'Sad Angel' is a song by

Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac are a British-American Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1967 by the singer and guitarist Peter Green (musician), Peter Green. Green named the band by combining the surnames of the drummer, Mick Fleetwood, and the bassis ...

, written by guitarist and vocalist Lindsey Buckingham, from their EP ''

Extended Play An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

'', released in 2013.

Background

The band intended to release "Sad Angel" and another Buckingham song, "Miss Fantasy", before their 2013 world tour. The band instead included both of these songs on a four song EP titled ''Extended Play'' along with "It Takes Time" and "Without You". Buckingham wrote "Sad Angel" for his former girlfriend

Stevie Nicks Stephanie Lynn Nicks (born May 26, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter, known for her work with the band Fleetwood Mac and as a solo artist. After starting her career as a duo with her then-boyfriend Lindsey Buckingham, releasing the album ...

. "All these years later, we are still writing songs that are dialogues for each other," he says. "That was part of the appeal of ''Rumours'', and of the group in general... Of all the things we cut, "Sad Angel" was, for lack of a better term, the most Fleetwood Mac-y. It was really kind of the best stuff that we have done in a while." "Sad Angel" was performed on Fleetwood Mac's 2013 world tour to coincide with the release of ''Extended Play''. In 2018, "Sad Angel" was included on their compilation album, '' 50 Years: Don't Stop''.

Reception

Dave Lifton of ''Ultimate Classic Rock'' gave the song a 7/10. While praising the rhythm section of

Mick Fleetwood Michael John Kells Fleetwood (born 24 June 1947) is a British musician, songwriter and actor. He is the drummer, co-founder, and leader of the rock band Fleetwood Mac. Fleetwood, whose surname was merged with that of the group's bassist John Mc ...

and

John McVie John Graham McVie (; born 26 November 1945) is a British bass guitarist. He is best known as a member of the rock bands John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers from 1964 to 1967 and Fleetwood Mac since 1967. His surname, combined with that of drummer ...

, Lifton felt that Stevie Nicks' vocals were lacking, with her trademark personality absent. "...For a band that has traded so frequently on the duo's history together, "Sad Angel" doesn't offer much in the way of tension between its two lead singers." Writing for ''

The Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper in the U.S. and the larges ...

'', Mikael Wood said that the song's "glossy textures" were reminiscent of the band's output on ''

Tango in the Night ''Tango in the Night'' is the fourteenth studio album by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac, released on 13 April 1987 by Warner Bros. Records. As a result of Lindsey Buckingham's departure later that year, it is the fifth and final stu ...

''. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' ranked the song number 28 on its list of the 30 greatest Fleetwood Mac songs.

Personnel

– drums, percussion *

– bass guitar *

Lindsey Buckingham Lindsey Adams Buckingham (born October 3, 1949) is an American musician, record producer, and the lead guitarist and co-lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band Fleetwood Mac from 1975 to 1987 and 1997 to 2018. In addition to his tenure with ...

– acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keyboards, lead vocals *

– backing vocals

Charts

References

{{Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac songs 2013 songs Songs written by Lindsey Buckingham