Almost exactly a year ago, a mustached man wearing a gray hoodie took a video of himself chugging cranberry juice while on a skateboard and singing along to Fleetwood Mac’s hit “Dreams.”
The video, posted on TikTok, became an internet obsession. The 26-second clip showing the carefree man with an infectious light in his eyes served as a much-need virtual shot of random joy during the pandemic. And the viral video was a boost for the 1977 hit, which celebrated its biggest streaming week ever in October 2020 and reentered the Billboard charts.
A bunch of famous people re-created the video, including members of the real Fleetwood Mac. So did Adrienne Olson, the lead singer of the Petty Nicks Experience, a Denver-based tribute band.
Olson put her own twist on the TikTok video, water skiing along to “Dreams” instead of skating.
Maybe she was surprised by the cranberry juice element of the trend’s intrigue, but not the song choice. Maybe more than most, Olson knows the euphoric power of a song like “Dreams.”
When she was 12, she gave her dad a cassette tape copy of a Fleetwood Mac album. But the gift was more for her. She just wanted to be able to listen to “Rumors” whenever they were in his car.
“At that age, that’s when music gets into your soul,” Olson said. “I remember just loving how this makes me feel.”
Steve Nicks has been an inspiration ever since. It wasn’t until five years ago that Olson got to “finally indulge” and perform as her musical hero.
It was Victor Kachel’s idea. He was fascinated by the piece of rock ‘n’ roll lore about Nicks wanting to join Tom Petty’s band.
As his bandmate Justin Long says, “You can’t point to another thing like that in rock ‘n’ roll history. Nobody in the Rolling Stones talked about wanting to be in The Beatles.”
Kachel asked himself, “What if Stevie did join?” He ran with the idea, pulling together some Colorado musician friends to form the Petty Nicks Experience, which combines the music of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Fleetwood Mac and the solo work of Stevie Nicks.
Kachel says its unlike any other tribute band that might focus on one act’s musical catalog.
“There’s not really anyone else doing what we’re doing,” he said. “And it’s evolved into something really special.”
The band’s seven members share a passion for keeping this kind of music — well-crafted, timeless rock ‘n’ roll songs like “Go Your Own Way” and “American Girl” — alive. In a live show, with lighting and costume changes that feel theatrical or movielike, they can easily play for two or three hours, promising to take people in the audience on a roller coaster of emotions.
That’s led to the band becoming a hot booking around the state. After playing recently at the Boulder Theatre in Boulder, they have a show this weekend at Boot Barn Hall in Colorado Springs.
Everyone in the band feels a “gravitational pull” to this kind of music, says Bryan Stacks, who lives in Colorado Springs and plays several instruments in the Petty Nicks Experience. As a self-described “golden area MTV kid,” he remembers listening to a lot of Tom Petty. He takes pride in trying to bring the full-band experience to the stage.
“What gives me goosebumps is when you look up on stage and you see all the parts being played together like it’s supposed to be,” he said. “There’s no backing tracks. It’s just true to the original.”
The vocal harmonies are also known to bring about goosebumps. And when Olson sings something like “Landslide,” she goes all out with makeup and costumes, with designs based on photos of what Stevie Nicks looked like in different eras.
“I’m not trying to be her,” Olson said. “I’m trying to channel her and pay tribute to her.”
She feels like a messenger of memories in a way, perhaps reminding people who saw Fleetwood Mac in concert what it was like or, for those who haven’t, offering a glimpse into what it would be like. For Olson to get to sing these songs, it feels like how that TikTok video made millions of people feel: just really happy.
“That’s what we’re all trying to do with this band,” she said. “It’s like, remember that feeling this music gave you. And let’s not forget this.”