Stevie Nicks became a star with Fleetwood Mac. Even though the band only wanted to add Lindsey Buckingham to the roster, he insisted Nicks join with him. She sacrificed to help make the band successful, including never having children. She almost made an even bigger sacrifice before she joined the Mac — Nicks nearly quit music entirely because of Buckingham.
Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham made an album together before joining Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac drummer Mick Fleetwood might have been one of the few people who heard the album Nicks and Buckingham made together. Buckingham Nicks must have made an impression on him because he asked Buckingham to join his band. The guitarist said yes, but only if Nicks joined, too. The rest is history.
In the two years after Buckingham and Nicks joined Fleetwood Mac in 1974, the group made their tenth and eleventh albums, titled Fleetwood Mac and Rumours, respectively. The two albums launched the band to new heights of fame.
The stardom and the drugs took a toll on Nicks and Buckingham’s relationship. A slew of affairs within the band and its circle nearly broke up the group. Things deteriorated to the point where Buckingham called out Nicks’ singing on the 1987 album Tango in the Night. That illustrates how toxic their relationship became, a far cry from when Nicks nearly quit music because of her love for Buckingham.
Nicks almost quit music because she wanted to support Buckingham
The relationship between Nicks and Buckingham wasn’t necessarily on the best of terms when they joined Fleetwood Mac. Their band, Fritz, splintered in the early 1970s. The record they made together flopped.
That’s when Nicks nearly quit music because of Buckingham. The talented guitarist played some sessions circa 1973 and seemed to have more prospects in the music industry. Nicks worked as a waitress in Los Angeles, making $1.50 an hour, and supporting him with her meager income, per Uncut:
“I believed that Lindsey shouldn’t have to work, that he should just lay on the floor and practice his guitar and become more brilliant every day. And as I watched him become more brilliant every day, I felt very gratified. I was totally devoted to making it happen for him. And when you really feel that way about somebody, it’s very easy to take your own personality and quiet it way down.”
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“If we hadn’t joined Fleetwood Mac, would Lindsey and I have carried on and made it? I was really tired of having no money and being a waitress. It’s very possible that I would have gone back to school and Lindsey would have gone back to San Francisco.”
Stevie Nicks
As he told Uncut, Nicks nearly walked away from her music career. If Fleetwood Mac hadn’t accepted both of them into the band, she likely would have ended their relationship and moved away. Playing in Fleetwood Mac meant Nicks didn’t have to quit music, but her fragile relationship with Buckingham seemed destined to end sooner or later.
They wrote some of Fleetwood Mac’s biggest hits
Would Fleetwood Mac have survived without Nicks and Buckingham? Would the world have ever the pair’s strong songwriting skills without the band? It’s the ultimate chicken or egg question.
What we do know is that they wrote eight of the 25 Fleetwood Mac songs to land on the Billboard singles chart. Nicks’ songs performed far better there than Buckingham’s tunes.
She wrote seven Mac songs that charted. Though bandmate Christine McVie found it boring, Nicks wrote the group’s only No. 1 hit, “Dreams.” She had another top-10 hit with “Sara” and saw “Gypsy” peak at No. 12 during its 14 weeks on the charts. Meanwhile, the lone Buckingham-written Fleetwood Mac song to chart was “Family Man” from Tango in the Night.
They stayed a couple long enough to make a record together and join Fleetwood Mac as a tandem, but Stevie Nicks almost quit music because of Lindsey Buckingham. She worked as a waitress to support his music dream. Buckingham returned the favor and brought her into Fleetwood Mac, and music got to hear several hit songs because of her fortitude.
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