Rhiannon Fleetwood Mac: A Novel, a Myth and a Trance
Rhiannon, the Fleetwood Mac single of 1976, started with a novel, not a myth.
Stevie Nicks borrowed the name from a book character, then found out later it belonged to a Welsh goddess.
The record peaked at number 11, yet its live version became one of the band's most talked-about moments.
This page covers the writing, the tape splices, the 1976 charts, the stage trance and the project Nicks never finished.
Fleetwood Mac in a 1977 advertisement, two years after the song first appeared on their self-titled album.
Image credit: Warner Bros. Records, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (Billboard, June 25, 1977).
Rhiannon Fleetwood Mac: How a Novel Gave Stevie Nicks the Name
Stevie Nicks wrote Rhiannon on piano and recorded a demo on a cassette.
Wikipedia dates the writing to 1973, two years before the song reached a Fleetwood Mac record.
The name came from a character in a novel called Triad by Mary Bartlet Leader.
The characters in that book bear little resemblance to the Welsh legend.
A Song Before the Myth
Nicks liked the name first and built the song around it.
She did not know the Welsh story behind it.
In early 1978 she learned that the name belonged to a Welsh goddess, and that her lyrics also fit that figure.
That timing is why the myth reads as a happy accident, not a plan.
An Uptempo Start with Buckingham Nicks
The song was first performed with Buckingham Nicks, the duo of Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham.
In that version it ran faster than the one you know.
Bob Aguirre, who played with them, recalled Nicks telling the band not to play it too fast.
Listen for how much room the finished recording leaves between the notes.
Rhiannon in the Studio: Tape Splices and a Seven-Hour Mix
The band recorded Rhiannon in February 1975 for the album Fleetwood Mac.
Fleetwood Mac and Keith Olsen produced it, and Reprise issued the album that July.
The basic track took more than a day.
| Player | Part |
|---|---|
| Stevie Nicks | Lead vocals |
| Lindsey Buckingham | Guitar, backing vocals |
| Christine McVie | Keyboards, backing vocals |
| John McVie | Bass guitar |
| Mick Fleetwood | Drums |
Source: Wikipedia article on the song, checked October 20, 2026.
Splices and Mini Scars
Olsen felt the first pass had too many mistakes.
He felt the second lacked the magic.
So he kept parts of both.
- He looped two-inch tape to join the takes.
- About 14 or 15 cuts were spliced together.
- The cuts left mini scars in some cymbal crashes.
- Some of Nicks's vocals ran through a Lexicon Delta T Delay.
Tape edits like these are why the track feels like one long breath.
The Single Mix in Seven Hours
The single version was mixed on January 19, 1976, in Studio 1 at Wally Heider Studios.
Ken Caillat had mixed a live version two days earlier from the King Biscuit Flower Hour broadcast.
Kelly Kotera was mixing the single when the studio's automated console crashed.
Richard Dashut asked Caillat to take over.
Caillat pushed the midrange and lifted the bass, and the mix took seven hours.
Reprise released the single in February 1976 in the US and April 1976 in the UK.
It ran 3:46, against 4:11 on the album.
The B-side was Sugar Daddy.
Hear the 1976 Rhiannon Single
Press play and listen for the Fender Rhodes under the verses, then the way the vocal climbs at the end.
You can also find Rhiannon on the Listen Now jukebox.
Rhiannon on the Charts: Number 11 in 1976
The single peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1976, according to Wikipedia.
It was not a number one, and it does not appear in this site's weekly list of number ones.
This site's Year-End Hot 100 data puts it at No. 77 for 1976.
The band's only Hot 100 number one, Dreams, came a year later in 1977.
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 | No. 11 |
| US Cash Box Top 100 | No. 9 |
| US Record World Singles | No. 10 |
| Canada Top Singles (RPM) | No. 4 |
| Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM) | No. 4 |
| Australia (Kent Music Report) | No. 13 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) | No. 16 |
| Belgium (Flanders) | No. 21 |
| US Billboard Adult Contemporary | No. 33 |
| UK Singles (1978 re-issue) | No. 46 |
Source: Wikipedia article on the song, weekly charts section, checked October 20, 2026. The Year-End rank comes from this site's own Billboard data.
Certifications
- New Zealand: 5x Platinum.
- United Kingdom: Platinum.
Source: Wikipedia article on the song, certifications section.
