Buckingham blames “disoriented” Stevie Nicks for the lack of new Fleetwood Mac music

[ricohv]

By Paul Brannigan ( Classic Rock ) 12/6/21

Lindsey Buckingham says the fact that Fleetwood Mac haven’t released a new album since 2003 “wasn’t for lack of trying”

Lindsey Buckingham blames Stevie Nicks for the lack of new music from Fleetwood Mac, telling Classic Rock magazine that the fact that the legendary rock band haven’t released a studio album since 2003‘s Say You Will “wasn’t for lack of trying.”

Buckingham, who released a self-titled solo album earlier this year, was fired from Fleetwood Mac in 2018, and claimed earlier this year that Nicks was the catalyst for that decision: speaking with the LA Times, the guitarist said that Nicks issued a ‘him or me’ ultimatum to the band, in a bid to assert more control over the group, an accusation Nicks has denied.

Now, in a new interview running in the new issue of Classic Rock magazine, on sale on December 7, Buckingham suggests that his former partner’s reticence to get involved in the writing and recording of new Fleetwood Mac material is the reason there’s been no new album from the band in 18 years.

Buckingham claims that work had actually begun on a new Fleetwood Mac album back in 2012.

“I had a bunch of songs, and Mick [Fleetwood] and John [McVie] and I went in with the producer Mitchell Froom and cut a bunch of stuff,” he tells Classic Rock. “This was before Christine [McVie] returned to the band in 2014. We very much wanted to draw Stevie in, and for some reason she refused to participate.”

Buckingham claims that Nicks, “has sort of gotten a little bit disoriented in her wanting to pursue Stevie Nicks in capital letters, if you will.”

“I think she kind of lost track of her writing a little bit,” he says, “and maybe didn’t think she had anything she felt she could offer, and so did not want to be a part of it.”

“That effort to engage her was revamped again when Christine returned,” Buckingham says, “because it was like, ‘well, Christine’s back, maybe now Stevie will want to do this.’ Christine had a bunch of song ideas and I helped her with those, and we eventually went in the studio and cut those. And we were still hoping to make that a Fleetwood Mac album, and Stevie wouldn’t do it. That became the duet album that Christine and I did [2017’s Lindsey Buckingham Christine McVie]. So it wasn’t for lack of trying.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Buckingham suggests that he’s open to the idea of another reunion with the band.

“Who knows, maybe we’ll manage to see clear to have one more nice run out there,” he says. “That would be the proper way to go.”
https://www.loudersound.com/news/lin...LtEDrrJRcZXfMI

[elle]

nothing new, only confirming facts we knew.

[HomerMcvie]

WHY would he want to go back to that?

It's OVER. Let it go.

[jbrownsjr]

OMG!! Goat is the reason they don't have new music?? Holy wow!!

[Macfan4life]

Lets psycho analyze (again)

Hmmmm. Why would Stevie after all her solo albums and going back and forth the the Mac after solo work suddenly want to pursue Stevie Nicks (in capital letters).

We dont have to be Sherlock or Watson to figure this out. Chris came back and was making music with Lindsey. She tried to torpedo the effort which did not work. They worked without her and her jealousy was more than she could do. Buck/Vie walked away from her and worked without her. She could not contain her jealous rage and demanded Lindsey be fired.

[ricohv]

Originally Posted by HomerMcvie

WHY would he want to go back to that?

It's OVER. Let it go.

I totally agree. But I wonder, if he's really serious about this: "Buckingham suggests that he’s open to the idea of another reunion with the band," doesn't he consider he might be shooting himself in the foot?
I think they have ALL lived in such an insular vacuum of money and fame that they really don't know how to just be normal people.
Maybe they should all be reduced to be cleaning ladies to bring themselves back down to earth.

[UnwindedDreams]

Didn't they try to do an album in 2008? But Stevie said let's do a tour of what people want to hear called Unleashed: Hits. (Say You Love Me, Stand Back, Rhiannon, etc)

Lindsey had wanted to tour GOS more in 08.

[bwboy]

Lindsey leaves out another possible explanation for why Stevie wouldn’t record a new album with FM- she doesn’t want to work with him again in the studio. But I can see why he wouldn’t want to mention that possibility.

[Mmonta4]

I love Stevie but I think what Lindsey said rings a lot of truth. Remember the days Stevie would say she went solo because she is a prolific song writer and had a back log of songs. Last time we heard new songs was in 2011 when she released In Your Dreams. What has she released since? 24 Karat Gold, Without You from the Fleetwood Mac EP, and Show Them the Way. All songs from the vault. I think Stevie is still a prolific writer; but of poems, not songs. In early interviews she often talked about being a song writer. Now it seems she refers to herself as a poet more often. Somewhere at sometime she stopped taking the poems to the piano it seems. Certainly this slump, for lack of a better word, does provide support what Lindsey says.