Who are the members of Fleetwood Mac?
The entire construct of a stable band lineup never applied to Fleetwood Mac. During their tenure together, the rock and roll legends had enough people among their ranks to fill up at least three separate acts, all while performing some of the most eclectic music imaginable. Despite their reputation as one of the biggest sonic forces in the music industry, each member was responsible for making them what they were.
While most tend to remember the lineup with Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham the best, the band’s roots lie more in the blues. Formed as part of the famed British blues boom in the late 1960s, the early phase of the band’s career saw them exploring every facet of blues rock, even influencing acts like The Beatles in their wake.
After losing pieces of the puzzle and a zany period when their management made two separate bands under their name, they soldiered on until they hit solid gold, as Buckingham and Nicks steered them towards pop success on the album Rumours. Then again, the walking soap opera behind the scenes led to even more lineup changes, with band members dropping like flies and being rehired again left and right.
Despite having a lineup that makes even the most knowledgeable rock fan need a scorecard, ‘The Mac’ have never forgotten the power they got from their music, always using that musical chain to keep them anchored to the stage whenever they perform. For all of the broken hearts, backstabbing decisions, and musicians who walked out, they will always be remembered for the joy their music brought to fans worldwide.
Who are the members of Fleetwood Mac?
Mick Fleetwood
Throughout every lineup of the band, Mick Fleetwood always served as the group’s beating heart. Formed in the late 1960s, Fleetwood would name the band after himself and the nickname he used for bass player John McVie. Coming out of the blues tradition, Fleetwood was born out of the same blues scenes that birthed artists like John Mayall and the beginnings of The Yardbirds.
While being the glorified boss of the entire operation, Fleetwood’s history with McVie has been one of the longest-lasting in rock and roll history. Outside of being one of the only original members still standing, McVie and Fleetwood have been going strong since 1968, cooking up a groove in the rhythm section longer than some of their fans have been alive.
Bob Brunning
While McVie would become integral to Fleetwood Mac’s sound when joining, a short period of the band didn’t feature him at all. When Fleetwood started putting the band together, Bob Brunning would hold down the low end for their first handful of gigs and even play on the track ‘Long Grey Mare’ on their debut album. Then again, the true Fleetwood Mac hadn’t entered the fold.
By the time McVie had signed on after his stint with The Bluesbreakers, Brunning would opt out as the rest of the band began to congeal, only landing one performance credit on any of their albums. Although Brunning may have been serviceable at the time, the true greatness was yet to come.
John McVie
Before Fleetwood had even called McVie to be a part of the group, he was already one of the most in-demand bass players in the rock scene. Compared to the other bass legends of the late 1960s, McVie deserved to be in the same company, playing in various blues acts and even holding down the low end behind Eric Clapton in John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers.
Outside of his blues credentials, McVie would turn some of the greatest basslines of the modern age when in the band, either locking in with the groove with Fleetwood or straying from the pack by playing amazing hooks on tracks like ‘The Chain’. His new outfit were bound to bigger things than the blues, but McVie was up for any challenge his career took him on.
Peter Green
If there’s anyone as synonymous with Fleetwood Mac other than Fleetwood himself, it would be Peter Green. Forming the foundational lineup of the band initially with Fleetwood and McVie, Green would become one of the most in-demand guitar heroes of the late 1960s, playing his trademark Les Paul and coming up with one classic lick after another on songs like ‘Oh Well’ and ‘Albatross’.
The band’s 1970s material would not be in the cards for him, though, departing from the group in 1970 after needing to work on his mental health. Although Green may have been able to create musical magic when founding the group, there’s a good chance that Fleetwood Mac would not have existed had he not kicked down the door for them first.
Jeremy Spencer
Seldom few rock bands can hold down a blues-infused groove alone, and the Green-era of Fleetwood Mac was no exception. For their first handful of albums, Jeremy Spencer would be Green’s partner in crime, creating tasty licks on slide guitar. Outside of Green’s soulful approach to playing, Spencer had a unique way of attacking his guitar, making him sound ferocious when he wanted to while also getting a lyrical smoothness out of his slide.
Even though Green was by far the main attraction whenever he played the guitar, Spencer’s contributions to the band’s material made for the perfect compliment to the caustic blues licks before leaving to join the Children of God Organisation. Although the band would see many guitarists drop like flies, Spencer’s contributions are a better look at what the band could have been as a pure blues entity.
