Rock royalty Fleetwood Mac got high to try to numb the misery of being together, Christine McVie has revealed.
The singer-songwriter said failed relationships in the band – including splits and affairs – put them all in the depths of despair in the studio.
They turned to alcohol, cocaine and even quaaludes tranquilisers to “cheer themselves up” and get through sessions.
Her candid words came as Fleetwood Mac were honoured at the MusiCares Person of the Year pre-Grammy event.
Christine, 74, said of wild drug use in their heyday: “Everybody was doing it. I don’t have any regrets at all.
“I would not change those days but you have to remember it was uniform – it was a badge of honour, and everybody was doing that kind of thing.”
Explaining their over-indulgence at work, she added: “Our situation in the studio, that was angst and I think we probably needed a little something to cheer us up in that situation.
“At my age now, of course, that thing is completely out of the question. I am pretty much a nun now.”
Bandmate Mick Fleetwood, 70, has boasted of snorting seven miles of cocaine lines. And Stevie Nicks, 69, has admitted she blew around £720,000 on the Class A drug.
Christine, who rejoined the band in 2013 after 15 years away, recalled getting wasted helped them overcome the stress of their personal issues.
She said: “It was a trauma in the studio, with two breaking-up couples trying to finish this record, Rumours.
“It was a nightmare in the studio. It was war. We knew when we finished Rumours we would have something special. We thought our White album was special but not in comparison to Rumours.
“We knew we were sitting on something special because of the chemistry in the band, the need for each other. We just stuck it through and survived that kind of angst.”
During Friday’s MusiCares bash, a string of stars took to the stage to pay tribute to the band – including Harry Styles, Haim and Imagine Dragons.
Mick paid tribute to Harry saying: “He’s such a sweet young man. He’s only 23.”
Stevie was snapped hugging former President Bill Clinton, who used their 1977 hit Don’t Stop as the theme tune of his 1992 election campaign.
And she wept as she said she will “never get over” the death of pal Tom Petty.
Rocker Tom – who died in October from an overdose of prescription drugs, aged 66 – had performed at MusiCares last year after he was handed the same award.
Stevie said: “The loss of Tom Petty has just about broken my heart. He was not only a good man to go down the river with, as Johnny Cash said, but he was a great father and a great friend. My heart will never get over this.”