McVie delivers the sweet pop of ‘Warm Ways’ and ‘Over My Head’, Buckingham bookends the album with the upbeat pop of ‘Monday Morning’ and the darker ‘I’m So Afraid’, while Nicks is the strongest writer at this stage with ‘Rhiannon’ (based on Welsh mythology), ‘Crystal’, and the gentle acoustic ‘Landslide’. Their first album together finds them already firmly entrenched into their detailed pop sound with intricate production and smooth harmonies, and Fleetwood Mac is all but impeccable. With Buckingham on vocals and guitar, and Nicks, the band had three songwriters, with Christine McVie already providing keyboards and vocals. After front-man Bob Welch left the group, serendipity allowed Mick Fleetwood to hear the Buckingham Nicks album, and invite Buckingham and Nicks to join, creating the group’s most successful and long running lineup. Remarkably, by 1975 they were the group’s only original members, having run through a succession of guitarists and vocalists, and having relocated from England to California.
‘Lola’ is also worthwhile elements of it were recycled in ‘The Chain’, while it’s also notable for its succinctly sexist lyrics.īuckingham Nicks is not without its charms, but it often feels like the work of a forgotten AM radio band rather than two future superstars.įleetwood Mac was named after the band’s rhythm section, Mick Fleetwood and John McVie. ‘Don’t Let Me Down Again’ is the strongest of Buckingham’s songs, and was played live by Fleetwood Mac. Nicks is the better writer of the duo at this point – ‘Crying In The Night’ is a strong opener, while ‘Crystal’ was reworked on 1975’s eponymous Fleetwood Mac album, and it’s the most noteworthy song here. Despite their obscurity, Buckingham and Nicks are supported by prominent session musicians like Jim Keltner, Waddy Wachtel, and Jerry Scheff. Nicks has her distinctive husky-tinged voice, and Buckingham is already a polished guitarist, but overall it’s a strangely uncompelling album as the duo’s songs aren’t as strong as they’d be in Fleetwood Mac. Buckingham Nicks wasn’t successful, and it’s never been reissued, making it an interesting historical curiosity. Wonderful (1968), Then Play On (1969)īefore joining Fleetwood Mac, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks recorded one album as a duo. Overlooked Gem: Tusk Fleetwood Mac (1968), Mr. Wonderful | Then Play On | Kiln House | Future Games | Bare Trees | Penguin | Buckingham Nicks | Mystery to Me | Heroes Are Hard to Find | Fleetwood Mac | Rumours | Tusk | Mirage | Tango in the Night | Behind The Mask | Time | The Dance | Say You Will Fleetwood Mac Album Reviewsįleetwood Mac | Mr. I’ve also covered Lindsey Buckingham’s solo career on a separate page.
I’ve only covered the Buckingham-era albums at this point – I have little interest in the early 1990s albums without him, but I am interested in the early blues works and the pop-oriented albums leading up to 1975’s Fleetwood Mac, and might review them at some point. The Fleetwood Mac soap opera has continued, when Buckingham was unceremoniously replaced by Mike Campbell and Neil Finn for the band’s farewell tour.
The band have recorded little in the 21st century, with just a single studio album (2003’s Say You Will) and an EP without Christine McVie, while McVie and Buckingham released a duo album in 2017. His production skills add some grit and interest to the band’s material for instance McVie’s ‘Hold Me’ is transformed from a straightforward blues song in its demo to a weird pop masterpiece in its finished version.īuckingham left the group after 1987’s Tango in the Night, but rejoined for 1997’s live The Dance. While Stevie Nicks was the identifiable star in Fleetwood Mac, concurrently enjoying a successful solo career from 1981, Lindsey Buckingham’s studio expertise is the band’s key. Buckingham insisted that his girlfriend Stevie Nicks was also included, forming Fleetwood Mac’s most successful lineup. The band peaked commercially with 1977’s mega-selling Rumours, with emotional turmoil around the group fuelling great songs. He invited Lindsey Buckingham to join the band as guitarist. The band launched on a trajectory to stardom in 1974 when Fleetwood was played an unsuccessful album from the duo Buckingham Nicks while investigating a potential recording studio. The band’s fortunes were varied during this era, with successful records like Bare Trees and failures like Heroes are Hard to Find. John McVie’s wife Christine joined on vocals and keyboards in 1970. The band went through a large turnover of guitarists and vocalists, including Green, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, and Bob Welch, as they transitioned from a blues band to a pop band, and relocated from the UK to California. Fleetwood Mac formed as a blues band in 1967, when Peter Green recruited Mick Fleetwood and John McVie as his rhythm section.
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