The Fleetwood Mac song Mick Fleetwood calls “almost” his favourite of all time: “It kills me”
With a studio discography spanning 35 years, Fleetwood Mac have penned more soft rock hits than most people could hope to even listen to. While other members came and went, Mick Fleetwood was present throughout. Initially recruited by founder Peter Green in 1967, Fleetwood is the only member who has been in the band for its entire lifespan.
At the helm of the drum kit, Fleetwood contributed percussion to early hits like ‘Rhiannon’ and ‘Say You Love Me’, the band’s magnum opus, Rumours in 1977 and their only 21st-century full-length studio recording, Say You Will in 2003. With a career now spanning six decades, he has earned his place as one of the greatest drummers of all time.
Fleetwood’s contributions to music are so extensive that picking a favourite track from such a lengthy career seems like an impossible feat – and perhaps it is. Even when Fleetwood has picked out his favourite Fleetwood Mac songs, his language has been tentative. He once named ‘Love That Burns’, from the band’s sophomore record, Mr. Wonderful, as “probably, almost” his favourite song.
Compared to much of their discography – and even their debut – Fleetwood Mac’s second full-length offering received a poor reception, so it’s surprising that Fleetwood takes his favourite track from the record. ‘Love That Burns’ featured on side one and was written by band founder Green and manager Clifford Davis. Slow and bluesy, the song is a far cry from the sprawling ‘The Chain’ or the glistening ‘Everywhere’.
Though it didn’t preempt the defining sound of Fleetwood Mac, Fleetwood remembers the song fondly, particularly for Green’s involvement and for showing the band in their enthusiastic infancy. “Peter Green. Fleetwood Mac. This is probably, almost, my favourite song. It kills me,” he enthused, “Peter kills me. He was my friend, remains a friend, and he started Fleetwood Mac with me in 1967.”
“This is me in my full-on training ground,” Fleetwood continued to explain, “This is the essence of playing ‘Oh Daddy’, the essence of what I was able to get out of playing a form of music that allowed me, as a young chap, to express myself so thoroughly, not only vicariously through Peter – because I loved his playing so much – but when I was privileged to be playing behind somebody so talented.”
“When I hear this, it’s all about a young chap, me, knowing why Peter was so overjoyed to be playing the music that he loved so much,” Fleetwood concluded. Though it may not sound like the Fleetwood Mac we now know and love, the track provides a change of pace and glimpse into the band’s early processes.
Revisit ‘Love That Burns’ by Fleetwood Mac below.
