Stevie Nicks on the Fleetwood Mac reunion, her solo LP and why she can't stop writing about Lindsey Buckingham

Rolling Stone Magazine - October 9, 2014

STEVIE NICKS "24 KARAT GOLD - SONGS FROM THE VAULT"

Pre-Order from Stevienicksofficial.com Available October 7th.

2 Clips - Fleetwood Mac performing in Chicago last night

Fleetwood Mac performed at Sam Zell's birthday bash in Chicago last night (Sept 27th)... a warm up show.

Post by Fleetwood Mac News and Reviews.

Post by Fleetwood Mac News and Reviews.

Mick Fleetwood plays on

CBSNews.com

(if you missed Mick, Stevie and Christine on CBS Sunday Morning today... Here's the segment in text)

"Don't Stop" is the tune that rock band Fleetwood Mac serenaded Bill and Hillary Clinton with at the Inauguration Gala back in 1993. And "Don't Stop" is the band's guiding principle today , as its leader tells our John Blackstone . . . For The Record:

At his mountainside estate in Hawaii, Mick Fleetwood could be mistaken for an eccentric country gentleman, spending quality time with his pet pig, Tilly. "Sit! Sit!"

But Fleetwood is better known as the drummer of the group that shares his name: Fleetwood Mac.

In a rehearsal hall in Los Angeles, the five members responsible for the group's biggest hits are preparing for their first tour together in 17 years.

Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham, John McVie and Mick Fleetwood have been rejoined by Christine McVie, who left the band in 1998, swearing she would never come back.

"She called me and said, 'How would you feel if I came back to the band?'" said Nicks. "And I'm like, 'Are you serious?'"

McVie said, "God, I'm really actually on this black carpet with these fantastic musical friends of mine and all just having, really enjoying it, you know, really enjoying it."

For Mick Fleetwood, having the band complete again has come at the right time.

"I think it's about getting your house in order, without being overly heavy," he told Blackstone. "The reality is, I'm sitting here, I'm 67 years old, I'm certainly not planning on leaving anytime that I know of, but you do see the picture in a different way just because you're older."

As part of "getting his house in order," Fleetwood has just finished his autobiography, "Play On," out next month. Why a book now? "I don't write songs," he said. "So this is a version of me writing a song."

He writes about his divorces from three wives, and his failures as a father to his four daughters.

"I would imagine that someone reading this document would say that he's sort of sold his soul to his band," said Fleetwood.

"I don't think he's sold his soul," said McVie. "I think he did it out of love."

Q&A with Christine McVie on her return to performing with Fleetwood Mac

Christine McVie on rejoining Fleetwood Mac
CBSNews.com

Born in England, singer, songwriter and keyboardist Christine Perfect joined the band Fleetwood Mac in 1970, after marrying the band's bass player John McVie. She performed with the group through it's most successful years, which saw the release the such top-selling albums as the 1975 "Fleetwood Mac," "Rumours, " "Tusk," and "Mirage."

She left the group in 1998, but this year has rejoined Fleetwood Mac, recording songs for an upcoming album and heading out on tour with her bandmates -- Mick Fleetwood, Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham and ex-husband John McVie -- for the first time in 17 years.

Correspondent John Blackstone recently talked with McVie about her return to performing with Fleetwood Mac.

John Blackstone: On that rehearsal stage, does it seem like you were never gone? Or-- or is it a struggle sometimes?

Christine McVie: I thought it was gonna be a struggle, to be honest. I was a little anxious. But actually walking onto the stage, I mean, we started off in a smaller room that didn't have a stage, that was just one big flat room all on the same level. And it was much more of a laid-back rehearsal atmosphere.

But the moment you find yourself playing with these fantastic musicians and friends, it just melted away. And now I feel completely comfortable, really, surprisingly so.

Blackstone: Surprised yourself?

McVie: I surprised myself, indeed. I thought I was gonna be much more nervous. And we did a bit of recording beforehand as well earlier this year, which I had a little trepidation about. But that ended up being a magical time for us all. And hopefully, we'll finish the album next year. And now looking forward to the tour. (laughs) It's gonna be fantastic.

Blackstone: This all started with you climbing on a plane to Hawaii, having the nerve to climb on a plane to Hawaii.

