Fleetwood Mac | Artist
Fleetwood Mac is a British-American rock band formed 1967 in London by founding members Peter Green (guitar, vocals, harmonica), Mick Fleetwood (drums), Jeremy Spencer (guitar, vocals, piano) and John McVie (bass). Green, Fleetwood and McVie were all previously with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers. The first incarnation of the band, retrospectively called "Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac" was primarily a blues band with a leaning towards guitar based blues and instrumental numbers. The recruitment of third guitarist Danny Kirwin (guitar) and former Chicken Shack member Christine Perfect (vocals, piano), heralded the band's second incarnation, which was greatly influenced by Christine Perfect's (now McVie, having married bassist John McVie) keyboards and vocal harmony driven song structures. Their leader and master-guitarist Green departed in 1970 after the early classic album Then Play On (1969), and the band went through a succession of guitarists, including Danny Kirwin, Bob Welch, Bob Weston and Lindsey Buckingham, each of whom re-shaped the band's musical style. The greatest change in musical direction came when the American duo Lindsay Buckingham (guitar, vocals) and Stevie Nicks (vocals, tambourine) joined in 1975, forming the third and longest-lasting and commercially successful incarnation of the band. Most recently Buckingham has been replaced by Neil Finn from Crowded House, and former Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers member Mike Campbell has taken on lead guitar duties. Outstanding Fleetwood Mac albums include Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac (1968), Then Play On (1969), Future Games (1971), Bare Trees (1972), Fleetwood Mac (1975), Rumours (1977), Tusk (1979), and Tango in the Night (1987). Also recommended are the early compilation The Pious Bird of Good omen (1969) which contains the single "Albatross", Live at the Boston Tea Party: Part One (1998), and the live album The Dance (1997). After leaving the band, Peter Green released a number of excellent solo albums, plus worked and recorded with the band Splinter. As for other ex-Fleetwood alumni, Kirwin recorded three solo albums, Bob Welch recorded numerous albums plus formed the band Paris with ex-Jethro Tull bassist Glenn Cornick, Lindsay Buckingham recorded several solo albums, as did both Christine McVie and Stevie Nicks. Sadly, Green died in 2020 and Christine McVie passed away late 2022, but the band continues to work under the leadership of the founders Mick Fleetwood and John (Mac) McVie to the present day. Fleetwood Mac have sold more than 120 million records worldwide, making them one of the world's best-selling bands. In 1979, they were honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Artist Website: fleetwoodmac.com
Featured Albums: Fleetwood Mac
Related Artists: Peter Green, John Mayall, Jeremy Spencer, Danny Kirwan, Paris, Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham, Christine McVie, Chicken Shack
