Fleetwood Mac: 40 years of creative chaos

217 Pages·2007·1.17 MB·English

by  Donald Brackett

Fleetwood Mac
40 Years of Creative Chaos
Donald Brackett
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Brackett,Donald,1951–
FleetwoodMac:40yearsofcreativechaos/DonaldBrackett.
p.cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN-13:978–0–275–99338-2(alk.paper)
ISBN-10:0–275–99338–8(alk.paper)
1. FleetwoodMac(Musicalgroup) 2. Rockmusicians—Biography. I.Title.
ML421.F57B73 2007
782.42166092’2—dc22 2007020592
BritishLibraryCataloguinginPublicationDataisavailable.
Copyright©2007byDonaldBrackett.
Allrightsreserved.Noportionofthisbookmaybe
reproduced,byanyprocessortechnique,withoutthe
expresswrittenconsentofthepublisher.
LibraryofCongressCatalogCardNumber:2007020592
ISBN-10:0–275–99338–8
ISBN-13:978–0–275–99338–2
Firstpublishedin2007
PraegerPublishers,88PostRoadWest,Westport,CT06881
AnimprintofGreenwoodPublishingGroup,Inc.
www.praeger.com
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
Thepaperusedinthisbookcomplieswiththe
PermanentPaperStandardissuedbytheNational
InformationStandardsOrganization(Z39.48-1984).
10987654321
Inmemoryofmyfather,andinappreciationofmymother,forletting
mebe...
Thisbookisdedicatedtomywonderfulpartner
MimiGellman,whoknowsallthereasonswhy...
TomyoldfriendsGerryWatsonandPeterMoss,whomayormaynot.
TomyfellowwriterKevinCourrier,whosharesthestruggle.
AndtoBobWelch,masterofthespookytransition.

Contents
Introduction:Pluggingin ix
Chapter1.BritishBluesinthe1960s:TheMusicalRootsof 1
FleetwoodMac
Chapter2.TheOriginalPeterGreen’sFleetwoodMac 21
Chapter3.TheGoingofGreen:MadnessandManalishi 47
Chapter4.Rebirth:TheComingofChristinePerfectandBobWelch 69
Chapter5.Reincarnation:TheComingofBuckinghamandNicks 95
Chapter6.TheRumoursAreTrue:ArrivaloftheBlockbuster 117
Chapter7.Tusk:BuckinghamTakesCommand 135
Chapter8.ThenPlayOn,Again:TheLastTwenty-SevenYears 153
Conclusion:Unplugged—SayYouMightasWell 171
Notes 175
Index 183
A photo essay follows page 94.

