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.
Smile at You
Fleetwood Mac Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You love someone else, I shouldn't be here
Don't ask me why, you know the answer
If she's so willing, little one
There was no chance there
I have come to know
This world of changing faces
I can't change it, so be true to me
My walls are flamin'
If she's so willing, little one
I won't be staying
Ah, ah (turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
Ah, ah I should have (I should've turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
I am older now, but I still remember
I took the greatest fall, I can't accept her
So be true to me, my walls are flamin'
If she's so willing, little one
I won't be staying
Ah, ah (turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
Ah, ah I should have (I should've turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
Ah, ah I should have (turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
Ah, ah I should have (I should've turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah I should have (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
What you did not need
Was a woman who was stronger
You needed someone to depend on you
I could not be her, I did not want to
My first mistake, was to smile at you
Smile at you
Go on save yourself, leave the key here
You love someone else, I shouldn't be here
Don't ask me why, you know the answer
If she's so willing, little one
There was no chance there
Ah, ah (turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
Ah, ah I should have (I should've turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
Ah, ah I should have (turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
Ahh
Go on save yourself, leave the key here
You love someone else, I shouldn't be here
Go on save yourself, go on save yourself
I shouldn't be here
I shouldn't be here
I shouldn't be here
The song "Smile at You" by Fleetwood Mac tells the story of a woman who realizes that she is not the right person for the man she loves. She knows that he needs someone who can depend on him and be weaker than him, and she knows that she cannot be that person. She tells him to leave and save himself from the heartbreak that she knows is coming. The lyrics in the chorus lament the fact that she didn't turn away and run when she had the chance, but instead smiled at him, knowing that she was making a mistake.
The lyrics are very emotional and the melody is reflective of that. The haunting guitar riff and the soft background harmonies make the song sound both sad and hopeful at the same time. It's a song about accepting the past and moving on, even when it's painful to do so.
Overall, "Smile at You" is a beautiful song that showcases Fleetwood Mac's musical prowess, as well as their ability to write lyrics that are both meaningful and poignant.
Line by Line Meaning
Go on, save yourself, leave the key here
Leave and don't stay with me because you love someone else and it's best for you.
You love someone else, I shouldn't be here
I know you're in love with someone else and I realize I shouldn't be here with you.
Don't ask me why, you know the answer
I don't want to be with you, and you know the reason why.
If she's so willing, little one
There was no chance there
If the other woman was so willing to be with you, there was never a chance for us.
I have come to know
This world of changing faces
I can't fight the world
I can't change it, so be true to me
My walls are flamin'
I have learned that the world is always changing, and I can't change it. But you can be true to me while my emotions are running high.
Ah, ah (turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
Ah, ah I should have (I should've turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
I should have turned away and ran from you as fast as I can.
I am older now, but I still remember
I took the greatest fall, I can't accept her
So be true to me, my walls are flamin'
I am older now, but I still remember the pain of falling for you. I can't accept the other woman, so please be true to me while I am in emotional turmoil.
What you did not need
Was a woman who was stronger
You needed someone to depend on you
I could not be her, I did not want to
My first mistake, was to smile at you
Smile at you
You didn't need a strong woman, you needed someone weaker who depended on you. I couldn't be her, and my mistake was showing you my vulnerability by smiling at you.
Ah, ah I should have (turned away and ran, I should've turned away and ran)
Ah, ah (fast as I can just as fast as I can)
Ahh
Once again, I realize I should have turned away and ran from you as fast as I can.
Go on save yourself, leave the key here
You love someone else, I shouldn't be here
Don't ask me why, you know the answer
If she's so willing, little one
There was no chance there
Leave me and save yourself because you love someone else, and I am aware. I don't want to be with you and you know why, so let's not pretend. If the other woman was so willing, there was never a chance for us.
I shouldn't be here
I shouldn't be here
I shouldn't be here
I shouldn't be here with you because I know it's wrong and you are in love with someone else.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Stephanie Nicks
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?