Fleetwood Mac ~ Rumours (1977)
vinyl LP front cover
design by Desmond Strobel
design by Desmond Strobel
cover photo by Herbert W. Worthington
photo of front cover by Styrous®
I was dancing at the Hungry i on Broadway in 1977 (link below) when I discovered Rumours; the album was released on February 4 of
that year. Perhaps it's because I used a few of the songs in my act, but it became
my favorite album by the group.
Dreams reached the number-one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on June 18, 1977, and held it for one week. On the Adult Contemporary chart, Dreams was Fleetwood Mac's highest charting single during the 1970s when it reached number 11. In the United Kingdom, Dreams went to number 24, staying in the top 40 for eight weeks. Since its initial release, Dreams has reentered the charts on various occasions. It picked up two additional weeks on the UK charts in 2011 following the airing of the Glee Rumours episode. In 2018, Dreams returned to the Billboard charts at the number-fourteen spot on their Rock Songs Chart, re popularized by a viral tweet.
Fleetwood Mac ~ Rumours (1977)
vinyl LP back cover
back cover photos by Herbert W. Worthington
photo of back cover by Styrous®
I used the music from the album for an Apache-style act because of the lyrics (links bleow). I didn't realized it at the time but they reflected what was happening in the lives of the band. The members of Fleetwood Mac were experiencing emotional upheavals while recording the Rumours album. Mick Fleetwood was going through a divorce. John McVie was separating from his wife Christine McVie. Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks were ending their eight-year relationship. "We had to go through this elaborate exercise of denial," explained Buckingham to Blender magazine, "keeping our personal feelings in one corner of the room while trying to be professional in the other."
According to Barry Walsh of Slant Magazine, Fleetwood Mac drew on romantic dysfunction and personal turmoil to create a timeless, five-star record. Patrick McKay of Stylus Magazine wrote, "What distinguishes Rumours—what makes it art—is the contradiction between its cheerful surface and its anguished heart. Here is a radio-friendly record about anger, recrimination, and loss."
According to Barry Walsh of Slant Magazine, Fleetwood Mac drew on romantic dysfunction and personal turmoil to create a timeless, five-star record. Patrick McKay of Stylus Magazine wrote, "What distinguishes Rumours—what makes it art—is the contradiction between its cheerful surface and its anguished heart. Here is a radio-friendly record about anger, recrimination, and loss."
Fleetwood Mac ~ Rumours (1977)
vinyl LP record sleeve
record sleeve photos by Herbert W. Worthington
photo of record sleeve by Styrous®
Second Hand News is a FAST song with a terrific beat that is great to dance to and it
was the perfect opener for the set. "I know there's nothing to
say/Someone has taken my place" set the mood for the piece.
Dreams, written by Stevie Nicks, would usually follow News
for a fast but sensual strip with great musical highlights that nicely
accentuated the disposal of each garment as we alternately forcefully/sensually stripped each other (but not completely) in
dramatic counterpoint to the lyrics, "You want your freedom".
Dreams reached the number-one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on June 18, 1977, and held it for one week. On the Adult Contemporary chart, Dreams was Fleetwood Mac's highest charting single during the 1970s when it reached number 11. In the United Kingdom, Dreams went to number 24, staying in the top 40 for eight weeks. Since its initial release, Dreams has reentered the charts on various occasions. It picked up two additional weeks on the UK charts in 2011 following the airing of the Glee Rumours episode. In 2018, Dreams returned to the Billboard charts at the number-fourteen spot on their Rock Songs Chart, re popularized by a viral tweet.
Fleetwood Mac ~ Rumours (1977)
vinyl LP record sleeve
record sleeve photos by Herbert W. Worthington
photo of record sleeve by Styrous®
The Chain, written by the entire group, is a moderate speed, mellow rock song that has a nice, quiet interlude
with a slow Dobro guitar played by Buckingham that greatly accentuated a slow, sensual strip
that picked up speed to whisk the audience off to delightful adventures
of the imagination.
Oh, Daddy
was the final song for the set. With it's slow beat and dramatic sonic
highlights it was the perfect song to end a love act.
Fleetwood Mac ~ Rumours (1977)
back cover photos by Herbert W. Worthington
photo of back cover by Styrous®
Rumours became Fleetwood Mac's second US number one record. It stayed at the top of the Billboard 200
for 31 non-consecutive weeks, while also reaching number one in the
United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. In May 2011 it
re-entered Billboard 200 chart at number 11, and the Australian ARIA chart at number 2, due to several songs from the album being used for the Rumours episode of the American TV series Glee. The album was certified platinum
in America and the UK within months of release after one million units
and 300,000 units were shipped respectively. All three major US trade publications—Billboard, Cash Box, and Record World—named it Album of the Year for 1977. After a debut at number seven, Rumours
peaked at the top of the UK Albums Chart in January 1978, becoming
Fleetwood Mac's first number one album in the country. In February, the
band and co-producers Ken Caillat and Richard Dashut won the 1978 Grammy Award for Album of the Year. By March, the album had sold over 10 million copies worldwide, including over eight million in the US alone.
By 1980, 13 million copies of Rumours had been sold worldwide. As of 2013, sales were over 40 million copies. As of October 2019, Rumours has spent 800 weeks in the UK Top 100 album chart and is the 11th best-selling album in UK history and is certified 13× platinum by the British Phonographic Industry, the equivalent of 3.9 million units shipped. The record has received a Diamond Award from the Recording Industry Association of America for a 20× platinum certification or 20 million copies shipped, making it, as of 2012, the joint fifth best-selling album in US history (by number of copies shipped).
