Ah, the joys of 1970s soft rock. So much of it was treacly, forgettable nonsense, but then you’d find genuinely talented hippies like the cast of Fleetwood Mac, who made one brilliant album—Rumours. And it only took them ten other albums to get there!
Bands today aren’t given the chance to have longevity—they usually have to break fast, or they don’t get the opportunity at all. Rumours was Fleetwood Mac’s 11th record, and it was song after song of incredible music. Which is ironic, because, at the time, every member of the band was going through a divorce or break up—and often with each other! John and Christine McVie were divorcing each other. Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks broke up. But from the ashes rose this incredible album.
Dreams was written by Nicks, and it sounds a lot like her later solo stuff, and then improved by the rest of the band—and it became their biggest hit (#1 on the charts, for just one week).
Further listening: To be sure, the Macs made other music, but every track on Rumours is great—it’s probably one of the best albums of all time. A few of their better non-Rumours songs are Rhiannon, Sara, and Gypsy. I also like “Everywhere” but it’s a pretty standard pop song.
Covers: Countless. Here’s some I enjoy, and some of the most famous ones.
