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.
Rattle Snake Shake
Fleetwood Mac Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I got to be your rockin' horse
Baby, think you'd like to roll
Maybe your diggin' it more
They're shakin' the world
When it's time to crash
But when I get home tonight
I guess I got to shake myself
You need some love
You must have the blues
Ain't but the one thing
A good man can do
He do the shake
The rattlesnake shake
Man, do the shake
Yes, and jerk away the blues
Now, jerk it
Now, I know this guy
His name is mick
Now, he don't care when he ain't got no chick
He do the shake
The rattlesnake shake
Yes, he do the shake
And jerks away the blues
Now, jerk it
The lyrics of Fleetwood Mac's "Rattle Snake Shake" are suggestive of a night out with a lover or friend, seeking excitement, and looking for ways to escape from the mundane routine of everyday life. The singer acknowledges the reality that life can be challenging and offers himself as a solution to his lover's blues. He offers his love as a way to distract her from her problems and offers to be her "rockin’ horse." He encourages her to embrace the moment and live in the present by rocking and rolling. He acknowledges the fact that the world will crash when people party wildly, but shirks away from worrying about the repercussions, instead resolving to shake himself when he gets home.
The singer's intentions might be to distract his partner from the world's turmoil, but the lyrics also indicate that he may be a bit self-centered. He fixates on his self-indulgent role as the life of the party, the one who can "jerk away the blues," rather than genuinely empathizing with his lover's difficulties. The song's lyrics suggest that the central message of the song is to enjoy life despite its ups and downs, but without losing sight of reality.
Line by Line Meaning
Baby, if you got to rock
If you want to rock, I'll be your rockin' horse
Baby, think you'd like to roll
Maybe you prefer to roll instead
Maybe your diggin' it more
Perhaps rolling is more your thing
They're shakin' the world
People are causing a sensation and making things exciting
When it's time to crash
When things get out of control
But when I get home tonight
But when I get back to my personal life
I guess I got to shake myself
I need to reset and let go of the craziness
You need some love
You require some love and affection
You must have the blues
You are feeling very sad
Ain't but the one thing
There's only one solution
A good man can do
A man can help
He do the shake
He does the rattlesnake shake
The rattlesnake shake
A dance that helps shake off the blues
Man, do the shake
Come on, do the rattlesnake shake
Yes, and jerk away the blues
Move your body and let go of your sadness
Now, jerk it
Let's dance and shake it off together
Now, I know this guy
Let me tell you a story about this guy I know
His name is mick
His name is Mick
Now, he don't care when he ain't got no chick
Mick doesn't mind being alone
He do the shake
He does the rattlesnake shake
Yes, he do the shake
Yes, he performs the rattlesnake shake
And jerks away the blues
And dances to forget his sadness
Now, jerk it
Let's all dance and shake it off
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: NIKKI SIXX, MICK MARS, TOMMY LEE, VINCE NEIL
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?