Buckingham: ‘McVie Burned Bridges When She Left’

Lindsey Buckingham says that Fleetwood Mac bandmate Christine McVie burned some bridges when she quit the band back in 1998. Buckingham, who'll be on board when the band kicks off its first tour in over three years on April 4th in Columbus, Ohio, spoke about McVie's departure, telling CBS, "I would be shocked if she ever expressed any interest to do anything with us. Shocked and pleased. She ended up getting a divorce, she ended up selling her house in L.A., she moved back to England, she quit the band, she sold her publishing."

He went on to say: "She didn't necessarily have to burn as many bridges as she did. Everyone sometimes wonders whether or not there might have been more of a middle ground for her to strike, not necessarily in terms of her staying in Fleetwood Mac. But she just wanted to reinvent herself. She seems to want to lead the antithesis of the life she led before, and I don't pretend to understand such a radical change but it was obviously something she needed."

Stevie Nicks says that she still deeply misses McVie on the road: "Well, it's certainly not as much fun as having Chris. Because when I had her, I had a best friend, y'know? Since 1975 I had somebody who I considered to be one of my several girlfriends that are my best friends. And so, when she left, it was really devastating. (The tour in) 2009 was less strange, because she's been gone a long time then. She left in 1998, so in 2009 she'd been gone almost 10 years."

Lindsey Buckingham says that he didn't feel as though losing Christine McVie really affected the band that much in practical terms: "I don't think anyone felt that that was a negative, y'know? I mean, in the spirit of Fleetwood Mac reinventing itself, we saw it -- yes, it was a challenge, but it was also an opportunity to flex our muscles in a different way."

Fleetwood Mac tour dates (subject to change):
April 4 - Columbus, OH - Nationwide Arena
April 6 - Philadelphia, PA - Wells Fargo Center
April 8 - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
April 9 - Washington, DC - Verizon Center
April 11 - Louisville, KY - KFC Yum! Center
April 13 - Chicago, IL - United Center
April 16 - Toronto, ON - The Air Canada Centre
April 18 - Boston, MA - TD Garden
April 20 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Arena
April 23 - Ottawa, ON - Scotiabank Place
April 24 - Newark, NJ - Prudential Center
April 26 - Pittsburgh, PA - CONSOL Energy Center
April 28 - St. Paul, MN - Xcel Center
April 30 - Kansas City, MO - Sprint Center
May 1 - Tulsa, OK - BOK Center
May 3 - Little Rock, AK - Verizon Arena
May 12 - Winnipeg, MB - MTS Centre
May 14 - Saskatoon, SK - Credit Union Centre
May 15 - Edmonton, AB - Rexall Place
May 17 - Calgary, AB - Scotiabank Saddledome
May 19 - Vancouver, BC - Rogers Arena
May 20 - Tacoma, WA - Tacoma Dome
May 22 - San Jose, CA - HP Pavilion San Jose
May 25 - Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Bowl
May 26 - Las Vegas, NV - MGM Grand Arena
May 28 - Anaheim, CA - Honda Center
May 30 - Phoenix, AZ - US Airways Center
June 1 - Denver, CO - Pepsi Center
June 4 - Dallas, TX - American Airlines Center
June 5 - Houston, TX - Toyota Center
June 7 - Tampa, FL - Tampa Bay Times Forum
June 8 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - BB&T Center
June 10 - Atlanta, GA - Philips Arena
June 12 - Detroit, MI - Joe Louis Arena