Warner RecordsFleetwood Mac drummer Mick Fleetwood has released an updated version of “These Strange Times,” a song he co-wrote that originally appeared on his band’s 1995 album, Time.
The nine-minute track, which is credited to Mick Fleetwood’s Da*da*ism, is available now digitally and via streaming services. It features Fleetwood’s poetic spoken-word vocals, and African-influenced percussion and singing, plus gospel and blues elements. The new version of the tune ends with a newly added segment of Fleetwood Mac’s classic 1968 instrumental “Albatross,” which was written by the band’s late founding frontman Peter Green.
A companion video for “These Strange Times” has premiered at Rhino’s official YouTube channel. The clip features captivating black-and-white and color footage of natural scenes from around the world, as well as cityscapes, the night sky, and people from various cultures enjoying different activities. The video also includes artistically shot photos of Mick.
According to a press statement, the video and the new single’s artwork were “inspired by an 18th-century painting,” and “are centered around the idea of something greater than us, which lies at the core of our very human struggle to be our best selves.”
He adds, “When I first encountered the painting that inspired the photoshoot, it was a soul-searching exercise that I was driven to do but I didn’t know when would be the time to release it. Now I know why: the when is now.”
As for what he hopes people will get from the song and video, Mick says, “My hope is that by sharing these thought-provoking moments in my world that I can somehow open the eyes of others to things in their world and to the existence we all share, which is more and more endangered with each passing day.”
By Matt Friedlander
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