Fleetwood Mac (1975 album)

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Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac - Fleetwood Mac (1975).png
Studio album by
Fleetwood Mac
Released11 July 1975
RecordedJanuary–February 1975
StudioSound City Studios, Van Nuys, California
Genre
Length42:12
LabelReprise
Producer
Fleetwood Mac chronology
Heroes Are Hard to Find
(1974) 		Fleetwood Mac
(1975) 		Rumours
(1977)
Singles from Fleetwood Mac
  1. "Over My Head"
    Released: 24 September 1975 (US)[3]
  2. "Warm Ways"
    Released: September 1975 (UK)
  3. "Rhiannon"
    Released: February 1976 (US)
  4. "Say You Love Me"
    Released: June 1976 (US)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic5/5 stars[1]
Blender4/5 stars[4]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music4/5 stars[5]
Entertainment WeeklyA[6]
Mojo4/5 stars[2]
Pitchfork9.0/10[7]
Q4/5 stars[8]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide4.5/5 stars[9]
Uncut9/10[10]
The Village VoiceA−[11]

Fleetwood Mac is the tenth studio album by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac, released on 11 July 1975 by Reprise Records. It was the band's second eponymous album, the first being their 1968 debut album. Among Fleetwood Mac fans, the album is often referred to as The White Album.[12] This is the first Fleetwood Mac album with Lindsey Buckingham as guitarist and Stevie Nicks as vocalist, after Bob Welch departed the band in late 1974. The album was also the band's last to be released on the Reprise 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.[13] The album also spawned three top twenty singles: "Over My Head", "Rhiannon" and "Say You Love Me", the last two falling just short of the top ten, both at number 11. The album was certified seven times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over seven million copies.[14] The album eventually peaked at number 23 on the UK Albums Chart[15] but was a prelude to a run of hugely successful albums for the band in Britain, including four number ones: Rumours, Tusk, Tango in the Night and Behind the Mask.[16]

Background[]

In 1974, Fleetwood Mac relocated from England to California to manage the band's affairs better.[17] In California, they recorded another album, Heroes Are Hard to Find, and set out on tour. Shortly after finishing the tour, Bob Welch (guitarist, singer, and composer) left the band, ending Fleetwood Mac's ninth lineup in eight years,[18] to join the band Paris.[17] Now looking for both a new guitarist and a recording studio, Mick Fleetwood met with producer Keith Olsen at Sound City Studios to listen to some demos.[17][18] There, Olsen played Fleetwood an album he had recently engineered, titled Buckingham Nicks.[17] Fleetwood particularly enjoyed the guitar solo on the song "Frozen Love",[18] and decided to hire both Olsen and the guitarist, Lindsey Buckingham.[17] However, Buckingham would not accept Fleetwood's offer unless he agreed to also hire Buckingham's musical and romantic partner, Stevie Nicks.[18] After an informal interview at a Mexican restaurant, Mick Fleetwood invited both Buckingham and Nicks to join the band.[18] Within three months, the band had recorded the album Fleetwood Mac.[18] The band's tenth lineup proved to be their most successful. However at the time, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks were close to breaking up when they joined the band.[18] This tension ultimately helped inspire the band's next album, Rumours.[17]

During the recording sessions, bassist John McVie took offence to Buckingham's assertive nature in the studio, particularly when telling other members what he wanted them to play. McVie informed Buckingham that this would not be tolerated. "The band you're in is Fleetwood Mac. I'm the Mac. And I play the bass".[19]

Many of the songs on Fleetwood Mac were written before Buckingham and Nicks joined the band. "Rhiannon", "I'm So Afraid", 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.[20]

Promotion and release[]

Fleetwood Mac was released on 11 July 1975.[18][21] Though the band only experienced modest success immediately after the release, they were determined to promote their new album.[18] After touring doggedly for several months, the band started seeing the results of their hard work.[18] 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."[18] Fifteen months after the release of Fleetwood Mac, the album climbed to the top of the US charts.[18]

All singles from Fleetwood Mac are remixes (and occasional outright alternate takes, as in the case of "Over My Head"), noticeably different from the album versions, as included on the 2004 re-issue. A 'single mix' was also created for "Blue Letter" and this version was originally only available as the B-side to the "Warm Ways" single from 1975.[16]

In 2003, the album was ranked number 182 on Rolling Stone Magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time",[22] maintaining the rating in a 2012 revised list.[23]

Like all of the band's studio albums except The Dance (1997), the front cover photo does not show the whole band.[24] That of Fleetwood Mac depicts only drummer Mick Fleetwood and bass guitarist John McVie.

Singles[]

"Warm Ways" was the first single lifted from the album in 1975 in the UK.[16] It was not released as a single in the United States, where "Over My Head" was released instead. Initially, the album generated limited interest in the UK, as the first three singles released by the new lineup failed to chart. "Say You Love Me" charted on the UK Singles Chart and it reached number 40[15] Following the massive success of Rumours two years later, interest in the band re-ignited and Fleetwood Mac was re-released in 1978, along with the single "Rhiannon" which peaked just outside the top 40 at number 46.[16] In the United States, the album spawned three top twenty singles: "Over My Head", "Rhiannon" and "Say You Love Me", the last two falling just short of the top ten, both at number 11.

