"The album was meticulously recorded with the best technology of its day and has always sounded good, but it has never sounded this good on vinyl," wrote Jeff Elbel of Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs Ultra Disc One-Step reissue of Stevie Nicks' Bella Donna record. "This prestige-format release benefits from the label's best mastering and highest-tier pressing process. Many who know the album from its eventual CD release in the '80s will be impressed by this vinyl release's depth, body, warmth, clarity, dynamic range, and spatial staging." (illinoisentertainer.com)
But what makes it so special? A Mobile Fidelity press release explained it this way: "Sourced from the original analog master tapes (1/4" / 30 IPS analog master to DSD 256 to analog console to lathe), pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing in California, featuring premium foil-stamped jackets and faithful-to-the-original graphics that illuminate the splendor of the recording, and strictly limited to 4,000 numbered copies, Mobile Fidelity's UltraDisc box set of the benchmark album plays with superb transparency, dynamics, and detail. Benefiting from extraordinary groove definition, an ultra-low noise floor, and extremely quiet surfaces, this vinyl edition captures what went down in the studio with tremendous realism and presence."
That grabbed my attention, especially after experiencing the superb MoFi reissues of Miles Davis' Bitches Brew and Michael Jackson's Thriller (featured in my review of the Quadratic Audio MC-1 Moving Coil Transformer HERE) over my revealing system anchored by ATC SCM40 loudspeakers, REL S/812 subwoofers, and Pass Labs amplification. I just had to give this a spin!
Nick at Night: Stevie Nicks is seen here performing in Austin, Texas in 2017 (photo by Ralph Arvesen, courtesy of Commons.wikimedia.org and Creative Commons License)
A Word on Nicks
Born Stephanie Lynn Nicks on May 26, 1948, she is an American singer-songwriter best known for her work with the rock band Fleetwood Mac and as a solo artist (Who's Who of American Women 2004–2005 24 ed. and Marquis Who's Who. 2004, Wikipedia). She kicked-off her career with then-boyfriend Lindsey Buckingham and released their duo album Buckingham Nicks. With little success, the two joined Fleetwood Mac in 1975 and helped the band to become one of the all-time best-selling performers with over 120 million records sold. Fleetwood Mac's second album with Nicks, Rumours, became one of the best-selling albums worldwide, certified 21 times platinum in the US. (Wikipedia.com)
Still a member of Fleetwood Mac, in 1981, Nicks initiated her solo career with the studio album Bella Donna, which went on to top the Billboard 200 and reached multi-platinum status. She has released eight studio albums as a solo artist and seven with Fleetwood Mac, selling a certified total of 65 million copies in the US alone. (Ibid)
"She is not a classically trained vocalist and she sings with her throat rather than her diaphragm, which is how she creates her inimitable, gorgeous vibrato," Mick Fleetwood offered in Play On: Now, Then, and Fleetwood Mac, notes C.T. May. "All right, that's how she creates her vibrato, but she's creating it the wrong way. Tightening her throat as her only means of control—no wonder the Nicks voice jumps so easily from rich and warm to baa-like and embarrassing." (www.splicetoday.com)
Put another way, the Rock and Roll Universe Facebook page says, "Stevie Nicks' distinctive, raspy voice is instantly recognizable. That unique, emotive, and slightly raw vocal timbre is what gives Stevie's songs their incredible power and emotional honesty.
Say what you will, her vocals shine through, warts, glory and all, in the MoFi pressing of Bella Donna.
The Listening
In "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around," Nicks teams up with its author, Tom Petty, in a duet, as well as nearly all the Heartbreakers—with the legendary bassist Donald "Duck" Dunn filling in for Ron Blair. Reaching Number three on the Billboard charts, it captured Nicks' fiercely independent mood that she maintains throughout the recording. Interestingly, Elbel points out, the Heartbreakers later revisited the song onstage with Nicks as well. (www.fleetwoodmacnews.com)
Waddy Wachtel's guitar vamp is lush and Russ Kunkel's drums are crisp and robust with plenty of slam, while Nicks' vocals (and the corresponding vocal effects) are clearly articulated; the ride cymbal's metallic ring is very present, and Benmont Tench's organ's whir and vibrato add a comforting retro layer. The organ has a distinct warmth about it, the drums are punchy and dynamic, the ride cymbal's clang is meaty and forward, and Nicks' and Tom Petty's duet is well fleshed-out and three dimensional.
