Fleetwood Mac guitarist Lindsey Buckingham, 71, suggested his ex-girlfriend and former bandmate Stevie Nicks, 73, might still have a soft spot for him. The musician previously claimed he was fired from the group after Stevie gave the band an ultimatum when he asked to delay a tour to promote his solo music. Now, he has said his ex of four years might not be “over” him. “There were a number of years where I wasn’t over her. It is possible that she has never been completely over me either,” he told The Times newspaper.
“The way we had to get through Rumours is part of the legacy and heroics of the whole thing,” Lindsey added, referencing their 1976 split amid promotion for their album Rumours. The break up came four years after they got together, but things hit the rocks after the release of what would become one of the best-selling albums of all time.
“We didn’t have time to heal or move on in the traditional sense. I think — and she was the one who moved away from me back then — that we both had to compartmentalize our feelings,” he explained. “That is not a healthy thing to do because those little compartments can remain sealed up for years until things start seeping out when you don’t realize.”
Lindsey continued, “I met the love of my life late and that gave me a whole other take on the world. Stevie did not have children. She went down a different route and has placed more importance on her professional life. How that played out in the last three, four, five years … It’s hard for me to know what her mentality is towards me, but I know what mine is to her because I’ve been married for 21 years and I have three children and it’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Stevie recently spoke out about her ex’s depiction of her in the media, emphasizing that she never had him fired. “His version of events is factually inaccurate and while I’ve never spoken publicly on the matter, certainly it feels the time has come to shine a light on the truth. To be exceedingly clear, I did not have him fired, I did not ask for him to be fired, I did not demand he be fired.”
She added, “Frankly, I fired myself. I proactively removed myself from the band and a situation I considered to be toxic to my wellbeing. I was done. If the band went on without me, so be it. And after many lengthy group discussions, Fleetwood Mac, a band whose legacy is rooted in evolution and change, found a new path forward with two hugely talented new members.”