What the Critics Said
- Billboard praised an infectious melody.
- Record World said Nicks's vocal evoked a magic that is hard to ignore.
- Alexis Petridis of The Guardian ranked it No. 7 on his list of the 30 greatest Fleetwood Mac songs and called the guitar riff perfect.
- Paste ranked it No. 6 on its list of 30.
- Rolling Stone ranked it No. 488 on its 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and No. 6 on its band list of 50.
For the song that followed it to number one, read about Dreams.
Rhiannon Live: Why Mick Fleetwood Said Exorcism
Nicks often introduced Rhiannon on stage as a song about an old Welsh witch.
Fleetwood Mac first played it in El Paso, Texas, before the 1975 album came out.
Mick Fleetwood described her 1975 to 1982 performances as like an exorcism.
A Song on Every Tour
- 1975 to 1982: played on every tour, with Christine McVie on Fender Rhodes until the late 1970s.
- 1980: a London recording appeared on the Live album.
- 1987 to 1988: sometimes dropped on the Shake the Cage Tour when Nicks had throat problems.
- 1994 to 1995: left out of the Another Link in the Chain Tour after replacement Bekka Bramlett refused to sing it, saying it did not suit her voice.
- 1997: back in the set, with a Warner Bros. Studios Burbank performance on The Dance.
Source: Wikipedia article on the song, live performances section.
Why It Works Live
The studio take is controlled, almost still.
On stage the song builds to the end and the vocal gets bigger as it goes.
To find more songs with that slow-burn mood, try the Mood Song Matcher, or browse every Fleetwood Mac song of the decade.
Stevie Nicks in a 1977 promotional photograph.
Image credit: Photo by David Wainwright, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
The Rhiannon Project Stevie Nicks Never Finished
In 1978 a fan sent Nicks four paperback novels, including Evangeline Walton's adaptation of the Mabinogion.
She said it transfixed her, and she bought the rights.
She wrote songs for the project and it never reached release.
The Unreleased Songs
- Three Birds of Rhiannon.
- Forest of the Black Roses.
- Stay Away.
- Angel, written from the same mythology.
A Miniseries Still Waiting
In 2020 Nicks said the project would be a TV miniseries.
She said ten songs were earmarked for it, all still unreleased.
A pop hit named for a novel character became the doorway to a whole mythology.
For the rest of the decade, start at Music of the 70s, or let the Random 70s Song Generator pick your next one.
Source: Wikipedia article on the song, checked October 20, 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who wrote Rhiannon by Fleetwood Mac?
Stevie Nicks wrote Rhiannon, and Fleetwood Mac released it in 1976 from their 1975 self-titled album.
Wikipedia dates the writing to 1973, before she joined the band.
She composed it on piano and recorded a demo on cassette.
The Welsh name came from a novel she was reading.
Who is Rhiannon in the Fleetwood Mac song?
Rhiannon is the name of a character in the novel Triad by Mary Bartlet Leader, which Nicks was reading.
She liked the name and wrote the song first.
In early 1978 she learned the name also belonged to a Welsh goddess, and that the lyrics fit that figure too.
Did Rhiannon reach number one?
The song did not reach number one.
It peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1976, according to Wikipedia, and finished the year at number 77 on the Year-End Hot 100.
It reached number 9 on Cash Box and number 4 in Canada.
Why did Mick Fleetwood compare Rhiannon to an exorcism?
Mick Fleetwood described Nicks performing Rhiannon on stage between 1975 and 1982 as like an exorcism.
Nicks often introduced it as a song about a Welsh witch.
The performances became legendary among Fleetwood Mac audiences, per Wikipedia.
Christine McVie played Fender Rhodes on it through the late 1970s.
Is Rhiannon on the album Rumours?
This song is not on Rumours.
It appeared on the band's 1975 album Fleetwood Mac, the first with Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham.
Rumours came out in 1977 and holds Dreams and Go Your Own Way.
It reached number 11 on the Hot 100 in 1976.
Sources
- Rhiannon (song), Wikipedia, for the writing, the recording, the single mix, chart peaks, certifications, reviews and the live history.
- Fleetwood Mac (1975 album), Wikipedia, for the album the song appeared on.
- Fleetwood Mac, Wikipedia, for background on the artist.
- The Year-End rank and the check against number one weeks come from this site's own Billboard Year-End Hot 100 and weekly Hot 100 data.
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