Introduction: Plugging in
‘‘IfMusicbetheFoodofLove,playon...’’
—Shakespeare
How do you celebrate the 40th anniversary of a perfect marriage made in
hell?Perhapsbycountingyourluckystars—orevenbetter,maybebycount-
ingyourmoney.
Imaginetwooldgeezers.Nothingcancomebetweenthem.Youcansee
them,MickFleetwoodandJohnMcVie,bothbaldwithsnowywhitepatri-
archalbeards,sittingonthemassiveterracesoftheircountryestates,where
they often visit each other for high tea and ponder how it is they are still
togetherafteralltheseyears.Oneoftheoldladsmayturntotheotherand
quoteJohnLennon,inbetweensipsofEarlGrey:‘‘Lifeiswhathappensto
youwhileyou’rebusymakingotherplans.’’‘‘Indeeditis,mate.’’
Fleetwoodturns60thisyear,andMcVieisalreadyacrusty62.Bothare
stillcrazyafteralltheseyearsandtears.Theyarebonafiderockroyalty,no
matter what your musical taste. Back in 1992, when Mick was celebrating
themere25thanniversaryofhislittleexperimentinmusicalmayhem,hepro-
ducedalovelypictorialbookwithatextbyStephenDavis.Itopenswitha
touchingandsurprisinglytenderobservationinhisdedicationofthebook
tohismusicalpartner,McVie:‘‘ToJohn,fromthefirstuntilthis,thebrother
Ineverhad,youhavebeentome.MyGod,Iswearwedeserveeachother.I
loveyouverymuch,Mick’’
Not exactly the sentiment one might expect from a grizzled rock beast,
and yet his tender side is there for all to see. That was 15 long years ago,
andnowherewearecelebratingthe40thanniversaryoftheband’sfounding
x Introduction
inswingingEngland.Theyarestillatit,oratleaststilltalkingaboutbeing
atit.
Indeed,ifthelevelofmarketpenetrationisoneofthethingsthatdeter-
minesalegend,thenFleetwoodMaccertainlyqualifies,eventhoughmany
listenersand critics alikemaycastaspersionson their amazinggraspofthe
goldrecordcontest.Commercialsuccessoftencreatesamusicalallergythat
is undeserved, and in the case of Fleetwood Mac, their three successive
careersqualifythemaslegendsofasort,eventhoughmostpeopletendto
taketheirloftyBritishpeers,TheBeatles,farmoreseriously.
Fewgroupshavemovedfromthestatusoflegendtomyth,andthenfrom
mythtobrand,quiteasseamlesslyandmysteriouslyasthesemastersofboth
disclosureandconcealment.Andyet,itgoeswithoutsayingthatMaclasteda
fullfivetimesaslongastheirillustriousforbearersforsomesimplereasons:
Lennon and McCartney began to manifest music as a kind of self-
developmenttherapythroughthefleeingofalllimits,whileFleetwoodand
McViealways sawmusic as a form of entertainmentcelebrating theaccep-
tanceoflimits.
For example, we can imagine the different message received by aliens if
insteadofdiscoveringacopyofRevolverinourVoyagertimecapsuleashes,
theydiscoveredRumours;oneshudders.LikeTheBeatles,theyexperienced
therealityofJohnUpdike’sadmonitionthat‘‘Celebrityisamaskthateats
intotheface.’’Buttheydidnotturnorrunawayfromit;instead,theychose
towearthemaskproudly.Theyevenwentsofarastotitleoneoftheirlater
efforts, Behind the Mask. While both groups did use their art as a ‘‘pain
machine’’ for the healing, transformation,and transcendence of suffering,
onlyFleetwoodMacmaintainedafirmgripontheirrootsintheblues(even
when their blues was covered in the shiny varnish of their later-phase pop
music).Moreimportantly,theyalsomaintainedtheirinseparablelinkascre-
ativepartnersjoinedatthehip.
Theirs is a truly unique and fruitful collaborativepartnership,despiteall
the style shifts and personnel changes in their eponymous musical group.
Thefollowingpagesservetoexplorethenatureoftheirhighlychargedcre-
ativeconnection,whichpredateseventhebeginningoftheirownbandand
thereforehastobereferredtoastheprehistoricperiodofFleetwoodMac.
They are among the few rock dinosaurs who did not become extinct as a
resultoftheperpetualclimatechangesinpopmusic,andtheysurvivedthe
wayallevolutionarysurvivaloccurs:byadaptingtoreality.
This long history of Fleetwood Mac’s chameleon-like adaptation, while
stillholdingontotheirearlybluesrootsandmiddlepsychedelicphase,has
often beenovershadowed bythe sheer scaleoftheirlater success.Butthat
earlydynamicofcreativechaosmadethelatertriumphpossible.Thishistory
clearlyindicates howthey cleverly shiftedgears fromblues to rock topop,
andespeciallyhowtheysimplyturnedthosebluesintopurple,formsthecore
ofthisbook.Theirstoryisawildride,andthoseofuswhoare‘‘ofanage’’
Introduction xi
oftenfeelitwasourride,sincethisbandseemedtoechoandexpresssomany
oftheissues,ideas,andevendisappointmentsofthepost-1960sera.
Alongtheway,theridecontainssomeperhapssurprisingconnectionsthat
mayhelpusunderstandhowFleetwoodMaceverexistedinthefirstplace,let
alonehowtheymanagedtosubsistinthefaceofself-scrutiny,oneanother,
andtherapidchangesofanentertainmentindustrythatseldomseesorprizes
theirkindoflongevity.Therearealsoseveralinsightsthathelpexplainthe
successoftheircreativechaos—mostimportantly,perhaps,theunusualcon-
ceptputforwardbythepsychologistMihalyCsikszentmihalyi.Hisnotionof
‘‘flow,’’thepsychologyofoptimalexperience,clarifieshowthecreativestate
required to make any art successfully, but especially music, requires an
absorptioninthepresentmomentwhereallelsedisappears,asinglepointed
formofconcentrationthatallowstheartisttoachievethework.
Mostalarmingforsomeartistshowever,especiallythosecombativecrews
suchasFleetwoodMac,istheironicfactthatincertainspecialcasesthatstate
of ‘‘flow’’ is only possible while in the company of certain collaborators.
Thesecollaborators,notsurprisingly,areseldomtheoneswereallygetalong
with;quitethe opposite infact.imaginethecurse of being abletoachieve
thatstate of ‘‘flow’’ outof which greatart or music originates,but only in
thecompanyofsomeonewereallydonotlikeatall.
What if your mortal enemy is your best friend, and the only one in the
entire world who can make your magic possible? In the strange world of
celebritycompanions,heldintheswayoftheforcesofcrowdsandpower,it
happensmoreoftenthanyoumightthink.Recently,theNewYorkTimescul-
ture critic Holland Cotter made a telling remark about our attempts to
chronicle the past and fit it somehow neatly into our own present, not to
mentionthefollyoftryingtoanticipatethefuturebaseduponit.Cottersug-
gested that histories get lost, implying that that is just the way life is; and
then, perhaps when the time is right, those same histories are found once
again.Oursubplotherecouldthereforequiterightlybeentitled,‘‘Finding
the Fleetwood Mac Muse.’’ That is precisely the purpose of this book: to
reclaimsomeofFleetwoodMac’s‘‘losthistories’’andtietogetherthemean-
deringthreadsthathavekeptthemonthepopmusicsceneforalmosthalfa
century.
Bygivingup,orsharing,creativecontrolwithChristineMcVieandlater,
Stevie Nicks, the original core of the group, Mick Fleetwood and John
McVie—ablastedbassistanddazeddrummer—wereabletoremainbehind
the scenes and capitalize on the truly unique direction that this feminine
dimensionopenedupforthem.Partofthatdistinctivequalityiswhatmade
thisgroup’ssoundirreproducible:theyhaveachemistrythatcannotbecop-
ied.Theirsoundcouldnotbeimitatedquiteaseasilyasthatofmanyoftheir
equallyfamouspeers.
To this we attribute their magnificently improbable balancing act, one
poweredbyinternalconflictsandbizarrechemistry.Thisismorethanmerely