Fleetwood Mac | 5 Songs To Summarize The Album “Rumours”

Wanting to capitalize on the success of their self-titled release in 1975, Fleetwood Mac tried to push the follow-up Rumours into fruition but was met with quite a challenge no thanks to the falling out of relationships between the band members. This was a serendipitous event, however, as the lyrics on the album were patterned after the discord in the recording sessions. Rumours’ pop-oriented sound made it quite the hit for fans and critics alike, gaining massive acclaim upon its release, as well as it aged over the years.

“Dreams”

Simple and complicated at the same time, “Dreams” opens the album quite fantastically. Stevie Nicks claims to have written the song in under 10 minutes and had it recorded the very next day. Her vocals perfectly ride the complex instrumentation for that melodic irony that works well with the composition.

“You Make Loving Fun”

Pop took its greatest form in the album with the track “You Make Loving Fun”. Christine McVie takes the rein for lead vocals in this song, which is driven by a piercing clarinet and is joined by Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham in three-part harmony.

“Go Your Own Way”

Penned by Lindsey Buckingham as a commentary on his worsening relationship with Nicks, which was laid out quite profoundly. Nicks responded with “Dreams”, not wanting to be one-upped.

“The Chain”

“The Chain” was crafted from a combination of demos from McVie and Nicks, which is why it sounds quite complex when compared with the other tracks. One notable property of the song is its increasing tempo just at John McVie’s bass solo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDG2m5hN1vo

“Songbird”

A frequently slept-on track on the album is McVie’s “Songbird”, which is a laid back song based on her piano playing. Its folky quality made it quite a hit with artists from the genre, with the concert hall recording venue setting the mood for the song.