There's a deceptively powerful emotional undercurrent to the pop love song, "Leather and Lace," Stevie Nicks' popular duo with Don Henley. Several years after her breakup with Lindsey Buckingham, Nicks had a complicated, on and off again relationship with Henley of which she said, ""Don always treated me very special. He always kinda treated me like we were married." (collider.com) Roy Bittan's light piano notes mirror that sentiment with a sweet backdrop focusing on "simple, arpeggiated chords, often moving through Eb Major (or relative C Major/A Major versions)...creating a flowing, ethereal feel with notes like Eb, G, Bb, Db, and F." (Google AI search). The record captures that and Nicks' round mezzo-soprano vocals—chesty, and rich, rendered in her signature nasal tremolo—intertwining with Henley's raspy tenor vocals—a Stetson cowboy to her vulnerable siren. Waddy Wachtel's acoustic guitar and Russ Kunkel's light drum work round out the spare band accompaniment.
Waddy Wachtel, seen here flanked by Jackson Browne, at left, and John Cowsill at right in a recording studio (photo by Louis Palanker, courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org and creative commons) delivered the famous chugging guitar riff in "Edge of Seventeen."
"Edge of Seventeen" immediately hooks you with Waddy Wachtel's muted, and chugging 16th-note line—in which he "slightly emphasizes the first 16th-note of each beat," according to Pete Thorn that he impressively maintains throughout the song. (www.premierguitar.com) "‘It would have been one of my piano songs," Nicks said in the liner notes for her 2007 compilation Crystal Visions, "If Waddy Wachtel hadn't come into the studio and added the amazing guitar riff at the beginning of the song." (https://www.culturesonar.com/)
Accompanied by Russ Kunkel's hi-hat, moments later, she belts out her famous lyrics burned into the collective memory of Baby Boomers everywhere: "Just like the white winged dove/ Sings a song, sounds like she's singin' / "Ooh, ooh, ooh." Moments later, the rest of the band eases into this best-selling anthem, an energy espresso that gets the toes tapping. Inspired by her grief over John Lennon's murder and her uncle John's death in one week of December 1980 (Americansongwriter.com), the power of her emotions, artistry, and a great supporting cast parlay this into a super hit elixir. And this Ultra Disc One Step pressing spotlights the details and dynamics masterfully, from Wachtel's guitar's chugs, growls, and wails, to Kunkel's wooden sticks striking Paiste bell bronze cymbals or exploding on drum skins, and to Nicks' rich and gritty, emotive bellows—with laser precision, clearly elucidated, punchy, and present.
In contrast, "After the Glitter Fades," rife with slide guitar swells, evokes a mid tempo country ballad more fitting in the Grand Ole Opry than a rock concert hall. In parts, this country-rock piece reminds me a bit of John Denver's hit, "Rocky Mountain High," a reflective life confessional, albeit done Stevie Nicks' style:
For me, it's the only life that I've ever known
And love is only one fine star away
Even though the living is sometimes laced with lies, it's alright
The feeling remains even after the glitter fades
As elsewhere on the album, this track benefits from tight vocal double-tracking (adding thickness), and, here, the backing vocals from Sharon Celani and Lori Perry add a "stereo" effect which complements the generous reverb, making the sound feel larger and more immersive. (Google AI search)
Bottom line, regardless of intent or sentiment, the beauty and warmth of her vocals, the crisp, sparkling highlights on the piano, and tastefully bent notes of the slide guitar are conveyed with a clarity that captivates.
The Dan Clark Audio Stealth headphones were used in a portion of the listening session
Concluding Thoughts
Granted, at $125, it's not inexpensive. However, the combination of dynamics, detail, and transparency, as provided by its sourcing from the original 1/4" analog master tapes in the One Step process makes this Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs 180 gram version of Nicks' Bella Donna an excellent choice for those who value a sublime vinyl listening experience with a low noise floor, superb realism, and a sense of presence—and on a limited release edition. They have done a wonderful job of conveying this landmark album with their updated, 21st Century pressing processes. As such, it fits in nicely with my MoFi OneStep pressings of Miles Davis' Bitches Brew and Michael Jackson's Thriller that are similarly impressive and, as such, I highly recommend it.
Stevie Nicks, Bella Donna UD1S 180 gram 45 RPM 2 LP Box Set
Retail: $125
Mobile Fidelity
