Rock ‘n’ roll fans will be hooked next month with the release of music-based drama ‘Daisy Jones & The Six’… but all the more compelling as Hollywood’s lustrous portrayal of sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ Roll the real-life debauchery that inspired the upcoming show.
The new series, based on the New York Times bestselling novel by Taylor Jenkins Reid, will air March 3 on Amazon Prime.
Set in the 1970s, it “follows the story of two feuding but charismatic lead singers Daisy Jones and Billy Dunne and how the legendary band imploded at the height of their power”.
Jenkins Reid has repeatedly said that the story is loosely based on the dynamic of Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, following the turmoil of their lives in the spotlight.
Their tumultuous relationship led to the creation of some of music’s most popular hits. But their rollercoaster romance would ultimately blow the famous band apart.
Loosely based on the dynamic of Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham (pictured on stage together), Daisy Jones & The Six follows the turbulence of life in the spotlight
But what’s the true story of the Fleetwood-Mac duo (pictured in photos for their debut album’s cover artwork) that inspired the story?
It was this passionate but acrid dynamic between the two that first inspired Jenkins Reid to write his novel.
Jenkins Reid previously told Reese Witherspoon’s production company Hello Sunshine, “When I decided to write a book about rock ‘n’ roll, I kept coming back to that moment of Lindsey watching Stevie sing Landslide [on The Dance].
“How it looked so much like two people in love. And yet we will never really know what lived between them.
“I wanted to write a story about how the lines between real life and performance can blur, about how singing about old wounds could keep them fresh.”
But what is the true story of the Fleetwood Mac duo that inspired the story?
The author has repeatedly said that the story is based on the dynamic of the two members of Fleetwood Mac (pictured together in 1975).
Rock ‘n’ roll fans will be delighted with the release of music-based drama Daisy Jones & The Six (still in production) next month.
The relationship between Jenkins Reid’s two main characters – Daisy Jones and Billy Dunne (left) – is loosely based on real-life singer Stevie Nicks and guitarist Lindsey Buckingham (right in 1977).
The beginning of the end: Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham join Fleetwood Mac in a package deal
The relationship between Jenkins Reid’s two main characters – Daisy Jones (played by Riley Keough) and Billy Dunne (Sam Claflin) – is based on real-life singer Stevie Nicks and guitarist Lindsey Buckingham.
Nicks and Buckingham, who met as high school students, were already dating when Fleetwood Mac asked Buckingham to join the band in 1975.
He agreed, but only on the condition that his then-girlfriend could be a part of it too, as the couple came as a package deal.
The duo was recorded, completing the band’s enduring line-up alongside Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie and John McVie.
The duo completed the band’s enduring line-up alongside Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie and John McVie (all pictured together).
Nicks (pictured) and Buckingham, who met as high school students, were already a couple when Fleetwood Mac asked Buckingham to join the band in 1975
But their new venture together failed to bring their relationship back from the brink.
The couple ended their romance before the band’s seminal album Rumors, released in 1977 and later earning them a Grammy.
“I can’t even remember what the problems were; All I know is it got to the point where I wanted to be alone,” Nicks told Rolling Stone of the breakup.
“It just wasn’t good anymore, wasn’t fun anymore, wasn’t good for any of us anymore. I’m just the one who stopped it.’
The bad feeling between the on-off couple acted as a catalyst for songs like Second Hand News and Never Going Back, in which Buckingham penned some very acrid lyrics seemingly aimed at his former love.
Apparently the most controversial was his Go Your Own Way, which read, “Tell me why everything turned around, packing, tidying up is all you wanna do.”
And Nicks felt saddened by the sentiment.
She told the publication: “I felt very, very resentful that he told the world that all I wanted to do was ‘pack up, move in together’ with different men.
‘He knew it wasn’t true. It was just an angry thing he said. Every time those words came out on stage I wanted to go over there and kill him.
The couple (pictured in the early 1980s) ended their romance ahead of the band’s seminal album Rumors, which later earned them a Grammy
The bad feeling between the on-off couple acted as a catalyst for songs like Second Hand News and Never Going Back, in which Buckingham penned some very acrid lyrics apparently aimed at his former love (pictured together in 1978).
“He knew, so he really screwed me up. It was like, “I’m going to make you suffer for leaving me.” And I did. For years.’
The singer said she “never brought men” in case it added fuel to the fire, but that Buckingham “had girlfriends straight away.”
But towards the end of the band’s Rumors tour, Nicks seemed closer to their next date after an affair with married bandmate Mick Fleetwood.
The singer said the couple would never have met if they hadn’t been intoxicated by a cocktail of drugs and alcohol.
Nicks said the band spent “gazillion” on drugs in the ’70s and admitted they used to always carry an ounce of cocaine in their boot.
She revealed, “It was the first thing on my mind when I woke up in the morning and the last thing on my mind before I went to bed.”
“Mick and I would never have had an affair if we didn’t have a party and everyone got totally drunk and screwed up and coked up and ended up being the last two people at the party,” she told Oprah’s Master Class.
‘Guess what? It’s not hard to figure out what happened — and what happened wasn’t a good thing. It was doomed. It was a doomed cause, causing everyone a lot of pain and getting nowhere.’
Following her split from Buckingham, the singer said she “never brought men with her,” if that added fuel to the fire
But towards the end of the band’s Rumors tour, Nicks seemed closer to their next date after an affair with married bandmate Mick Fleetwood
Nicks has previously said that she thinks the couple would have stayed together if Fleetwood Mac, fame and drugs hadn’t become part of their lives
But Buckingham didn’t seem to blame any of his bandmates for the affair. He later told The Independent: “I didn’t feel betrayed by Mick when he later had an affair with Stevie.
