Category Archives: Mick Fleetwood

Books, Fleetwood Mac, Mick Fleetwood, UK Articles

Mick Fleetwood: ‘We were cloaked in this crazy world’ | Telegraph (UK)

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The Telegraph

Sunday 26th Oct 2015

Cocaine, affairs, reckless spending – Mick Fleetwood was the epitome of the rock ’n’ roll egomaniac. How did he, and his band, survive?

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I am waiting for Mick Fleetwood in a mansion that he has rented in Malibu. It is the size of a stately home. I am sitting in the kitchen, which is painted in ice-cream colours: pistachio, strawberry and vanilla. He arrives shower fresh. He is as long and thin as you imagine him.

In his new autobiography, Play On, Fleetwood says that he’s 6ft 6in. He looks even taller, languid in navy chinos, a blue striped shirt with epaulettes, a gold medallion, a perfectly trimmed beard and a burnt copper tan.

The medallion is a scarab made by a goldsmith in Canterbury, and, Fleetwood tells me, a symbol of immortality because Ancient Egyptian scarabs, which are still being dug up by archaeologists, “survive against hopeless odds”. You could say the same about his band, Fleetwood Mac.

Continue reading Mick Fleetwood: ‘We were cloaked in this crazy world’ | Telegraph (UK) →

Books, Fleetwood Mac, Mick Fleetwood, Original Content, Release Info

Pre-order a signed copy of Mick Fleetwood’s new book ‘Play On: Now, Then and Fleetwood Mac’

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PLAY ON: NOW, THEN AND FLEETWOOD MAC will publish in the UK on 30th October, 2014. This is your ONLY chance to pre-order a signed copy.

Purchase your signed copy of PLAY ON: NOW, THEN AND FLEETWOOD MAC by Mick Fleetwood – one of just 500 signed copies available for pre-order. There’s an incredible reward for the person who brings the most other people in, too – a trip to Washington DC to see Fleetwood Mac in concert and meet Mick before the show.

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“After forty-six years of being on the road, now is the right time to look back in a way I’ve never done before: now and then. I’m looking forward to sharing it with you.”

Mick Fleetwood has been part of one of the world’s most successful and adored bands for over four decades. Here he tells the full and candid story of that life, and what it is to be part of the ever evolving Fleetwood Mac. His all-access autobiography spans the career of one of classic rock’s greatest drummers and band leaders, the co-founder of the deeply loved super group that bears his name.

PLAY ON: NOW, THEN AND FLEETWOOD MAC will publish in the UK on 30th October, 2014. This is your ONLY chance to pre-order a signed copy.

This offer is available to UK customers only.

Click here for futher details and to order your signed copy – http://cob.uy/89ff0b

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Christine McVie, Fleetwood Mac, Lindsey Buckingham, Mick Fleetwood, UK Articles

Mick Fleetwood reveals that Fleetwood Mac are back – with a full pack | Sunday Express

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By: Matt Gibson
Published: Sun, April 6, 2014
Sunday Express (UK)

Fleetwood Mac’s songbird is flying again, writes Matt Gibson. Christine McVie has conquered her fear of jet travel and will be touring with the band in America later this year, Mick Fleetwood has revealed.

McVie, the driving force behind some of the group’s biggest hits such as Little Lies, Songbird and Everywhere, left in 1998, saying her fear of flying made touring impossible. The band has had many personnel changes but core members have been Fleetwood, Stevie Nicks, Christine and her former husband John McVie and Lindsey Buckingham.

Writing in his exclusive Sunday Express column, drummer Fleetwood says: “The songbird has found her way home where she belongs and the amazing story of Fleetwood Mac continues.”

Christine McVie, Fleetwood Mac, Mick Fleetwood, UK Articles

After 15 years, Christine McVie is to rejoin Fleetwood Mac ‘where she belongs’ | Sunday Express

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Sunday Express (UK)
By: Mick Fleetwood
Published: Sun, April 6, 2014

FIFTEEN years ago I was on a flight, going to a gig somewhere, when my dear friend and virtual sister, Christine McVie, presented me with a very special silver key. A memento, given as a token of our long friendship, that key doubled as a sentimental talisman, meant to keep me safe on all my travels.

