{"id":47833,"date":"2017-07-15T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-07-15T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/features\/got-me-hypnotized\/"},"modified":"2026-07-04T11:20:20","modified_gmt":"2026-07-04T11:20:20","slug":"got-me-hypnotized","status":"publish","type":"feature","link":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/features\/got-me-hypnotized\/","title":{"rendered":"Got Me Hypnotized"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fleetwood Mac went through three distinct phases: a British blues-rock band, a mellow California folk-rock band in the early \u201870s, and a massively successful pop-rock band in the late \u201870s and \u201880s. Through every lineup and album, though, namesakes Mick Fleetwood (drummer, and he of the brass balls) and John McVie (bassist, and he of the snazzy hats) have been the anchors for whichever group was out front singing and playing guitar. Looking at Fleetwood Mac\u2019s entire output can be daunting, not so much for quantity as for the changes between the Peter Green, Bob Welch and Buckingham\/Nicks era that almost make you believe that this is three different bands. This countdown will attempt to reconcile the band\u2019s entire studio output, from the debut through 2003\u2019s Say You Will<\/i>, the last actual album to bear the band name (2017\u2019s Buckingham\/McVie <\/i>is not here for that reason). <\/p>\n

17. Time<\/i> (1995)\"fleetwoodmac_time_150\"<\/a> <\/b><\/p>\n

The second album post-Buckingham and first post-Nicks is dull and uninspired; newcomer Bekka Bramlett tries, but there\u2019s very little to recommend here. Even Christine McVie\u2019s contributions sound like retreads. After this flopped, everyone left except the core trio, which brought back Buckingham and Nicks two years later for The Dance <\/i>and the beginning of the reunion\/playing-the-hits era.<\/p>\n

\"fleetwoodmac_behind_150\"<\/a> 16. Behind The Mask<\/i> (1990)<\/b><\/p>\n

Lindsey Buckingham left after Tango In The Night <\/i>and the remaining four members opted to replace him with two guitarists\/songwriters, Billy Burnette and Rick Vito. Problem is, they also were creatively spent, with Christine McVie and Stevie Nicks turning in lesser efforts than fans were used to. The whole project feels uninspired, like the album was expected rather than really desired. It\u2019s fine, in the way most Mac albums are, but it\u2019s hardly up to the level of previous discs.<\/p>\n

15. Mr. Wonderful<\/i> (1968)\"fleetwoodmac_mrwonderful_150\"<\/a> <\/b><\/p>\n

Unreleased in the U.S., the band\u2019s second album is pretty much the most standard white-dudes-playing-the-blues album you can imagine. Lots <\/i>of British white guys were playing American blues in the \u201860s, and these guys didn\u2019t do enough to stand out from the pack, especially on this album, which is mostly covers and sound-alikes. <\/p>\n

\"fleetwoodmac_say\"<\/a> 14. Say You Will<\/i> (2003)<\/b><\/p>\n

Not really a Fleetwood Mac album. Christine McVie did not come back after The Dance<\/i>, and so this is basically a Nicks and Buckingham solo album each, democratically spaced (each gets two songs back to back) and running close to 80 minutes. Not only are most of the songs dull, but there are way too many of them, and rather than working together <\/i>as on the equally-long Tusk<\/i>, <\/i>the main composers seem to do their own thing. Without McVie\u2019s voice or songs as a counterpoint, and with the lackluster nature of most of these, there\u2019s very little to recommend here.<\/p>\n

13 (a). Kiln House<\/i> (1970)\"fleetwoodmac_kiln_150\"<\/a> <\/b>

<\/b>Named for the house the band lived and worked in for a time, Kiln House <\/i>is the sound of a band kicking back, enjoying playing together and not really thinking about the future. Peter Green had departed at this point and Christine Perfect McVie, recently married to John, was starting to hang out with the band more at the house (after helping with some piano spots on Mr. Wonderful<\/i>). It fell to Jeremy Spencer and Danny Kirwan to write the songs, and while still rooted in the blues, they also reached back to old-school American rock for inspiration. As such, this is probably the least essential and most fun recording to carry the Fleetwood Mac name, but it was hardly a recipe for success. Soon after, Spencer bolted and Bob Welch came aboard to start the second phase of the band.<\/p>\n

13 (b): English Rose<\/i> (1969)<\/b>\"fleetwoodmac_english_150\"<\/b><\/a> <\/p>\n

