Vinyl of the Week - 24 May 2020

Rumors, Fleetwood Mac

This week we delve into an album that is considered to be the pinnacle of Fleetwood Mac’s many works and one of the best albums of the 1970’s. Released in February 1977, Rumours was the bands 11th album and went on to top the US and UK charts, selling close to 45 million copies worldwide. At the time they were at the peak of their success but in a very delicate state following the breakdown of the marriage of Christine and John McVie, the split between long time lovers Stevie Nicks and Lindsay Buckingham, and Mick Fleetwood discovering his wife’s affair. Out of this emotional trauma came an album that is musically brilliant, full of heart-felt lyrics and classic harmonies. Every track on this album has its own inner story and the band cites the turmoil of their personal lives as a huge factor in its creation. Two of the standout tracks for me are ‘Go Your Own Way’ and ‘Dreams’, Mick Fleetwood crediting the unusual drumming pattern on the former as the by-product of his dyslexia. The aim was to create a syncopated rhythm inspired by Charlie Watts of the Stones but resulted in his own unique beat that turned out to be a much better fit for the song. ‘Dreams’ took Stevie Nicks only 10 minutes to write with an electronic keyboard while hanging out in the bedroom studio of Sly Stone and went on to be the band’s only number one single in the US. A great listen with a back story to rival any, Rumours is another must have album - DS