Stevie Nicks - Trouble In Shangri La Demos
Date: 15 June 1999
Lineage: Unknown Source > CD-R > WAV > EAC > Flac level 8 > You
01. Candlebright (5:38)
02. Sorcerer (6:42)
03. Thrown Down #1 (4:44)
04. Thrown Down #2 (5:49)
05. Space Needle (7:47)
06. Love Is (5:06)
07. Bombay Sapphires (4:55)
08. Not Make Believe (5:14)
09. Trouble In Shangri-La (4:53)
10. Have No Heart (6:03)
11. Planets Of The Universe (4:53)
Original Notes:
I received this about two months before "Trouble In Shangri-La" was released as a teaser. I don't know how they got it or copied it, but it has wonderful demos. It includes "Space Needle," which is one of Stevie's best demos ever recorded IMHO.
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Klonopin (clonazepam) may be one of the most dangerous and addictive drugs on the prescription market today; it may even be worse than cocaine for the damage it can do. But thanks to detoxification and counselling, a person no longer needs to be bound to Klonopin addiction.
The statement above from an addiction centre, is the fate that befell Stevie Nicks; it led to a painful 47-day detox in hospital during late 1993.
"I lost those 8 years of my life. I didn't write, and I had gained so much weight." Stevie Nicks
Her first album after this traumatic experience was 'Street Angel' released in 1994. It consisted of songs mainly written prior to her drug withdrawal. The album met with low sales and faint praise, although reviewers did pick out some strong songs.
"But six songs in, Angel finally takes off. "Unconditional Love" and "Rose Garden" are gorgeous. The wilful "Maybe Love Will Change Your Mind" is one of Nicks' best songs in years. Even her nostril-flaring cover of Bob Dylan's "Just Like a Woman" demonstrates a bizarre intelligence, the lyrics adapting strangely to Nicks' oeuvre of lost little women." Rolling Stone magazine
The criticism of the album and personal comments about her weight gain led to a break from the music scene. Even though Fleetwood Mac reunited, and Stevie toured solo to promote the career-spanning Enchanted boxed set. She still harboured doubts about her abilities and had lost confidence in her song writing abilities. She met Tom Petty one night and discussed her problems over dinner.
"Basically, he said, 'You know that you're a good songwriter, Stevie, and I don't know what's getting in the way right now, but you just need to go home and go straight to your piano,'" she told Time Out New York. "I was having a hard time getting over the Street Angel experience. I was just really sad. That dinner made all the difference. I give Tom all the credit in the world for this record." Stevie Nicks
The experience of touring with Fleetwood Mac sparked her creativity to write the lyrics for new songs. As a starting point Stevie drew on previously written songs, the piano based "Love Is" was written in January 1995, title track "Trouble In Shangri-La" came together in late 1994. "Planets of the Universe" was a Rumours-era demo but updated with subtle, lush keyboards.
The mandolin and string
adorned "Candlebright" and the mystical, folk-tinged
"Sorcerer" both dated from her days in Buckingham Nicks and can be
found on the bootleg 'Buckingham-Nicks - The Beginning' (2017), in their
original demo form (for further info see the 'Bootlegs of the Year' pdf
document).
Trouble in Shangri-La was released in May 2001 and went gold within weeks, peaking at #5 on the Billboard 200. It would be Nick’s last solo for a decade.
These demos were recorded in June 1999, six of the songs appeared in finished form on the album, four of them are longer than those complete versions. The tracks, "Thrown Down" / "Space Needle" / "Not Make Believe" and "Have No Heart" were cut from the official release running order. The uploader notes "Space Needle" as being a particular favourite and it's difficult to understand why it was cut from the finished album, such is its quality. These are great demos and Steve’s voice is sublime. Note that the sound quality on the first song is not as strong as the other tracks.
