All the Songs John McVie Wrote or Cowrote for Fleetwood Mac

In most instances, John McVie had no problem coming up with bass parts for Fleetwood Mac songs. The iconic riff in “The Chain,” for example, was all his doing.

“I butted heads [with] Lindsey [Buckingham] a couple times, because he had very fixed ideas,” McVie said in a 1995 interview with Bass Player. “I would say, ‘Look, this is how I feel it.’ He was really the only one to do that, though.”

McVie was listed as one of the songwriters for “The Chain,” but composing a bass line does not always or automatically earn one a songwriting credit. Most of Fleetwood Mac’s songs were written by the primary three songwriters: Buckingham, Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie.

However, John McVie managed to collect 10 songwriting credits in the time Fleetwood Mac was together. Sure, they’re mainly deep cuts, but still worth checking out. Below, we’ve organized them all in chronological order.

1. “Searching for Madge”
From: Then Play On (1969)

Fleetwood Mac’s 1969 album Then Play On was where they started to expand their horizons beyond just electric blues music, though “Searching for Madge,” an instrumental written solely by McVie, still has a lot of that vibe.

2. “On We Jam”
From: Live in Boston (1985)

“On We Jam” has five songwriters to its name: McVie, Mick Fleetwood, Peter Green, Danny Kirwan and Jeremy Spencer. And to be clear on the timeline, Live in Boston was recorded in 1970 and intended for release that year, but it was shelved until 1985.

3. “Station Man”
From: Kiln House (1970)

Here’s another song McVie wrote with Kirwan and Spencer, a kind of country blues number with Kirwan on lead vocals. Kiln House was the last Fleetwood Mac album to feature Green, but the first to include contributions from a soon-to-be-member, Christine McVie, who wound up marrying the bassist.

“John was engaged when I first met him,” she recalled to Rolling Stone in 1984. “And then the engagement was broken off. He had a wonderful sense of humor, the most endearing person. I loved him. He loved me. Good reason.”

We’d also recommend checking out a live version of this song recorded with Pete Townshend.

READ MORE: Every Classic-Era Fleetwood Mac Song Ranked

4. “Jewel Eyed Judy”
From: Kiln House (1970)

John McVie actually had a few cowrite credits on Kiln House. “Jewel Eyed Judy” was written with Kirwan and Fleetwood. Reportedly, this song was written about the band’s secretary at the time, Judy Wong.

5. “The Purple Dancer”
From: B-side Single (1971)

In 1971, Fleetwood Mac released a single called “Dragonfly” their first with Christine McVie. John McVie didn’t have a hand in writing that one, but he did have a hand in its B-side, “The Purple Dancer.”

6. “What a Shame”
From: Future Games (1971)

Here’s a funky instrumental that was cowritten by both McVies, plus Fleetwood, Kirwan and Bob Welch, the band’s newest addition back then in 1971. Unfortunately, it’s a very short song.

7. “Forever”
From: Mystery to Me (1973)

If you’ve ever wondered what a Fleetwood Mac song would sound like if it was a little big reggae-infused, look no further than “Forever.” This song was cowritten between McVie, Welch and Bob Weston. (It’s actually one of only two songs that Weston was credited with writing with Fleetwood Mac.)

8. “Jam #2”
From: Expanded Edition of 1975’s Fleetwood Mac (2004)

By 1975, Fleetwood Mac had moved from the U.K. to America and added two new members to its lineup: Buckingham and Nicks. Their first album with this cohort was a self-titled release that went to No. 1 in the U.S., but there were a few recordings that did not make the cut. Many of those were released in 2004 when an expanded edition of the album was released, including another instrumental McVie helped cowrite, fittingly titled “Jam #2.” Talk about funky bass line here.

9. “The Chain”
From: Rumours (1977)

There is exactly one song in which all five of the classic-era members of Fleetwood Mac were credited as writers, and that song is “The Chain.” Listening to it, it’s not hard to see why — characteristics of each member can clearly be heard in the arrangement and lyricism. Arguably the crown jewel of “The Chain” is that running bass line.

10. “For Duster (The Blues)”
From: Expanded Edition of Rumours (2004)

Like Fleetwood Mac, Rumours also was remastered and reissued in 2004 with plenty of bonus tracks. Here’s one last groovy instrumental, “For Duster (The Blues),” that features another of McVie’s robust bass lines.