The Devastating news about the death of Christine McPhee It hit Wednesday afternoon, and we’re still processing it side by side Fleetwood Mac Fans all over the world. “We were so lucky to have her live with her,” Fleetwood Mac said in a collective statement. “Individually and collectively, we cherish Christine deeply and thank her for the wonderful memories we have. She will be greatly missed.”
When Rolling Stone I spoke with McVie in June, She was excited about her new LP Songbird (single group), But she’s very skeptical she’ll ever get back on the road with Fleetwood Mac. “I don’t feel physically ready for it,” she said. “I am in very poor health. I have a chronic back problem, which weakens me. I stand up to play the piano, so I don’t know if I can do it physically. What is that saying? The mind is willing but the body is weak.”
McVie’s last tour with Fleetwood Mac took place between 2018 and 2019, though Lindsey Buckingham was out of the band at that point and Neil Finn and Mike Campbell played in his place. Just a year before that, McVie had recorded an album with Buckingham and toured with him. “I had a great time with him on the road and made this record,” I told Rolling Stone in 2018. “I was surprised to hear the news [Buckingham was leaving the band] Because it was after my return to London that the decision was made. But life goes on and I wanted to continue with these guys.”
The tour was a great financial success, and McVie grew close to the new members of the band. “These guys were amazing,” she said earlier this year. “We had a great time with them, but we’re kind of broken up now, so I rarely see them.”
McPhee’s sole onstage appearance after Deadline for Fleetwood Mac’s latest tour took place on February 25, 2020 at the London Palladium. It was a tribute show to Fleetwood Mac founder guitarist Peter Green featuring Pete Townsend, Noel Gallagher, David Gilmour, Kirk Hammett, Stephen Tyler, Billy Gibbons, Bill Wyman, Jeremy Spencer, Neil Finn and Mick Fleetwood. In a video from the performance, McVie sings the 1968 Fleetwood Mac classic “Stop Messin’ Around” with Tyler, Fleetwood, and several other guests from the evening.
McVie had no way of knowing this ceremony would mark the end of her career, but it’s very fitting that she came out to honor the early days of Fleetwood Mac. She’s been a huge part of their sound over the past five decades, and it’s hard to imagine them going on without her.
