Mike Campbell recently claimed that Stevie Nicks prevented him from joining Fleetwood Mac.
Mike Campbell opens up on the matter
In a new conversation with Guitar World, the guitarist recalled about his time with Fleetwood Mac.
“It was an interesting experience. Mick Fleetwood asked me to join the band, but I don’t think Stevie voted against me. It was a challenge because I don’t usually play other people’s guitar parts.”
He continued, “I had to do something I’ve never really done before and try to emulate some of Lindsey’s melodies that the songs need. I don’t play like Lindsey, but I was able to do the songs justice. That was a good bit of work and it was good for me.”
“The gigs were incredible, and they treated me and my wife like royalty: private planes, big hotels, lots of days off all around the world,” Campbell said of the band’s treatment towards him.
The musician further added, “It was almost like a beautiful paid vacation, and the music was always good. I would look around and see Mick and John McVie and go, ‘Holy sh*t. How did I get here?’ It was just another blessing in my life.”
On April 9th, 2018, Fleetwood Mac had announced that Campbell and Neil Finn would join the band and replace Lindsey Buckingham on their 2018–19 world tour. In March 2022, Campbell stated that he hadn’t worked with Fleetwood Mac since 2019 and had moved on.
“Neil and I hit it off right away. He’s such a sweet guy and so talented,” Campbell told Ultimate Classic Rock a couple of years back about his dynamics with Finn. “A short answer to your question: Neil was brought in to sing those songs.”
He then shared, “My job was to recreate a lot of the guitar parts, which was a challenge for me, but I enjoyed it. But basically, he would play and sing. And then I would play the guitar parts off of the records the best that I could. That was the dynamic we had.”
Campbell will share his stories in a new memoir called ‘Heartbreaker: A Memoir.’ It will come out on March 18th, 2025, from Grand Central Publishing. It will be available in hardcover, e-book, and audiobook formats.
