Publisher Description

Fleetwood Mac's distinctive sound, first really captured in the 1977 record Rumours, launched the group into the commercial stratosphere, and over the past three decades they have never looked back. All along the way their dysfunctional relationships have informed their professional success, as well as their personal downfalls. By writing and singing about their problems, Fleetwood Mac has transformed what breaks them apart into what keeps them together. They have turned their dark relationship dilemmas into glittering entertainment. In this highly entertaining chronicle, author Donald Brackett provides readers with a special opportunity to review the band's complicated history and reconsider the personal, dynamic sources of their classic albums and enduring hits.The band drummer Mick Fleetwood and bassist John McVie started in 1967 has gone through more personnel changes and stylistic innovations than any other pop group in our cultural history. The story of the group began when John Mayall and Alexis Korner, the band's mentors, launched a mid-'60s British blues revival. Ex-Mayall players Fleetwood and McVie then went on to form an incendiary band of psychedelic blues under the name Fleetwood Mac. But it was not until hearing a little-known 1973 record from Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks that Mick Fleetwood heard the future sound and true pop potential of his own group.

Author Biography

Donald Brackett is a Toronto-based art and music critic who specializes in contemporary popular culture subjects. He writes regularly for a wide cross section of national media, both in print and broadcast formats, among them: Globe and Mail, National Post, Canadian Art Magazine and Art in America. He has been the Executive Director of both the Professional Art Dealers Association and the Ontario Association of Art Galleries, and is currently on the faculty of Centennial College in Toronto, where he teaches The History of Art and The Business of Art. His forthcoming book, Dark Mirror: The Pathology of the Singer-Songwriter, will be published by Praeger.

Review

Forty years after their inception in 1967, Brackett recounts the history of the band Fleetwood Mac, from their blues roots and the addition of Christine McVie, Lindsey Buckingham, and Stevie Nicks, to their albums Rumours and Tusk. He also critically assesses their contribution to rock music, addresses their relationships with each other and how this affected the band, and looks at specific albums and songs from each era. * SciTech Book News *

Promotional

Chronicles the origins, the songs, and the ever-changing personal dynamics (extending through numerous breakups and reunions) of one of the most enduringly popular musical groups of the century.

Long Description

The band drummer Mick Fleetwood and bassist John McVie started in 1967 has gone through more personnel changes and stylistic innovations than any other pop group in our cultural history. The story of the group began when John Mayall and Alexis Korner, the band's mentors, launched a mid-'60s British blues revival. Ex-Mayall players Fleetwood and McVie then went on to form an incendiary band of psychedelic blues under the name Fleetwood Mac. But it was not until hearing a little-known 1973 record from Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks that Mick Fleetwood heard the future sound and true pop potential of his own group. Fleetwood Mac's new sound, captured in the 1977 record Rumours, launched the group into the commercial stratosphere, and over the past three decades they have never looked back. All along the way their dysfunctional relationships have informed their professional success, as well as their personal downfalls. By writing and singing about their problems, Fleetwood Mac has transformed what breaks them apart into what keeps them together. They have turned their dark relationship dilemmas into glittering entertainment. In this highly entertaining chronicle, author Donald Brackett provides readers with a special opportunity to review the band's complicated history and reconsider the personal, dynamic sources of their classic albums and enduring hits.

Review Quote

"Forty years after their inception in 1967, Brackett recounts the history of the band Fleetwood Mac, from their blues roots and the addition of Christine McVie, Lindsey Buckingham, and Stevie Nicks, to their albums RumourS≪/i> and Tusk. He also critically assesses their contribution to rock music, addresses their relationships with each other and how this affected the band, and looks at specific albums and songs from each era." - SciTech Book News

Promotional "Headline"

Chronicles the origins, the songs, and the ever-changing personal dynamics (extending through numerous breakups and reunions) of one of the most enduringly popular musical groups of the century.

Details