Fleetwood Mac’s classic “Rumours” lineup had five members.
The group consisted of Mick Fleetwood on drums, John McVie on bass, Christine McVie on keyboards and vocals, Lindsey Buckingham on guitar and vocals, and Stevie Nicks on vocals. This five-person formation recorded Rumours, released in 1977, and created the lineup most commonly associated with Fleetwood Mac’s worldwide breakthrough.
The album’s history is unusually intertwined with the band’s personal lives. Buckingham and Nicks had recently ended their romantic relationship, while John and Christine McVie were divorcing. Mick Fleetwood was also going through a separation. Those tensions shaped many of the album’s lyrics, but the musicians remained a remarkably effective studio ensemble.
People sometimes count only the three instrumentalists or confuse the Rumours lineup with earlier and later versions of Fleetwood Mac. Peter Green, Jeremy Spencer and Danny Kirwan belonged to earlier eras, while other touring musicians joined in later decades. The number five specifically refers to the core lineup that made Rumours and its enduring songs, including “Dreams,” “Go Your Own Way” and “The Chain.”