Bob Welch
In the wake of Green’s departure, the band would flounder without a guitarist until Bob Welch came into the picture. Though Spencer held the band together with his trademark slide licks, Welch’s approach to the instrument fell more in line with jazz than blues, creating lush soundscapes that broke off in a new direction while also paying tribute to the classics that had come before.
Together with Christine McVie, Welch would become one of the band’s most acclaimed songwriters during his stint with the band, bringing a pop-friendly tone to their sound years before Buckingham and Nicks began honing their craft. While Welch would notch up a handful of hits for the band like ‘Sentimental Lady’, he would ultimately cut ties with the band to work on other genres, quitting following the album Heroes are Hard to Find.
Danny Kirwan
If things were going so well with two guitarists, why not add three? After the release of the band’s 1968 album Mr Wonderful, Danny Kirwan’s lead guitar licks bridged the gap between the Green and Welch eras, always looking to serve the song rather than grandstand for the rest of the group. While he may have fit like a glove with Green, things began deteriorating when Welch was brought into the band.
After being cordial for the first few years of Welch joining the band, Kirwan’s days as a full-time guitarist came to an end when he got into an altercation with Welch after a shot in 1972. The times were already changing with Green leaving, and with Kirwan now gone, the band had started to leave the lowdown and dirty blues sound behind.
Christine McVie
Outside of the bluesy guitars and heavy vocals, the band got a shot in the arm thanks to Christine Perfect joining the group. Along with becoming Christine McVie once she married John in the early 1970s, McVie would sing the most lead vocals on all of Fleetwood Mac’s albums, being a constant in the band’s lineup throughout their glory years and beyond. While she may have started with the blues, Christine was responsible for bringing a tenderness into the band’s most harrowing times.
Across the band’s classic albums like Rumours, Christine had the best track record of creating songs capable of ripping hearts out of chests, from the tenderness of ‘Songbird’ to the bright sunshine of ‘Little Lies’ and ‘Everywhere’. Nicks may have the reputation of being the spiritual member of the group, but Christine could always match her female counterpart in the ways of magic.
Bobby Weston
In the wake of Kirwan’s departure, Bobby Weston was brought into the group for the albums Mystery To Me and Penguin. Compared to where the band had started, Weston made an admirable effort at combining both sides of the band’s sound, keeping them in tune with their blues roots while following the lead of Welch towards the commercial territory.
While the band gradually moved away from the typical blues tropes that came with their early records, Weston would eventually leave the group with his tail between his legs. After recording Mystery to Me, Weston would be fired after he revealed that he had been having an affair with Fleetwood’s wife. Despite being a full-time member for a few years, the bridges burned in the late 1970s would only become a harbinger of more emotional hard times to come.
Dave Walker
Even with Bob Welch holding down the frontman role for years, he wouldn’t be the only one behind the microphone. Despite the impressive vocal chops of both Christine and Welch, Weston was brought in alongside vocalist Dave Walker, giving the band’s new material a shot in the arm and providing a distinct vocal rasp to their older material.
Although Mason didn’t last long with the group, he got another opportunity to join a legendary band after filling in for Ozzy Osbourne during the final days of his run with Black Sabbath. Even though Walker has an admirable voice that fit perfectly within the band’s blues rock format, luck wasn’t on his side when it came time to join two different legendary bands.
Lindsey Buckingham
After wrapping up the album Heroes are Hard to Find, Welch parted ways with the group, leaving Fleetwood hunting for a new guitarist. After hearing the up-and-coming duo Buckingham Nicks in the studio they were working in, Fleetwood knew that he needed to hear what Lindsey Buckingham would sound like working with them.
Known for playing without a pick, Buckingham brought a level of musicianship unheard of in the band at the time, throwing the blues tropes out the window in favour of bluegrass techniques on songs like ‘Never Going Back Again’. Although Buckingham brought a folksy sound and serious chops to the group, he would come with one caveat…he had to bring his girlfriend, too.
Stevie Nicks
While Buckingham drove a hard bargain, Fleetwood relented by having Stevie Nicks join the group. Indebted to the spiritual sounds of rock, Nicks had always been known for working alongside Buckingham, either using him to help her finish songs or providing the perfect lyric to one of his tracks. Although she may not have played any particular instrument, she didn’t need to worry about anything other than her voice.