 

The other day, I found the key, tucked away in the fold of my passport case. Remarkably, it had been there for the entire duration of Christine’s hiatus from Fleetwood Mac. Now that she is joining us again, the symbolism is not lost on me. Once again we will be on tour, flying all over the world together. How perfect that this magic key should choose now to make its reappearance.Christine admitted to me that when she and I first met, she was quivering in her boots, completely intimidated by me when I walked into her dressing room all those years ago at the Marquee Club. The irony being, of course, that my outward appearance, that of a bombastic madman, trapped in a 6ft 7ins frame, in no way mirrored my inner self. There is a reason why kids start crying when they see my giant body and long beard!  Continue reading After 15 years, Christine McVie is to rejoin Fleetwood Mac ‘where she belongs’ | Sunday Express →

Fleetwood Mac, Mick Fleetwood, UK Articles

Mick Fleetwood Goes His Own Way: Quotes from Thoreau | Sunday Express

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Sunday Express (UK)
By: Mick Fleetwood
Sun, March 30, 2014

“If a man loses pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured, or far away.” – Henry David Thoreau

The production for Tusk was Fleetwood Mac's chance to divert from the expected[GETTY]
The production for Tusk was Fleetwood Mac’s chance to divert from the expected[GETTY]
Thoreau’s quote so brings to mind the experience of making the album Tusk. Much like when the Beatles made their White Album, Tusk, for us, was our walking away from predictability.

Kudos to Lindsey Buckingham, who was determined to break the mould of what we had done with Rumours and get away from the possibility of what can so often happen when success impedes artistic expression.I think Tusk was the most important album we ever made. It’s also my personal favourite and now I can appreciate how it was a crucial platform for us all, especially Lindsey. It satiated his drive to try new things.

It was also a time when we each learned to find our own voice. Coming out of the emotional rollercoaster of Rumours, the drama remained. A real shift had occurred, resulting in each of us pinpointing our singular creative method of survival. Continue reading Mick Fleetwood Goes His Own Way: Quotes from Thoreau | Sunday Express →

Fleetwood Mac, Mick Fleetwood, UK Articles

Mick Fleetwood Goes His Own Way: On the road | Sunday Express

Sunday Express (UK)
By: Mick Fleetwood
Sun, March 23, 2014

The life I love is making music with my friends, and I can’t wait to get on the road again – Willie Nelson, On The Road Again.

Fleetwood Mac knew all about excess on tour [PA]
Fleetwood Mac knew all about excess on tour [PA]
All of us are familiar with my friend and comrade Willie Nelson’s lyrics. As far as I am concerned, there’s never been a truer sentiment written, since I love all those old feelings of excitement that ramp up before any tour starts.My first real tour started with the release of our hit record, Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac. We toured throughout Europe. Lugging equipment, setting up stages, taking small planes, ferries and buses, we had an itinerary of crummy, shared motel rooms, often sneaking five to a room and using overcoats for blankets. We travelled on no sleep and bad food, in broken-down vans, sometimes even hitchhiking to gigs. I loved every minute of it.

I adapted to the rhythm and the chaos of travelling so well because it was in my blood, having been raised in the Air Force. For me, it was the birth of the “Road Dog” – the bloke who is happier and more comfortable on the road than at home. I developed my skills as a ringmaster, organising and taking control of getting that circus out on the road. Continue reading Mick Fleetwood Goes His Own Way: On the road | Sunday Express →

Mick Fleetwood, UK Articles

Mick Fleetwood Goes His Own Way: Motoring nostalgia | Sunday Express

Sunday Express (UK)
By: Mick Fleetwood
Sun, March 16, 2014

DID you know that in the 17th and 18th centuries, “nostalgia” was deemed a mental disorder?

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Actually, I have friends who would agree because when it comes to me and my cars, my nostalgia knows no bounds. It is an important link between my past and present self.

Each car I’ve owned has a story attached. My first was a London taxi that I bought for £12 from a neighbour in Notting Hill Gate.

The perfect vehicle to carry my equipment and take me from gig to gig, I loved that cab, with its solid doors and the familiar diesel rattle and hum. I’ve never had another car that could match the turning radius.

After the cab, vanity got the better of me and I bought a Jaguar XJ-120 sports car for about £60. It was a wreck, leaked as much oil as it used petrol. I couldn’t afford to buy the hard-top roof for the winter so, rain or shine (mostly rain), I drove it with no top at all.

