Rhiannon (song)
Encyclopedia
"Rhiannon" is a single released by Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac are a British–American rock band formed in 1967 in London.The only original member present in the band is its eponymous drummer, Mick Fleetwood...

 in 1976
1976 in music
-January–February:*January 5 – Former Beatles road manager Mal Evans is shot dead by Los Angeles police after refusing to drop what police only later determine is an air rifle....

. The song was written by Stevie Nicks
Stevie Nicks
Stephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Fleetwood Mac and an extensive solo career, which collectively have produced over forty Top 50 hits and sold over 140 million albums...

.

"Rhiannon" was voted #488 in The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time
The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" was the cover story of a special issue of Rolling Stone, issue number 963, published December 9, 2004, a year after the magazine published its list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time"....

 by Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...

magazine. Its US chart peak was in June 1976, when it hit #11. It reached #46 in the UK singles chart after re-release in February 1978.

The song is always referred to as simply "Rhiannon" on Fleetwood Mac albums. The suffixed title "Rhiannon (Will You Ever Win)" was only used on singles in certain territories.

Live performances of the song were sometimes prefaced with Nicks saying, "This is a song about an old Welsh witch." During 1975–1980, Fleetwood Mac's live performances of "Rhiannon" took on a theatrical intensity not present on the FM-radio single. The song built to a climax in which Nicks' vocals were so impassioned that, as drummer and band co-founder Mick Fleetwood said, "her Rhiannon in those days was like an exorcism."

Background

Nicks discovered Rhiannon through a novel called Triad, by Mary Leader. The novel is about a woman named Branwen, who is possessed by another woman named Rhiannon. There is mention of the Welsh legend of Rhiannon
Rhiannon
Rhiannon is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology, mother to the Demetian hero Pryderi and wife to Pwyll . She is probably a reflex of the Celtic Great Queen goddess Rigantona and may also be associated with the horse goddess Epona.She appears in both the first and third branches of the Mabinogi...

 in the novel, but the characters in the novel bear little resemblance to their original Welsh namesakes (both Rhiannon
Rhiannon
Rhiannon is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology, mother to the Demetian hero Pryderi and wife to Pwyll . She is probably a reflex of the Celtic Great Queen goddess Rigantona and may also be associated with the horse goddess Epona.She appears in both the first and third branches of the Mabinogi...

 and Branwen
Branwen
Branwen, Daughter of Llŷr is a major character in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, which is sometimes called the Mabinogi of Branwen after her. Branwen is a daughter of Llŷr and Penarddun...

 are major female characters in the medieval Welsh prose tales of the Mabinogion
Mabinogion
The Mabinogion is the title given to a collection of eleven prose stories collated from medieval Welsh manuscripts. The tales draw on pre-Christian Celtic mythology, international folktale motifs, and early medieval historical traditions...

).

Nicks bought the novel in an airport just before a long flight and thought the name was so pretty that she wanted to write something about a girl named Rhiannon. She wrote "Rhiannon" in 1974, three months before joining Fleetwood Mac, and has claimed that it took 10 minutes to write.

After writing the song, Nicks learned that Rhiannon
Rhiannon
Rhiannon is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology, mother to the Demetian hero Pryderi and wife to Pwyll . She is probably a reflex of the Celtic Great Queen goddess Rigantona and may also be associated with the horse goddess Epona.She appears in both the first and third branches of the Mabinogi...

 originated from a Welsh goddess, and was amazed that the haunting song lyrics applied to the Welsh Rhiannon as well. Nicks researched the Mabinogion
Mabinogion
The Mabinogion is the title given to a collection of eleven prose stories collated from medieval Welsh manuscripts. The tales draw on pre-Christian Celtic mythology, international folktale motifs, and early medieval historical traditions...

 story and began work on a Rhiannon project, unsure of whether it would become a movie, a musical, a cartoon, or a ballet. There are several "Rhiannon Songs" from this unfinished project including "Stay Away" and "Maker of Birds". Nicks wrote the Fleetwood Mac song "Angel
Angel (Fleetwood Mac song)
"Angel" is a song written and performed by Stevie Nicks on the Fleetwood Mac album Tusk. Nicks attributed the song to the story of Rhiannon in the Mabinogion and in particular Arawn, who is the great lord of darkness....

" based on the Rhiannon story.

Nicks avoided wearing black clothing for "about two years" in an effort to distance herself from the witchcraft and dark arts associations surrounding her as a result of the lyrics to "Rhiannon" giving fans the wrong impression.

Live version lyrics

The song evolved in live versions and additional lyrics were added, and some changed at times. There is an additional refrain, which appears twice:
"Once in a million years,
a lady like her rises.
'Rhiannon' you cry but she's gone,
and your life knows no answer,
and your life knows no answer."

Personnel

  • Stevie Nicks
    Stevie Nicks
    Stephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Fleetwood Mac and an extensive solo career, which collectively have produced over forty Top 50 hits and sold over 140 million albums...

     – vocals
  • Lindsey Buckingham
    Lindsey Buckingham
    Lindsey Adams Buckingham is an American guitarist, singer, composer and producer, most notable for being the guitarist and male lead singer of the musical group Fleetwood Mac. Aside from his tenure with Fleetwood Mac, Buckingham has also released six solo albums and a live album...

