Andrew Bird & Madison Cunningham Announce Album Honoring Stevie Nicks & Lindsey Buckingham

Andrew Bird and Madison Cunningham teamed up for Cunningham Bird, a forthcoming cover album that reimagines Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham’s 1973 debut LP. The pair previewed the set, which is due on October 18 via Loma Vista Recordings / Verve Forecast, by sharing lead singles “Crying In The Night” and “Crystal.”

Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham recorded and released Buckingham Nicks shortly before the duo joined Fleetwood Mac and achieved massive success. Bird and Cunningham bonded over their love of the severely underrated album and proceeded to learn more about the LP and make it their own.

Produced by Mike Viola, Andrew Bird and Madison Cunningham are joined on the collaborative LP by Viola on wurlitzer, drums and bass as well as Dawes’ Griffin Goldsmith on drums and percussion. Bird and Cunningham performed Cunningham Bird this past summer at multiple festivals including Newport Folk. On September 30, the pair will return to The Troubadour to play the album from front-to-back at the same Los Angeles venue where Stevie and Lindsey performed after the record’s release in October of 1973.

Read statements from Andrew Bird and Madison Cunningham about Cunningham Bird:

Andrew Bird

“It’s hard to listen to Buckingham Nicks’ 1973 debut album without trying to imagine it as a prequel to Fleetwood Mac’s legend. It’s hard to listen to this album period, as it’s out-of-print and not available on any streaming services. Yet it’s that youthful ambition and overindulgence that make it fascinating. The best reason to cover anyone is that little part of you that thinks you might do it better. This album epitomizes excess and confidence, and it only made sense to embody that spirit ourselves. The confidence, that is, to mess with an iconic, if underrated gem. Madison is the most talented musician I’ve encountered. She has a restless ear, always looking for a new sound or harmonic twist. Her voice is goosebump inducing, nimble and emotive at any volume. I just had to find the right project for us to go deep on and this is it.”

Madison Cunningham

“Ever since knowing and playing with Andrew, I’ve wanted to join forces with him independently of our own projects. He’s one of my favorite artists alive and one of the deepest musical collaborators I’ve been lucky enough to have. This buried Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham record found us in a place where we were trying to figure out what we could do together. Unfamiliar with it, but excited by its scarcity on streaming platforms, we decided to take it on from front to back, in our own way. It was unsurprising to me how it ended up becoming one of the most creatively satisfying record-making experiences I’ve had, but the unforeseen bonus was how relevant some of those lyrics would be to my own life in the time of making it. It became a lifeline for me, and I hope we’ve done it justice.”

Watch the video for “Crying In The Night” and stream “Crystal” below:

Cunningham Bird Tracklist

1. Crying In The Night
2. Stephanie
3. Without A Leg To Stand On
4. Crystal
5. Long Distance Winner
6. Don’t Let Me Down Again
7. Django
8. Races Are Won
9. Lola My Love
10. Frozen Love