FLEETWOOD MAC 101
Lesson Four: “Rumours”
After the stunningly successful
release of "Fleetwood Mac" and the tour that followed, the band
had become a household name. After some time off, the band reconvened in
Sausalito, California to record a follow up to The White Album. However,
this was by far the most difficult time in the history of Fleetwood Mac.
Longtime partners Lindsey
Buckingham and Stevie Nicks had broken up.
John and Christine McVie had started divorce proceedings and were barely on
speaking terms.
Even Mick Fleetwood's marriage was
ending.
And through it all, the five band
members had to work together every day in the closed quarters of The Record
Plant in Sausalito.
Each member had to try to work
with each other while going through the most agonizing times of their
lives.
Lindsey would get offended
when Stevie would give advice on how to improve her song. At
times Lindsey didn't want to help Stevie to improve her songs because
of the pain of the break up.
However, the quest for perfection
would not quit; where The White Album took a mere three months to
record, this album took very much longer. And after a year,
"Rumours" was released.
And what an album it was!!
Impeccably balanced, "Rumours" displayed all
of the innate strengths of the band without flaw. The beauty of this
"new" version of Fleetwood Mac was the seamless way that each member
played to the strengths of the others, how each of it's three principal
songwriters wrote and sang material that contrasted with that of the others but
never at the expense of what had arguably become a near-perfect band with
as distinctive a style as any in pop history. Further, the well-oiled
rhythm section of Mick Fleetwood and John McVie
provided a rock solid foundation around which "Rumours'"
marvelous textures could flow unencumbered.
In retrospect, it's remarkable
that the album was even made in the first place. One of only a handful of
records that seamlessly blends real-life experience and art, the album that
defined an era for so many people was an emotionally harrowing affair for each
of the band members.
"Rumours"
co-engineer Richard Dashut recalls, "There were
break-ups and realignments which had a tremendous effect on their music.
Defenses were wearing thin, and they were quick to open up their
feelings. Instead of going to their friends to talk it out, their
feelings were vented through their music. It created a
certain sensitivity. Our personal lives were in shambles and the
album was about the only thing we had left."
Consider the opening and closing
lines of the album, which alone signal the subject matter contained
within. "I know there's nothing to say, someone has taken my
place," sings Lindsey on the first track, 'Second Hand News.'
"Is it over now, do you know how, pick up the pieces and go home,"
sings Stevie on the final track, 'Gold Dust Woman.'
While many who listen to the
entire album will agree that any one of the tracks on the album could have
made the top twenty on the singles charts, only four songs were released as
singles, and all four made the top ten!!
Stevie's 'Dreams' went to number 1, the only Fleetwood Mac solo to
ever do so (shocking, I know!).
Lindsey's 'Go Your Own Way' went
to number 10.
Christine had two solos: 'You
Make Loving Fun' went to number 9, and 'Don't Stop' went to number 3.
Within six weeks of being
released, "Rumours" skyrocketed to number
one on the album charts, where it remained for over six months!!! It
shattered nearly all records and also won the Grammy for 'Album of the Year' in
1977.
To this day it is still one of the
most popular albums of all time, having gone Nineteen times Platinum and having
sold over 30 million copies worldwide. (Only one other studio album
in history has sold more copies than "Rumours."
It is Michael Jackson's "Thriller.")
The band then was in extremely
high demand and went on tour. The "Rumours" tour started the United States. It took
the band, with few interruptions, to Europe, Australia and then back to the
States where it concluded in August 1978. Although Fleetwood Mac didn't release
any new material during this time, most of the band members also had side
projects going on as well. After a short period of relative rest, they began to
make plans for the follow-up to the musical and cultural phenomenon that was
"Rumours".