Mick Discusses his Book (1991)

[michelej1]

Mick Fleetwood: Silencing The Rumours
Steven P. Wheeler, Happening, January 1991

FLEETWOOD MAC has been around for more than twenty years, and for over half that time, has been one of the best-selling American rock & roll bands in popular music. Along with that fame and success has come a never-ending string of innuendo and rumors, due to their personal relationships, insatiable appetite for drugs and fast-lane lifestyle.

The group's leader, Mick Fleetwod, was there from the beginning and recently chronicled his life with the band in a compelling new book, Fleetwood: My Life And Adventures in Fleetwood Mac (William Morrow And Company). In this no-holds-barred account, the tall, bearded drummer reveals many previously unknown fact within the band's inner circle, including his romantic relationship with Stevie Nicks, the group's struggle to control their drug intake and his dismissal as the band's manager.

As we sat down in his room at the Beverly Hills Hotel, it became obvious that Fleetwood is as forthcoming in person as he is in his book. "I don't write songs for Fleetwood Mac, so this book has become my little statement – and I feel really good about it," the wild-eyed Englishman said at the outset of the interview. "And I haven't been sued," Fleetwood paused for a moment before adding with a devilish grin, "...yet."

We hear a lot of rumors surrounding the band's future. Where does Fleetwood Mac stand now?

MF: We've finished our tour, and that was the last time that either Stevie [Nicks] or Christine [McVie] will perform with Fleetwood Mac. That much is etched in stone. But there are plans for both Stevie and Christine to do one more album with Fleetwood Mac. It's going to be a major change, because one way or another, they're phasing themselves out of Fleetwood Mac. If it takes a short or a long time is beside the point, because it is happening, and it will happen. But there are four other people in this band who have no intention of stopping. That's as close as I can get as to what's going on. We may augment the band in the future, but we haven't sat down and thought about it in detail.

There is a bit of talk around the industry that Stevie and Christine are leaving because of your book....

MF: It has nothing to do with the book. We had a band meeting to discuss tour plans, and somebody asked Christine exactly what was happening with her, and she just said that she wanted to slow down a bit. There was no drama or anything like that. She's not eighteen anymore, and she wants some more time to live her life outside of Fleetwood Mac. That's totally understandable. Chris has been in this band for many, many, many years, and Stevie's been in the band for fifteen years.

Why does Stevie want to leave?

MF: Well, I think at that point in the meeting Stevie took courage in Christine making a stand, because when somebody asked Stevie what she was doing, she just said she was finding it increasingly difficult – both physically and mentally – to run two ships at the same time: her solo career and Fleetwood Mac. And she's also intending to adopt a child in the not-too-distant future and wants time for that. So she said she had to bow out at this point as well. So leaving had nothing to do with the book.

In your book, you also discuss the Tusk tour in detail. Was that the point in the band's history when the hedonistic lifestyle reached its height?

MF: Yeah, it was pretty decadent. That was the capper. You've got to realize that we had worked for years and years at a very crazed rate of speed, and it was starting to take its toll. That whole lifestyle – the coke, the booze...there was just a lot of consumption of one kind or another. So when we committed to doing the tour for Tusk, there was a stipulation that if we're going to do it, we're going to do it so ****in' comfortably that we could enjoy it. And that's what we did. That was sort of the end of that type of era. I'm certainly not suggesting that it died out completely, because I continued for some time to be a wild and crazy guy. But, at the same time, it wasn't impairing one's function. It wasn't like we weren't able to do interviews or lead a life. At the time, some people truly thought that we were all a bunch of frothing drug addicts. But we weren't. Admittedly, we did indulge, and I had a bloody good time.

At that time in the late Seventies and early Eighties, cocaine and the music industry seemed to go hand in hand...

MF: They were synonymous. We'd walk into a radio station and the DJ would be giving us lines. That's just what was happening back then. It started when we were making the first album with Lindsey and Stevie, and one of the engineers turned us on to it. We had never touched the stuff before. It was like if you were feeling a little tired in the studio, no problem – try a little bit of this. When I first started doing cocaine it was a lot more pleasurable, but what happened was that it got more and more unpleasurable and yet you found yourself doing it, and you'd sit in the corner with lock jaw or something.

It was also after the Tusk tour that the band asked you to step down as Fleetwood Mac's manager...

