CD also included Lindsey Buckingham’s solo version of “Peacekeeper.”
Nicks referred to the album’s many collaborations as “perfect accidents,” highlighting the spontaneous and unique creative energy of the project. She worked with some of the biggest names in music:
Trouble in Shangri-La was released on CD and cassette on May 1, 2001, to great success. Aided by a strong marketing campaign from VH1 (May 2001’s “Artist of the Month: Stevie Nicks”), the album debuted at number 5 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling an impressive 109,000 copies in its first week. This marked Nicks’ highest album debut since The Wild Heart in 1983.
The singles “Every Day” (AC #17), “Planets of the Universe” (Dance #1), and “Sorcerer” (AC #21) all performed well on the radio. With the help of popular remixes by DJs Tracy Young and Illicit, “Planets of the Universe” became a number-one hit on the Hot Dance/Club Play chart during the summer.
By June 2001, the album was certified Gold. It has since sold over 638,000 copies in the United States. Nicks also earned her fifth Grammy nomination for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance for “Planets of the Universe.” Looking back on the album, Nicks told Entertainment Weekly that it was her “heart and soul, everything I’ve wanted to say over the last 10 years.”
Every Day
Planets of the Universe
Sorcerer
Brown, E. (2000, May). Production values. New York Magazine. Retrieved from https://nymag.com/nymetro/arts/music/features/2982/.
Johnson, T. (2000, January). Dallas Austin discusses working with Stevie Nicks. MTV News. Retrieved from http://www.mtv.com/news/1425064/dallas-austin-discusses-working-with-stevie-nicks/
(2000, April). Macy Gray. Rolling Stone (RS 839).
Stevie Nicks‘ sixth solo album, Trouble in Shangri-La (2001), explores the ups and downs of fame. Nicks herself has described the album as a reflection of the challenges involved in staying at the peak of one’s career, or “Shangri-La.”
Stevie Nicks has never sounded more grounded or passionate than on Trouble in Shangri-La, which is her best and most varied work as a solo artist.” –Us Weekly
Disappointed with the uneven Street Angel (1994) and recovering from Klonopin addiction, Stevie Nicks spent seven years sporadically working on her next album, Trouble in Shangri-La.
During that time, she had dinner with Tom Petty to ask if he would write a song for her; the two dined at the Ritz-Carlton in Phoenix on April 24, 1994. Petty declined but encouraged her to start writing again. This conversation ended up inspiring two songs: “That Made Me Stronger” and “Hard Advice” (from her album 24 Karat Gold: Songs from the Vault).
Petty’s pep talk motivated Nicks to write “Love Is,” her first song in months. She later wrote the album’s title track, “Trouble in Shangri-La,” in 1995. While not specifically about the O.J. Simpson murder trial happening at the time, she related to the difficulties of a public relationship. These two songs, “Love Is” and “Trouble in Shangri-La,” ultimately became the “bookends” of the album and gave her the inspiration she needed to complete the project.
Following the success of Fleetwood Mac‘s 1997 reunion album, The Dance, Stevie Nicks put her solo album, Trouble in Shangri-La, on hold. The reunion inspired her to write new songs for the album, including the ballad “Touched by an Angel.” The momentum from The Dance led to more touring and the release of Nicks’s retrospective album, Enchanted: The Works of Stevie Nicks, in 1998.
After promoting Enchanted, Nicks went back to work on Trouble in Shangri-La. She teamed up with Sheryl Crow, who produced five tracks for the album, including “Candlebright” and “Sorcerer.” But Crow’s touring schedule for her own album, The Globe Sessions, often pulled her away from the project.
Stevie Nicks began writing additional songs for Trouble in Shangri-La, while on vacation in Maui at the end of 1999. In this serene, “jade green” environment, she was able to leave her work with Fleetwood Mac behind and focus on new songs. “I wrote it in Hawaii two years ago,” Stevie said in 2001. “At that point, in order to write the rest of the songs for [Trouble in Shangri-La], I really had to leave my Enchanted box set and Fleetwood Mac behind. Hawaii was very different than any place I’d ever been. Very green — jade green — very calm, very Zen. And I realized that if you take yourself to a great environment, you can just about get over anything.”
