"Oh Daddy" is a song written by

Christine McVie Christine Anne McVie (; née Perfect; 12 July 1943 – 30 November 2022) was an English musician and songwriter. She was best known as keyboardist and one of the vocalists of the band Fleetwood Mac. McVie was a member of several bands, nota ...

that was first performed by the British-American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac are a British-American rock band, formed in London in 1967. Fleetwood Mac were founded by guitarist Peter Green, drummer Mick Fleetwood and guitarist Jeremy Spencer, before bassist John McVie joined the line-up for their epony ...

as the tenth song off their 1977 album '' Rumours''.

Background

Christine McVie wrote "Oh Daddy" for the band's drummer,

Mick Fleetwood Michael John Kells Fleetwood (born 24 June 1947) is a British musician, songwriter and occasional actor. He is best known as the drummer, co-founder, and leader of the rock band Fleetwood Mac. Fleetwood, whose surname was merged with that of th ...

. At the time, Fleetwood was the only father in the band, with two daughters. Fleetwood has described the song as one of his favorite Fleetwood Mac songs of all time. However, both

Lindsey Buckingham Lindsey Adams Buckingham (born October 3, 1949) is an American musician and record producer, best known as the lead guitarist and male lead vocalist of the band Fleetwood Mac from 1975 to 1987 and 1997 to 2018. In addition to his tenure with Fl ...

's former girlfriend Carol Ann Harris and

Stevie Nicks Stephanie Lynn Nicks (born May 26, 1948) is an American singer, songwriter, and producer known for her work with the band Fleetwood Mac and as a solo artist. After starting her career as a duo with her then-boyfriend Lindsey Buckingham, releasi ...

' biographer Zoe Howe have written that the song was originally written for the band's lighting director, who McVie had been dating at the time. Both Harris and Howe contend McVie only later claimed that the song was written for Fleetwood. Producer

Ken Caillat Kenneth Douglas Caillat ( ) is an American record producer. He is best known for engineering the Fleetwood Mac albums '' Rumours'', ''Tusk'', ''Mirage'', ''Live'', and '' The Chain Box Set''. Life and career Caillat was the president of 5.1 Ent ...

described "Oh Daddy" as "a beautiful, airy song." He noted that getting the proper

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

was particularly tricky since it sounded rushed at a quicker tempo but lethargic at a slower pace. Fleetwood Mac biographer Cath Carroll praised McVie's vocal and likened the song to a "sexy, old English version of

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

' '

Fool to Cry "Fool to Cry" is a ballad by English rock band the Rolling Stones from their 1976 album ''Black and Blue''. The song was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. Mick Taylor had just left the band and the Stones were left without a lead guitar ...

'." During the ''Rumours'' sessions, the band jokingly referred to the song as 'Addy' due to a technical mishap. Caillat had made the mistake while playing back a take. "We were going to do some overdubs, and while rewinding the tape, a portable tape oscillator fell on the machine, sending it into free-wheel – the reels were spinning out of control. I jumped on the machine to stop it - and snapped the tape! Oh, man... aughsWe listened back and there it was: ‘Oh ‘addy.’ The ‘D’ part of Christine’s vocal was cut off. My heart sunk." Near the end of one take, Christine McVie played random notes on her keyboard to grab the attention of the engineers in the

control room A control room or operations room is a central space where a large physical facility or physically dispersed service can be monitored and controlled. It is often part of a larger command center. Overview A control room's purpose is produc ...

. The band opted to keep these unplanned additions in the final version of the song. In 1978, it was released as a single in Japan, with " I Don't Want to Know" as the B-side. "Oh Daddy" was played consistently throughout the band's '' Rumours'' and ''

Tusk Tusks are elongated, continuously growing front teeth that protrude well beyond the mouth of certain mammal species. They are most commonly canine teeth, as with pigs and walruses, or, in the case of elephants, elongated incisors. Tusks share c ...

'' world tours, and resurfaced for the 1997 ''The Dance'' tour before disappearing once again.

Personnel

– piano,

Hammond B3 Hammond may refer to: People * Hammond Innes (1913–1998), English novelist * Hammond (surname) * Justice Hammond (disambiguation) Places Antarctica * Hammond Glacier, Antarctica Australia *Hammond, South Australia, a small settlement in South ...

, Moog, lead vocals *

– drums,

castanets Castanets, also known as ''clackers'' or ''palillos'', are a percussion instrument (idiophone), used in Spanish, Kalo, Moorish, Ottoman, Italian, Sephardic, Swiss, and Portuguese music. In ancient Greece and ancient Rome there was a similar ...

gong A gongFrom Indonesian and ms, gong; jv, ꦒꦺꦴꦁ ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ja, , dora; km, គង ; th, ฆ้อง ; vi, cồng chiêng; as, কাঁহ is a percussion instrument originating in East Asia and Southeast Asia. Gongs ...

John McVie John Graham McVie (born 26 November 1945) is a British bass guitarist. He is best known as a member of the rock bands John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers from 1964 to 1967 and Fleetwood Mac since 1967. His surname, combined with that of Mick Fleet ...

– bass guitar *

– acoustic guitars, electric guitars, backing vocals *

– backing vocals

References

{{Authority control 1977 songs Fleetwood Mac songs Songs written by Christine McVie Song recordings produced by Ken Caillat Song recordings produced by Richard Dashut 1978 singles