''Fleetwood Mac'' is the tenth studio album by British-American rock 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 epo ...

, released on 11 July 1975 by

Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels. Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Enya, Michael ...

. It was the band's second eponymous album, the first being their 1968 debut album; it is sometimes referred to among fans as the White Album. This was the first Fleetwood Mac album with

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 ...

as guitarist 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 ...

as vocalist, after

Bob Welch Bob Welch may refer to: *Bob Welch (baseball) (1956–2014), American baseball pitcher *Bob Welch (author) (born c. 1955), American author and newspaper columnist *Bob Welch (musician) (1945–2012), American musician and member of Fleetwood Mac ** ...

departed the band in late 1974. It was also the band's last album to be released on the

Reprise In music, a reprise ( , ; from the verb 'to resume') is the repetition or reiteration of the opening material later in a composition as occurs in the recapitulation of sonata form, though—originally in the 18th century—was simply any repe ...

label until 1997's '' The Dance'' (the band's subsequent albums until then were released through Warner Bros. Records, Reprise's parent company). The album peaked at number one on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart dated 4 September 1976, 58 weeks after entering the chart, and spawned three top-twenty singles: " Over My Head", "

Rhiannon Rhiannon is a major figure in the Mabinogi, the medieval Welsh story collection. She appears mainly in the First Branch of the Mabinogi, and again in the Third Branch. She is a strong-minded Otherworld woman, who chooses Pwyll, prince of Dyfe ...

", and " Say You Love Me", the last two falling just short of the top ten, both at number 11. It has been certified seven times platinum by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

(RIAA) for sales of over seven million copies. Peaking at number 23 on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...

, it was a prelude to a run of hugely successful albums for the band in Britain, including four number ones: '' Rumours'', ''

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 ...

'', ''

Tango in the Night ''Tango in the Night'' is the fourteenth studio album by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac, released on 13 April 1987. It is the fifth and final studio album from the band's most successful lineup of Lindsey Buckingham, Mick Fleetwood, ...

'', and '' Behind the Mask''.

Background

In 1974, Fleetwood Mac relocated from England to California to manage the band's affairs better. In California, they recorded an album, ''

Heroes Are Hard to Find ''Heroes Are Hard to Find'' is the ninth studio album by the British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac, released on 13 September 1974. This is the last album recorded with Bob Welch, who left the band at the end of 1974. It was the first Fleetwoo ...

'', and set out on tour. Shortly after finishing the tour,

(guitarist, singer, and composer) left the band, ending Fleetwood Mac's ninth lineup in eight years, to join the band

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

. Now looking for both a new guitarist and a recording studio,

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 t ...

met with producer

Keith Olsen Keith Alan Olsen (May 12, 1945 – March 9, 2020) was an American record producer and sound engineer, who worked with Magnum, Rick Springfield, Fleetwood Mac, Ozzy Osbourne, the Grateful Dead, Whitesnake, Pat Benatar, Heart, Santana, Saga, ...

Sound City Studios Sound City Studios is a recording studio in Los Angeles, California, known as one of the most successful in popular music. The complex opened in 1969 in the Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles. The facility had previously been a production facto ...

to listen to some demos. There, Olsen played Fleetwood an album he had recently engineered, titled ''

Buckingham Nicks ''Buckingham Nicks'' is the only studio album by the duo of American rock guitarist Lindsey Buckingham and singer Stevie Nicks, both of whom later joined Fleetwood Mac. Produced by Keith Olsen, the album was released in September 1973 by Pol ...

''. Fleetwood particularly enjoyed the guitar solo on the song "Frozen Love", and decided to hire both Olsen and the guitarist,

. However, Buckingham would not accept Fleetwood's offer unless he agreed to also hire Buckingham's musical and romantic partner,

, even though they were close to breaking up. After an informal interview at a Mexican restaurant, Mick Fleetwood invited both Buckingham and Nicks to join the band, and this tenth lineup of the band proved to be its most successful. Within three months, the band had recorded the album ''Fleetwood Mac''. During the recording sessions, bassist

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 Fle ...

took offence to Buckingham's assertive nature in the studio, particularly when telling the other band members what he wanted them to play. McVie informed Buckingham that "The band you're in is Fleetwood Mac. I'm the Mac. And I play the bass." Many of the songs on ''Fleetwood Mac'' were written before Buckingham and Nicks joined the band. "

", "

I'm So Afraid "I'm So Afraid" is a song written by Lindsey Buckingham for the British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac for their tenth album, ''Fleetwood Mac''. The song was intended for a second Buckingham Nicks album, but the album never came to fruition. ...

