Lindsey Buckingham has been fired from Fleetwood Mac after a disagreement over the band’s upcoming tour, Rolling Stone reports.
Rumors have been ciriculating since April 4th when former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Billy Burnette tweeted “Breaking news: Lindsey Buckingham is out but I’m not in.” (The tweet has since been deleted.)
The news was confirmed when the band released a statement earlier this week announcing plans to tour this fall with two new members – Mike Campbell, longtime lead guitarist for Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, and Crowded House frontman Neil Finn. The statement concluded with two terse sentences regarding Buckingham’s departure.
“Lindsey Buckingham will not be performing with the band on this tour. The band wishes Lindsey all the best.”
Buckingham joined the band in 1974 with then-girlfriend Stevie Nicks. The band was founded 7 years prior by Peter Green and was named after band members Mick Fleetwood and John McVie. Nicks and Buckingham however, quickly became the faces, voices and even songwriters for the group and have remained so – even though Nicks left the group from 1990-1996 and Buckingham quit in 1987 and also returned in 1996. Buckingham has remained an active member of the group since his return but given Fleetwood Mac’s history of cycling through band members, Buckingham’s departure isn’t all that surprising
“We are thrilled to welcome the musical talents of the calibre of Mike Campbell and Neil Finn into the Mac family,” announced the band in a collective statement. “With Mike and Neil, we’ll be performing all the hits that the fans love, plus we’ll be surprising our audiences with some tracks from our historic catalogue of songs. Fleetwood Mac has always been a creative evolution. We look forward to honoring that spirit on this upcoming tour.”
Mick Fleetwood added, “Fleetwood Mac has always been about an amazing collection of songs that are performed with a unique blend of talents … We jammed with Mike and Neil and the chemistry really worked and let the band realize that this is the right combination to go forward with in Fleetwood Mac style. We know we have something new, yet it’s got the unmistakable Mac sound.”
In a statement, Neil Finn said:“Two weeks ago I received a wonderful invitation to be a part of a truly great band. A few days later I was standing in a room playing
music with Fleetwood Mac. It felt fresh and exciting, so many great songs, a spectacular rhythm section and two of the greatest voices ever. Best of all, we sounded good together. It was a natural fit. I can’t wait to play.”
Buckingham’s last performance with Fleetwood Mac was during GRAMMY week earlier this year. The band was honored as the MusiCares Person of the Year during a concert at Radio City Music Hall in New York where a variety of artists payed homage to the Mac, performing many of their iconic songs. The event concluded with Fleetwood Mac performing a short set, which fittingly ended with “Go Your Own Way.”