She wrote the song “Bombay Sapphires” during this time and considered having Sting perform the harmony vocals. The musical similarities between her song and Sting’s “Shape of My Heart” could be a reason she thought of him for the harmony part. However, her management suggested she collaborate with fellow Reprise label-mate and rising star Macy Gray instead. Macy, who had just won a Grammy for her hit single, “I Try,” hit it off with Stevie, and she recorded high harmonies on “Bombay Sapphires.” Macy also wrote a song for Stevie called “Smitten,” though it’s unknown if either of them ever recorded it (Rolling Stone, 2000).
During her time in Hawaii, Nicks heard TLC‘s song “Unpretty,” which was produced by R&B producer Dallas Austin. Impressed with his work, she asked Austin to produce some tracks for the album.
“Sheryl Crow actually started [producing the album] first,” Austin explained. “I came in [when] I think Sheryl had to go on the road, and Stevie was in Hawaii one day and she put on the TLC record. [I’ve heard] she said, ‘Hey, this is the guy. I need to find this guy. He could do a lot of stuff. It sounds like [certain] Fleetwood Mac influences.’ So I finally went out to meet her. Sheryl had done two songs, but I’m not sure if she’s gonna finish them or if Stevie’s gonna finish them, or how it’s gonna work, but the songs she did sound great.” (MTV News, 2000).
In March 2000, Nicks flew to Atlanta to work with Austin at his recording studio. Although Austin reportedly completed tracks for the album, Nicks ultimately decided not to use them. “The whole album was going a certain way, and Dallas had to move on,” Nicks said. “He can’t spend a year doing an album. I came back to L.A. and started to do other songs with Sheryl, and I realized the record was going in a completely different direction. The songs didn’t fit. The songs that I did with him were very R&B, and then I’m dueting with [country’s] Natalie (Maines), and all of a sudden this record was not making any sense at all.” (Cohen, Tribune, 2001).
Nicks also worked with producer Rodney Jerkins (Destiny’s Child, Whitney Houston, Brandy, Monica) for a short time. (New York Magazine, 2000).
To get the album back on track, Nicks worked with producers David Kahne, Pierre Marchand, Rick Nowels, Jeff Trott, and John Shanks to bring her original vision for the album to life.
Stevie Nicks recorded songs for Trouble in Shangri-La that were not included on the final album. These included “My Heart,” which she reworked for In Your Dreams (2011); “Touched by an Angel,” which appeared on the Sweet November Motion Picture Soundtrack (2001); and “Thrown Down,” which she re-recorded for Fleetwood Mac’s Say You Will (2003).
“Touched by an Angel” preceded the release of Trouble in Shangri-La by six months, first appearing on the Reprise Records promo CD for the 2000 ACLU Bill of Rights Awards Dinner on December 14, 2000. The CD also included Lindsey Buckingham’s solo version of “Peacekeeper.”
Nicks referred to the album’s many collaborations as “perfect accidents,” highlighting the spontaneous and unique creative energy of the project. She worked with some of the biggest names in music:
Trouble in Shangri-La was released on CD and cassette on May 1, 2001, to great success. Aided by a strong marketing campaign from VH1 (May 2001’s “Artist of the Month: Stevie Nicks”), the album debuted at number 5 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling an impressive 109,000 copies in its first week. This marked Nicks’ highest album debut since The Wild Heart in 1983.
The singles “Every Day” (AC #17), “Planets of the Universe” (Dance #1), and “Sorcerer” (AC #21) all performed well on the radio. With the help of popular remixes by DJs Tracy Young and Illicit, “Planets of the Universe” became a number-one hit on the Hot Dance/Club Play chart during the summer.
By June 2001, the album was certified Gold. It has since sold over 638,000 copies in the United States. Nicks also earned her fifth Grammy nomination for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance for “Planets of the Universe.” Looking back on the album, Nicks told Entertainment Weekly that it was her “heart and soul, everything I’ve wanted to say over the last 10 years.”
Every Day
Planets of the Universe
Sorcerer
Brown, E. (2000, May). Production values. New York Magazine. Retrieved from https://nymag.com/nymetro/arts/music/features/2982/.
Johnson, T. (2000, January). Dallas Austin discusses working with Stevie Nicks. MTV News. Retrieved from http://www.mtv.com/news/1425064/dallas-austin-discusses-working-with-stevie-nicks/
(2000, April). Macy Gray. Rolling Stone (RS 839).