", and " Monday Morning" were written and performed live by the duo and were initially slated to appear on a second Buckingham Nicks album. "Crystal" was recycled from the first Buckingham Nicks album, but with a different arrangement. Like all of the band's studio albums except '' The Dance'' (1997), the front cover photo of ''Fleetwood Mac'' does not show the whole band, including, in this case, only drummer Mick Fleetwood (standing) and bass guitarist John McVie (kneeling).

Release and reception

''Fleetwood Mac'' was released on 11 July 1975. Though the band experienced only modest success immediately after the release, they were determined to promote their new album, and, after touring doggedly for several months, they started to see the results of their hard work. In an interview with ''Uncut'', Stevie Nicks said of the album: "We just played everywhere and we sold that record. We kicked that album in the ass." It took fifteen months, but ''Fleetwood Mac'' eventually reached the top of the US charts. In 2003, the album was ranked number 182 on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' Magazine's list of "

The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indust ...

", maintaining the ranking in a 2012 revised list.

Singles

All of the singles that derived from ''Fleetwood Mac'' used mixes of the songs different from those used on the album (and occasionally different takes, as in the case of "Over My Head"). A "single mix" was also created for "Blue Letter", and this mix was only available as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

of the "Warm Ways" single from 1975 until it was included as a bonus track on the 2004 re-issue of the album (along with an instrumental called "Jam #2" and the single versions of "Say You Love Me", "Rhiannon (Will You Ever Win)", and "Over My Head"). In the US, the album spawned three top twenty singles: " Over My Head", "

", and " Say You Love Me", the last two falling just short of the top ten, both at number 11. A version of "

Landslide Landslides, also known as landslips, are several forms of mass wasting that may include a wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls, deep-seated slope failures, mudflows, and debris flows. Landslides occur in a variety of environmen ...

" taken from the live reunion album '' The Dance'' was released as a single in the US in 1998 and reached number 51 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In the UK, the album's first single was " Warm Ways", which was not released as a single in the US. Initially, the album generated limited interest in the UK, and the first three singles released by the new lineup failed to enter the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, while " Say You Love Me" reached number 40. Following the massive success of '' Rumours'' two years later, however, interest in the band reignited, ''Fleetwood Mac'' was re-released in 1978, and a reissue of "

" peaked just outside the top 40, at number 46.

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number 183 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart dated 2 August 1975. It eventually reached its peak at number one on the chart dated 4 September 1976, which was 58 weeks after it had entered the chart. On 11 September 2018, the album was certified seven times platinum by the

(RIAA) for sales of over seven million copies in the United States. In the UK, the album debuted at number 49 on the

dated 6 November 1976. It peaked at number 23 its second week on the chart. On 5 July 1978, the album was certified gold by the

British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with ...

(BPI) for sales of over 100,000 copies in the UK.

Track listing

Personnel

Fleetwood Mac *

– electric, acoustic, and resonator guitar, banjo, vocals *

– vocals *

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 ...

– keyboards, synthesizer, vocals *

– bass guitar *

– drums, percussion Additional personnel *

Waddy Wachtel Robert "Waddy" Wachtel (born May 24, 1947) is an American musician, composer and record producer, most notable for his guitar work. Wachtel has worked as session musician for other artists such as Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Nicks, Kim Carnes, Randy ...

– rhythm guitar on "Sugar Daddy" Production *Producers: Fleetwood Mac & Keith Olsen *Engineer: Keith Olsen *2nd Engineer: David Devore *Photograph: Herbert W. Worthington III

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

Bibliography

* * * {{Authority control 1975 albums Albums produced by Keith Olsen Fleetwood Mac albums Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Reprise Records albums Albums produced by John McVie Albums produced by Mick Fleetwood Albums produced by Christine McVie Albums produced by Lindsey Buckingham Albums recorded at Sound City Studios