Fleetwood Mac Friday #10: “Sisters of the Moon”
The story goes that Stevie Nicks wasn’t happy with the sprawling and experimental follow-up to Rumours, but I’d argue that her contribution “Sisters of the Moon” is one of the weirdest songs on Tusk. Although it doesn’t really feel out of place, “Sisters” mix of thumping bass, metallic guitars, and Nick’s black magic lyrics (They like to wrap her in velvet / Does anyone know her name?) is an anomaly in Fleetwood Mac’s catalog, sounding like something from Physical Graffiti. It’s also oddly structureless, as far as Mac songs go, centering mostly around Lindsey Buckingham’s chord progression with a quiet-loud-quiet dynamic.
Released as a single in 1980, the track feels like a harder, brooding spiritual companion to “Rhiannon,” a song about a witch named Rhiannon. During live shows, the band has been known to stretch it out to over eight minutes with Stevie singing in tongues by the end. She probably brought Fleetwood Mac the closest they ever came to Prog. Here’s the gang performing an extended version as an encore on the 1982 Mirage tour.
The Tusk 
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