A Universe of Pop: Fleetwood Mac’s Tango in the Night Features Meticulous Production and includes the Hits “Big Love,” “Everywhere,” “Seven Wonders,” and “Little Lies.”

Experience the 1987 album in audiophile sound for the first time: Mobile Fidelity’s numbered edition 180g 45RPM 2LP set captures the meticulous details. 1/2" / 30 IPS analog master to DSD 256 to analog console to lathe.

The perfectionism involved in crafting Fleetwood Mac’s "Tango in the Night" reached a level of intensity experienced by few artists before or since. Commercially and creatively, the painstaking efforts paid off. Recorded over the course of 18 months, the triple-platinum album spawned four hit singles and placed Fleetwood Mac back at the centre of mainstream conversation. Its demands also ultimately forced its primary architect, guitarist-singer Lindsey Buckingham, to leave the group shortly after its completion. Was it all worth it? A thousand times, “yes.”

Sourced from the original master tapes, pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing, and housed in a Stoughton jacket, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered-edition 180g 45RPM 2LP set of Tango in the Night presents the 1987 record in audiophile sound for the very first time. Everything that co-producers Buckingham and Richard Dashut aimed to instill in the music — the precise tones, dreamy textures, lush atmospherics, altered harmonics, distinctive pitches, clear acoustics, and sharp rhythms — can now be experienced with heightened accuracy, range, depth, and detail.

Made under challenging circumstances, Tango in the Night is as much a universe of sound as it is an album. This reissue conveys that sonic spectrum in exhaustive ways that surpass previous editions by playing with a blend of transparency, imaging, openness, and dynamics that offers uncanny insight into the meticulously layered vocal and instrumental tracks. Equally important, it also enhances your connection to the intricate melodies, catchy hooks, and airy highs that contribute to the album’s timeless pop brilliance.

As for the wondrous array of percussive accents, synthesizer elements, interlaced guitars, and lush chrouses — all seemingly occupying the exact right place amid the soundstages and taking on shapes and forms that lend them a living, breathing quality? If your audio system is up to the task, the realism, presence, and warmth of Mobile Fidelity’s collectible edition will have you considering Tango in the Night from a new perspective — one that puts its lavish, gorgeous creations on a par with those from Rumours and Tusk.

Unlike those records, "Tango in the Night" began from a more individualistic perspective, as it originally was intended to be a Buckingham solo effort. Instead, it remains the final album credited to the peak Fleetwood Mac lineup, which includes Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, Christine McVie, Mick Fleetwood, and John McVie. Although the participation of all the members varies from track to track, the cohesive arrangements and alchemic production on "Tango in the Night" suggest a unity that stands alongside the band’s other landmark works.

Constructed largely from laborious methods that involved recording at half speed to achieve the desired sonics and tonal nuances, piecing together verses and choruses for seamless synchronicity, and Buckingham employing a Fairlight CMI synthesizer/workstation in visionary ways, the songs beautifully blend electronic and acoustic elements. "Tango in the Night" also features light dance structures, leading to several tracks being transformed into dance mixes on extended-play singles. Above all, this is music that seems to float and cast dreamy spells.

Surrender to the lively interplay of the opening track "Big Love,” a vibrant pop song accented by Buckingham’s playful “oh-ah” sighs that elevate the Top 5 hit with harmless sensuality and toe-tapping energy. Relish the shimmering lights of “Seven Wonders,” where shades and shadows dance alongside Nicks’ raspy vocals and a rich choral backing. Wrap yourself in the cozy warmth of the airy “Everywhere,” a perfect slice of catchy pop that dominated the Adult Contemporary charts for three weeks and stands as an homage to the love everyone yearns for. Gaze into the enigmatic landscape of the title track (and appreciate the synthesized harp) just before it erupts, momentarily giving way to a sharp riff and steady grooves.

Tango in the Night is full of delightful surprises and well-crafted specifics, especially when Buckingham and Christine McVie collaborate. Besides the already mentioned “Everywhere,” Christine Anne Perfect plays a significant role on four more standout tracks—from the breathy, head-over-heels emotionalism of “Mystified” to the sweet, sweeping escapism of “Little Lies,” a cover-up of romantic despair enhanced by Nicks’ irreplaceable background vocals.

“If I see you again/Will it be the same,” asks Buckingham on “When I See You Again,” finishing up a song a longing-sounding Nicks had started while voicing words that many likely knew would resonate far beyond the confines of the heartfelt song — a goodbye wearing a faint disguise. Though Fleetwood Mac would never again reach the heights maintained throughout Tango in the Night, and members would go their own way, the album towers as a paean to what’s possible in the fields of pop, rock, and studio wizardry.

Track list:

Big Love
Seven Wonders
Everywhere
Caroline
Tango in the Night
Mystified
Little Lies
Family Man
Welcome to the Room…Sara
Isn’t It Midnight
When I See You Again
You and I, Part II

FLEETWOOD MAC