<p id=”par-1_69″>When Lindsey Buckingham and <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/stevie-nicks/?swcfpc=1″>Stevie Nicks</a> joined <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/fleetwood-mac/?swcfpc=1″>Fleetwood Mac</a>, they became one of two couples in the band. By the time they were working on their second album with the band, both couples had broken up. Their emotional turmoil provided rich fodder for the band’s magnum opus, <em>Rumours</em>. It also stretched them all to their limits. Despite this, Buckingham said things would have been worse if the couple stayed together.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-lindsey-buckingham-said-it-was-for-the-best-that-he-and-stevie-nicks-broke-up”>Lindsey Buckingham said it was for the best that he and Stevie Nicks broke up</h2>
<p id=”par-2_40″>In the lead up to the release of <em>Rumours</em>, John and Christine McVie divorced and Nicks and Buckingham broke up after years together. The breakup rattled the band, but Buckingham thought it would have been worse if both couples stayed together.</p>
<p id=”par-3_58″>“If Stevie and I, and John and Chris had remained as couples, the stability of the band would not have been very good,” he said, per the book <em>Fleetwood Mac on Fleetwood Mac</em>. “It was like that was a necessary thing to go through to eliminate all those weird vibes. And, we respect each other a lot more now.”</p>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-1″><img decoding=”async” loading=”lazy” width=”1200″ height=”836″ src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fleetwood-Mac-album.jpg?strip=all&quality=89″ alt=”A black and white picture of Fleetwood Mac posed together. Mick Fleetwood wears a hat and stands in the back, Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, and Christine McVie stand in the middle. John McVie stands in front and points at the camera.” class=”wp-image-3653202″ srcset=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fleetwood-Mac-album.jpg 1200w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fleetwood-Mac-album.jpg?w=640&h=446 640w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fleetwood-Mac-album.jpg?w=1024&h=713 1024w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fleetwood-Mac-album.jpg?w=768&h=535 768w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fleetwood-Mac-album.jpg?w=502&h=350 502w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fleetwood-Mac-album.jpg?w=243&h=169 243w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fleetwood-Mac-album.jpg?w=200&h=139 200w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fleetwood-Mac-album.jpg?w=728&h=507 728w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fleetwood-Mac-album.jpg?w=86&h=60 86w” sizes=”(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px”><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Fleetwood Mac | Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images</figcaption></figure>
<p id=”par-4_19″>Nicks said the music brought them together, but she wasn’t sure that the breakups eliminated all the “weird vibes.” </p>
<p id=”par-5_74″>“That two hours on stage is beautiful and always was even in the midst of the worst times,” she said. “And, really, each one of us was way too proud and way too stubborn to just walk away from it. We like touring. We like making money. And we like being a band. But, it’s like a marriage — you’re married to five people — and sometimes you’ve just got to have some space.”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-he-initially-felt-lost-without-her”>He initially felt lost without her</h2>
<p id=”par-6_23″>Though Buckingham said he thought the breakup with Nicks was for the best, he admitted <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/fleetwood-mac-lindsey-buckingham-revealed-terrified-breakup-stevie-nicks.html/”>he felt terrified</a> in the immediate aftermath of their split.</p>
<p id=”par-7_52″>“It was a little lonely there for a while,” he told <a target=”_blank” href=”https://www.rollingstone.com/feature/the-true-life-confessions-of-fleetwood-mac-120867/” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Rolling Stone</a> in 1977. “The thought of being on my own really terrified me. But then I realized being alone is really a cleansing thing…as I began to feel myself becoming more myself again. I’m surprised we lasted as long as we did.”</p>
<p id=”par-8_15″>He said he eventually grew to feel as though the breakup helped him grow up.</p>
<p id=”par-9_54″>“I feel really lucky that I’ve had the opportunity to go through some of the heartaches and s*** we’ve been through the past year. It’s had a profound effect on me,” Buckingham said. “I feel a lot older, I feel like I’ve learned a whole lot by taking on a large responsibility slightly unaided.”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-lindsey-buckingham-and-stevie-nicks-still-fought-viciously-after-their-split”>Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks still fought viciously after their split</h2>
<p id=”par-10_45″>While Buckingham believed his breakup helped bring stability to Fleetwood Mac, some people who worked with the band firmly disagreed with this. As they sat in the recording studio, they would <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/stevie-nicks-lindsey-buckingham-insulted-each-other-recording-fleetwood-mac-song.html/”>scream at each other</a> until it was time to sing their portions of songs.</p>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-2″><img decoding=”async” loading=”lazy” width=”1200″ height=”852″ src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stevie-Nicks-Lindsey-Buckingham.jpg?strip=all&quality=89″ alt=”Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham wear black and hold hands while standing on a stage.” class=”wp-image-3654851″ srcset=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stevie-Nicks-Lindsey-Buckingham.jpg 1200w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stevie-Nicks-Lindsey-Buckingham.jpg?w=640&h=454 640w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stevie-Nicks-Lindsey-Buckingham.jpg?w=1024&h=727 1024w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stevie-Nicks-Lindsey-Buckingham.jpg?w=768&h=545 768w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stevie-Nicks-Lindsey-Buckingham.jpg?w=493&h=350 493w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stevie-Nicks-Lindsey-Buckingham.jpg?w=238&h=169 238w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stevie-Nicks-Lindsey-Buckingham.jpg?w=200&h=142 200w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stevie-Nicks-Lindsey-Buckingham.jpg?w=714&h=507 714w, https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Stevie-Nicks-Lindsey-Buckingham.jpg?w=85&h=60 85w” sizes=”(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px”><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham | Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images</figcaption></figure>
<div class=”related-article related-article–simple”>
<span class=”related-article-flag”>Related</span>
<p class=”related-article__title”>
<a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/stevie-nicks-beg-fleetwood-mac-record-hit-song.html/”>
Stevie Nicks Had to Beg Fleetwood Mac to Record This Hit Song </a>
</p>
</div>
<p id=”par-11_69″>“I remember when we were doing background vocals, Stevie and Lindsey were having an argument,” producer Ken Caillat told <a target=”_blank” href=”https://www.musicradar.com/news/fleetwood-mac-rumours-interview-track-by-track” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Music Radar</a>. “Vicious name-calling – ‘you motherf*****’ this, ‘you f***ing bastard’ that. Back and forth it went. The tape would start rolling and they’d sing, ‘Yooooooou make loving fun,’ just beautiful, two little angels. The tape would stop and they’d be calling each other names again. They didn’t miss a beat.”</p>
<p id=”par-12_10″>Their relationship has <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/lindsey-buckingham-blames-stevie-nicks-fired-fleetwood-mac.html/”>continued to be tumultuous</a> over the years.</p>