Donald Brackett's history of Fleetwood Mac pretty much covers the usual ground gone over by many previous works; in fact, he quotes several of those previous works, or refers to them, quite a bit making for a very complete and useful bibliography.

What is new and refreshing is that Brackett attempts to tackle the entire story of Fleetwood Mac from its beginnings as a blues band founded by Peter Green in 1967, through its "rebirth," as he describes it, in 1970 as a New Agey, cosmic soft rock outfit fronted by Bob Welch, and then through its breakthrough years of success (he calls it a "reincarnation") beginning in 1975 with the addition of Lindsay Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. Brackett argues convincingly that the "middle period" of Fleetwood Mac, the five albums released from 1971 to 1975, should not be dismissed but are a vital link to understanding the band's history and accomplishments.

Another point made repeatedly by the author, to which this reviewer can only say "Amen!" in the strongest possible terms, is that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame made a huge error by excluding Bob Welch from FM's induction into its Hall in 1998. One can only hope that historical perspective will eventually lead to the correction of this mistake.

Technically, this reviewer feels that the book suffers somewhat from unnecessary repetition, a quirk of style by the author that seemed annoying as the book went on. The book also suffers from editing errors, especially in the last few chapters; it's as though the proofreading and editing process was hurried at the end.

Such imperfections notwithstanding, this is a book that succeeds in telling the story of Fleetwood Mac in its entirety and with enough historical perspective to at last get a feel for the whole "body of work" and the forces behind its longevity and success.