“Trouble in Shangri-La” is Track 1 on Trouble in Shangri-La (2001), Stevie Nicks’ sixth solo album. It precedes “Candlebright” in the track order.
Stevie wrote “Trouble in Shangri-La” during the 1995 O.J. Simpson murder trial. Although she did not specifically write about Simpson or the trial, Stevie identified with the challenges of sustaining a relationship in the public eye.
“[Trouble in Shangri-La] was written during the last two months of the O.J. Simpson trial. But that’s not what it was about. What the O.J. trial made me aware of was relationships, and how difficult they are, especially for people who are in the public eye and are very famous and how difficult it is for them to hold on to ‘Shangri-La.’ Of course, to somebody who doesn’t make very much money and would just love to live in ‘Shangri-La,’ it’s hard to even hear that. But there is a price to pay for this kind of fame. It’s strange, because, in a sense, I was writing about the same things when I recorded Bella Donna, almost 20 years ago.”
Despite drawing parallels to her own life, Stevie said that the song is a general observation of people who struggle to stay at the top of their field. “It’s not just about me. In fact, it’s not that much about me at all; it’s about a lot of other people that I see and hear about. You say to yourself, ‘God, I made it. I’m at the top of my field. I’m a beloved artist of some kind.’ And then, ‘I can’t handle it.’ And how sad is it that all your dreams come true and you just can’t keep yourself together?” (Nicks, 2001)
I remember him, he was very young
No one spoke like him, he was someone
And I carried on, like I couldn’t stop
All of it for us baby
And you, you got in my way
Stood between me and my friends
It was my sin, it was my shame
You were unconscious to the pain I was in
I hear there’s trouble in Shangri-La
I run through the grass
I run over the stones
Down to the sea
Show me the way back, honey
I hear there’s trouble in Shangri-La
I run through the grass
I run over the stones
Show me the way back…to the sea
With honor be it spoken
To understand this light that we carry
And let it light your way
Of course, you know, I generally take it
Well I make accommodations for you
And consider this
You used to be my love
I make excuses for you
I hear there’s trouble in Shangri-La
I run through the grass
I run over the stones
Down to the sea
Show me the way back, honey
I hear there’s trouble in Shangri-La
I run through the grass
I run over the stones
Show me the way back…to the sea
You can consume all the beauty in the room, baby
I know you can, I’ve seen you do it
And it brings up the wind
And it rises around you in pillars of color
But the promise has been broken
As you walk through the shadow of death
You try to see no evil
But you are heartbroken
You say, dear God, make it stop
Before the dawn of separation
Brings up the wind
Rises around you
I hear there’s trouble in Shangri-La
Pillars of color
Trouble in Shangri-La
I make accommodations for you
I guess we don’t believe
That things could go that far
We all believe in people
That we think believe in God
Somewhere in the night
Someone feels the pain
The ones who walk away
Try to love again
I hear there’s trouble in Shangri-La
I run through the grass
I run over the stones
Down to the sea
Show me the way back, honey
I hear there’s trouble in Shangri-La
I run through the grass
I run over the stones
Show me the way back…to the sea
You can consume all the beauty in the room, baby
Because you are so heartbroken
You can consume all the beauty in the room, baby
Before the dawn of separation
You can consume all the beauty in the room, baby
Show me the way back
(Stevie Nicks) © 1996 ℗ Welsh Witch Music (BMI)
| Writer | Stevie Nicks |
| Producers | John Shanks and Stevie Nicks |
| Engineer | Mark DeSoto |
| Pro Tools Engineer | James Murray |
| Drums | Vinnie Colaiuta |
| Guitars, Keyboards, and Programming | John Shanks |
| Bass | Al Ortiz |
| Keyboards | Patrick Warren |
| Background Vocals | Sharon Celani and Lori Nicks |
Rogers, R. (2001). Interview: Stevie Nicks.
TROUBLE IN SHANGRI-LA: Trouble in Shangri-La | Candlebright | Sorcerer | Planets of the Universe | Every Day | Too Far From Texas | That Made Me Stronger | It’s Only Love | Love Changes | I Miss You | Bombay Sapphires | Fall From Grace | Love Is
