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The world of rock music lost a legend this week with the passing of Christine McVie.
McVie, an English singer and keyboardist known for her work with the band Fleetwood Mac, died Wednesday after a short illness, according to a statement from her family. She was 79.
As a member of Fleetwood Mac, McVie helped the band create some of their biggest hits like “Don’t Stop” as well as fan favorites like “Songbird.”
But Boston-based music journalist Larry Katz isn’t inclined to limit his career to just one or two songs. He spoke with her in 1987 from her home in Los Angeles in an audio interview now digitized at Northeastern University as part of a larger collection of interviews known as the Katz Tapes.
At the time of the interview, Fleetwood Mac had recently released the album Tango in the Night, featuring the hit single Little Lies, co-written by McVie and her then-husband, Eddie Quintella. She and Katz talked about getting the band back together after a five-year hiatus and the process of putting the album together with her bandmates amid their turbulent personal lives.
Looking back now, Katz reflects on McVie’s role as an “indispensable” part of the band and its legacy in the music world. This interview with News@Northeastern has been edited for clarity and length.
You did this interview 35 years ago. What do you remember about it?
I remember it was a good interview. And you know, she was quite serious and responsive. This is a snapshot of Christine McVie in 1987; we talk about whatever we talk about. I think it was a fairly recent Fleetwood Mac record.
Of course, this gang, with all their interpersonal ups and downs… It’s always interesting to catch up with them and see what the hell is going on with their bickering.
Was it difficult to talk to band members since their work was so deeply intertwined with their personal lives?
You know, not so much, mostly because I figured I wasn’t the first to ask them about all these things. I realized that I have spoken to every member of the group, the core five that we are most familiar with, at one time or another.
Since their personal relationships were a big part of their story, it was ground that was well covered by other people. So I just tried to find the balance between not turning it into something like gossip and still not avoiding the topic.
Why do you think Christine McVie gets less attention than Stevie Nicks?
Stevie Nicks had a far greater solo career; Stevie Nicks became a solo star herself. [Recently] she said that the initial single she did with Tom Petty was the impetus for her solo career, and she suddenly had this existence separate from Fleetwood Mac.
This was never the case with Christine McVie, who has released several solo albums. And I think she was probably on a solo tour. So it was an obvious thing that she didn’t have these huge pop hits on her own.
But I also think it had to do with her personality, that she was just a quieter, more humble person. If you’ve seen Fleetwood Mac in concert, Stevie Nicks was wearing her scarves and carrying herself; she didn’t play an instrument, so she kind of floated around the stage and danced while Christine was stuck behind the keyboard on the side. So it wasn’t like she got up and danced around or anything.
I think her personality also made her feel more comfortable in that role. But as obituaries point out, she was responsible for quite a few of the band’s popular songs.
When you look at Fleetwood Mac as a whole, how does her contribution stack up to her bandmates?
When it comes to songwriting, you look at it like a three-legged stool. When you remove one of those legs, the whole thing collapses.
“Collapse” is too strong a word in the case of Fleetwood Mac, as they were all talented. But I think the magic of Fleetwood Mac was that it had Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham and Christine McVie, three strong songwriters, three strong personalities who were very different but complementary. A big part of their appeal was that you got three great songwriters for the price of one when you bought a Fleetwood Mac record.
In the old days, if you bought an album from a guy, there were about 12 songs on it, and maybe four or five of them were great, and the others were good, but not that exciting.
With Fleetwood Mac, if you have four songs by three great songwriters, you get their four best songs, and that really cut the fat. I think that’s what made them such a strong band.
What impact do you think McVeigh’s death will have on music?
I don’t think she’ll get hit; I don’t think any song of hers is going to come out and suddenly it’s like going up the charts. But I’m sure she’ll jump up the Spotify and iTunes charts and all that stuff, and people will listen to her music again and appreciate it, which is nice.
It has to be because she never had the career that Stevie Nicks did. But it’s a good opportunity for people to realize how fundamental she was to Fleetwood Mac and enjoy her music because she has a lot of great songs.
What do you think her legacy will be? How will people remember her?
Through the songs. Not to downplay her value as a singer and keyboardist. I think the songs are what really hold up.
People will listen to Fleetwood Mac songs and understand exactly how – not that she was underrated – but that she was just an indispensable part of this group. One of the first things that occurred to me is that Fleetwood Mac is unlikely to ever tour again, although they keep releasing these mosaics of the band touring with one member or another missing.
But I think without her now, and the fact that Lindsay Buckingham is estranged from the other members, that means, I think, the end of Fleetwood Mac as a live band.
What would you say is her crowning achievement as a musician?
I hate to limit an artist by just saying it’s all about one specific song. To me, that group of those five people, when they became hugely successful, it was this kind of magical combination of personalities that came together and created that group.
I’ve already told you how it’s like a three-legged stool. But in the case of the band, it’s like five legs. Because it would seem that if any of these people were missing, it would be a different story and probably not as successful a story.
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