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Don't Stop (Fleetwood Mac song)

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"Don't Stop"
US vinyl single
Single by Fleetwood Mac
from the album Rumours
B-side
ReleasedApril 1977 (UK)
June 1977 (US)
Recorded1976
GenrePop rock
Length3:13
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)Christine McVie
Producer(s)
Fleetwood Mac singles chronology
"Dreams"
(1977) 		"Don't Stop"
(1977) 		"You Make Loving Fun"
(1977)

"Don't Stop" is a song by the British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac, written by Christine McVie. The song was sung by Lindsey Buckingham and McVie, and was released as a single from the band's album Rumours (1977).

One of the band's most enduring hits, "Don't Stop" was released as the second single from Rumours in the United Kingdom in April 1977, peaking at No. 32, while in the US it followed "Dreams" as the third single from the album in June, eventually peaking at No. 3 at Billboard Hot 100 in September.

Music and concept

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"Don't Stop" is a pop rock song.[1][2] It reflects Christine McVie's feelings after her separation from Fleetwood Mac's bass guitarist, John McVie, after eight years of marriage. McVie noted in The Fleetwood Mac Story: Rumours and Lies, that "Don't Stop" was directed towards her ex-husband John McVie,[3] who was unaware of the song's subject matter until its release. "I've been playing it for years and it wasn't until somebody told me, 'Chris wrote that about you.' Oh really?"[4]

The song was originally tracked with drums, bass, electric guitar, and electric piano on March 16, 1976. Its working title was "Yesterday's Gone", although Christine McVie changed the title to "Don't Stop" a few weeks later after she asked Buckingham to sing the song as a duet.[5] Fleetwood Mac producer Ken Caillat recalled that the decision to sing the song as a duet "improved things dramatically".[6] Take 25 was deemed satisfactory and used as the master.[5]

Following the completion of the basic tracks at the Record Plant in Sausalito, California, the band relocated to Los Angeles for additional overdubs. By this point, "Don't Stop" only lacked the final lead vocal take, although McVie and Buckingham thought that the song was not in a suitable key, so all of the instrumentation was scrapped with the exception of the drums.[7]

On August 9, McVie replaced the electric piano with a tack piano, an instrument with metal thumb tacks attached to the hammers. Caillat described the decision to add a tack piano as a "breakthrough" that "made the song bounce along". During the same recording session, Buckingham overdubbed an "up-strumming syncopated electric guitar part, along with some lead licks" and also doubled his vocals with McVie, which allowed for the backing tracks to be pushed up in the mix. In Caillat's estimation, this provided the song with "a new range of dynamic energy".[5]

Caillat commented that he was never fond of "Don't Stop", citing grievances with the tempo and the sound of the drums,[a] but he stated that Christine McVie still loved the song. He was more complimentary of the band's backing vocals after the song's final chorus. "The band kept changing their background vocals. Anytime I thought I knew what they'd sing, they'd do something different. That's a hallmark of classic Fleetwood Mac, their backgrounds. They're incredible singers."[6]

Reception

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Cash Box said that "Mick Fleetwood and John McVie comprise a deadly rhythm section, especially when they're working with a straight ahead shuffle like this one."[8] The Guardian and Paste ranked the song number four and number 25 respectively on their lists of the 30 greatest Fleetwood Mac songs.[9][10] The Guardian wrote that the song's "cantering rhythm and chorus are so impossibly, infectiously buoyant, the song so flawless, that it cancels out the unhappiness that provoked it".[9]

Political usage

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The song was the theme music for United States presidential candidate Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential campaign, and was played at the 1992 Democratic National Convention during its final night balloon drop. Upon winning the election, Clinton persuaded the group to perform the song for his inaugural ball in 1993.[11] Some of Clinton's staff attempted to convince him to pick a more contemporary song; Garth Brooks' "We Shall Be Free" was briefly considered, although Clinton ultimately settled on "Don't Stop" because he approved of its message. In the aftermath of the 1993 performance, Fleetwood Mac's Greatest Hits album jumped from number 30 to number 11 on the Catalog Albums Chart.[12]

