If you are wondering what a classic album sounds like, if you are interested in knowing what the words "masterpiece album" means, don't try to google it, in a few lines you will discover ...
On February 4, 1977, the 11th (or second) album of "Fleetwood Mac", "Rumours" was released. Confused? We are here to explain.
This is the 11th album of "Fleetwood Mac", a band that whose roots are in the British blues of the 1960s, with the classic line-up featuring guitarist Peter Green. It is also the band's second album in the Ver 2.0 lineup, which included guitarist Lindsey Buckingham and singer Stevie Nicks.
This album released in 1977 became one of the best-selling albums in the history of music, with sales of over 40 million copies worldwide. Do you get that crazy number ???
It went straight to number one on the United States Billboard 200 album chart and did not leave it for 31 weeks !!! The album has also charted in the UK charts for over 800 weeks (yes, yes it just isn’t perceived) and of course, it has also won countless awards, including the Grammy for Album of the Year.
This album becomes successful against all odds. It was released at a time when Punk influenced the music world, Disco was burning the dance floors and pop dominated the charts.
What’s more, this album came out at a time when all the band members’ relationships were crumbling down to ash. The long-standing relationship between singer Stevie Nicks and guitarist Lindsay Buckingham, who came to the band as a married writing couple and creative duo, has just broken up. Similarly, the marriage of the second couple - bass player John McVie and keyboardist and singer Christine McVie, has come to an end, when Christine was having an affair with the band's stage lighting operator - Curry Grant. Even the drummer and band leader "Mick Fleetwood" experienced marriage problems when his wife - Jenny Boyd cheated on him with his best friend (sounds familiar? So Jenny is the sister of Patty Boyd who cheated on George Harrison with his best friend Eric Clapton).
(Photo: Richard Cremer)
Now explain this. how a broken and shattered band is supposed to enter a small studio, and between four walls record the biggest album in its repertoire, one of the most successful and best-selling records in the history of music?
It seems that the band managed to channel that unimaginable pain into the lyrics and weave it between the music notes, in a way that made this album the greatest "farewell album" in the history of music (and singer Adele can be happy with second best). They could not look at each other in the eyes, and certainly not talk to each other, so what did they do? They spoke to their partners through music, through lyrics, and it worked perfectly!
Buckingham opens the album with "Second Hand News". and tells Nicks: "I know there's nothing to say Someone has taken my place", and Buckingham just predicts the affair that Stevie Nicks will have with Mick Fleetwood. This song was originally supposed to be acoustic and called "Strummer", but when Buckingham heard the "Bee Gees" song "Jive Talkin'", he decided to thicken the sound and add more and more tracks and instruments.
Nicks responded to Buckingham came with the second track - "Dreams", in which she says: "Now here you go again, you say You want your freedom, Well who am I to keep you down". Stevie Nicks says that after writing the song she recorded a demo of it with only a piano and vocals. She had found the courage to play the demo to Lindsay Buckingham. Despite the murky relationship between them, Lindsay looked up at her and just smiled, he realized this was a great song. Listen to this song carefully and try to discern what is so special about it, because there are not many such songs. Did not find out? This song is based on only two chords !!! Yes, verse, chorus, bridge, everything is based on only two chords. The variations of F and G ...
Buckingham did not remain obligated and responded to the Nicks' in the third track on the album, a song whose title speaks for itself - "Never Going Back Again". He wrote the song when he was already in a relationship with a fan he met on the road, and it's hard for us not to hear "Blackbird" written by Paul McCartney for the Beatles, between the acoustic strings, but who cares? This is an amazing song!
"Don't Stop" was written by Christine McVie about leaving the past behind. Just think of a situation where her husband John McVie has to play bass in a song written about him, and how the hell does he manage to do that? It is interesting to note, that the name of the album was supposed to be called "Yesterday's Gone" - a phrase taken from the song, but John actually suggested the name "Rumours", in response to the wave of rumor's circulating each of the band members, during the recording of the album. By the way, President Clinton used this song in his successful campaign in 1992.
Christine also sang and played the piano in "Songbird", which sounds to us just like an outtake from Carol King's "Tapestry" album. In this song, she deals with the loss of true love.
On the other hand, Christine wrote "You Make Loving Fun" about her new relationship with the band's lighting technician - Curry Grant.
The amazing "Go Your Own Way" opens up with Buckingham's words: "Loving you isn't the right thing to do ..." and the hallucinatory situation in which Stevie Nicks has to sing background vocals in a song where Buckingham is setting her free, is simply inconceivable. The separation the band members managed to make, between musicianship, professionalism, and their private lives, is simply admirable.
And if you still didn't get the idea, then "The Chain" is the only song on the album that was not written exclusively by one of the band members, but even here all five members managed to put their emotions aside and write together words like: "Damn your love, damn your lies And if, you do not love me now You will never love me again ".
Over the years this album has taken on a life of its own and has become a cross-border classic. There is hardly a house of music lovers that won't hold a copy of it. An album that is always fun to return to, pleasant to listen and despite the deep pain from which it is forged, it still manages to inspire you with optimism and hope on every listen.
Perfect songs like "Go Your Own Way", "Dreams", "Don't Stop" and "You Make Loving Fun" are perhaps the ones that made this album a classic. But it is precisely the less powerful songs like "Oh Daddy" and "Gold Dust Woman" that make this album timeless!
The fact that even over 40 years later you can still be as excited as at the first time about the combination of Buckingham's electric guitar and the palm-muted acoustic strings in "Oh Daddy", or re-admire the harmonies of Nicks and Buckingham and the clean sound of the steel guitar in "Gold Dust Woman", prove That this album is much more than the sum of its parts and is meant for eternal life as one of the great albums released in the history of music.
For Listening: Spotify, Apple Music
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