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.
Song Bird
Fleetwood Mac Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
For you, the sun will be shining.
And I feel that when I'm with you,
It's alright, I know it's right.
To you, I'll give the world.
To you, I'll never be cold.
'Cause I feel that when I'm with you,
And the songbirds are singing, like they know the score.
And I love you, I love you, I love you, like never before.
And I wish you all the love in the world.
But most of all, I wish it from myself.
And the songbirds keep singing, like they know the score
And I love you, I love you, I love you
Like never before, like never before, like never before.
The song "Songbird" by Fleetwood Mac is a love song that evokes a sense of pure, all-consuming love. The lyrics express the singer's desire to provide everything for their loved one, promising them a life without any more tears and filled with sun. When the singer is with the person they love, they feel a sense of ease and contentment knowing that what they have is right. The songbirds in the background represent the beauty that surrounds them, like nature is giving them its blessing.
The singer wishes their loved one all the love in the world, but most importantly, they wish to give that love themselves. The song ends with a repetition of the phrase "like never before," emphasizing the purity and strength of the love that the singer feels. It is a timeless love song that captures the feeling of being completely devoted to someone.
Line by Line Meaning
For you, there'll be no more crying.
I promise to make you happy and ensure you won't cry anymore.
For you, the sun will be shining.
I will do my best to make your life bright and full of joy.
And I feel that when I'm with you, It's alright, I know it's right.
Being beside you makes everything alright, I know we're meant to be together.
To you, I'll give the world.
I am willing to do anything for you, even if it means giving you the whole world.
To you, I'll never be cold.
You will always have my warmth and love, and I will never be emotionally distant from you.
'Cause I feel that when I'm with you, It's alright, I know it's right.
Being near you feels natural, and I'm confident that we have a strong connection.
And the songbirds are singing, like they know the score.
The birds around us are singing like they understand our love and how special it is.
And I love you, I love you, I love you, like never before.
My love for you is unique and unlike anything I've ever felt before.
And I wish you all the love in the world.
I hope that you experience as much love as you deserve and desire.
But most of all, I wish it from myself.
Especially, I want to be the one giving you that love.
And the songbirds keep singing, like they know the score.
The birds continue to sing as if they're aware of our unique love story.
And I love you, I love you, I love you, like never before, like never before, like never before.
I feel the need to express my love for you over and over again to emphasize how powerful it is.
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?