Why Stevie Nicks hated recording with Fleetwood Mac, and the song that showed her another way
Being in a band for a long time can become arduous, even for those who have experienced the pinnacle of success. By the end of the 1970s, Fleetwood Mac had miraculously dodged a series of obstacles that would spell the end for most outfits and, against all odds, produce their masterpiece, Rumours. However, after it, Stevie Nicks wanted a change.
The story of Rumours is an infamous one. Marred by the inner-band romances ending, general in-fighting, and heavy drug use, it remains one of music’s greatest triumphs. It’s also a mystery how they managed to kick back against such all-encompassing negativity and rise to new levels. While the band had been around since the late 1960s in various iterations, this record saw them evolve from a vestige of the failed countercultural dream to an undisputed household name.
Ironically, releasing such an album produces its own issues. One of which is the dreaded follow-up. That was 1979’s Tusk, an utterly distinct body of work, which, for years, was the most expensive of all time. It saw the group depart from soft rock to a more minimal palette inspired by Lindsey Buckingham’s love of the contemporary post-punk sound and groups like Talking Heads.
The period following Rumours was another one of flux for the band members, as suggested by the strange post-punk twists of Tusk. Each member was becoming tired of the gruelling demands of being in a world-famous group and also wanted to try something different artistically. Nicks was becoming particularly exhausted with the meticulous attention to detail in writing and recording that Fleetwood Mac employed, as well as the presence of her ex-lover Buckingham on proceedings.
That meant that between the sessions for Tusk, she started working on what became her 1981 solo debut, Bella Donna. She used a completely different approach for the record, and it proved fruitful, becoming an instant classic featuring many hit songs. For Nicks, though, the lesser-known ‘Blue Lamp’ was the most significant number produced during this period. It might not have made the final cut, and was instead released on the Heavy Metal soundtrack later in 1981, but it confirmed to her this new way of working was best.
Speaking to BAM Magazine in 1981, Nicks expressed her love for ‘Blue Lamp’. She deemed it the beginning of Bella Donna because it was the first thing she’d ever recorded with musicians outside of Fleetwood Mac.
Significantly, she explained: “It was the first time I’d ever recorded by standing in a room singing at the same time that five guys were playing. Fleetwood Mac doesn’t record that way. They record from a more technical standpoint. When I’m recording, I like to imagine that I’m at a concert, singing in front of thousands of people. I record for feeling.”
Nicks continued: “I’m not good at the technical stuff. I don’t like standing there in a room after the tracks have been done and singing the same song 50 times in a row. I hate it. I want to sing a song once, maybe twice, and if it isn’t working, maybe go on to another song. Fleetwood Mac is the opposite. They labour over every detail. I care about the final feeling when you hear it on a car radio or at home on your stereo.”
Utilising the skills of others and employing a different way of working proved to be a masterstroke by Nicks. Bella Donna was the start of a new chapter for her creatively, and it bore positive results for Fleetwood Mac in the future, too.
