When You Say

According to an NME article written by Nick Logan, Kirwan played both electric and Spanish guitars on "When You Say" and also contributed lead vocals.{{cite magazine |last=Logan |first=Nick |date=13 September 1969 |title=Fleetwood Mac Leap Ahead|magazine=NME |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/New-Musical-Express/1969/New-Musical-Express-1969-09-13-OCR.pdf|page=10|access-date=27 December 2024|via=World Radio History}} In his book Strange Brew: Eric Clapton and the British Boom, Christopher Hjort instead listed Peter Green as the lead guitarist for the session and Kirwan as the rhythm guitarist.{{Cite book |last=Hjort |first=Christopher |url=https://archive.org/details/strangebrewericc00hjor/page/196/mode/2up|url-access=registration |title=Strange Brew: Eric Clapton and the British Blues Boom |publisher=Jawbone Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-906002-00-8|page=197 |via=Internet Archive}} The recording session for "When You Say" took place on 2 July 1969, and the sixth and final take was used as the master.

Green originally wanted "When You Say" to be released as the first single from their 1969 album Then Play On, but his song "Oh Well" was selected instead. In an interview with NME prior to the release of Then Play On, Green commented that "When You Say" was "one of the best things [Kirwan has] ever done".{{cite magazine |last=Logan |first=Nick |date=13 September 1969 |title=Fleetwood Mac Leap Ahead|magazine=NME |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/New-Musical-Express/1969/New-Musical-Express-1969-09-13-OCR.pdf|page=10|access-date=27 December 2024|via=World Radio History}} Following the commercial success of "Oh Well", "When You Say" was one of the two songs dropped from the track listing of Then Play On to make room for "Oh Well".{{Cite AV media notes |title=Then Play On|others=Fleetwood Mac |year=2013|type=Liner Notes |publisher=Warner Bros.|location=United States}} Nick Logan of NME found "When You Say" to be "simple, appealing and effective."

In September 1969, the song was recorded as the debut solo single by former Chicken Shack keyboardist/vocalist Christine Perfect, then wife of Fleetwood Mac bass guitarist John McVie. Danny Kirwan, who was the songwriter behind "When You Say", arranged the recording session and produced Perfect's rendition.{{cite magazine |date=27 September 1969 |title=Offers Pour In For Poll Winner Christine Perfect|magazine=Melody Maker |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Melody-Maker/60s/69/Melody-Maker-1969-0927.pdf|page=4|access-date=27 December 2024|via=World Radio History}} The B-side of the single was "No Road Is the Right Road", written by Perfect.{{cite book|last1=Carr |first1=Roy |last2=Clarke |first2=Steve |title=Fleetwood Mac: Rumours n' Fax|year=1978|publisher=Harmony Books|pages=46, 56-57|isbn=0-517-53364-2|url=https://archive.org/details/fleetwoodmacrumo0000carr/page/68/mode/2up |url-access=registration}} The single was announced in the 29 September 1969 edition of Melody Maker and the publication also provided an expected release date of 17 October 1969 under the Blue Horizon label.

Writing for Melody Maker, Chris Welch found the string arrangement on Perfect's "When You Say" to be dated but thought that she sang the song "in fetching fashion". He also characterised it as a "weird ballad".{{cite magazine |last=Welch |first=Chris |date=18 October 1969 |title=New Pop Singles |magazine=Melody Maker |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Melody-Maker/60s/69/Melody-Maker-1969-1018.pdf |page=22|access-date=27 December 2024|via=World Radio History}} Derek Johnson of NME called the song a "beautiful ballad with classical leanings" but questioned whether the single would have "mass appeal".{{cite magazine |last=Johnson |first=Derek |date=25 October 1969 |title=Top Singles|magazine=NME |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/New-Musical-Express/1969/New-Musical-Express-1969-10-25-OCR.pdf|page=8|access-date=27 December 2024|via=World Radio History}} The single was a commercial failure, partly due to Perfect's refusal to appear on the BBC TV music show Top of the Pops in favor of a vacation with John McVie in Greece. However, McVie did record a performance of the song with the Derek Wadsworth Orchestra for a BBC Radio 1 radio programme presented by John Peel, which was broadcast on 1 November 1969.{{cite book|first=Ken |last= Garner |year=2007|title=The Peel Sessions |publisher=BBC Books|location=Italy|page= [https://archive.org/details/peelsessions0000garn/page/244/mode/2up 245, 318] |isbn= 978-1-84607-326-7|url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/peelsessions0000garn/page/318/mode/2up}}

• UK vinyl (Blue Horizon – 57-3165)

1. "When You Say" – 3:11
2. "No Road is the Right Road – 2:52

• Danny Kirwan – guitars, vocals
• Peter Green – possible lead guitar
• John McVie – bass guitar

• Christine Perfect – vocals, keyboards
• Danny Kirwan – guitar
• John McVie – bass guitar
• Top Topham – guitar on b-side
• Rick Hayward – guitar on b-side
• Martin Dunsford – bass guitar on b-side
• Chris Hardings – drums on b–side

{{reflist}}

{{Fleetwood Mac}}

{{Christine McVie}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:When You Say}}

Category:1969 songs

Category:1969 debut singles

Category:Fleetwood Mac songs

Category:Christine McVie songs

Category:Songs written by Danny Kirwan