Happy 35th Anniversary, Fleetwood Mac’s “Rumours”
Posted by The G on February 4, 2012 under GNN | 
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Photo of the album cover by G.
Rumours by Fleetwood Mac. Released February 4, 1977
Happy 35th anniversary to one of the greatest albums of all time, Fleetwood Mac’s “Rumours.” If you only know the music (and not the back story) of Fleetwood Mac, you are missing out on one of the most intense Rock and Roll stories of all time about one of the most dysfunctional bands in history.
Fleetwood Mac, a British Rock/Blues band was enjoying success in the late 60s when several of their members left the band. Los Angeles based couple Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham joined the group around 1975 and they released the successful self titled “Fleetwood Mac” album. During the recording of the follow up album that would become “Rumours,” Lindsey and Stevie were breaking up. Also, Fleetwood Mac’s co-lead singer Christine McVie was breaking up with FM bassist John McVie. Should we also mention that around this time, Stevie Nicks and drummer Mick Fleetwood also had an affair? The songs on this record were all written about what was going on in their lives, and that translated into mass appeal and global success.
The lyrics of most every song are jabs at their former lovers such as “When times go bad, if you can’t get enough, won’t you lay me down in the tall grass and let me do my stuff” (about Stevie’s infidelity to Lindsey on “Second Hand News”); “There you go again, you say you want your freedom, who am I to keep you down” (from Stevie to Lindsey in “Dreams,”) and “If there’s been a fool around, it’s got to be me” (from Christine McVie’s “Oh Daddy”). The album also features songs dedicated to drug addiction such as “Gold Dust Woman,” staying together as a unit in “The Chain,” and an inspiring song for the future “Don’t Stop,” and the ultimate kiss off in “Go Your Own Way.”
The book “Storms” written by Lindsey Buckingham’s girlfriend from 1977 – 1984, Carol Ann Harris begins during the Rumours tour and chronicles the massive amounts of sex, drugs, betrayal, love, abuse, rock and roll and is filled with so many juicy stories, you’ll wonder why Hollywood has not yet made a bio-pic of the Fleetwood Mac saga. I highly recommend the book as it will fill in the answers to so man unanswered questions and like I say to people with most biographies – if only one out of every ten stories are true – it’s still enough to make your head explode!
Never break the chain!
