Imagine that it’s a cold February in 1974. You don’t care about the cold, though, because you’ve scored tickets to a rock concert you’ve been looking forward to for weeks. Fleetwood Mac is in Boise!
Sure, you have to sit through a couple of so-so opening acts, but finally, they come out on stage. Fleetwood M… Wait, this looks a little off. It’s not like you’ve seen the act before, but you have the albums. You know what they look like. Moreover, you know what they sound like. Sure, these are Fleetwood Mac songs, but there was something bogus about them. Bogus like that story about the ski area above town.
You and your friends start talking about it. They’ve noticed, too. Others around you—not all of them—but many think this is a fake act.
And you’re right. You just dropped $5 hard-earned bucks on a phony rock concert!
In the days and weeks that followed, it became clear that the whole audience at the Western Idaho Fairgrounds in Boise had been duped. Same thing for the audience at the concert in Twin Falls.
Idaho Attorney General Tony Park received numerous phone calls and written complaints. Posters for the concert featured a picture of John McVie and Mick Fleetwood, founding members of Fleetwood Mac; McVie’s wife Christine, and guitarists Bob Welch and Bob Weston. But none of those people were on stage in Boise or Twin Falls. The AG sued. Three years later, the sponsors settled the Idaho case for $1500.
Did the promoters think rock fans in Idaho were rubes who wouldn’t notice? Possibly. They had their fingers crossed that no one coming to see Fleetwood Mac on their 29-city US tour would notice. But it didn’t start out to be a scam.
According to thevintagenews.com, founder Mick Fleetwood discovered that guitarist Bob Weston and Fleetwood’s wife Jenny Boyd were having an affair. This little bombshell landed after the band did just three of the 29 scheduled concerts. The band imploded when Fleetwood refused to continue the tour.
That put band manager Clifford Davis in an awkward position. They’d sold a lot of tickets. In his mind, he was Fleetwood Mac and could put together a band comprised of members of his choosing. Mick Fleetwood sued Davis. Davis, who owned the copyright on their material, sued back. What was left of the band moved to the United States to pursue their legal issues and ultimately ended up staying permanently.
Fleetwood Mac rose to greater fame after Lindsay Buckingham and Stevie Nicks joined in 1975. Fame and drama followed the band in tandem from then on. That’s a story better told by YouTube’s Professor of Rock, Adam Reader, who was born in Blackfoot, Idaho.
Sure, you have to sit through a couple of so-so opening acts, but finally, they come out on stage. Fleetwood M… Wait, this looks a little off. It’s not like you’ve seen the act before, but you have the albums. You know what they look like. Moreover, you know what they sound like. Sure, these are Fleetwood Mac songs, but there was something bogus about them. Bogus like that story about the ski area above town.
You and your friends start talking about it. They’ve noticed, too. Others around you—not all of them—but many think this is a fake act.
And you’re right. You just dropped $5 hard-earned bucks on a phony rock concert!
In the days and weeks that followed, it became clear that the whole audience at the Western Idaho Fairgrounds in Boise had been duped. Same thing for the audience at the concert in Twin Falls.
Idaho Attorney General Tony Park received numerous phone calls and written complaints. Posters for the concert featured a picture of John McVie and Mick Fleetwood, founding members of Fleetwood Mac; McVie’s wife Christine, and guitarists Bob Welch and Bob Weston. But none of those people were on stage in Boise or Twin Falls. The AG sued. Three years later, the sponsors settled the Idaho case for $1500.
Did the promoters think rock fans in Idaho were rubes who wouldn’t notice? Possibly. They had their fingers crossed that no one coming to see Fleetwood Mac on their 29-city US tour would notice. But it didn’t start out to be a scam.
According to thevintagenews.com, founder Mick Fleetwood discovered that guitarist Bob Weston and Fleetwood’s wife Jenny Boyd were having an affair. This little bombshell landed after the band did just three of the 29 scheduled concerts. The band imploded when Fleetwood refused to continue the tour.
That put band manager Clifford Davis in an awkward position. They’d sold a lot of tickets. In his mind, he was Fleetwood Mac and could put together a band comprised of members of his choosing. Mick Fleetwood sued Davis. Davis, who owned the copyright on their material, sued back. What was left of the band moved to the United States to pursue their legal issues and ultimately ended up staying permanently.
Fleetwood Mac rose to greater fame after Lindsay Buckingham and Stevie Nicks joined in 1975. Fame and drama followed the band in tandem from then on. That’s a story better told by YouTube’s Professor of Rock, Adam Reader, who was born in Blackfoot, Idaho.
Group advertising photograph of Fleetwood Mac for their album Rumours. From left to right: Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie, John McVie, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham. The photograph was published on the 25 June 1977 issue of Billboard magazine, thus being an advertising pre-1978 photograph with no explicit copyright notice it is in public domain
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