Saturday Morning Records: #23 — “Buckingham Nicks”

A new series for paying subscribers — celebrating favourite albums for the weekend

Buckingham Nicks is the only studio album by the duo Buckingham Nicks — comprised of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. In an alternative universe, which probably seemed more likely at the time, they stumbled along opening for bands and getting nowhere, released a second album if they were lucky, got dropped by the label, she continued waitressing, maybe released a small volume of poetry, and he taught guitar lessons from their bedsit. They possibly broke up a little down the road…

But we all know the story of what happened next for Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. They joined Fleetwood Mac — not the biggest band in the land at the time, a disintegrating project held together with sticky tape, and giving it what might have been a desperate last shot really. All Mick really wanted was a new studio. Then he heard a track from the album Buckingham Nicks and decided he simply had to have the guitar player. He was informed that they duo was very much a duo, came as a pair. And he agreed to take the girlfriend on board too — Ms. Stevie Nicks. How funny, for several reasons, chiefly that she is the enduring icon of the band and the most commercially and critically successful as a solo member. (And if you like, funny, or whatever, because Mick and her would have a steamy affair). But we all know about the “rumours” that informed the album Rumours and the dark, weird truths the band battled through.