As many of you know Fleetwood Mac as a buzzing pop act in the 70’s, their polished pop act they became was no where near the hard edged blues band they once started as, the origins of the band lying in the legendary blues band John Mayalls Bluesbreakers is hard to imagine.
Peter Greenbaum was born on October 29, 1949, and first picked up the guitar at age 10. Influenced by Hank B. Marvin, Muddy Waters, B.B. King, and traditional Jewish music, he was calling himself Peter Green by his early teens. After playing lead in his band the Peter B. Looners in the mid 60’s he met drummer Mick Fleetwood who was also a member. But when Eric Clapton left the Bluesbreakers for Greece on a vacation Green became the new lead guitarist.
After a few gigs
Clapton came back, but six months later he left for good, and Green was once again offered the job. With
Green onboard for the follow up to the “Beano” album, the line-up for the Bluesbreakers also included bassist
John McVie. The album
A Hard Road would be Greens only appearance with Mayall. After the album Green would leave to form his own band “
Peter Greens Fleetwood Mac”.
After their first show at the Windsor Jazz and Blues Festival joined by guitarist Jeremy Spencer, original bassist Bob Brunning, and drummer Mick Fleetwood the show went over well. Following the show, Brunning was replaced by Bluesbreaker John McVie, who played along side Green for his days with John Mayall.
The bands self titled debut album (1968) was one of the highlights of the emerging British blues boom, charting at number 4 on the British charts. The album lead generally by Green, showed the guitarists songwriting brilliance, and Spencer’s songs (Shake Your Moneymaker and Got To Move) showed Elmore James as a main influence.
With Green at the head, the follow-up to their debut album Mr. Wonderful (1968) charted at number 10 in Britain. Although the album was cited as “routine blues”, Fleetwood Mac was now rising to one of the top British bands of the late 60’s. With their third album English Rose (1969) which featured Black Magic Women, a song by Green, which showed the fusion of Latin and blues, and also included their first British number 1 hit single Albatross in early 1969. English Rose also marked the debut of third guitarist Danny Kirwan to relieve Green.
Their fourth album The Pious Bird Of Good Omen (1969), which hit number 18 in Britain, the live album Fleetwood Mac in Chicago (1969), and the number 2 hit single Man of the World, furthered their momentum.
Their fifth studio album Then Play On (1969) was Fleetwood Mac at their peek. The album which hit number 6 in Britain featured the single Oh Well which charted at number 2 in Britain. But sadly this would be Peter Greens last album with Fleetwood Mac. Their 1970 single The Green Manalishi (which hit number 10) showed signs of strain within the band.
As of lately Greens mental stability had become strained, as he would often experiment with acid when the band was on the road. In the late 60’s in one incident he had disappeared for three days before writing Man of the World. During the same time Green had became strangely religious wearing robes and crucifixes on stage during shows. After descending slowly into madness Green played his last show with Fleetwood Mac on May 28, 1970.
Green had claimed to have seen a vision of an angel holding a starving child in her hands. But many other rumors began to surface about Green. One such rumor, in which Green supposedly became a grave digger.
"You can be saddened or you can be quietly amazed." Fleetwood used to visit Green but eventually found it too difficult to truly sustain a relationship: "I was just so sad I couldn't wave a magic wand and have him be the person I wanted him to be...he was very sick...It's a great loss." McVie recalls, "I prefer to remember him before he left. (Seeing him) upset me too much. It might sound cowardly but I thought it was so sad and such a bloody waste...I'd give anything for a millionth of his talent...But I still have flashes of him, him laughing. 'Cos before Manalishi, it was a bunch of lads having a great time playing music they loved." (Quoted from Peter Green bio).
“It was a cold black night and the rain was falling down. Cold black night and the rain was falling down”
