Page 28 - the NOISE July 2014

PETER GREEN & FLEETWOOD MAC PART 5
After his exit from Fleetwood Mac, Peter Green’s head took him down a different road than his former bandmates. He cut a lacklustre solo LP and a couple of singles before
withdrawing from the music business in 1972. He refused all royalty checks delivered to him and worked as a bartender and gravedigger. His mind wandered and his appearance grew disheveled. He was institutionalized and subjected to shock therapy. His condition slowly improved and he began playing music again.
The band had not forgotten him. Years after Peter was no longer a member of the Mac, “Oh Well” and “The Green Manal- ishi” were still in their live repertoire. In 1977, when Rumours made them a household name and the darlings of Warner Brothers Records, Mick Fleetwood set up Green with a solo contract. All was smooth sailing until it came time for Peter’s signature. In front of Mick and the Warners executives, Peter had an episode. He refused to sign the papers and started rav- ing about the devil. The deal fell through.
Almost immediately after this (hushed-up) incident, there was another one which made headlines.
Ironically, at the same moment (1970) Peter Green declared money to be the devil and left Fleetwood Mac, “Black Magic Woman” was covered by jam buddy Carlos Santana’s band on their second LP, Abraxas. It was released as a single and catapulted into the top 10, the album as well. It went on to become a rock classic and sold consistently over the years, making its author rich beyond his wildest dreams.
In 1978, British heavy metal band Judas Priest recorded “The Green Manalishi” and placed it on their best-selling Hell Bent For Leather LP, bringing Green’s music to a new, youthful audience.
Unfortunately these were the checks he kept refusing, so his management collected them in an account and waited for the day Peter Green would come to his senses. Upon hearing of his improved health, they dispatched an accountant to Green’s residence with a hefty royalty check. Green allegedly threat- ened this man with a rifle (later found to be unloaded) and as a result was arrested and again thrown into the happy home.
This time his recovery was swift and, with the help of broth- er Mike and some of his pre-Mac bandmates, Peter Green re- leased several solo albums between 1979-1984 that showed the return of some creative spark. He appears (uncredited) on Fleetwood Mac’s 1979 Tusk LP and contributes to Mick Fleet- wood’s 1981 solo album The Visitor, most notably on a rere- cording of “Rattlesnake Shake” from Then Play On. He married and fathered a daughter.
Sadly, old ghosts returned to haunt him. He began hear- ing voices and his appearance grew shabby again. His wife left him, taking their child. Peter Green became a recluse from
1984-1992. He refers to it as his darkest period.
In 1992, Peter’s brother Len (and wife) intervened and he moved out to their country estate for several years. He was diagnosed as schizophrenic and placed on the appropriate medication. Slowly, the man was rehabilitating. In 1996, old
friend Nigel Watson and Green formed the blues-based Splin- ter Group and began releasing LPs and touring, eventually working many of Green’s Mac songs into their show.
By this point, Peter Green’s legacy had grown to almost mythic proportions. He had been written off as one of rock’s genius/acid casualties (Syd Barrett, Skip Spence, Roky Erick- son), and the sight of a chubby smiling grey-haired Green touring and cranking out albums shocked many who be- lieved he was a goner.
He would never again approach the creative level of his hey- day and his vocals and guitar playing could be less than stellar, but the man was ALIVE. More than that, he was performing for legions of new and old fans who thought they would never have the chance to see their hero in the flesh, much less hear him play “The Green Manalishi” and his other classics.
Peter Allen Greenbaum was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame in 1998, along with Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Christine McVie, Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham, Jeremy Spencer, and Danny Kirwan. The award was intended for the Rumours lineup, but the band insisted their three original gui- tar players be included (apparently Welch Walker and Weston weren’t invited).
Fleetwood Mac had kept tabs on all their departed. Jeremy Spencer was living in India, and he expressed gratitude at the honor but declined to participate in the ceremony. He even- tually stepped back out onto the concert stage and released an album in 2006. He is still a member of the Children Of God.
Danny Kirwan could not be located. After leaving Fleet- wood Mac, he released several solo albums of declining qual- ity, some of which featured Bob Weston and Dave Walker. Like his mentor, Kirwan began experiencing mental instability and adopted a hobo-like appearance. Unlike Green he never recovered. He bounced around homeless shelters for many years, his mind gone. The band tried and tried, but Danny’s whereabouts in 1998 were unknown. Apparently, they still are.
When Fleetwood Mac stepped up to the podium to receive their award, they were six. Many viewers wondered who the old fat guy was standing among the more familiar five, his arm slung fraternally around Lindsey Buckingham’s shoulders. He gave no speech, but Mick Fleetwood made sure to point out the man’s identity in his.
That night, in front of an audience of music industry big- wigs and fellow musicians, Peter Green played his 30-year-old composition “Black Magic Woman” on international television with the reformed 1970 Santana band. He did not sing, but traded guitar licks with devotee Carlos. He looked happy.
Shortly after the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame induction, the
28 • JUNE 2014 • the NOISE arts & news • thenoise.us