British-born singer Christine McVie was one of the songwriters and singers in the beloved rock band Fleetwood Mac. McVie, who passed away in 2022 at the age of 79, wrote some of the group’s biggest hits, including “Go Your Own Way” and “Dreams.”
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But what did the songwriter and artist have to say about the world outside of her acclaimed songs and lyrics? What were her thoughts on life and love, her craft, her band, its chemistry, and much more?
[RELATED: 5 of the Best Christine McVie Lyrics]
Without further ado, let’s dive in.
1. “With Fleetwood Mac, it’s an amazing chemistry that we have on stage.”
2. “Before shows, we rub elbows and growl. It started once when someone had a cold, and we didn’t want to hug each other. So we started rubbing elbows. And we don’t kiss. We just go, ‘Grrrr!’”
3. “I don’t sing about politics or anything like that. I sing about love. That’s what I know about.”
4. “I felt very at home in California, but the place is prone to earthquakes, and the one in 1994 scared the life out of me. For months afterward, I felt that every time I sat down, I should have put on a seatbelt.”
5. “There’s a whole bunch of unfinished stuff. Then I’ve got books of lyrics. I find it frustrating to finish a song and not be able to record it… so I don’t write a million songs.”
6. “I wouldn’t like to grow old alone.”
7. “I don’t know what it is really… I think I’m just good with hooks.”
8. “There were a lot of bad feelings when Lindsey first left the band. But there’s been a lot of healing going on, growing up, maturing. The bond is a great deal stronger than what we first thought.”
9. “I was in Tower Records in San Francisco a few weeks ago, buying some cassettes, and a couple of people recognized me and ran up with albums, and I just wanted to cover my face and have a seizure or something. I want people to just go away.”
10. “Schlepping around from city to city is nothing I want to do.”
11. “I try to say I love you in a million different ways. That’s what I aspire to do. That’s what I do best.”
12. “I did make a solo album in my house when I was there. And because I was just afraid of flying, I wouldn’t promote it, and I wouldn’t tour. Actually, it wasn’t a very good album anyway—it got buried underneath the pits of Hell, I suppose.”
13. “I’m looking more like my dogs every day—it must be the shaggy fringe and the ears.”
14. “My ears are really good. I’m a good listener.”
15. “For Stevie, the words are of prime importance; the song moves around the words, rather than the words moving around the song.”
16. “I have always needed other musicians to bounce off.”
17. “I tend to like the traditional sound: three-part harmonies, guitar, and piano. I mean, a well-played guitar is a joy forever.”
18. “When you’re in the same band as somebody, you’re seeing them almost more than 24 hours a day. You start to see an awful lot of the bad side ’cause touring is no easy thing.”
19. “Learn your instrument. Be honest. Don’t do anything phony. There is so much crap floating around. There is plenty of room for a bit of honest writing.”
20. “I don’t think talent or the gift ever goes away.”
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