I had a system to weather the storms; a leather cape, one of my dad’s Air Force flying helmets, goggles and enormous Air Forceissue gloves. I’d bomb down the motorways like a mad speed racer, arriving at my destination (no heater) frozen half to death, frost-bitten and soaked to the bone. Continue reading Mick Fleetwood Goes His Own Way: Motoring nostalgia | Sunday Express →

Mick Fleetwood, UK Articles

Mick Fleetwood Goes His Own Way: The Marquee Club | Sunday Express

Sunday Express (UK)
By: Mick Fleetwood
Sun, March 9, 2014

IT WAS 50 years since The Beatles first played the Ed Sullivan Show, and 50 years since the Marquee Club shaped and changed the course of my life.

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It was there I made life-long friends, saved sweethearts and survived fights. It was there I went from complete obscurity to learning the tools of my trade from the musical masters of our time.

The Marquee was the jewel of the London clubs. All the musicians wanted to play there. It was a jazz club until the brilliant, groundbreaking management of John Gee, who guided its metamorphosis into the seminal rock and roll/rhythm and blues club whose influence is still relevant today.

I have a first, stomach-turning memory of playing the Marquee with my band The Cheynes. We had no following and it was a miracle to have been asked to back the legendary blues star Sonny Boy Williamson. This giant of a man played a tiny harmonica and dressed in the coolest suits, all mismatched fabrics in wild designs. We had studied his albums and learned his every note by heart to prepare for this honour. Continue reading Mick Fleetwood Goes His Own Way: The Marquee Club | Sunday Express →

Mick Fleetwood, UK Articles

Mick Fleetwood Goes His Own Way: Custom fashion | Sunday Express

Sunday Express (UK)
By: Mick Fleetwood
Published: Sun, March 2, 2014

IT’S NOT exactly breaking news, my many dalliances with addiction in my life, but one hasn’t been well-documented, and that’s my absolute love of fashion.

Mick Fleetwood has a taste for alternative and custom fashion [GETTY]
Mick Fleetwood has a taste for alternative and custom fashion [GETTY]
Not so much fashion per se, rather my personal pursuit of theatrical self-expression through my clothes and what I present to the world.

Here’s a riddle for you: What can a broke, 18-year-old, 6ft 6in beanpole find to wear in a ready-made shop? Answer? Absolutely nothing. I was left to scour the markets, usually ending up at the Army and Navy surplus store.

Then I met Rod Stewart and the incredible blues artist Long John Baldry who, incidentally, was 6ft 7in. Imagine my initial envy, seeing this tall man in garb I’d only dreamt of.

I played with Rod for two years and I attribute much of my fashion savvy to him and John. Not only were they renowned for their style, they shared their secrets, showing me the ways of bespoke tailoring on the cheap in London’s East End.

I saved up for one thing that fit properly – a pair of trousers, a shirt – at a time. I was hooked. Finally, I had clothes that fit. Continue reading Mick Fleetwood Goes His Own Way: Custom fashion | Sunday Express →

Mick Fleetwood, UK Articles

Mick Fleetwood goes his own way: Dreams of vinyl | Sunday Express

Sunday Express (UK)
By: Mick Fleetwood
Published: Sun, February 23, 2014

CALL me retro but I still love records. I have great memories of shopping for vinyl, playing amazing albums, listening to records with friends, trading music and discovering new sounds.

The age of vinyl records is not quite over [GETTY/MODEL USED]
The age of vinyl records is not quite over [GETTY/MODEL USED]
Records have always been a huge source of inspiration. To me there is nothing better than looking at the cover artwork, reading the liner notes and taking in the album’s entire experience.

The way they master music today, much of the integrity of the sound – the emotion and subtlety – is lost. Fleetwood Mac records have an organic sound that is more comfortable to the human ear. At least to mine!

I love listening. I am a great listener, although perhaps a few of my exes might not agree! But I repeat, I am a great listener. Being a drummer, I am well trained to listen. I am not playing a melody but listening to see where the beats come in, that is my skill. My hearing is sharp, acute, first rate.

When we were in the last phases of making the Rumours album, it dawned on the band that all that listening, playing, singing and writing, all that heartache and pain, time and poetry, was just sitting there on two reels of tape, totally vulnerable.

We realised that anything could happen to it. Of course, we never had a hard drive to back it up like you do now. It could all have been lost in an instant. Continue reading Mick Fleetwood goes his own way: Dreams of vinyl | Sunday Express →