At the 2000 convention, Clinton ended his speech by saying, "Keep putting people first. Keep building those bridges. And don't stop thinking about tomorrow!" Immediately after the final sentence, the song began playing over the loudspeakers.[13][14] The song was also played for Clinton's appearances at the 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2024 conventions.[15][16]

Additionally, the song was played at Conservative Conferences during David Cameron's tenure as party leader.[17]

Personnel

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Charts

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[32] Platinum 600,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Notes

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  1. ^ Caillat thought that the song was too slow and told Recording Engineer/Producer magazine that "without looking at the faders, you could not tell the difference between the kick and the snare."[6][7]

References

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  1. ^ "Blake Shelton puts a country spin on his rendition of Fleetwood Mac's 'Don't Stop'". Coast. 21 May 2020. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  2. ^ Miller, Matt (13 June 2017). "Fleetwood Mac Members Will Warm Your Cold, Dead Heart With 'Don't Stop' On Toy Instruments". Esquire. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  3. ^ Brunning, Bob .(2001). Rumours and Lies: The Fleetwood Mac Story. ISBN 978-1-84449-011-0. Retrieved 2 January 2007.
  4. ^ "Ken Caillat Revisits Rumours". www.grammy.com. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
  5. ^ a b c Caillat, Ken; Stiefel, Steve (2012). Making Rumours: The Inside Story of the Classic Fleetwood Mac Album. Wiley & Sons. pp. 144-145, 288-289. ISBN 9781118218082.
  6. ^ a b c Bosso, Joe (13 December 2022). ""Christine Started Playing Something She Had Written on the Piano One Day, and it Floored Me" – Fleetwood Mac Rumours Track-by-Track with Co-Producer Ken Caillat". MusicRadar. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
  7. ^ a b Cummings, Howard (April 1978). "Engineers/Co-Producers Richard Dashut and Ken Caillat recording the Grammy winning Fleetwood Mac Rumours album" (PDF). Recording Engineer/Producer. p. 21.
  8. ^ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. 9 July 1977. p. 15. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  9. ^ a b Petridis, Alexis (19 May 2022). "Fleetwood Mac's 30 greatest songs – ranked!". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  10. ^ Mitchell, Matt (7 August 2023). "The 30 Greatest Fleetwood Mac Songs". Paste. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  11. ^ Greene, Andy (22 January 2013). "Flashback: Fleetwood Mac Reunite in 1993". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  12. ^ Levine, Robert (5 December 2022). "How Fleetwood Mac's 'Don't Stop' Soundtracked Bill Clinton's Campaign". Billboard. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
  13. ^ USA: DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION WRAP, 21 July 2015, archived from the original on 13 December 2021, retrieved 6 April 2021
  14. ^ Suddath, Claire (18 September 2008). "A Brief History of Campaign Songs - TIME". Time. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
  15. ^ "Fleetwood Mac · The Rock and Roll Beat: Musicians and White House Related Events · Clinton Digital Library". clinton.presidentiallibraries.us. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
  16. ^ Mandler, C (21 August 2024). "The DNC roll call featured a musical salute to each state. Here's what your state chose". NPR. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  17. ^ Graff, Gary (30 November 2022). "10 Best Christine McVie Songs: Fleetwood Mac, Solo Hits & More". Billboard. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  18. ^ "Fleetwood Mac – Don't Stop" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  19. ^ "Fleetwood Mac – Don't Stop" (in French). Ultratop 50.
  20. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  21. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 25, 1977" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  22. ^ "Fleetwood Mac – Don't Stop" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  23. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  24. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, September 17, 1977". Archived from the original on 9 June 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  25. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Fleetwood Mac – Don't Stop" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  26. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 1977". Ultratop. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  27. ^ "Top 200 Singles of '77 – Volume 28, No. 14, December 31 1977". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  28. ^ "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1977". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  29. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1977". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  30. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1977/Top 100 Songs of 1977". www.musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  31. ^ "Cash Box Year-End Charts: 1977/Top 100 Pop Singles, December 31, 1977". Archived from the original on 20 October 2018. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  32. ^ "British single certifications – Fleetwood Mac – Don't Stop". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 23 July 2022.
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