Danny Kirwan, R.I.P

Danny Kirwan, who played guitar, sang and wrote songs for Fleetwood Mac from 1968 to 1972, passed away in London on Friday. His cause of death was unknown. However, Kirwan was beset by alcohol and drug problems and endured long periods of homelessness. He was 68.

Kirwan joined the band at the age of 18 while they were known as a blues outfit with Peter Green and Jeremy Spencer at the helm and contributed notably to the instrumental "Albatross". In all, Kirwan played on five Fleetwood Mac albums. His most prominent contributions were to his last two albums - Future Games and Bare Trees in 1971 and 1972, respectively. By this time, Christine McVie and Bob Welch had joined the group and began to evolve from hard blues to an introspective acoustic, West Coast country rock style. However, Kirwan was fired from the group for his alcoholism and drug use and the volatile behavior which accompanied it while touring in support of Bare Trees. Kirwan would be a distant memory by the time Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks had joined the band and played no part in their Rumours success of 1977 and beyond. Kirwan recorded four solo albums between 1975 and 1979 to neither critical nor commercial success and would never record or perform again. Although inducted into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Fleetwood Mac, Kirwan did not appear at the ceremony.

My favorite Fleetwood Mac is Kirwan's "Woman of 1000 Years". It has a desperate, ethereal yet gentle sweetness about it. Despite its low key demeanor,  "Woman of 1000 Years" is one of those songs that knocked me on my ass when I heard it for the first time and led me to explore more of Kirwan's contributions to Fleetwood Mac and beyond. It is a shame that Kirwan couldn't have become a household name like other members of Fleetwood Mac and more importantly that he couldn't have found greater peace while making music. R.I.P.