Delaynie Tate

English Composition II

Dr. Cassel

September 25th, 2021

Rhetorical Appeals Essay: “Landslide” By Fleetwood Mac and The Chicks

“Landslide” by The Chicks was released 27 years after Fleetwood Mac’s original

version of the song. “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac and “Landslide” by The Chicks share

the same idea of how life is always changing and there will always be different

challenges, however, they both appeal to two different audiences that were present at

the time of the release of the songs, and the settings of one of the videos provide a

much deeper meaning. Both the songs provide the same lyrics but in different ways with

different music styles. Throughout the song, Stevie Nicks and The Chicks are both

singing about the ups and downs, challenges, and changes people face throughout their

life. When singing about the challenges people face in life the song is appealing to

people’s emotions. Both women’s versions have the exact same lyrics but have a

couple of key differences. One of these differences includes the style of the music.

Stevie Nicks’s/Fleetwood Macs version was a folk-rock song and was seems to be

slower than The Chicks version. The Chicks version is a little bit faster and is a country

song.

Like I said before, Fleetwood Mac’s music style for their version of the song is

folk-rock. At the time of the song’s release, the most popular music was folk which made

this song be a huge hit at the time. Since the song was folk music it appealed to most

audiences who liked folk music and people who wanted to hear about how the
challenges of life are like a landslide. Unlike Fleetwood Macs version The Chicks

version is a country, which was a very popular music style at the time of its release in

2002. The audience for The Chicks version were also people who wanted to hear about

the challenges of like, but the song was also directed and appealed to those who

enjoyed country music. Both versions of the song appealed to the audience’s emotions

and were both meant to pull the audience in through their feelings.

Another difference between the two is in their settings in the music videos. In

Fleetwood Mac’s version of the song, the video just shows Stevie Nicks singing the

song on stage with different transitions and angles. In The Chicks version of the song, it

takes place in three different settings. In one setting it is one of the women in a sunny,

wooded area with a house in the distance, while another woman is in the city on a rainy

day, and one other woman is in this magical place, that looks kind of like what I picture

to be like mars with a fountain and a floating staircase. As the video goes on in each

setting things are slowly changing like in the song. In the video the house in the wooded

setting grows roots over time, in the city buildings become larger and the city is

expanding, and in the magical place, things begin being covered in water. These

changes that are slowly happening over time are meant to symbolize the changes and

challenges people face and how life is always changing around you and time never

seems to stop.

One other difference is the instruments and vocals in the songs. In Stevie

Nicks/Fleetwood Macs version of the song the instruments used were a guitar and mild

violin which appealed to people who enjoy folk music. In The Chicks version of the song

the instruments used many different instruments rather than just two, two of those
instruments were a mandolin and a banjo. By using these instruments it made the song

appeal to those who enjoy the southern music style displayed in this song. Also, the

vocals were different in each of the versions of the song. In Stevie Nicks/Fleetwood

Macs version of the song, Nicks was the only person singing which made the song be

very isolated and give Nicks more of a solo effect. While in The Chicks version of the

song it includes the band itself along with background vocalists. The background

vocalists join in at different times throughout the song which makes this a key difference

between the two songs themselves.

Although both versions of the song “Landslide” were popular at the time they

were released they were both intended for different audiences, and the setting in each

video provided a deeper meaning to each video. By changing the music style from folk

to country and adding a different beat it updated the song and made The Chicks version

just as popular as when it was first released by Fleetwood Mac.

Works Cited:

Fleetwood Mac. “Landslide.” Fleetwood Mac, Reprise, 1975,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WM7-PYtXtJM

The Chicks. “Landslide.” The Chicks, Open Wide Monument Columbia Records, 2002,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4_wXPZ1Bnk