Fleetwood Mac by The Cosmic Carnival - The Incredible Story

FLEETWOOD MAC
"The Incredible Story"
performed by The Cosmic Carnival

Fleetwood Mac stands alongside the Beatles, Rolling Stones, and Queen as one of the defining acts in music history. The band was founded in 1967 by guitarist Peter Green and drummer Mick Fleetwood as a British blues rock outfit. The classic lineup - Mick Fleetwood, Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer, and John McVie - was already outselling the Beatles and the Rolling Stones by 1969. Blues-driven rock tracks like "Black Magic Woman" and "Oh Well" became worldwide hits.

In 1970, Fleetwood Mac hit a serious low point. Lead guitarist Peter Green struggled to cope with the pressure of success and fell into drug addiction, eventually leaving the band without warning. Second guitarist Jeremy Spencer faced similar demons and walked out mid-tour in the USA.

These departures forced a dramatic reinvention. In the early 1970s, Christine McVie joined on keyboards and Bob Welch came in as the new lead guitarist, steering the band toward pop-rock territory. Few acts in music history have pulled off such a sweeping stylistic shift without losing their audience.

In 1974, Bob Welch left, and Mick Fleetwood happened to meet two new musicians at the same recording studio. Lindsey Buckingham joined as guitarist and vocalist, and Stevie Nicks as an additional singer - another couple in the band alongside Christine and John McVie, and a stroke of musical genius.

The first album by this lineup, simply titled "Fleetwood Mac", came out in 1975 and spawned several hit singles including "Rhiannon" and "Over My Head".