Fleetwood Mac’s Buckingham-Nicks Years: The Albums, The Best Songs, 1975-1987

‘Rumours’ (1977)

Sessions for the Rumours album were fraught, with the McVies no longer on speaking terms, and Buckingham and Nicks having explosive rows throughout. Add the effects of new-found fame and its attendant trappings, and there’s little wonder that the recording studio came to resemble the set of a soap opera. That sense of unrest translated into the new songs the group were recording, with Buckingham’s Go Your Own Way emerging as a brutal kiss-off to Nicks, who responded with the resigned Dreams. The music elevated the material above mere diary entries: gleaming pop-rock with a troubled undercurrent, Rumours spent 31 weeks at the top of the US charts and has sold over 40 million copies to date.

Must hear: Go Your Own Way

‘Tusk’ (1979)

The phenomenal success of Rumours only exacerbated the behind-the-scenes madness that had engulfed the group. Tusk, a hulking double album, took 13 months to make and was the first album in history to cost more than a million dollars to record. Buckingham kicked against the commercial sound of Rumours by embracing a punkier sound (The Ledge) and gauzy, Beach Boys-like ballads (That’s All For Everyone) while Nicks doubled down on witchy AOR (Angel, Sara, Storms) and Christine McVie delivered more bittersweet beauty (Over And Over, Brown Eyes). Tusk’s wildly eclectic excess mirrors the state of the band at the time, but it ranks among the best Fleetwood Mac albums, and while it didn’t match Rumours’ sales – what could? – it still sold more than four million copies worldwide.

Must hear: Storms

‘Mirage’ (1982)

During a post-Tusk hiatus, Nicks and Buckingham both launched solo careers, Nicks with the US chart-topping Bella Donna and Buckingham with the biting Law And Order. When Fleetwood Mac reconvened to make Mirage in Château d’Hérouville, a studio in northern France, the shift in dynamics – Nicks had become a star in her own right – caused tensions to flare up once again. Still, Mirage was another massive hit, its blend of Rumours-style accessible soft-rock (Nicks’ gorgeous Gypsy; the urgent AOR of McVie’s Hold Me) and Buckingham’s 50s pastiches (Book Of Love, Oh Diane) proving irresistible to fans.

Must hear: Hold Me

‘Tango In The Night’ (1987)

After a period which even the band themselves have classed as a nadir, Tango In The Night felt like a make or break album for Buckingham, who told Rolling Stone, “I decided, if we’re going to do this, then let’s really do this. This could very well be the last Fleetwood Mac album, so let’s make it a killer.” Again, Buckingham took the lead, recycling strong material from an abandoned solo album (Big Man, Caroline) while adding a new dimension to the band’s sound via his enthusiasm for the Fairlight CMI digital sampler. Nicks rallied to contribute a powerful vocal to Seven Wonders, but Christine McVie stole the show with the huge hit Little Lies and the ageless joy of Everywhere. Tango In The Night became the group’s second-biggest album, selling more than 15 million worldwide, but it wasn’t enough to stop Buckingham leaving following its release. It would be the last Fleetwood Mac album to feature the classic Buckingham-Nicks-era line-up.

Must hear: Everywhere

Buy Fleetwood Mac’s ‘1975-1987’ vinyl box set.