By 1980, 13 million copies of Rumours had been sold worldwide. As of 2013, sales were over 40 million copies. As of October 2019, Rumours has spent 800 weeks in the UK Top 100 album chart and is the 11th best-selling album in UK history and is certified 13× platinum by the British Phonographic Industry, the equivalent of 3.9 million units shipped. The record has received a Diamond Award from the Recording Industry Association of America for a 20× platinum certification or 20 million copies shipped, making it, as of 2012, the joint fifth best-selling album in US history (by number of copies shipped).
Fleetwood Mac - 1977
photographer unknown
Fleetwood Mac
- Lindsey Buckingham – guitars, dobro, percussion, vocals
- Stevie Nicks – vocals
- Christine McVie – keyboards, synthesizer, vocals
- John McVie – bass guitar
- Mick Fleetwood – drums, percussion, harpsichord
Fleetwood Mac ~ Rumours (1977)
Fleetwood Mac ~ Rumours (1977)
Fleetwood Mac ~ Rumours (1977)
Fleetwood Mac ~ Rumours (1977)
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A1 - Second Hand News, written by Lindsey Buckingham - 2:43
A2 - Dreams, written by Stevie Nicks - 4:14
A3 - Never Going Back Again, written by Lindsey Buckingham - 2:02
A4 - Don't Stop, written by Christine McVie - 3:11
A5 - Go Your Own Way, written by Lindsey Buckingham - 3:38
A6 - Songbird, written by Christine McVie - 3:20
Side 1:
B1 - The Chain, written by McVie*, McVie*, Buckingham*, Fleetwood*, Nicks* - 4:28
B2 - You Make Loving Fun, written by Christine McVie- 3:31
B3 - I Don't Want To Know, written by Stevie Nicks - 3:11
B4 - Oh Daddy, written by Christine McVie - 3:54
B5 - Gold Dust Woman, written by Stevie Nicks- 4:51
Companies, etc.
Record Company – Warner Bros. Records Inc.
Copyright (c) – Warner Bros. Records Inc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – Warner Bros. Records Inc.
Copyright (c) – Gentoo Music, Inc.
Recorded At – Record Plant, Sausalito
Recorded At – Wally Heider Recording Studio, Los Angeles
Recorded At – Criteria Recording Studios
Recorded At – Davlen Sound Studios
Recorded At – Record Plant, Los Angeles
Mixed At – Record Plant, Los Angeles
Mixed At – Sound City Studios
Mastered At – Capitol Mastering
Pressed By – Capitol Records Pressing Plant, Los Angeles
Credits:
Artwork [Hand Lettering] – Larry Vigon, Vigon Nahas Vigon
Bass – John McVie
Design – Desmond Strobel
Drums, Percussion – Mick Fleetwood
Engineer – Ken Caillat, Richard Dashut
Engineer [Second] – Cris Morris*
Guitar, Vocals – Lindsey Buckingham
Keyboards, Synthesizer, Vocals – Christine McVie
Lacquer Cut By – KP*
Photography By – Herbert Worthington*
Producer – Fleetwood Mac, Ken Caillat, Richard Dashut
Vocals – Stevie Nicks
Notes:
Includes 11.5" x 23" photo and lyric foldout insert. Early pressings had a lightly textured cover, 'Mastered By Capitol' and 'KP' marked in the runouts. They were also printed with a centered number "0798" in the middle of the spine on the LP cover.
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side A, Variant 1): BSK-1-3010 LW2 F12 KP MASTERED BY CAPITOL CJ
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side B, Variant 1): BSK-2-3010 F17 KP MASTERED BY CAPITOL CJ
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side A, Variant 2): BSK-1-3010 WW2 F11 CJ MASTERED BY CAPITOL KP
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side B, Variant 2): BSK-2-3010 LW1 F6 CJ MASTERED BY CAPITOL KP
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side A, Variant 3): BSK-1-3010 LW3 F25 3 MASTERED BY CAPITOL KP
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side B, Variant 3): BSK-2-3010 LW5 F29 1 MASTERED BY CAPITOL KP
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side A, Variant 4): BSK-1-3010 LW7 F35· 3 MASTERED BY CAPITOL ✲ KP
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side B, Variant 4): BSK-2-3010 LW6 F35· MASTERED BY CAPITOL 1 ✲ KP
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side A, Variant 5): BSK-1-3010 LW3 F25 MASTERED BY CAPITOL KP
Matrix / Runout (Runout Side B, Variant 5): BSK-2-3010 LW3 F25 MASTERED BY CAPITOL KP
Fleetwood Mac – Rumours
Label: Warner Bros. Records – BSK 3010
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: US
Released: 1977
Genre: Rock
Style: Soft Rock, Classic Rock
Viewfinder links:
Lindsey Buckingham
Alice Cooper
Hungry i articles
Net links:
Rumours lyrics ~
Second Hand News
Dreams
The Chain
Oh Daddy
YouTube links:
The Chain
The Chain (video)
Dreams
Oh, Daddy
Second Hand News
"You could say that Fleetwood Mac is a bit of a
dysfunctional family, but we are a family."
~ Lindsey Buckingham
Styrous® ~ Tuesday, February 4, 2020