Rather than issue Mr. Wonderful <\/i>in the U.S., the record company dropped half of the weaker tracks of an already weak album, added a couple new songs with new member Danny Kirwan, and then added two single A-sides, the instrumental \u201cAlbatross\u201d and \u201cBlack Magic Woman.\u201d The presence of those two songs makes this the preferable release; it\u2019s still far too heavy on blues covers and uninspired songwriting, but the moments when the band shines (especially those two songs) are pretty darn good. Better yet, if you can find the compilation The Pious Bird Of Good Omen<\/i>, pick it up, as it distills the best of the band\u2019s first two albums and singles into one digestible album.<\/p>\n

\"fleetwoodmac_penguin_150\"<\/a> 12.<\/b> Penguin<\/i> (1973)<\/b><\/p>\n

Danny Kirwan left after Bare Trees, <\/i>leaving Welch and Christine McVie as the dominant songwriters. But the band was still struggling on both sides of the Atlantic, which in retrospect seems like a shame, because this era of the band had some good song. However, there aren\u2019t many of them to be found on Penguin<\/i>, which is a cross between pleasant, subtle Welch\/McVie material and random blues-rock material from brief newcomers Bob Weston and Dave Walker. Perhaps their addition was to hearken back to the band\u2019s blues roots, but it didn\u2019t work, nor did it fit the context of this scattershot disc. That said, McVie\u2019s \u201cDissatisfied\u201d remains one of her strongest rock outings and Welch\u2019s \u201cRevelation\u201d is worth rediscovering. <\/p>\n

11. Mirage<\/i> (1982)\"fleetwoodmac_mirage_170\"<\/a> <\/b><\/p>\n

Tusk <\/i>was an exhausting album, as was the tour that followed it. The band needed a break, during which Stevie Nicks started a successful solo career. So when the time for an inevitable follow-up came around, it felt like the quintet\u2019s hearts weren\u2019t really in it. The result was the lackluster Mirage<\/i>, which lacked the emotional fire, the pop smarts, and the outright idiosyncrasies of the late \u201870s trio of albums. The hit \u201cHold Me\u201d is wispy and lacks punch; better is \u201cCan\u2019t Go Back\u201d and the other hit, \u201cGypsy,\u201d but a couple of songs do not a great album make.<\/p>\n

\"fleetwoodmac_st_150\"<\/a> 10. Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac<\/i> (1968)<\/b><\/p>\n

As said above, the band\u2019s early life as a blues-rock band did little to distinguish them from the many other British rock bands playing the blues in 1968. Peter Green and Jeremy Spencer had chops, Mick Fleetwood had energy, and they could work up a sweat on tracks like \u201cShake Your Moneymaker,\u201d but listening to this many years later reveals little more than a band finding its footing by playing standards (although \u201cI Loved Another Woman\u201d is a pretty good Latin-infused blues piece and a precursor to \u201cBlack Magic Woman,\u201d recorded later in the year). This is sometimes billed as Peter Green\u2019s Fleetwood Mac <\/i>to avoid confusion with casual fans looking for \u201cRhiannon,\u201d which is as different from this album as night and day.<\/p>\n

9. Mystery To Me<\/i> (1973)\"fleetwoodmac_mystery_200\"<\/a> <\/b><\/p>\n

A pretty run-of-the-mill album with one truly great song, \u201cHypnotized,\u201d and a plethora of McVie\/Welch tracks that don\u2019t quite warrant repeated listenings. But for proof that Welch was underrated as a songwriter and guitarist, give \u201cHypnotized\u201d a spin today (it\u2019s on Spotify). More than any other song from this five-album run, it\u2019s the song that got me to explore this era of the band, and it deserved to be a hit.<\/p>\n

\"fleetwoodmac_heroes_150\"<\/a> 8. Heroes Are Hard To Find<\/i> (1974)<\/b><\/p>\n

You could make a case for each of the Bob Welch albums as your personal favorite, but regardless of which you picked, each one has at least two fantastic songs on it. Granted, the corny \u201cBermuda Triangle\u201d is not one of them, but \u201cComing Home\u201d is a truly forgotten gem and one of the best Fleetwood Mac songs of the decade; \u201cAngel\u201d is good too, while McVie\u2019s lush \u201cCome A Little Bit Closer\u201d is one of her best of the decade as well, standing alongside her better-known songs from the Nicks-era albums. There\u2019s still some filler here, although the psych-rock Floydian instrumental \u201cSafe Harbour\u201d is a nice album closer and a good way for this era of the Mac to say goodbye. If you\u2019re digging through the Welch era of 1971-74, this and Future Games <\/i>are the two best places to start.

