The Chain is the only track on the Rumors album to have all five members of Fleetwood Mac as co-writers. The song was the fruit of the joint work of the musicians. They literally assembled the composition in parts from the finished material, added a little improvisation, composed the lyrics and worked on the arrangement.
The story of creation and the meaning of the song The Chain – Fleetwood Mac
Based on an old song by Christine McVie called Butter Cookie (Keep Me There). It can be found on the extended edition of the Rumours album.
Mick Fleetwood spoke about the story and the main idea behind The Chain:
Basically, The Chain came out of jam. It wasn’t created like that, where someone literally sits down and writes a song. It was a collective creation of the group. Riff is John McVie’s contribution [John McVie], main contribution. After all, that bass line is still played on British television when broadcasting car races. It’s about the Grand Prix.
It really just came out when we played in the studio. At first we had no words for her. It became a real song when Stevie [Stevie Nicks] wrote them. One day she came and said: “I wrote the words that might fit the thing that you played in the studio the other day.” That’s how it turned out. Lindsey [Lindsey Buckingham] organized all the passages that we recorded on tape, and created a song from them.
Financial Times
Stevie Nicks did not reveal what The Chain is about. Many Fleetwood Mac fans believe that it is about the singer’s difficult relationship with Lindsey Buckingham. According to another version, we are talking about a “chain” that did not allow the group to break up, despite frequent quarrels in the team.
Recording and release of The Chain
The song was recorded at the Record Plant studio. In the process, sound engineers sometimes manually cut and glued tapes, armed with razor blades.
Rumors was released on February 4, 1977. Four singles were released in support of it: Go Your Own Way, Dreams, Don’t Stop and You Make Loving Fun. The Chain song was not released in this format. Nevertheless, over time, it became a “calling card” and almost an anthem of the rock band Fleetwood Mac.
Video of The Chain by Fleetwood Mac
There is no official video for the song. The live video of The Chain will help you feel the amazing atmosphere of Fleetwood Mac’s live performances.
Interesting Facts
- For many years, the BBC has used The Chain’s bass line as the theme song for Grand Prix broadcasts.
- The song is featured on the soundtracks of several famous films, including Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. Part 2.
The Chain by Fleetwood Mac Lyrics
listen to the wind blow,
Watch the sun rise
running in the shadows
Damn your love, damn your lies
Chorus x2:
And if you don’t love me now
You will never love me again
I can still hear you saying
You would never break the chain
(Never break the chain)
Listen to the wind blow
Down comes the night
running in the shadows
Damn your love, damn your lies
break the silence,
Damn the dark, damn the light
Chorus x3
Chain keep us together, running in the shadow
Lyrics of The Chain by Fleetwood Mac Alternate
Hear how the wind blows
Watch the sunrise
You run in the dark
F*** your love, f*** your lies
Chorus 2 times:
And if you don’t love me now
You will never love again
I still hear you say
That you will never break the chain
(Never break the chain)
Hear how the wind blows
The night has already fallen
You run in the dark
F*** your love, f*** your lies
Stop being silent,
F*** the dark, f*** the light
Chorus 3 times
The chain binds us together as we run in the dark
