This song hits on threads running through a couple of recent posts. Last week I mentioned how Ronnie Hammond of the Atlanta Rhythm Section played at 45 instead of 33 sounds reasonably like Stevie Nicks; it escaped me until later that the day that article went up was Stevie’s 70th birthday. As belated recognition of said event, here’s my favorite song of hers. “Silver Springs” was recorded as part of the Rumours sessions but wasn’t included on the album. I encountered it as the B-side to “Go Your Own Way,” which I bought in early 77. It’s absolutely one of the great flipsides I have known—I played it A LOT in the late 70s. I call this the best 45 in my collection, based on the quality of both sides. It’s a fascinating story presented, as well: two ex-lovers taking out their hurt on each other but each in a masterfully musical way.
If you do an internet search you can read about how “Silver Springs” came to be omitted from Rumours and how it gained new life twenty years later on FM’s live album The Dance. I’ve read somewhere that the masters of the mix that appears on the 45 were lost; the version included on compilations since then is a little different from what I remember, particularly at the very end–I think they have only Stevie singing. I’m gratified to find that someone has loaded a recording of the original to YouTube.
The Music of My Life 