7. Bare Trees<\/i> (1972)\"fleetwoodmac_baretrees_150\"<\/a> <\/b><\/p>\n

The Bob Welch era of the band was in full swing at this point, but young guitarist Danny Kirwan wanted a little more of the action and so wound up contributing six of the 10 songs on this effort. It was to be his last stand, as he was fired shortly after the release of this for drinking and mood swings. Still, the end result is a pretty good rock album. Kirwan\u2019s harder-edged rock mixes with Welch\u2019s moodier material, bridging the gap from the Green days of old to this new era better than Future Games <\/i>but with less emphasis on mood. There really aren\u2019t any classic songs on here other than Welch\u2019s \u201cSentimental Lady\u201d (later a solo hit) and the lovely instrumental \u201cSunny Side Of Heaven,\u201d but the album is still a good listen, less cloying than a lot of early \u201870s FM pop-rock.

\"fleetwoodmac_future_150\"<\/a> 6. Future Games<\/i> (1971)<\/b><\/p>\n

The first album with American Bob Welch pushes the group in a new direction that entirely omits the blues in favor of a folk-rock approach, which works well on the core trio of Christine and John McVie and Mick Fleetwood. The title cut is a meditative, moody slow burn not unlike what Pink Floyd would record two years later with Dark Side Of The Moon<\/i> and is one of the better songs from the early \u201870s Mac era. Meanwhile, \u201cWhat A Shame\u201d is a fine instrumental and both \u201cSands Of Time\u201d and \u201cWoman Of 1000 Years\u201d show a band that has been overlooked in the shadow of its more famous incarnation later on. In many ways, you could argue this is where the more pop-oriented Fleetwood Mac sound was born, but it stands on its own as a good album.<\/p>\n

5. Tango In The Night<\/i> (1987)\"fleetwoodmac_tango_150\"<\/a> <\/b><\/p>\n

The fifth and final album with the entire classic quintet intact is also a Christine McVie showcase and a melancholy pop gem. Nicks takes a bit of a backseat here and Buckingham is a little more democratic \u2013 a move that apparently didn\u2019t suit him, as he left after this album came out \u2013 and the result is an album with more good songs than you may remember. Rooted in the \u201880s as they may be, the hits \u201cBig Love,\u201d \u201cEverywhere,\u201d and the lush \u201cLittle Lies\u201d are the band\u2019s best of the decade, while the album tracks \u201cIsn\u2019t It Midnight\u201d (guitar solo alert!) and \u201cSeven Wonders\u201d are almost as good. Buckingham\u2019s tracks are a bit harsh and\/or willfully off-putting (\u201cCaroline,\u201d \u201cFamily Man\u201d) and Nicks contributes a couple of head-scratchers on the second-side; if you ever wondered what she would sound like writing an \u201880s-era David Bowie song, listen to \u201cWelcome To The Room\u2026Sara.\u201d Or don\u2019t. But the sum total is a fine pop album that should have been the follow-up to Tusk <\/i>instead of the bucolic Mirage<\/i>.<\/p>\n

\"fleetwoodmac_tusk\"<\/a> 4. Tusk<\/i> (1979)<\/b><\/p>\n

It\u2019s almost impossible to follow up a classic album one that even compares, but darned if Fleetwood Mac didn\u2019t go for broke. They now had the money, the clout, and the time to do what they wanted, and they went wild, recording 20 songs on an obtuse, strange, and compelling double album. The bitter aftermath of the emotional wreckage that fueled Rumours <\/i>is evident in the songwriting; the seams show on harsh, slightly-paranoid punk-rockers like \u201cThe Ledge\u201d and \u201cNot That Funny,\u201d which sit next to standard Christine McVie power-pop love songs like \u201cOver And Over\u201d and Stevie Nicks\u2019 more esoteric and quite lovely pieces like \u201cSara\u201d and the underrated \u201cChildren Of The Moon.\u201d McVie breaks her formula for the lush \u201cBrown Eyes,\u201d which is arguably her finest song, especially as it soothes the soul after Buckingham\u2019s shouty cocaine-fueled \u201cThat\u2019s Enough For Me.\u201d Whereas Rumours <\/i>showed the players working through their feelings together, Tusk <\/i>showed three songwriters taking three different musical paths, and after this messy but intoxicating affair Nicks would split for a while to start a successful solo career.<\/p>\n

