Fleetwood Mac's 'Rumours' revealed a tumultuous band
It’s 1976 and Fleetwood Mac is a band in crisis.
Given the success of their self-titled 10th album the previous year, this might be surprising. After all, the band was newly invigorated with the addition of singer/guitarist Lindsey Buckingham and vocalist Stevie Nicks, both of whom had helped it evolve from its beginnings as a British blues group to what would become a California pop-rock band.
But with the commercial success of 1975’s “Fleetwood Mac” and hits like Nicks’ “Rhiannon” also came personal turmoil. Buckingham and Nicks broke up. Bassist John McVie and keyboardist/vocalist Christine McVie divorced. And even drummer Mick Fleetwood was dealing with his own divorce from Jenny Boyd, who had an affair with the band’s previous guitarist, Bob Weston.
As a result of all these breakups (and various, interspersing trysts), the lyrical content of 1977’s “Rumours” is often bitter. But it’s also brilliant. If one thing has been proved by popular music in the past 70 years or so, two of the greatest inspirations for songwriting are love and the loss of it.
“Rumours” kicks off with Buckingham’s bouncy “Second Hand News.” It’s about as close as Fleetwood Mac ever came to crafting an all-out pop song. Despite its buoyant melody, the lyrics still address the songwriter’s relationship status: “I know there’s nothing to say / Someone has taken my place.”
Buckingham’s “Go Your Own Way” is perhaps one of the best breakup songs ever written with lyrics like, “Packing up / Shacking up / Is all you wanna do,” directed at Nicks, of course. Fleetwood pummels his drums as John McVie pounds on his bass and Buckingham’s guitars catch fire. Yet the chorus is soaring as Buckingham, Nicks and Christine McVie combine their voices for this super-charged barnburner.
The intricate guitar structure of “Never Going Back Again” came to define the sound that Buckingham would pursue through much of his solo career. The song’s title and chorus again reference a relationship gone wrong. But this time it’s not about Nicks. Supposedly it’s about a post-Nicks rebound.
While “Rhiannon” became Nicks’ signature song, “Dreams” remains one of her … well … dreamiest. Even though it has a sweeping chorus, that simple John McVie bass line keeps the song grounded in its serious storyline: “Now here you go again / You say you want your freedom / Well who am I to keep you down.” Then, of course, there’s that classic kiss-off line: “Players only love you when they’re playing.”
Take that, Buckingham. Yes, the lyrical content here is downright toxic.
Nicks’ “I Don’t Want To Know” sounds happy by comparison but it too is about love that “keeps right on walking down the line.” Then there’s the searing “Gold Dust Woman,” which is about a different type of toxic relationship, namely her romance with cocaine. Again, bad relationships inspire absolutely brilliant songwriting and “Gold Dust Woman” remains one of Nicks’ best.
With all of Buckingham and Nicks’ musical bickering, the positivity of Christine McVie’s sunny “Don’t Stop” is warmly welcomed. Buckingham lends a hand on lead vocals as he and McVie sing about smiles and the hope of tomorrow. Yes, she had just divorced her bassist husband, but she was looking toward the future.
Of course, during the recording of this album, Christine McVie had already moved on to dating the band’s lighting director. Her happy little tune, “You Make Loving Fun,” is about him while her sweet and tuneful “Songbird” is another pleasant break from the angst as she sings, “And I love you, I love you, I love you / Like never before.” Even the sad-sounding “Oh Daddy” is fairly optimistic.
Despite all the in-fighting, Fleetwood Mac came away from “Rumours” with a series of hits and even greater popularity than before. It went on to achieve critical acclaim and Rolling Stone eventually named it No. 25 on its list of the Top 500 Albums of All Time.
Ultimately, the band came together to create an album of musical brilliance. That unity also led to the song “The Chain,” which is the only track on “Rumours” where all five band members contribute to the writing. In addition to a killer bass line from John McVie and some of Fleetwood’s best beats, the song features the all-important lines: “I can still hear you saying / You would never break the chain.”
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