Primarily a British blues band, Fleetwood Mac scored a UK number one with "Albatross", and had other hits such as the singles "Oh Well" and "Man of the World". All three guitarists left in succession during the early 1970s, to be replaced by guitarists Bob Welch and Bob Weston and vocalist Dave Walker. By 1974, all three of them had either departed or been dismissed, leaving the band without a male lead vocalist or guitarist. In late 1974, while Fleetwood was scouting studios in Los Angeles, he was introduced to American folk-rock duo Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. Fleetwood Mac soon asked Buckingham to be their new lead guitarist, and Buckingham agreed on condition that Nicks would also join the band.
The addition of Buckingham and Nicks gave the band a more pop rock sound, and their 1975 self-titled album, Fleetwood Mac, reached No. 1 in the United States. Rumours (1977), Fleetwood Mac's second album after the arrival of Buckingham and Nicks, produced four U.S. Top 10 singles and remained at number one on the American albums chart for 31 weeks. It also reached the top spot in various countries around the world and won a Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 1978. Rumours has sold over 40 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums in history. The band went through personal turmoil while recording the album, as both the romantic partnerships in the band (one being John and Christine McVie, and the other being Buckingham and Nicks) separated while continuing to make music together.
The band's personnel remained stable through three more studio albums, but by the late 1980s began to disintegrate. After Buckingham and Nicks each left the band, they were replaced by a number of other guitarists and vocalists. A 1993 one-off performance for the first inauguration of Bill Clinton featured the lineup of Fleetwood, John McVie, Christine McVie, Nicks, and Buckingham back together for the first time in six years. A full reunion occurred four years later, and the group released their fourth U.S. No. 1 album, The Dance (1997), a live compilation of their hits, also marking the 20th anniversary of Rumours. Christine McVie left the band in 1998, but continued to work with the band in a session capacity. Meanwhile, the group remained together as a four-piece, releasing their most recent studio album, Say You Will, in 2003. Christine McVie rejoined the band full-time in 2014. In 2018, Buckingham was fired from the band and was replaced by Mike Campbell, formerly of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and Neil Finn of Split Enz and Crowded House.
Fleetwood Mac has sold more than 120 million records worldwide, making them one of the world's best-selling bands. In 1979, the group was honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1998 the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and received the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music.
Danny Kirwan, guitarist, songwriter and early member of Fleetwood Mac (1968–1972) died in London, England, on 8 June 2018, aged 68. An obituary in The New York Times said he had died in his sleep after contracting pneumonia earlier in the year. The British music magazine Mojo quoted Christine McVie as saying: "Danny Kirwan was the white English blues guy. Nobody else could play like him. He was a one-off ... Danny and Peter [Green] gelled so well together. Danny had a very precise, piercing vibrato – a unique sound ... He was a perfectionist; a fantastic musician and a fantastic writer." One of Kirwan's songs, "Tell Me All the Things You Do" from the 1970 album Kiln House, was included in the set of the 2018–19 An Evening with Fleetwood Mac tour.
On 28 May 2020 Neil Finn, featuring Nicks and McVie, with Campbell on guitar, released the song “Find Your Way Back Home” for the Auckland, New Zealand homeless shelter Auckland City Mission.
Founding member Peter Green died on 25 July 2020 at the age of 73. In October 2020, Rumours again entered the Billboard top 10. The album received 30.6 million plays on streaming platforms the week of October 15, after a TikTok video of the song "Dreams" went viral.
On 30 November 2022, it was announced that band member Christine McVie died at the age of 79, after a short illness.
Can't Go Back
Fleetwood Mac Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The man I used to be
Wanna go back
(Can't go back, can't go back)
Melodies awaken
Sorrows from their sleep
Wanna go back
(Can't go back, can't go back)
She was just a dream maker
Dreamer of sighs
Shadow on the one who used to cry
A face as soft as a tear in a clown's eye
Wanna go back
(Can't go back, can't go back)
She was just a dream maker
Dreamer of sighs
Shadow on the one who used to cry
A face as soft as a tear in a clown's eye
wanna go back
(Can't go back, can't go back)
In Fleetwood Mac's song "Can't Go Back," written by Lindsey Buckingham, the singer reminisces about his past and yearns to return to it. The opening line, "Standin' in the shadows the man I used to be," implies that the singer is stuck in the present, unable to move on from his past, which is amplifying his desire to go back. The repetition of "I wanna go back, (can't go back, can't go back)" suggests a sense of finality, of having missed his chance to return to his idealized past.
The second verse introduces the subject of his nostalgia: "She was just a dream maker, dreamer of sighs / Shadow on the one who used to cry / A face as soft as a tear in a clown's eye." This is a poetic description of a woman who brought comfort and joy to his past, with the "shadow on the one who used to cry" hinting at some perhaps troubled times he has been through. The phrase "A face as soft as a tear in a clown's eye" is particularly interesting, as it portrays the woman's ability to lift his spirits while also acknowledging the reality of that past period. The repetition of "I wanna go back" highlights his deep yearning to be with this person again.
Overall, "Can't Go Back" is a reflection on the power of nostalgia to inspire a longing for the past, even if it's not possible to return to those moments. It captures the bittersweet feeling of looking back on happy memories with a sense of regret and a desire to re-experience them.
Line by Line Meaning
Standin' in the shadows
I'm living a life in the background, hiding from the responsibilities I used to have.
The man I used to be
I'm not the same person I used to be, and it's hard to see myself in my current state.
I wanna go back
(can't go back, can't go back)
I yearn to relive the past, but I know it's not possible, and that reality is painful.
Melodies awaken
Sorrows from their sleep
Hearing old songs reminds me of past sadness, which I've tried to forget.
She was just a dream maker,
Dreamer of sighs
Shadow on the one who used to cry
A face as soft as a tear in a clown's eye
This woman brought me joy when I was sad, and though she's gone now, I can't stop thinking about her.
I wanna go back
(can't go back, can't go back)
Once again, I feel the pull of the past, even though it's impossible to return.
Lyrics © HIPGNOSIS SONGS GROUP, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Lindsey Buckingham
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Henri Hudson
on Tusk
Why don't you ask him if he's going to stay?
Why don't you ask him if he's going away?