3. Then Play On<\/i> (1969)\"fleetwoodmac_then\"<\/a> <\/b><\/p>\n

The band\u2019s third album \u2013 and final with original singer\/guitarist Peter Green as main bandleader \u2013 is darn near epic, 53 minutes of blues-rock that far outshines the band\u2019s first two albums and remains a high point of anything Mick Fleetwood has ever played on. Riding high after recording \u201cAlbatross, \u201cBlack Magic Woman,\u201d and \u201cThe Green Manalishi,\u201d all British singles that did very well and among the band\u2019s best songs, the quartet welcomed young guitarist Danny Kirwan into the fold and cut this disc. The high points included \u201cRattlesnake Shake,\u201d \u201cOh Well,\u201d the bouncy \u201cComing Your Way,\u201d and the teeth-rattling blues guitar showcase instrumental \u201cSearching For Madge\/Fighting For Madge\u201d (Madge, of course, being an early supporter and mega-fan of the band), which was edited down from 20 minutes to its shorter length. There\u2019s also a sadness to the lyrics that make some parts of the album kind of a downer (reportedly, it was too much for Spencer, who briefly left to make a much happier solo disc), but it leads to the overall flavor of the record. This is one that captures the true attitude of the blues way more than the two preceding albums that tried too hard to do the same.

\"fleetwoodmac_s-t\"<\/a> 2. Fleetwood Mac<\/i> (1975)<\/b><\/p>\n

Fleetwood Mac\u2019s third chapter began with a joyous pop-rock album that successfully bridged the gap from the Welch years, thanks mainly to Christine McVie\u2019s \u201cWarm Ways,\u201d \u201cOver My Head,\u201d and \u201cSay You Love Me.\u201d But whereas before she shared space with Welch\u2019s psychedelic\/folk mannerisms, she now collaborated with an American guitarist named Lindsey Buckingham and a singer named Stevie Nicks. Fresh from recording their own little-heard debut album, the couple (romantically and musically) retooled some of their songs with the Fleetwood Mac rhythm section and released what was, in essence a debut album (note Mick\u2019s decision to make it an eponymous title, despite there already being one during the Peter Green years). But it made sense; Buckingham rocked on \u201cI\u2019m So Afraid\u201d and \u201cWorld Turning\u201d as hard as Green and Spencer ever had and Nicks brought an intoxicating power to polished pop-rock gems like \u201cRhiannon\u201d (arguably her signature song) and \u201cLandslide.\u201d The first side of the album has a couple of filler tracks that keep it from the top spot (\u201cBlue Letter\u201d and \u201cCrystal\u201d), but the second side is darn near perfect.<\/p>\n

1. <\/b>Rumours<\/i> (1977)\"fleetwoodmac_rumours\"<\/a>
<\/b><\/p>\n

Really no argument here unless you\u2019re a contrarian. Jason Warburg summed up the appeal of this record on his review of the 35th<\/sup> anniversary edition more eloquently than I will below (he\u2019s good at that), and in the now 40 years since its release, these 11 songs have lost none of their emotional power or grace. The interpersonal drama between band members resulted in emotional tension that poured forth into the songs, which were retooled and reworked until they resembled a masterpiece. Few albums flow as gracefully and hit as hard emotionally while still rocking and hitting all the sweet pop notes required to make them earworms; no matter your age, you know \u201cDon\u2019t Stop,\u201d \u201cGo Your Own Way,\u201d \u201cThe Chain,\u201d and \u201cDreams\u201d \u2013 major hits all, but these songs interweave with Buckingham\u2019s short-yet-powerful acoustic piece \u201cNever Going Back Again,\u201d McVie\u2019s gentle \u201cSongbird,\u201d and Nicks\u2019 confessional \u201cGold Dust Woman;\u201d the song\u2019s coda, where she sings \u201cpale shadow of a woman,\u201d will give you chills every time. The players in the drama aren\u2019t afraid to call each other out but are never nasty about it. It\u2019s one of the ultimate breakup albums because it recognizes how you can love someone but know you can\u2019t be with them, and how that angers and saddens you at the same time. It\u2019s one of rock\u2019s great albums, and it\u2019s as good as Mick Fleetwood and his band ever got.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fleetwood Mac Albums Ranked From Worst To Best<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":45,"featured_media":49037,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"feature_type":[32],"class_list":["post-47833","feature","type-feature","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","feature_type-feature"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/feature\/47833","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/feature"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/feature"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/45"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49037"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47833"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"feature_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/feature_type?post=47833"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}