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.
Over & Over
Fleetwood Mac Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And would you know how? Yeah
Don't waste our time, tell me now
All you have to do
Is speak out my name, yeah
And I would come running any way
Could it be me?
Could it really, really be?
Over and over (ooh)
Could it really, really be?
Oh, over and over
Ooh-ooh-ooh
Ooh-ooh-ooh
Oh I said
Could it be me?
Could it really, really be?
Over and over (ooh)
Could it really, really be?
Don't turn me away
And don't let me down, yeah
What can I do
To keep you around? (Ooh)
Over and over
Over and over (ooh, ooh)
Over and over
Over and over (ooh, ooh)
Over and over
Over and over
Over and over (ooh, ooh)
The lyrics of the song Over & Over by Fleetwood Mac speaks of a strong desire for someone and a willingness to do anything to keep that person around. The opening lines pose a question to the person being addressed, asking whether they need the singer and if they know how to express that need. The singer then urges the person not to waste their time and be upfront with their intentions.
The chorus of the song focuses on the singer's desires and hopes that they could be the one for the person they desire. It speaks of repeating cycles of hope and doubt that the person may reciprocate the singer's feelings. The singer pleads with the person not to turn them away and expresses a willingness to do whatever it takes to keep that person around.
Overall, the song speaks about the desire for a meaningful relationship, the fear of rejection, and the hope that someone could reciprocate those feelings. It expresses the vulnerability of love and the uncertainty that comes with it.
Line by Line Meaning
Could you ever need me?
Can you depend on me?
And would you know how? Yeah
If you needed me, would you know how to ask?
Don't waste our time, tell me now
Let's not waste each other's time, tell me what you need and want now
All you have to do
It's simple
Is speak out my name, yeah
Just call upon me by name
And I would come running any way
I will come to you immediately
And I said
In response,
Could it be me?
Am I the one you are searching for?
Could it really, really be?
Is it possible?
Over and over (ooh)
Again and again
Could it really, really be?
Is it really possible?
Oh, over and over
Continuously
Ooh-ooh-ooh
Ooh-ooh-ooh
Oh I said
I asked
Don't turn me away
Please don't reject me
And don't let me down, yeah
And please don't disappoint me
What can I do
What should I do
To keep you around? (Ooh)
To make you stay with me?
Over and over
Again and again
Over and over (ooh, ooh)
Repeatedly
Over and over
Again and again
Over and over (ooh, ooh)
Repeatedly
Over and over
Again and again
Over and over (ooh, ooh)
Repeatedly
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Christine McVie
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?