‘Landslide’ is probably one of, if not, the most popular song by Fleetwood Mac. First debuted in 1975, the single features a simple track of vocals and guitar, with lyrics talking about a father-daughter relationship. Stevie Nicks reportedly wrote the whole song in just five minutes while looking out to the mountains in Aspen, Colorado. She shares her thoughts while writing the song were
“Wow, all this snow could just come tumbling down around me and there is nothing I can do about it.”
Now, more than 40 years after the song’s debut, an alternate version, basically an ‘outtake’ of the first recording of the song is released along with the self-titled album’s expansive reissue. The early version of the Stevie Nicks classic features a but more rawness and purity than the original final version, but both sound very similar, you’d have to listen closely to hear the difference.
While the final version features Lindsey Buckingham’s multi-tracked acoustic guitars and a brief electric solo, this early cut includes only a single acoustic-guitar accompaniment and light percussion.
Listen to the raw recording of ‘Landslide’ below: