Mick Fleetwood
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| Mick Fleetwood | ||
|---|---|---|
| Background information | ||
| Birth name | Michael John Kells Fleetwood | |
| Born | 24 June 1947 Redruth, Cornwall, United Kingdom |
|
| Genre(s) | Rock Blues |
|
| Occupation(s) | Musician | |
| Instrument(s) | Drums, Percussion | |
| Years active | 1966 - present | |
| Label(s) | Reprise | |
| Associated acts |
Fleetwood Mac (1967 - John Mayall Bluesbreakers (1966) |
|
| Website | http://www.mickfleetwood.com | |
Mick Fleetwood (born 24 June 1947 in Redruth, Cornwall) is a British musician best-known for his role as the drummer with the rock and roll band Fleetwood Mac. His name, combined with that of John McVie was the inspiration for name of the originally Peter Green-led Fleetwood Mac.
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[edit] Early life
He was born to Mike Fleetwood and Bridgit 'Biddy' Brereton two years after the end of World War Two. The early childhood years saw young Mick Fleetwood and his family follow his father, an Royal Air Force fighter pilot, initially to Egypt where the family stayed for about six years. Later his father was posted to Norway, permitting Mick Fleetwood to acquire fluency in the Norwegian language while attending school there. However according to his autobiography Fleetwood - My Life and Adventures with Fleetwood Mac academically Mick Fleetwood had an extremely difficult and trying time throughout his school years, many of which he spent at English boarding schools. He performed very poorly in exams which he himself attributed to his persistent inability to commit facts to memory. He dropped out of school aged only 15 and in 1963 moved to London to pursue his interest in starting up a career as a drummer.
[edit] Musical career
Keyboard player Peter Bardens gave Fleetwood his first gig in Bardens' band The Cheynes, thus seeding the young drummer's musical career. It would take him from The Cheynes to stints in the Bo Street Runners, Peter Bs, Shotgun Express (with Rod Stewart), and John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers. After being dismissed from the Bluesbreakers for repeated inebriety during gigs Mick Fleetwood was asked a few months later by singer and guitar player Peter Green to join him along with bass player John McVie in his new band Fleetwood Mac.
Since then more than fifty albums have been released under the name Fleetwood Mac - by far the most popular being the two mega-platinum sets the group put out in the late seventies - Fleetwood Mac and Rumours.
Apart from his work with Fleetwood Mac Mick has led a number of side projects. 1981's The Visitor featured heavy African stylistics and a rerecording of "Rattlesnake Shake" with Peter Green. In 1983 he formed his own side band Mick Fleetwood's Zoo which recorded the album I'm Not Me featuring a minor hit with the Mac-ish "I Want You Back" and a cover version of the Beach Boys' 'Angel Come Home'. A later version of the group featuring future Mac member Bekka Bramlett on vocals recorded 1991's Shaking the Cage. 2004 found the almost 57-year-old Fleetwood pounding the skins on The Mick Fleetwood Band's Something Big.
The slender 6'5" Fleetwood also has a secondary career as a TV and film actor, usually in minor parts such as Star Trek: The Next Generation and as a resistance leader in The Running Man. Fleetwood also acted as co-host of the 1989 Brit Awards with Samantha Fox, which contained numerous gaffes and flubbed lines.
He is the author of Fleetwood - My Life and Adventures with Fleetwood Mac, his memoirs of his life, especially with Fleetwood Mac, published in 1990. Included in the book are his experiences with other musicians including Eric Clapton, members of The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, and a romance with Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac. Fleetwood also discusses his addiction to powdered cocaine and his personal bankruptcy after earning millions of dollars or pounds from his drumming career.
His sister was the late actress Susan Fleetwood.
He is the only drummer in the semi-fictional (originally intended to be a spoof) band Spinal Tap to survive in the fictional story.
Mick Fleetwood became a US citizen on 22 November 2006 in Los Angeles, CA.[citation needed]
[edit] Discography
[edit] With Fleetwood Mac
| Year | Album | US | UK | Additional information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac | 198 | 4 | - |
| 1968 | Mr. Wonderful | - | 10 | Mick Featured on the cover art |
| 1969 | Then Play On | 192 | 6 | Mick wrote the instrumental "Fighting For Madge" |
| 1970 | Kiln House | 69 | 39 | Mick co-wrote "Station Man" |
| 1971 | Future Games | 91 | - | - |
| 1972 | Bare Trees | 70 | - | - |
| 1973 | Penguin | 49 | - | - |
| 1973 | Mystery To Me | 68 | - | - |
| 1974 | Heroes Are Hard to Find | 34 | - | Mick Featured on the cover art |
| 1975 | Fleetwood Mac (The White Album) | 1 | 23 | - |
| 1977 | Rumours | 1 | 1 | Mick wrote the drum parts for the - "The Chain" |
| 1979 | Tusk | 4 | 1 | - |
| 1980 | Live | 14 | 31 | - |
| 1982 | Mirage | 1 | 5 | - |
| 1987 | Tango in the Night | 7 | 1 | - |
| 1988 | Greatest Hits | 14 | 3 | - |
| 1990 | Behind the Mask | 18 | 1 | - |
| 1995 | Time | - | 47 | Mick wrote a spoken track called "These Strange Times" |
| 1997 | The Dance | 1 | 15 | - |
| 2003 | Say You Will | 3 | 6 | - |
[edit] Solo Albums
| Year | Album | US | UK | Additional information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | The Visitor | 43 | - | Featured two Fleetwood Mac remakes - "Rattlesnake Shake" & "Walk A Thin Line" |
| 1983 | I'm Not Me | - | - | Billed as "Mick Fleetwood's Zoo" |
| 1992 | Shakin' The Cage | - | - | Billed as "The Zoo" |
| 2004 | Something Big | - | - | Billed as "The Mick Fleetwood Band" |
[edit] Trivia
- Mick Fleetwood is known for being a fan of Star Trek: The Next Generation, even appearing as a guest alien in one of the episodes of the show.
- Mick has stated in interviews that "Then Play On" & "Tusk" are his favorite Fleetwood Mac albums.
- Mick hosted the 1989 Brit awards with page three girl Sam Fox, which remains one of the most shambolic live shows in British TV history. Only in 2007, after 18 years, was the Brit awards again broadcast live to the British public and not pre-recorded.
[edit] External links
- Biography from The Penguin
- AMG Entry for Mick Fleetwood
- Peter Green-Fanpage Deutschland/Germany
- Official website for Mick Fleetwood
- Mick Fleetwood article at Memory Alpha, a Star Trek wiki.
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