On the Wrong Side

Last updated

"On the Wrong Side"
Single by Lindsey Buckingham
from the album Lindsey Buckingham
ReleasedJuly 23, 2021 (2021-07-23)
Genre Rock
Length3:36
Label Reprise
Songwriter(s) Lindsey Buckingham [1]
Producer(s) Lindsey Buckingham
Lindsey Buckingham singles chronology
"I Don't Mind"
(2021)		"On the Wrong Side"
(2021)		"Scream"
(2021)

"On the Wrong Side" is a song by American vocalist and guitarist Lindsey Buckingham from his eponymous seventh solo studio album Lindsey Buckingham . It was released on July 23, 2021, as the second single ahead of the album's release in September 2021. [2]

Contents

"On the Wrong Side" was one of the five songs from the album that he played on his accompanying tour. [3] Buckingham also performed the song on Late Night with Stephen Colbert on September 16, 2021, one day before the release of Buckingham's eponymous album. [4]

This is the second Buckingham song titled "On the Wrong Side". His first was recorded for the 1994 With Honors soundtrack. [5]

Background

"On the Wrong Side" is both musically and lyrically inspired by Buckingham's former band Fleetwood Mac, which Buckingham left in 2018. The song details the long and eventful relationship between him and the band as well as the ups and downs of life on the road. [6]

According to Buckingham, the song "evokes 'Go Your Own Way,' in that it's not a happy song, subject-matter wise, but it was an ebullient song musically. This was sort of the same idea." [1] He said that the connection between the two songs can be found in their "tone, vocals, and guitar solos". [7]

Critical reception

Tom Breihan of Stereogum characterized the song as "a mellow but propulsive folk-rock tune with some seriously impressive guitar work" and thought that the song's harmonies were "Mac-worthy". [5] Ryan Reed of Ultimate Classic Rock said that the song "purposely balances sprightly music and downcast lyrics". [8] Greil Marcus commented that Buckingham's vocals on the track "seem to get younger verse by verse, years flying off the calendar backward to the beat." [9]

Rhys Buchanan of NME called the song a "rhythmic anthem" with a "soaring emotionally charged guitar solo". [10] Paste , which referred to the song as "On the Right Side", felt that the chorus was "classic Fleetwood Mac, stacked to the heavens with vocals on vocals" and that "the entire thing feels more melancholic than what Buckingham is used to making." They mentioned that the decision to conclude the song with a guitar solo and fade-out contributed to it being a "fitting image to pair with this album". [11]

Release history

RegionDateFormatLabelRef.
VariousJuly 23, 2021 Reprise [12]

References

  1. 1 2 Crone, Madeline (July 23, 2021). "Lindsey Buckingham's New Song "On The Wrong Side" Was Inspired by Fleetwood Mac's Hit 'Go Your Own Way'". American Songwriter . Retrieved July 25, 2021.
  2. ↑ Lavin, Will (July 23, 2021). "Lindsey Buckingham shares Fleetwood Mac-inspired new song 'On The Wrong Side'". NME . Retrieved July 25, 2021.
  3. ↑ Horsley, Jonathan (September 7, 2021). "Watch: Lindsey Buckingham perform classic Fleetwood Mac tracks live and debut solo material onstage". MusicRadar. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
  4. ↑ Blistein, Jon (September 17, 2021). "Lindsey Buckingham Brings Ripping Guitar Solos to Late-Night With 'On the Wrong Side'". Rolling Stone . Retrieved September 18, 2021.
  5. 1 2 "Lindsay Buckingham – "On The Wrong Side"". Stereogum . July 22, 2021. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
  6. ↑ Kreps, Daniel (July 22, 2021). "Hear Lindsey Buckingham's Sad But 'Ebullient' New Song 'On the Wrong Side'". Rolling Stone . Retrieved July 25, 2021.
  7. ↑ Lenker, Maureen Lee (September 14, 2021). "Lindsey Buckingham Breaks Down 10 of His Best Guitar Riffs". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
  8. ↑ "Hear Lindsey Buckingham's New Song 'On the Wrong Side'". Ultimate Classic Rock. July 22, 2021. Retrieved September 16, 2025.
  9. ↑ Marcus, Greil (November 26, 2021). "Real Life Rock Top 10: November 2021". Los Angeles Review of Books . Retrieved September 16, 2025.
  10. ↑ Buchanan, Rhys (September 15, 2021). "Lindsey Buckingham – 'Lindsey Buckingham' review: Fleetwood Mac visionary's stellar return". NME . Retrieved September 16, 2025.
  11. ↑ "Lindsey Buckingham's Satisfying, Solitary Self-Titled Album Is Comfortable Enough". Paste . September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 16, 2025.
  12. ↑ York, Alan (July 23, 2021). "Listen to Lindsey Buckingham's 'On the Wrong Side'". Dig!. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.