In 2001, Fleetwood Mac's Lindsey Buckingham had the intention of recording a solo album, but then his band showed up. "They said, 'Let's do a studio album!'" says Buckingham. "So the bulk of that material was folded into [2003's] Say You Will." Three years later, Buckingham finally struck out on his own with Under the Skin, a moody collection that highlights his virtuosic fingerpicking. On September 16th, Buckingham released a far more rocking sequel: Gift of Screws, named after an Emily...

On this album's opener, "Great Day," there's an electric-guitar solo so blowtorch-hot, it seems specifically designed to bitch-slap anyone with the nerve to wonder if Lindsey Buckingham still rocks. Buckingham's 2006 comeback, Under the Skin, was largely a reflective, parlor-room affair, full of self-doubt and dazzling acoustic playing, and here, the mood is still darkly introspective: "Suicide...