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.
Honey Hush
Fleetwood Mac Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Come on in this house, stop all that yakety-yak
'Cause your sugar daddy don't want no talkin' back
You keep on a-tellin', talkin' 'bout this and that
Well, you keep on a-talkin', talkin' 'bout this and that
I got news for you, ain't nothin' but an alleycat
Turn off the waterworks, baby, they don't move me no more
When I leave this time, I ain't comin' back no more, honey hush
I said come in this house, stop all that yakety-yak
Come on in this house, woman, stop all that yakety-yak
Don't make me nervous, I'm holdin' a baseball bat
Well, it's a hi-ho, a hi-ho silver
A hi-ho, a hi-ho silver, hi-ho, a hi-ho silver
Hi-ho, a hi-ho silver, hi-ho, hi-ho silver away
The lyrics of "Honey Hush" by Fleetwood Mac express a stern warning to a talkative woman to stop her chattering and show some respect to her partner. The song talks about a sugar daddy who is tired of his woman's constant talking about irrelevant stuff. The opening lines of the song address this issue, urging the woman to come into the house and stop talking. The sugar daddy has no interest in listening to her conversation anymore. He wants her to stop wasting his time in unworthy conversations; hence says, "Cause your sugar daddy don't want no talkin' back."
The sugar daddy acknowledges the woman's talking habits but states that he is not a fool. He describes her as an "alleycat" who is always busy gossiping, but he knows better than to fall for her words. He makes it clear that her endless talking has led him to the point where he is no longer interested in seeing her tears. The line "Turn off the waterworks, baby, they don't move me no more" portrays how the woman tries to get her way by playing emotional games. However, the sugar daddy is past this and warns the woman that he is leaving, and when he is gone, he won't be coming back.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, come in this house, stop all that yakety-yak
Invitation for the listener to come inside the house and stop talking unnecessarily
Come on in this house, stop all that yakety-yak
Repetition of the invitation for the listener to enter the house and stop talking too much
'Cause your sugar daddy don't want no talkin' back
The person being addressed needs to be quiet and not argue back, as their 'sugar daddy' (ie. wealthy lover) doesn't like it
You keep on a-tellin', talkin' 'bout this and that
The person being addressed continues to talk about various things
Well, you keep on a-talkin', talkin' 'bout this and that
Repetition of the above line - the person being addressed is still talking too much
I got news for you, ain't nothin' but an alleycat
The person being addressed is referred to as an 'alleycat', a term that suggests someone who is promiscuous and/or untrustworthy
Turn off the waterworks, baby, they don't move me no more
The person being addressed is likely crying or trying to evoke an emotional response, but the singer is not affected by this tactic anymore
When I leave this time, I ain't comin' back no more, honey hush
The artist has had enough of the person being addressed and is ending the relationship for good
I said come in this house, stop all that yakety-yak
Reiteration of the original invitation to enter the house and stop talking too much
Come on in this house, woman, stop all that yakety-yak
The artist specifically addresses the woman and asks her to stop talking unnecessarily
Don't make me nervous, I'm holdin' a baseball bat
The singer is feeling threatened by the person being addressed and is holding a baseball bat for protection
Well, it's a hi-ho, a hi-ho silver
An exclamation of excitement
A hi-ho, a hi-ho silver, hi-ho, a hi-ho silver
Repetition of the above line
Hi-ho, a hi-ho silver, hi-ho, hi-ho silver away
A reference to the Lone Ranger's catchphrase, conveying a sense of escaping from a difficult situation or leaving quickly
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LOU WILLIE TURNER
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?