     – guitar
    Guitar
    The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

    , background vocals
  • Christine McVie
    Christine McVie
    Christine McVie is an English rock singer, keyboardist, and songwriter. Her primary fame came as a member of the British/American rock band Fleetwood Mac, though she has also released three solo albums...

     – keyboards
    Keyboard instrument
    A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...

    , background vocals
  • John McVie
    John McVie
    John Graham McVie is a British bass guitarist best known as a member of the rock group Fleetwood Mac. His surname, combined with that of Mick Fleetwood, was the inspiration for the band's name...

     – bass guitar
    Bass guitar
    The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

  • Mick Fleetwood
    Mick Fleetwood
    Michael John Kells "Mick" Fleetwood is a British musician and actor best known for his role as the drummer and namesake of the blues/rock and roll band Fleetwood Mac. His surname, combined with that of John McVie, was the inspiration for the name of the originally Peter Green-led Fleetwood Mac...

     – drums
    Drum kit
    A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....


Covers

  • Redd Kross
    Redd Kross
    Redd Kross, a rock band from Hawthorne, California had their roots in 1978 in a band called The Tourists begun by Jeff and Steve McDonald while the brothers were still in middle school...

     recorded a lo-fi version of "Rhiannon" in 1988, which was released as a 7" 45-rpm single bundled with the magazine "Away From The Pulsebeat".
  • Waylon Jennings
    Waylon Jennings
    Waylon Arnold Jennings was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. Jennings began playing at eight. He began performing at twelve, on KVOW radio. Jennings formed a band The Texas Longhorns. Jennings worked as a D.J on KVOW, KDAV and KLLL...

     covered the song in his 1985 album, Turn the Page.
  • Hardcore Punk band Zeke
    Zeke (band)
    Zeke is an American hardcore punk band from Seattle, Washington formed in 1993. They are known for their extremely fast, energetic guitar sound. Zeke mixes this with strong influences from hard rock, and occasionally blues-rock, and are often compared to Motörhead.Zeke has released six full-length...

     also covered the song in their 2000 Dirty Sanchez album.
  • The song was recorded in 1976 by Lochiel, Glenwood, and South Carvolth Schools for the The Langley Schools Music Project
    The Langley Schools Music Project
    The Langley Schools Music Project is a collection of recordings of children's choruses singing pop hits by the likes of The Beach Boys, David Bowie, and Paul McCartney...

    .
  • Hole
    Hole (band)
    Hole is an American alternative rock band that originally formed in Los Angeles in 1989. The band is fronted by vocalist/songwriter and rhythm guitarist Courtney Love, who co-founded Hole with former songwriter/lead guitarist Eric Erlandson...

     also sampled "Rhiannon (Will You Ever Win)" on the song "Starbelly".
  • Japanese artist Superfly covered the song as a B-side of the single "Ai o Komete Hanataba o", released on February 28, 2008.
  • American Idol
    American Idol
    American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...

     finalist Brooke White
    Brooke White
    Brooke Elizabeth White is an American indie pop/folk-pop singer-songwriter and actress from Mesa, Arizona who was the fifth place finalist on the seventh season of American Idol. In 2005, White released her first studio album, called Songs from the Attic.White's first post-Idol album High Hopes &...

     covered the song on her 2009 iTunes Live Sessions album.
  • Taylor Swift
    Taylor Swift
    Taylor Alison Swift is an American country pop singer-songwriter, musician and actress.In 2006, she released her debut single "Tim McGraw", then her self-titled debut album, which was subsequently certified multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America...

     performed with Stevie Nicks
    Stevie Nicks
    Stephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Fleetwood Mac and an extensive solo career, which collectively have produced over forty Top 50 hits and sold over 140 million albums...

     at the 2010 Grammy Awards.
  • Buckethead
    Buckethead
    Brian Carroll , better known by his stage name Buckethead, is a guitarist and multi instrumentalist who has worked within several genres of music. He has released 34 studio albums, four special releases and one EP. He has performed on over 50 more albums by other artists...

     usually plays the opening riff between a song.
  • American Idol Season 9
    American Idol (season 9)
    The ninth season of American Idol premiered on January 12, 2010 and concluded on May 26, 2010 on Fox. Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi all returned as judges, and Ellen DeGeneres permanently replaced Paula Abdul as the fourth judge. Idol Gives Back also returned for the season and was...

     finalist Didi Benami *performed a cover of the song on the Top 8 female performances on Tuesday, March 9, 2010.
  • American Idol Season 10
    American Idol (season 10)
    The tenth season of American Idol premiered on January 19, 2011 and concluded on May 25, 2011, on Fox. The show underwent a number of changes from season nine, including the reduction of the judging panel to its original number of just three judges , a returning executive producer, a new music...

     finalist Haley Reinhart
    Haley Reinhart
    Haley Reinhart is an American singer from Wheeling, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, Illinois who placed third in the tenth season of American Idol. Reinhart is currently signed to 19 and Interscope Records.-Early life:...

     performed a cover of "Rhiannon" during the Top 3 finalist performances on May 19, 2011.

Appearances in other media

  • The song appeared in 2011 as a downloadable track for the music video game Rock Band 3
    Rock Band 3
    Rock Band 3 is a music video game, developed by Harmonix Music Systems. The game was initially published and distributed by MTV Games and Electronic Arts, respectively, with Mad Catz taking over both roles a year later. It is the third main game in the Rock Band series...

    .

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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