Origins & the Peter Green Blues Years (1967–1970)
Before Rumours, before Rhiannon, and before Stevie Nicks ever stepped on stage, Fleetwood Mac was a raw British blues band built around one of the most gifted guitarists of his generation. This section covers the band's formation, its original lineup, and the turbulent years that shaped everything that came after.
1. Who founded Fleetwood Mac and when?
Fleetwood Mac was formed in London in 1967 by guitarist Peter Green, drummer Mick Fleetwood, and bassist John McVie. Green was the driving creative force in the earliest lineup, having built his reputation as a standout guitarist in John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, where he had famously replaced Eric Clapton. Fleetwood had also played with Mayall's band, and the two musicians decided to strike out on their own with a blues-focused project. John McVie was initially reluctant to leave the financial stability of the Bluesbreakers, so the first version of the band actually used a stand-in bassist, Bob Brunning, for a handful of early shows before McVie agreed to join permanently later in 1967. Slide guitarist Jeremy Spencer rounded out the original quartet, giving the band a raw, Chicago-blues-inspired sound that was considered authentic and exciting by British blues purists of the era. The band made its live debut at the 1967 Windsor Jazz and Blues Festival, and the strength of that performance quickly earned them a recording contract and a growing following on the London blues club circuit.
2. Why is the band called Fleetwood Mac if Fleetwood Mac wasn't the singer?
The band's name is a tribute rather than a description of a specific member. Peter Green chose to name the group after his rhythm section, combining drummer Mick Fleetwood's surname with bassist John McVie's surname. At the time, Green was under contract to another label as a solo artist, so naming the band after his bandmates also solved a practical problem, letting him front a new group without breaching that agreement. It also reflected Green's respect for Fleetwood and McVie as musicians and his desire to build a genuine group rather than a vehicle for himself alone, something that becomes especially notable given how central the Fleetwood-McVie rhythm section remained through every subsequent lineup change over the next five decades. It is worth noting that when the band first performed live, John McVie had not yet officially joined, meaning the group was briefly playing under a name that referenced a bassist who wasn't even in the room, a quirky footnote that underscores just how fluid the band's early lineup truly was.
3. What was Fleetwood Mac's first album?
The band's self-titled debut, commonly known as “Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac,” was released in the UK in February 1968. It was a straightforward blues record, showcasing Green's guitar work and the band's affection for Chicago blues artists like Elmore James and B.B. King. The album was a commercial success in Britain, reaching the top of the UK charts despite containing no hit singles, which was unusual for the era and speaks to how strong the band's early live reputation already was among British blues audiences. The record was produced quickly and cheaply, reportedly in only a few days, yet it still managed to outsell far more heavily promoted rock and pop releases of the period, a fact that surprised even the band's own label executives and helped establish Fleetwood Mac as a serious commercial force well before Rumours made them a household name.
4. Was Fleetwood Mac originally a blues band?
Yes. In its earliest incarnation, Fleetwood Mac was one of the leading lights of the British blues boom of the late 1960s, alongside acts like John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and early Rolling Stones. The band's sound centered on Peter Green's expressive, economical guitar playing and Jeremy Spencer's slide guitar and Elmore James-style songs. It would take several years and multiple lineup changes before the band evolved into the pop-rock act most casual fans recognize today. In fact, purist blues fans of the late 1960s often considered Fleetwood Mac's early work to be some of the most authentic British interpretations of the Chicago blues sound, and the band toured the United States specifically to perform alongside and pay tribute to the American blues musicians who had inspired them, including a landmark 1969 session in Chicago recording alongside blues legends such as Willie Dixon and Otis Spann.
5. What happened to Peter Green?
Peter Green left Fleetwood Mac in 1970 after a difficult period marked by his use of psychedelic drugs and a growing struggle with his mental health, which was later understood to include schizophrenia. His final months in the band saw him writing more spiritually themed, unsettling material, and after a particularly disorienting experience in Munich in 1970, his behavior and outlook shifted dramatically. He left the band that same year and largely withdrew from the music industry for much of the following decade, though he later resumed a solo career with the Peter Green Splinter Group in the 1990s. Green passed away in his sleep in July 2020 at the age of 73, and is widely remembered as one of the most soulful guitarists in rock history, with admirers including B.B. King, who once said Green was the only guitarist who ever gave him cold sweats. A tribute concert, organized by Mick Fleetwood shortly before Green's death, brought together artists like David Gilmour, Billy Gibbons, and Pete Townshend to celebrate Green's enormous influence on the genre.
6. Did Fleetwood Mac write “Black Magic Woman”?
Yes. “Black Magic Woman” was written by Peter Green and originally recorded by Fleetwood Mac as a single in 1968, reaching the UK Top 40. The song is much better known today through Santana's 1970 cover, which turned it into a Latin-rock radio staple and a much bigger hit than the original ever was. It remains one of the clearest reminders that the band's roots were in blues songwriting and guitar-driven arrangements, a world away from the pop sound most listeners associate with the group today. Green reportedly wrote the song in a single evening, inspired by his fascination with the mystique and darker themes of blues songwriting, and its enduring popularity through the Santana version means that many fans are surprised to learn the song originated with Fleetwood Mac at all rather than the more famous cover artist.
7. Who was in the original lineup of Fleetwood Mac?
The classic first lineup consisted of Peter Green on guitar and vocals, Mick Fleetwood on drums, John McVie on bass, and Jeremy Spencer on slide guitar and vocals. Danny Kirwan joined as a third guitarist in 1968, expanding the band's sound and songwriting depth. Christine Perfect, a respected blues singer and keyboardist from the band Chicken Shack, contributed as a guest musician before formally joining in 1970, the same year she married John McVie and became Christine McVie. This early three-guitarist configuration, Green, Spencer, and Kirwan, was considered unusual and ambitious for a blues band of the period, giving Fleetwood Mac a much fuller, layered guitar sound live than most of their British blues contemporaries, and it foreshadowed the band's later willingness to build songs around multiple distinctive lead voices rather than a single frontperson.
8. When did Christine McVie join Fleetwood Mac?
Christine McVie officially joined Fleetwood Mac as a full-time member in 1970, although she had already contributed piano and backing vocals to earlier recordings as a guest musician. She had previously been a member of the blues-rock band Chicken Shack and was voted Melody Maker's female vocalist of the year in 1969 before ever formally joining Fleetwood Mac. Her arrival coincided with Peter Green's departure, making her one of the key figures who helped steer the band away from straight blues and toward a more melodic, song-oriented direction over the following years. Christine had actually turned down an earlier invitation to join the band before her marriage to John McVie, and her eventual acceptance is often cited by historians as one of the most important lineup decisions in the band's entire history, since her songwriting and voice would go on to anchor some of Fleetwood Mac's biggest hits for the next five decades.
9. What is Danny Kirwan known for in Fleetwood Mac?
Danny Kirwan joined Fleetwood Mac in 1968 as an 18-year-old guitar prodigy and quickly became a key songwriter alongside Peter Green, contributing to albums like Then Play On. His melodic sensibility and intricate guitar work helped push the band beyond pure blues into more progressive and folk-influenced territory. Kirwan struggled with alcoholism and anxiety, and after increasingly erratic behavior, including reportedly smashing his own guitar before a show, he was dismissed from the band in 1972. He later battled homelessness for periods of his life before passing away in 2018. Kirwan was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998 alongside his Fleetwood Mac bandmates, though he did not attend the ceremony, and Mick Fleetwood has spoken in interviews about the lasting guilt he felt over how the band handled Kirwan's dismissal, describing him as one of the most talented and tragically underappreciated musicians ever to pass through the group.