A live version of "Landslide" was eventually released as a single in the US in 1998 after it became one of the most popular tracks from the live reunion album The Dance. It reached number 51 on the US Billboard Hot 100.[16]

Commercial performance[]

Fleetwood Mac debuted at number 183 on the US Billboard 200 chart dated 2 August 1975.[25] The album eventually reached its peak at number one on the chart dated 4 September 1976, which was 58 weeks after entering the chart.[13] On 11 September 2018, the album was certified seven times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over seven million copies in the United States.[14]

In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number 49 on the UK Albums Chart dated 6 November 1976.[26] It then peaked at number 23 in its second week on the chart.[27] On 5 July 1978, the album was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for sales of over 100,000 copies in the UK.[28]

Track listing[]

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Monday Morning"Lindsey BuckinghamBuckingham2:48
2."Warm Ways"Christine McVieC. McVie3:54
3."Blue Letter"
  • Michael Curtis
  • Richard Curtis
Buckingham2:41
4."Rhiannon"Stevie NicksNicks4:11
5."Over My Head"C. McVieC. McVie3:38
6."Crystal"NicksBuckingham5:14
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Say You Love Me"C. McVieC. McVie4:11
2."Landslide"NicksNicks3:19
3."World Turning"
  • C. McVie
  • Buckingham
  • C. McVie
  • Buckingham
4:25
4."Sugar Daddy"C. McVieC. McVie4:10
5."I'm So Afraid"BuckinghamBuckingham4:22

Personnel[]

Fleetwood Mac

Additional personnel

Production

  • Producers: Fleetwood Mac & Keith Olsen
  • Engineer: Keith Olsen
  • 2nd Engineer: David Devore
  • Photograph: Herbert W. Worthington III

Charts[]

Certifications[]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[37] 4× Platinum 280,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[38] Platinum 100,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[28] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[14] 7× Platinum 7,000,000double-dagger

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
double-dagger Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Fleetwood Mac – Fleetwood Mac". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 December 2011.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "Fleetwood Mac: Fleetwood Mac". Mojo. No. 125. April 2004. p. 122.
  3. ^ "Fleetwood Mac – Over My Head". Dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  4. ^ Collis, Clark (April–May 2002). "Fleetwood Mac: Fleetwood Mac". Blender. No. 7. Archived from the original on 19 October 2006. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  5. ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). "Fleetwood Mac". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-85712-595-8.
  6. ^ Brunner, Rob (18 April 2003). "Then Play On; Bare Trees; Fleetwood Mac; Rumours; Tusk; Time". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  7. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (27 January 2018). "Fleetwood Mac: Fleetwood Mac". Pitchfork. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  8. ^ Doyle, Tom (February 2018). "California Dreaming". Q. No. 381. pp. 118–19.
  9. ^ Coleman, Mark; Kemp, Mark (2004). "Fleetwood Mac". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 303–304. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  10. ^ Williamson, Nigel (March 2018). "Fleetwood Mac: Fleetwood Mac". Uncut. No. 250. p. 42.
  11. ^ Christgau, Robert (1 December 1975). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
  12. ^ Gleason, Holly (29 May 2014). "The 20 Best Fleetwood Mac Songs of All Time". Paste. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
  13. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Albums". Billboard. Vol. 88 no. 52. 25 December 1976. ISSN 0006-2510.
  14. ^ Jump up to: a b c "American album certifications – Fleetwood Mac – Fleetwood Mac". Recording Industry Association of America.
  15. ^ Jump up to: a b Roberts 2006, p. 205.
  16. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Strong 2003.
  17. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Serpick, Evan. "Fleetwood Mac Biography". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
  18. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k l Williamson, Nigel (29 January 2013). "Fleetwood Mac: 'Everybody was pretty weirded out' – the story of Rumours". Uncut. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
  19. ^ Honingmann, David (9 January 2017). "The Life of a Song: Fleetwood Mac's the Chain". The Financial Times. Retrieved 24 February 2017.
  20. ^ Fleetwood & Bozza 2014, pp. 164, 169.
  21. ^ Giles, Jeff (11 July 2015). "Revisiting Fleetwood Mac's 1975 Breakthrough Album". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  22. ^ "500 Greatest Albums of All Time > 182: Fleetwood Mac, 'Fleetwood Mac'". Rolling Stone. 1 November 2003. Retrieved 18 June 2013.
  23. ^ "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. 31 May 2012. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  24. ^ DeGroot, Joey. "7 Album Cover Photos Without the Entire Band: Fleetwood Mac, R.E.M., and more". Music Times. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
  25. ^ "Top LPs & Tapes" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 87 no. 31. 2 August 1975. p. 64. ISSN 0006-2510.
  26. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 60: 31 October 1976 – 06 November 1976". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  27. ^ Jump up to: a b "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  28. ^ Jump up to: a b "British album certifications – Fleetwood Mac – Fleetwood Mac". British Phonographic Industry.
  29. ^ Jump up to: a b c Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  30. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 4349a". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  31. ^ "Charts.nz – Fleetwood Mac – Fleetwood Mac". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  32. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Fleetwood Mac – Fleetwood Mac". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  33. ^ "Fleetwood Mac – Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 24 March 2016. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  34. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Fleetwood Mac – Fleetwood Mac" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  35. ^ "Top 100 Albums of '76". RPM. Vol. 26 no. 14 & 15. 8 January 1977. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  36. ^ "Pop Albums". Billboard. Vol. 89 no. 51. 24 December 1977. ISSN 0006-2510.
  37. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1996 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  38. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Fleetwood Mac – Fleetwood Mac". Music Canada.

Bibliography[]

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