“Honestly, I would have been surprised if it hadn’t happened. I remember he came over and sat down and told me, and I said, “Oh, okay.” Stevie and I broke up a long time ago and she’s had several boyfriends in between.’
In an interview with The Guardian in 2011, Nicks reflected on the end of her relationship with Buckingham.
She told the publication that Fleetwood Mac, fame and drugs hadn’t become part of her life, she believes the couple would have stayed together.
“We would have gotten married and had kids because we were headed in that direction. We didn’t really screw it up until we moved to Los Angeles. And that’s when the whole world just tore us apart.’
The allegations: Nicks would later accuse Buckingham of bullying and abuse during their relationship
Nicks later claimed that her relationship with Buckingham was fraught with bullying and abuse.
The singer made the allegations in Stephen Davis’ biopic of her, titled Gold Dust Woman, which was released in 2017.
In one incident in 1987, the pair feuded in front of the rest of the band when Buckingham “abused Stevie, punched her in the face and bent her backwards over the hood of his car,” the book states.
“He put his fingers around her neck and started choking her,” it said. The other bandmates intervened, telling him not to touch her again.
“I thought he was going to kill me,” Nicks said.
Nicks (pictured) said if Fleetwood Mac, fame and drugs hadn’t become a part of her life, she thinks the couple would have stayed together
Nicks later claimed that her relationship with Buckingham (pictured together in 1998) was fraught with bullying and abuse
Speaking to the book’s author, bandmate Mick Fleetwood appeared to confirm the manipulative behavior.
“When they joined the band, Lindsey was in control [over Nicks]’ Fleetwood said to Davis. “And very slowly he started to lose control. And he really didn’t like it.’
After confronting her bandmates in 1987, Buckingham changed his ways and, according to the book, never laid hands on her again.
Nicks and Buckingham often “eye-daggered each other in front of crowded stadiums,” according to the LA Times, but the band mostly carried on.
And fans had a hard time letting go of the chemistry between Nicks and Buckingham.
Nicks and Buckingham often “eye-daggered each other in front of crowded stadiums,” according to the LA Times, but the band mostly carried on
Pictured (left to right) in 1977: Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham, Christine McVie, John McVie and Mick Fleetwood
Nicks hinted at this during an interview with MTV in 2009, in which she said, “This electric-crazy attraction between Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks never dies, never will die, will never go away… Who Lindsey and I are to each other will never change.” .’
She continued: “It’s over. That doesn’t mean the great feeling isn’t there, it has to mean we’re beauty and the beast.
“It means love is always there, but we’ll never be together, so that’s even more romantic.”
The aftermath: Buckingham blames Nicks for his removal from the band
But far from being the best healers, the former couple keeps falling out – even now they’re both in their 70s.
Just last year, Buckingham hit Nicks again when he blamed her and band manager Irving Azoff for his abrupt departure from Fleetwood Mac in January 2018.
After his departure, Buckingham filed a $12-$14 million lawsuit against former bandmates: Nicks, Mick Fleetwood, Christie McVie and John McVie for lost wages he would have earned on the 2018 tour.
It was eventually settled in December 2018.
Buckingham slammed Nicks again when he blamed her and band manager Irving Azoff for his abrupt removal from Fleetwood Mac (pictured) in January 2018
Buckingham went on to question Nick’s creativity and energy levels in the period leading up to his release (pictured on stage together in 2014).
But in a 2021 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Buckingham claimed that his firing stemmed from Nicks giving the rest of Fleetwood Mac an ultimatum — either he goes or she goes — after his request that the band tour delayed by three months so that he could promote his new solo album.
“It would be like a scenario where Mick Jagger says, ‘Either Keith [Richards] goes or I go,” Buckingham recalled, before adding, “No, neither of you can go. But I think the singer has to stay. The figurehead has to stay.”
He continued, “I think she saw an opportunity to remake the band more in the Stevie Nicks style. Softer and kinda downcast, which gives her more opportunities to do the kind of speeches she does on stage.
Through her publicist at the time, Nicks told a very different ending to Buckingham’s time in the band, calling his version “revisionist history”.
“His version of events is factually inaccurate and while I have never spoken publicly on the matter, it is certainly time to shed some light on the truth,” Nicks said.
Just last year, Buckingham slammed Nicks again when he blamed her and manager Irving Azoff for his abrupt departure from the band in January 2018
Fans had a hard time letting go of the chemistry between Nicks and Buckingham (pictured together at the 1998 Grammys).
“To be perfectly clear, I didn’t let him go, I didn’t ask for him to be fired, I didn’t ask for him to be fired. To be honest, I fired myself.
“I proactively removed myself from the band and a situation that I felt was toxic to my well-being. I was ready. If the band went on without me, so be it.
“And after many long group discussions, Fleetwood Mac, a band whose legacy is rooted in evolution and change, has found a new path forward with two tremendously talented new members.”
This step forward was made by firing Buckingham and adding new members – Mike Campbell from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Neil Finn from Crowded House.
Buckingham went on to question Nick’s creativity and energy levels in the period leading up to his release.
“I think it was hard for her to see me jumping around in an age-inappropriate way,” he said, before directing his comments about her personal life and the choices she made to stay in the band.
“Besides, she’s lonely. She is alone. She has the people who work for her and I’m sure she has friends, but you know.’
Nicks simply replied, “Those are my choices to make for myself. I’m proud of the life choices I’ve made and it seems shameful for him to judge anyone who chooses to live their life on their own terms.