MF: Step down? [laughs]. No, I was fired! Everyone else had their own managers by then. Irving Azoff was handling Stevie and Lindsey. And on that Tusk tour, we didn't make much money. It was a hideous, hurtful meeting we had that afternoon at my house. All these people were in my house and they – along with the band – were telling me that I was fired. The fact was that I was managing the band and was being paid very little. I never took money until after expenses, and it was only like five percent. I worked bloody hard for years, and we didn't do too badly. I wasn't about to say, "You try and control this mob for a few months and see how you get on." I took the responsibility. I should have said during that tour, "If we carry on like this, we're not going to make any money." But I didn't. I remember going up to my bedroom with a stiff upper lip because I was about to break down. I could see giving up the managerial duties, but the way it was done was so uncool and unnecessary. That's when I went off to Africa to lick my wounds.

Lindsey Buckingham was responsible for much of Fleetwood Mac's success. Have you talked to him about the book?

MF: No I haven't. Lindsey put a lot of impetus into the music in terms of keeping it moving forward and fresh – which is healthy and very creative. But, nonetheless, Lindsey was not suited to be in a band. I remember sitting him down at the Record Plant and saying, "Look, this is a compromise – you're working with people in here. I'm telling you right now that you're in a band and you'd better get it right or you better leave right now. People are going to do things somewhat their way, and you're going to have to meet them somewhat halfway." He really lived with that for years and years and years until he eventually played himself out of Fleetwood Mac.

Of course, most of the media attention has been focused on the parts of the book that deal with your romantic relationship with Stevie. Did you think it would cause that much commotion?

MF: Well, at the time, nobody really knew about it, because we kept it very secret. It started when we were on the road during the Tusk tour, which was a long time after Lindsey and her had broken up. I think Stevie and I had a real affinity right from the beginning, because we got along really well – and thank God we still do. It started up when we were on tour. I would do a little midnight creep through the corridors, and no one really knew about it. And after I realized that it was not a fly-by-night situation – that I was deeply in love with her – I decided to go and see Lindsey. He was very gracious about it and said he was really grateful that I had told him about it.

What caused the most uproar within the band about the book?

MF: What caused the upset was that I didn't let anybody in the band read the book. Before the book came out, I told Stevie that I made mention of our relationship, and she didn't mind about that. What she did object very strongly to was that I didn't let her read the subject matter. She got on her high-horse and bombarded me in some article, where she threatened to sue me. And then the press got a hold of that. Having read the book, Stevie said that I should have put more about her in it [laughs]. I didn't betray anyone, and I wasn't about to. That's not what life's about. I feel it is just an honest statement that hopefully has some real worth to people.

[wondergirl9847]

And she's also intending to adopt a child in the not-too-distant future and wants time for that.

This is my first time hearing this. Wow, I had no idea she was considering adoption. Interesting.

OK, did the DJ's give them cocaine lines just out of the goodness of their heart or did the band request it?

[chiliD]

Originally Posted by wondergirl9847

OK, did the DJ's give them cocaine lines just out of the goodness of their heart or did the band request it?

The DJ's probably just shared what they had with them on a daily basis. Everybody in the industry seemed to have just mountains of the stuff on them at all times. It would be like offering somebody a can of soda when they'd come over to your house. Yeah, it was that prevalent.

[HomerMcvie]

Originally Posted by chiliD

The DJ's probably just shared what they had with them on a daily basis. Everybody in the industry seemed to have just mountains of the stuff on them at all times. It would be like offering somebody a can of soda when they'd come over to your house. Yeah, it was that prevalent.

My kingdom for a time machine!

[Spikey]

The adoption comment is amazing.. probably the most interesting thing to come out of it other than discussions about Mick the Manager. i wonder who manages the band these days, or do they go their own ways.


anyway, does anyone know anything more about Stevie adopting circa 1991? Maybe our friend K had something to do with it.

Or maybe she was adopting a Yorkie. :P

[michelej1]

I bet Stevie never had any definite adoption plans. Just the fantasies and daydreams she often discussed. She mentioned adopting a baby and naming her Lillian Rachael (or something along those lines) and I bet she never said anything more specific than that around Mick. He was just trying to deflect attention away from what he personally might have done (i.e. Silver Springs) to make her want to leave.

Michele