After Losing Yet Another Band Member, Fleetwood Mac Has No Plans To Perform Again

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• Christine McVie Was A Long Standing Member Of Fleetwood Mac

• Fleetwood Mac Has Lost Band Members Before

• Fleetwood Mac Seems To Be Done Performing As A Group

Fleetwood Mac is an iconic band that has withstood the test of time, continuously garnering new fans in its wake while keeping its older fans content with their music. Songs like Landslide, Go Your Own Way, Dreams, and The Chain helped the band not only become successful but stay that way through the modern day.

While the relationships in the band weren’t always the steadiest, there seemed to be a love and a bond there with several of the members. Even Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie made a pact with each other when Nicks joined the band, saying if they were ever in a room where they felt they weren’t being respected, they would both get up and say “This party’s over” and leave.

This close-knit family that some of the members of Fleetwood Mac have built for themselves is likely why the surviving members of the band have been so emotionally impacted by the untimely death of their long-standing vocalist and keyboardist Christine McVie, who held her own throughout the band’s tumultuous career.

Christine McVie Was A Long Standing Member Of Fleetwood Mac

While Stevie Nicks is usually the first name that pops into many people’s minds when they think of Fleetwood Mac, Christine McVie was right there alongside her for most of the band’s career lending her vocal prowess to the group’s songs as well.

McVie got into music at the age of four through piano lessons and was classically trained for several years until rock and roll became a pop-cultural phenomenon. She was in a blues band called Chicken Shack as the pianist and contributing vocalist until she met her husband and Fleetwood Mac bassist John McVie.

The talented songstress made time to release solo work as well, something she continued to do periodically throughout her career. McVie ended up joining Fleetwood Mac as their pianist and vocalist as well as alongside the likes of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham and stayed with the band through 1998.

Christine McVie playing piano

It wasn’t until 2013 that she re-joined the band on stage for the first time. Her official return to Fleetwood Mac was announced in 2014, and she stayed with the band going forward in a touring and recording capacity until her untimely passing in late November 2022.

Fleetwood Mac Has Lost Band Members Before

Like many bands, Fleetwood Mac has a rotating cast of characters that have had the pleasure of being a part of the group. And there are several that have had to leave the band for one reason or another. Founding member Peter Green left the band in 1970 due to drug abuse and mental health issues.

Christine McVie actually stepped in to fill his spot from that moment forward. Jeremy Spencer, another founding member and slide guitarist left in 1971 to join the Children of God organization. Bob Brunning was also in the band in 1967 but ended up being replaced by John McVie.

Danny Kirwan, Bob Welch, Bob Weston, and Dave Walker were all briefly in the band during the early-to-mid 1970s before making their leave. Lindsey Buckingham was in Fleetwood Mac from 1975 through 1987 and returned once again from 1997 through 2018.

The late 1980s through the mid-1990s saw members like Dave Mason, Rick Vito, and Billy Burnette join as vocalists and guitarists for the group. Brunning, Weston, Welch, Kirwan, and Green have all passed away since leaving Fleetwood Mac.

Fleetwood Mac performing.jpeg

Christine McVies’ untimely death makes her the first member to, unfortunately, pass away while still active in the band. Mick Fleetwood and John McVie are the only founding members of Fleetwood Mac that are still in the group and have been on all the band’s releases.

Stevie Nicks is also still part of the band and has been off and on since 1975, with Mike Campbell and Neil Finn joining in 2018 as backing vocalists and guitarists, with Finn also occasionally playing the keyboard as well.

Fleetwood Mac Seems To Be Done Performing As A Group

While other members of Fleetwood Mac have come and gone, it seems that the loss of Christine McVie has heavily impacted the remaining members of the longstanding band. According to Fleetwood Mac drummer and founding member Mick Fleetwood, it doesn’t seem that they have any intention of continuing on as a group.

“I think right now, I truly think the line in the sand has been drawn with the loss of Chris. I’d say we’re done, but then we’ve all said that before. It’s sort of unthinkable right now,” he admits. It seems that the rest of the members of the band are all doing their own thing, and it looks like Fleetwood intends to do the same.

Fleetwood Mac on the red carpet

“They all get out and play, so I’m gonna be doing the same thing, finding people to play with.” So while the group may not perform together again, and it doesn’t appear that Fleetwood Mac will ever return to the stage under that name, it does appear that they will continue to make music in their own way going forward.