Music history is filled with captivating stories and intense emotions. It’s fascinating how bands from various genres and time periods often have tumultuous relationships, leading to conflicts that can ultimately dismantle the entire group. Typically, they find themselves in a string of heated disagreements and ultimately choose to end the entire affair. Typically, the working relationships become extremely challenging, resulting in the project being discontinued. I just can’t fathom how one could endure being in a studio, collaborating with someone who has caused such immense pain. How can one possibly craft another song or address the situation with the perpetrator in the vicinity? It appears that Fleetwood Mac was always impervious to that.
The band endured countless challenges, but persevered through it all. The stories from the Rumours sessions have become legendary, making it truly astonishing that those conflicts didn’t mark the end of it all. Truly, we should see them as a powerful reminder of the potential pitfalls of blending work and personal relationships. They serve as a cautionary tale against dating someone from your professional or musical circle. However, despite the exceptional quality of their music and their remarkable longevity as a group, they managed to defy the odds set by those 1976 sessions.
Legend has it that prior to Rumours, Fleetwood Mac consisted of a group of romantically involved couples. Christine and John McVie happily celebrated eight years of marriage. Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham joined the group together, as they had been dating and creating music together since 1966. Mick Fleetwood was the only one who wasn’t tied down. However, his moment for chaos arrived in 1977 when he and Nicks became involved in a passionate affair.
For a period of time, that had been highly effective. However, when it came to creating Rumours, every single dynamic seemed to explode. Nicks and Buckingham parted ways and started composing songs that reflected their growing animosity towards each other. Examples include ‘Go Your Own Way‘ or ‘Dreams‘. On the bright side, Fleetwood Mac didn’t shy away from sharing their personal conflicts. On the contrary, the tracks by McVie were much more discreet and exceptionally harsh.
The songs by Christine McVie on the record exude an overwhelming sense of optimism and lightness. They provide a refreshing contrast to the surrounding drama. There are the enchanting melody of ‘Songbird’ and the alluring charm of ‘You Make Loving Fun‘. There’s also ‘Don’t Stop‘, a track that has become the ultimate anthem for maintaining a positive outlook and persevering. At first glance, the track may seem innocuous, but beneath its surface lies a hidden danger.
During the time when McVie was involved with the band’s lighting guy Curry Grant, she wrote both ‘You Make Loving Fun’. Additionally, she wrote ‘Don’t Stop’. Her husband only discovered the truth during the recording sessions. He had to face the challenge of playing on songs that his wife had written about someone else.
In this particular context, ‘Don’t Stop‘ comes across as slightly passive-aggressive. “Why not consider the future / Instead of dwelling on the past,” McVie sings with a heartfelt plea for forgiveness, both for herself and her husband. It becomes even more troubling when she croons, “I understand that you may doubt its authenticity / I never intended to cause you any pain,” as a direct communication to the man she betrayed. In an attempt to downplay her infidelity and project an aura of cheerfulness, ‘Don’t Stop’ serves as her endeavor to improve the situation. It’s as if she had not caused any harm.
Her husband was slow to grasp the message, unlike the song ‘You Make Loving Fun‘, which ultimately led to the end of their marriage. “I never made that connection,” he informed Mojo in 2015. “I’ve been playing it for years, and it wasn’t until someone mentioned, ‘Chris wrote that about you.'” Oh, really?”
Perhaps the blissful ignorance of the McVies regarding the true essence of the song allowed them to effortlessly perform the hit. They repeated it repeatedly throughout the years. Unfortunately, their marriage couldn’t withstand the power of blissful ignorance. In 1977, the couple ended their marriage, yet remarkably, they were able to maintain a professional partnership.
