Stevie Nicks - Scene Stealer for Life Plays Jazz Fest Saturday

Screen shot of Stevie Nicks at California Jam II

A video from 1978 shows how effortlessly Nicks could get all eyes and ears on her.

In 1978 when Bob Welch opened California Jam II, he had a hit with “Ebony Eyes.” Not such a big hit that he could play higher up a bill that also included Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, Foreigner, Heart, Santana, and more, but big enough to be on the stage. 

A video of his performance of “Ebony Eyes” is noteworthy for a number of reasons, his late ’70s style among them. Today, that scarf, beret, striped shirt and big glasses seem like a lot of trying too hard, but he was hardly alone. A young Robin Williams had a variation on that look, as did Doug Henning, who infused his magic act with a hippie/counterculture vibe. The dance he did to try to energize the crowd didn’t help; check it and you’ll know why.

But really, the reason to watch it is Stevie Nicks, who plays Jazz Fest on Saturday. By this point, Rumours has been out for a year and her song “Dreams” in particular had been a breakthrough hit. Fleetwood Mac was big enough that it was newsworthy that she and Mick Fleetwood joined the former Mac member Welch for part of his set. 

You wouldn’t know Fleetwood was there at all for much of the video though because the cameraman can’t look away from Nicks. From the moment when she first appears over Welch’s shoulder playing tambourine in the background, the camera stays on her because she was already a star. She already knew how to move and how to enliven a moment, even if it happens at Welch’s expense. The coming out to sing plays as a supportive gesture, but Welch, standing still and singing with his eyes closed, seems so much less interesting than Nicks. 

Similarly, the song itself becomes more interesting once she joins it. Someone else is singing the backing vocals until she approaches the microphone, and those vocals do their job. “Ebony Eyes” is a pleasantly likable, melodic example of California pop-rock from the time, but when Nicks sings, “Your eyes got me,” her voice adds a missing texture and brightness to the arrangement. By cutting her backing vocal line off at “me” and not finishing the line, Welch’s chorus gains a more dynamic shape and a subtle additional rhythm element. 

Stevie Nicks has been part of the mainstream rock culture for so long that it’s easy to take her for granted. The footage from Cal Jam II reminds us of the powers that helped her achieve that status, and when she stole a stage just by being there. 

Stevie Nicks plays Jazz Fest on Saturday, May 7 at 5:30 p.m. on the Festival Stage.