For this week’s Femme Fatale Friday, I am focusing on Stevie Nicks! Today is Stevie’s birthday so this seems like the perfect topic today. Now, anyone who knows my content probably knows how much I adore Stevie Nicks and her music, so this is definitely not a surprising person to feature on Femme Fatale Friday, but I think this will be a very fun post!
Stevie Nicks is a Rock Star who began to gain prominence in the mid-1970s when she and her then paramour Lindsey Buckingham joined the band, Fleetwood Mac. Before that, she and Buckingham were a duo under the name Buckingham Nicks. They had begun collaborating on music when they were in college with Stevie joining a band that Buckingham was in. When they were advised that they were the two with talent and would likely get a record deal as a duo the band broke up so that Buckingham and Nicks could form their partnership.
Their first album did not do incredibly well, but it was successful in some areas, leading to a small tour and getting a chance to record a follow-up album. It was during the recording process of their sophomore album that they had the fateful meeting with the members of Fleetwood Mac! Mick Fleetwood came to the recording studio where they were working to seek out a new guitarist after another lineup change within the band.
While at the studio, Fleetwood had heard a recording of Buckingham on guitar and loved his style. When he inquired about the guitarist, he learned that he was part of a duo and if he wanted him the band would have to likely take on the “chick singer” as well. The band decided to have dinner with both Buckingham and Nicks to see how everyone got along, particularly Stevie and Christine McVie, as Christine had pointed out that you did not want two women in a band if they did not get along well. It turned out that the two women clicked well and that the whole band got along easily in the beginning! That is how the band became their most famous lineup of Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Christine McVie, Stevie Nicks, and Lindsey Buckingham. The first album together and that first tour made Stevie a household name and the breakout star of the group! It was on that album that she first recorded her signature song, “Rhiannon!” How ironic that the female vocalist that the band only invited to join because her boyfriend was a great guitarist, and they were a package deal, ended up being the biggest star of that era of the band! I love when things work out this way, vindicating an artist whose talents were downplayed.
During the recording of the second album together, the iconic Rumours, the whole band was going through breakups. This included Stevie and Lindsey ending their long-term love affair! It was the energy of endings that would impact the evolution of the album. Rumours can be listened to as a conversation between each of the partners as they ended their relationships! I think it is the incredibly relatable feelings that had formed the album that led to its massive success.
After the breakup with Buckingham Stevie would have many love affairs (even marrying very briefly). She famously had a relationship with Don Henley of the Eagles, who sang vocals on the duet “Leather and Lace” (which is actually my wedding song with my husband). She even had a brief relationship with Mick Fleetwood, during and after the Rumours recording, as they consoled each other during their breakups (Fleetwood was divorcing his wife at the time as well).
In 1981, Stevie would record her first solo album, Bella Donna. This would prove to be proof that she was an iconic star whether with a band or on her own! I personally adore Stevie for her art, no matter if she is with a band or on her own. It is her style, both musically and fashion-wise, that made her such a Rock Icon. She formed this style as a witchy woman in mystical garb who wrote songs about magical and mystical topics! Many a witchy character and lover of witchy media has taken fashion inspiration from this shawl-twirling maven of style. Some have even stated that she is the first example of the Whismigothic style, well before social media ever made that term up!
After all these decades, Stevie is as popular as ever. She is still touring and releasing music. Fans of American Horror Story even got the pleasure of seeing Stevie play a witch character version of herself in both the third and eighth seasons of the series! I do not think her star will ever fade, as she has become so ingrained in the public consciousness. In this post, I only went over major points of her career and brief discussions of her love life (as her relationships inspired so many songs, especially Buckingham). There is so much more to her story, and I hope those interested will seek to learn more about her. I want to finish by saying Happy Birthday Stevie Nicks! I hope you have enjoyed reading some of my thoughts on Stevie. What is your favorite Stevie Nicks song? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
Note on Image: The image at the top of the post is Stevie in her iconic fashion on stage. I found the image on https://www.harpersbazaar.com/fashion/trends/g1496/stevie-nicks-style-photos/.
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Further Listening/Watching/Reading
- Fleetwood Mac
- Rumours
- Bella Donna
- American Horror Story (2011)
- Gold Dust Woman: The Biography of Stevie Nicks by Stephen Davis
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