Over twelve musicians took to the stage this week at the London Palladium to honour founding Fleetwood Mac guitarist Peter Green, with Mick Fleetwood as the organiser.
The night featured contributions from Mick Fleetwood as well as Pete Townshend, Billy Gibbons, Steven Tyler, David Gilmour, Bill Wyman, Kirk Hammett and Noel Gallagher. John Mayall, who gave Green his big break when Eric Clapton left the Bluesbreakers, also made an appearance, as well as John McVie, Christine McVie (who joined Fleetwood Mac after Green departed in 1970) and Neil Finn, who plays in the current incarnation of the group.
"The concert is a celebration of those early blues days where we all began. And it's important to recognise the profound impact Peter and the early Fleetwood Mac had on the world of music. Peter was my greatest mentor and it gives me such joy to pay tribute to his incredible talent. I am honoured to be sharing the stage with some of the many artists Peter has inspired over the years and who share my great respect for this remarkable musician," said Fleetwood.
Kicking the night off with 'Rollin' Man', a track penned by Green for Fleetwood Mac's sophomore LP, Mr. Wonderful, the musicians then transitioned into 'Homework', a blues classic originally written by Dave Clark and Al Perkins, and was included on Fleetwood Mac's 1969 album Fleetwood Mac in Chicago.
Throughout the night many special guests graced the stage, with ZZ Top's Gibbons fronting renditions of 'Dr. Brown' and 'All Your Love,' followed by McVie leading the way on 'Stop Messin' Around' and 'Looking for Somebody.' Gallagher, who had previously appeared in the 2009 documentary on Green, Man of the World, later took to the stage for a few tracks.
Townshend joined for a rendition of 'Station Man,' notably playing Green's Lemon Burst Les Paul. Aerosmith's Tyler delivered 'Oh Well, Part 1,' with Gilmour contributing for 'Oh Well, Part 2.' The Pink Floyd guitarist also performed a soaring version of Fleetwood Mac's 1968 instrumental track 'Albatross', with Fleetwood introducing it by recalling how the Beatles had name-dropped the tune during a 1969 radio interview, which he described as a "profound" moment. Fleetwood dedicated 'Albatross' to George Harrison, whose birthday would have been on the 25th February.
Metallica's Hammett appeared on several tunes, including 'The Green Manalishi.' The final song of the night featured all of the performers collaborating on the classic rock/blues standard, 'Shake Your Moneymaker.'
You can watch fan-shot videos of the concert, as well as view the full setlist below.
Hammett revealed last month that he and Fleetwood had recorded the 1969 Fleetwood single 'Man of the World' for an upcoming tribute to Green, with a rare vocal track performed by the Metallica guitarist.
"It's an easy song to sing. It's got that talk-singing kind of thing; I can handle that. That's about the length of my singing abilities, but I'm into it. I just modernised the whole song, modernised it with modern tones, kind of like a more modern arrangement. I've made the uppity part heavy and dynamic," said Hammet.
Mick Fleetwood & Friends Tribute to Peter Green - London, England setlist:
- Rolling Man
- Homework
- Dr Brown
- All Your Love
- Rattlesnake Shake
- Stop Messin' Around
- Looking for Somebody
- Sandy Mary
- Love That Burns
- The World Keeps Turning
- Like Crying
- No Place to Go
- Station Man
- Man of the World
- Oh Well, part 1
- Oh Well, part 2
- Need Your Love So Bad
- Black Magic Woman
- The Sky is Crying
- I Can't Hold On
- The Green Manalishi
- Albatross
- Shake Your Moneymaker
