"Sentimental Lady" is a song written by Bob Welch. It was originally recorded for Fleetwood Mac's 1972 album '' Bare Trees'', but was re-recorded by Welch on his debut solo album, ''

French Kiss A French kiss, also known as cataglottism or a tongue kiss, is an amorous kiss in which the participants' tongues extend to touch each other's lips or tongue. A kiss with the tongue stimulates the partner's lips, tongue and mouth, which are se ...

'', in 1977. It is a romantic song, originally written for Welch's first wife. Welch recorded it again in 2003 for his album ''

His Fleetwood Mac Years & Beyond Bob Welch: His Fleetwood Mac Years & Beyond was an album by former Fleetwood Mac guitarist turned solo artist Bob Welch Bob Welch may refer to: *Bob Welch (baseball) (1956–2014), American baseball pitcher *Bob Welch (author) (born c. 1955), Am ...

''.

History and release

The song was originally written by Welch at the former Gorham Hotel on 55th Street in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. The original 1972 version of the song as heard on Fleetwood Mac's ''Bare Trees'' album clocked in at 4 minutes 34 seconds, with background vocals by

Christine McVie Christine Anne McVie (; née Perfect; 12 July 1943 – 30 November 2022) was an English musician and songwriter. She was best known as keyboardist and one of the vocalists of the band Fleetwood Mac. McVie was a member of several bands, nota ...

. It had two verses, with a reprise of the first following the instrumental bridge. A 1977 re-recording, the most well-known version of the song, was a solo hit for Welch when he recorded it for his first solo album, ''

'', which was released in September 1977. The first single released from the album, "Sentimental Lady" reached the top 10 in both the U.S. Pop and Adult Contemporary charts.

Mick Fleetwood Michael John Kells Fleetwood (born 24 June 1947) is a British musician, songwriter and occasional actor. He is best known as the drummer, co-founder, and leader of the rock band Fleetwood Mac. Fleetwood, whose surname was merged with that of t ...

also played the drums for the song on Welch's 1977 album. The re-recording of it featured Christine McVie and Lindsey Buckingham as backing singers and producers (with Buckingham additionally doing the arrangement as well as serving on guitar), but unlike the original which had two verses, Welch's solo version only had one verse to cut it down to less than three minutes for the final radio cut.

Lyrical composition

The original placeholder/dummy lyrics for the chorus before the full lyrics were written was, "my legs are sticks and my feet are stones." The solo recording has a notable introduction with a multilayered guitar piece by Lindsey Buckingham. Welch told Songfacts.com: "The lyric was probably referencing my first wife Nancy." In the song, he personifies the love of his life as a "sentimental, gentle wind

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blowing through my life again." The Fleetwood Mac version includes a verse that begins "Now you are here today, But easily you might just go away." It is omitted from Welch's solo version, which otherwise has the same lyrics. Donald Brackett, in his 2007 book, ''Fleetwood Mac, 40 Years of Creative Chaos '' has discussed Welch's poetic romantic lyrics in "Sentimental Lady" and writing and performing style. He describes the featuring of the song on the 1972 album '' Bare Trees'' as the best example of the group's move towards a new, softer and highly commercial style in the early 1970s. Brackett suggests that the essence of the lyrics and nature of the song are "almost too gentle", but describes Welch's voice as like "crushed velvet", in that he believes the voice is simultaneously gentle and threatening in tone, a symbolic balance between the emotions of hope and despair. He later says of Welch's song writing, "Welch had the unique ability to encapsulate in a single song the travails of personal intimacy as well as the larger social picture in which we all lived".

Reception

'' Cash Box'' described it as being "a startling approach to balladry" with "smooth harmonies abound." '' Record World'' called it "a gentle, floating ballad" with "nice lyrics."

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Personnel

Fleetwood Mac version

* Bob Welch – rhythm guitar, lead and

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

Danny Kirwan Daniel David Kirwan (13 May 1950 – 8 June 2018) was a British musician whose greatest success came with his role as guitarist, singer and songwriter with the blues rock band Fleetwood Mac between 1968 and 1972. He released three albums as a s ...

–

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featu ...

, slide guitar *

–

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

organs In biology, an organ is a collection of tissues joined in a structural unit to serve a common function. In the hierarchy of life, an organ lies between tissue and an organ system. Tissues are formed from same type cells to act together in a f ...

, backing vocals *

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 Mick Fle ...

–

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

– drums

Bob Welch version

* Bob Welch –

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

s, lead and backing vocals *

Lindsey Buckingham Lindsey Adams Buckingham (born October 3, 1949) is an American musician and record producer, best known as the lead guitarist and male lead vocalist of the band Fleetwood Mac from 1975 to 1987 and 1997 to 2018. In addition to his tenure with Fl ...

– guitars, backing vocals *

– backing vocals, keyboards *

–

– drums,

tambourine The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zills". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though ...

References

External links

Listen to the Bob Welch version
on YouTube
Listen to the Fleetwood Mac version
on YouTube {{authority control Fleetwood Mac songs 1972 songs 1977 singles Songs written by Bob Welch (musician) Reprise Records singles Capitol Records singles