In the wake of the band’s self-titled White Album, Nicks would become the true superstar of any era of Fleetwood Mac, living up to her reputation as a true rock and roll witch. Although her relationship with her musical soulmate would turn out almost immediately after the band accepted them in, she would use that heartache as musical fuel, penning some of the group’s most celebrated songs like ‘Dreams’ and ‘Landslide’ about her emotional strife. After years of finding their sound and losing members, the trio of Christine, Buckingham and Nicks would take the band into unchartered territory on albums like Rumours and Tusk.
Billy Burnette
Although the classic period of the band would give them the biggest hits of their career, it was anything but smooth sailing. After one too many compromises trying to put together the album Tango in the Night, Buckingham quit the band after a heated argument with Nicks, leading to Billy Burnette filling in on guitar for the tour. Burnette would eventually be upgraded to a full-time member on the following album, Behind the Mask.
Outside of having to pick up where Buckingham left off, Burnette does a serviceable job delivering the songs, never overplaying and knowing that he needed to play to the band’s strengths before showcasing his own stuff. Behind the Mask might not be considered one of the crowned jewels of the band’s catalogue, but if brought in at the right time, Burnette could have grown into a formidable guitarist who could take on Buckingham.
Rick Vito
With Buckingham gone, no one could replace what he did with his traditional fingerstyle approach to playing. Alongside Burnette, Rick Vito would join to fill out the rest of the sound as a touring musician and contribute to the album Behind the Mask. While Vito would only have a handful of credits to his name during his time with the band, he was able to get his name on one of the highest-selling Fleetwood Mac projects of all time.
In addition to the new material on Behind the Mask, Vito and Burnette would be responsible for contributing backing vocals and guitar to various songs on the band’s Greatest Hits album, which would become one of the biggest high points of the band’s career. While its success may have inadvertently sparked rumours about the old lineup getting back together, Vito could still lay down a solid foundation for the song that gave many fans rose-tinted glasses of Buckingham’s work.
Dave Mason
The early 1990s were far from kind to Fleetwood Mac. After Buckingham’s departure, Nicks’ decision to leave the band left many questioning whether the band could continue without both sonic juggernauts. Although Dave Mason would try his hand at becoming the next superstar guitarist for the group, his album Time would be seen as a career low point for the band.
Selling poorly and reviewing even worse, Mason’s time with the band feels more like a country-rock version of what the band used to be without really adding new besides the name association. Considering that Christine McVie didn’t even want to tour for the album, Mason’s time with the band feels like a strange alternate timeline where Fleetwood Mac ended up sounding like a half-hearted “dad rock” band.
Bekka Bramlett
There’s no way to replace a vocal genius like Stevie Nicks, but Fleetwood Mac had to try. Since the band were restructured with a completely new lineup, it was time for them to make an effort to bring in someone who had the same kind of spectral aura and vocal intensity that Nicks had at the best of times. After having Christine McVie carry shows with her material, Bekka Bramlett would be brought in to fill out the sound during their live sets, occasionally trying to sing some of Nicks’s classic songs.
Although the band would continue recapturing that magic again, Bramlett remembered that she did not get Nicks’s approval, with the rock legend thinking that she oversang her material. Then again, if Bramlett hadn’t at least tried to keep the spirit alive, chances are the group wouldn’t have been able to see the merit in returning for their reunion live album, The Dance.
Mike Campbell
Once the classic lineup was reformed for the comeback album Say You Will, it looked like everything was right with the world again…until Buckingham decided to leave again. After falling out with Nicks again, Buckingham was sent packing again, leaving the band without a guitarist. If Nicks couldn’t have her longtime partner, why not get the guitarist of the band she always wanted to join?
Being a longtime friend of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Mike Campbell gratefully accepted Nicks’s invitation to join in the late 2010s, putting a bluesy spin on the classics while also serving the song by nailing the volume swells of ‘Dreams’. Since Petty passed away just a few months after Buckingham was fired, Campbell was allowed to use his new role to continue his musical journey outside the heartland rocker.
Neil Finn
For all of the sonic textures Campbell can make with his guitar, they needed another voice to help fill out the vocals for Buckingham’s material. Instead of trying to bring in a Buckingham clone, Neil Finn of Crowded House fits the spot perfectly, serving as an excellent alternative to Buckingham’s searing tone and providing a sense of stability to the band’s guitar work.
Even though songs like ‘Don’t Dream It’s Over’ don’t necessarily fit within the Fleetwood Mac mould, Finn works his magic on every track he plays while also finding time to remind people of the magic that he had before he joined the fold. While Finn has been part of what looks to be the last line of ‘The Mac’ following Christine’s passing, he was still able to keep the band’s central sound together.
