Rhiannon: The Story Behind Stevie Nicks’ Signature Fleetwood Mac Song

Amazingly, considering its otherworldly qualities, Nicks wasn’t aware that the novel was rooted in traditional Welsh folklore when she was writing the song, as she told Mojo in 2013: “It wasn’t until 1978 that I found out about [a collection of Welsh medieval prose tales] The Mabinogion and that Branwen and Rhiannon are in there, too, and that Rhiannon wasn’t a witch at all; she was a mythological queen. But my story was definitely written about a celestial being. I didn’t know who Rhiannon was, exactly, but I knew she was not of this world.”

When was Rhiannon released?

It was clear to Nicks and Buckingham that Rhiannon was a special song, and a natural choice to bring to the recording sessions for Fleetwood Mac’s 1975 album. But when it was released as a single, in February 1976, Nicks became protective over it. “I didn’t want them to release Rhiannon as a single, because I thought, What if she doesn’t make it?” Nicks admitted in 1989, in discussion on BBC Radio 4’s One To One programme. “Then, it’s not my choice to release her as a single, she is a mythological goddess of horses and steeds and maker of birds, and she’s a brilliant, brilliant character… what if she falls flat on her face?

“I didn’t write Rhiannon for commerciality,” Nicks continued. “I wrote Rhiannon because I loved her name and I loved her story. I didn’t write her to be sold, she simply is not for sale and has never been.”

Nicks needn’t have worried. Peaking at No.11 in the US, and going Top 10 worldwide, Rhiannon became one of her most beloved works – a demonstration of the way the best Stevie Nicks songs can pluck uncanny, mystical-sounding lyrics from the ether and set them to timeless melodies.

Rhiannon came into its own during Fleetwood Mac’s live shows, as Nicks told Crawdaddy magazine in 1976: “Rhiannon is the heavy-duty song to sing every night. On stage it’s really a mind tripper. Everybody, including me, is just blitzed by the end of it. And I put out so much in that song that I’m nearly down. There’s something to that song that touches people. I don’t know what it is but I’m really glad it happened.”

One of the best Fleetwood Mac songs of all time, Rhiannon continues to cast its spell – not only over audiences young and old, but over Nicks herself. Decades on from its release, when performing the song in concert, she still becomes that Welsh witch. And so much of her public persona is tied up in the mystique surrounding her lyrics. “Dreams unwind,” she sings – and Rhiannon is still as dreamy as ever.

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