McVie: Well, yeah. I've told quite a few people this story. But still, I mean, it's worth a tell. I did have a phobia about flying. And I had the phobia when I left Fleetwood Mac. It was a multiple of different reasons that led me to leave -- my father had died in England, and I wanted to be close to my own family there. So I bought a house.

Q&A Stevie Nicks talks about her relationships with members of Fleetwood Mac

Stevie Nicks on Mick Fleetwood
CBSNews.com

Singer-songwriter Stevie Nicks began performing in bands in high school in California, and later joined Lindsey Buckingham's band, Fritz, opening for such artists as Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and Jefferson Airplane. After three-and-a-half-years Fritz disbanded, and in 1973 Nicks and Buckingham recorded the album, "Buckingham Nicks."

Soon after, they joined Mick Fleetwood and Christine and John McVie's band on their eponymous 1975 album, "Fleetwood Mac." Nicks would continue with the group to this day, recording eight albums, while also recording eight solo albums, including the 2014 release, "25 Karat Gold: Songs From the Vault."

CBS News correspondent John Blackstone recently talked with Nicks about her relationships with members of Fleetwood Mac, who are regrouping with former member Christine McVie for a new album and tour.

John Blackstone: You're a better singer now than you were in the 1970s, Stevie.

Stevie Nicks: So much better. So much better. I'm really trained. I could teach voice now.

Blackstone: Mick said, "As much as Stevie said she'd like time off, that girl just keeps workin'." You got a new album comin' out. You're doin' this tour. You can't stop. You don't wanna stop.

Nicks: You know what? It's kind of like, what else would you do? This is my job. This is what I've been doing since I was a senior in high school, and I joined my first band with, you know, three girls and five guys [singing] Bob Dylan songs.

And I learned to play the guitar, not very well, but well enough to play for my mom and dad and convince them that I was gonna be a singer. And so it's what I do. I enjoy it. I think I would be probably better served to take a little bit of a break once in a while. The last time I actually had a real vacation was 2008. And I went to Mexico for three months. And I should do that every once in a while.

But it seems that every time I almost get to booking that trip -- we were not supposed to come back out on the road this year. And then Christine called and said, 'I'm back.' And then all of a sudden, shows went on sale and sold out in the beginning of February. So there was no time for that. So I kind of look at it as, well, I guess it's better to have a job than to not have a job!

Christine McVie: Why she quit and rejoined the band

by Jon Bream
Star Tribune

Photo: Danny Clinch

On why she left

“I’d developed a dreadful fear of flying. I was fed up with the travel and all the schlepping. I think I got burned out with that. Then my father died. I bought a house in England. I wanted to spend more time with my family in England after the big earthquake we had; I wanted to get out of L.A. I was a country lady, living in a big house with the dogs and cooking. I just wanted to calm down and breathe and lead a normal life for a bit. I told the guys when we were doing the last tour [in 1998], and they accepted it. It wasn’t ever anything personal.”

On her music career

“I did make a solo album with my nephew in my studio. But I was still afraid of flying, so I didn’t want to tour.”

On why she came back

“I think it came to a point where I said: ‘What am I going to do? I can’t sit here and watch my dogs get old. I’ve got to do something.’ I wanted to play music. But I couldn’t fly. So I went to a therapist and got myself sorted out. It so happened that Mick [Fleetwood] was coming into London to promote Fleetwood Mac’s upcoming tour in Europe. He called me. I said, ‘I’m going to try to get to Maui’ [where he lived]. He said: ‘You’ll get on a plane? You come with me. We’ll go back together.’ That’s what I did. I got on the plane, and I never thought about it again. I [later] went all over Africa on this tiny 12-seater plane and thoroughly enjoyed it. Then I said to Mick: ‘What would you do if I were to rejoin the band?’ ”

On preparing for the tour

“Mick and I are sharing this house in L.A., and we have a terrific friendship. It’s like a health farm. We work out separately with a trainer. She also cooks for us.”

On her voice

“We have the same chap [vocal coach] we had before I left the band. He’s fantastic. My voice is holding up really well. They say I’m singing like a bird.”

STEVIE NICKS "24 KARAT GOLD - SONGS FROM THE VAULT"

Pre-Order from Stevienicksofficial.com Available October 7th.