Get Tusked: The Inside Story of Fleetwood Mac's Most Anticipated Album

by Ken Caillat, Hernan Rojas

In this behind-the-scenes look at the making of Fleetwood Mac’s epic, platinum-selling double album, Tusk, producers and engineers Ken Caillat and Hernan Rojas tell their stories of spending a year with the band in their new million-dollar studio trying to follow up Rumours, the biggest rock album of the time. Following their massive success, the band continued its infamous soap opera when its musical leader and guitarist, Lindsey Buckingham, threatened to quit if he didn’t get things his way, resulting in clashes not only with his band but especially Caillat, who had been essential to the band’s Grammy-winning sound. Hernan Rojas’s story recounts a young man who leaves Chile after General Pinochet’s coup to seek his future in the music industry of Los Angeles, where he finds success at one of the hottest studios in town. When Fleetwood Mac arrives, Rojas falls in love with its star singer, Stevie Nicks, and the two of them become romantically involved.Throughout the book, both Caillat and Rojas detail not only the trials and sacrifices they made to finish the album, but also triumphs of musical inspiration and technical innovation that have made Tusk the darling of music critics and indie rockers today.

Genres: Nonfiction, Music

370 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 22, 2019

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a rabid Fleetwood Mac fan who's been listening to the albums for over 45 years, saw them in concert a handful of times, find their music to be incomparably amazing, and am endlessly fascinated by the individuals who make up this messy, emotional trainwreck of a band, this book is like crack. I haven't finished a book this quickly in years. Tusk was the band's 12th album, but it was the follow-up to the mega-monster smash, Rumours. The anticipation around this album was stratospheric, and the 13-month recording session nearly tore the already fragile band apart.
Authors Ken Caillat, producer and engineer who worked on Rumours, Tusk, Live, Mirage, and The Chain box set and Tusk recording engineer Hernan Rojas, give a detailed behind-the-scenes look at the process of creating what at the time was one of the industry's biggest disappointments, and in hindsight, is lauded by many as a bold, creative step forward by a multi-talented band.

It was the late-70's, and Fleetwood Mac were mega-stars. Every excess was their for the taking, and the took a lot. Already known for their intense, soap opera-like personal relationships that were devoured by millions through Rumours, and just coming off a year+ long concert tour, the band immediately began the grueling process of creating the follow-up album in a state-of-the-art recording studio with enough food, alcohol, and drugs to keep an army happy. The band's history with drugs, particularly cocaine, is well-documented, and it just boggles my mind that they were able to operate at all under the influence of so many mind-altering substances. Add to that singer/songwriter/guitarist Lindsey Buckingham's creative evolution, that while perceptive and brilliant, was housed in the mind of a rich and successful, spoiled, damage, emotionally-stunted musical genius. While the rest of the band, and the crew that surrounded them arrived at the studio ready to make another album that met and surpassed the exquisite pop-rock Rumours, Lindsey had other ideas. Latching on to the burgeoning punk/new wave sounds that were starting to herald the coming of the 80's, Lindsey want something entirely different, and he threatened to walk if he didn't get it. Caillat and Rojas alternate in telling the tales of this process, which works well because they experienced the same scenarios, but came at them from different perspectives and temperaments.

What makes this book so delightful for me, is the fact the two authors are first and foremost, recording engineers, who go into rich, geeky detail about each song on the album: how it was recorded, the instrumentation, how they were created. I found that endless fascinating, and thrilled the long-buried musician in me. After each song was worked on and discussed in the book, I found I had to go listen to it and note the details and anecdotes that were revealed in the book.

The detailed aspect of the creation and recording of the album lifted it out of what could have been just a sensationalistic celebrity tell-all. Not that it didn't occasionally slip into that territory, and not to say I didn't occasionally enjoy that aspect, the film did lag a little when the boys would veer off into their sexual escapades and dalliances. Rojas did spend the latter months of the recording of Tusk in a passionate affair with Stevie Nicks, who, I might add, just ended her affair with drummer Mick Fleetwood months before, and who, two years prior, ended a 7-year relationship with guitarist Lindsey Buckingham. It made for some interesting personal dynamics. I am pleased to say that this book only served to make me love Christine McVie even more.

To sum up, as a massive admirer of Fleetwood Mac and their music, and quite specifically, the Tusk album, this book was nearly everything I'd hoped for. It certainly provided a glimpse into the working and personal lives of world-famous musicians during a very particular time in history that was fun and rewarding.

[Nils · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun and interesting material if you are a Mac fan. Probably not for you if you are not. Although apparently written in the last decade it describes a time of extreme excess and machismo (end of the 70s, beginning of the 80s) about which the author seems to have no regrets nor even aware that the tone looks quite odd to today’s reader. It like a Hollywood soap opera of that time.
It’s also badly edited with typos, missing words, etc. But, as I say, if you’re a lifelong Mac fan like me, and one who came of age immersed in their output, this will be enjoyable.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This gets four stars from me because I love the album Tusk so much and it is great to read so many stories from the mammoth making of this classic album. For some reason though Ken Caillat thinks we want to hear all about his sex life (“would you like to put some lotion on my boobs or shall I?” she teased’ is a real line the book editors thought we needed to read about Caillat and his then girlfriend) and seems to enjoy boasting about every single car he owned which gets tiresome after a while.
Almost every woman gets some of Caillat’s lecherous comments, even his own soon to be wife. Lindsey Buckingham’s girlfriend is described as “a model with long blond hair that did little to conceal her breasts bouncing inside her half-unbuttoned blue silk blouse.” Ew. Strangely Caillat doesn’t seem to think this might be a little inappropriate. It certainly showed though just what a boys club both Christine McVie and Stevie Nicks had to deal with every day in the studio.
Hernan Rojas’ affair with Nicks is handled with a lot more respect and it’s clear that Rojas still thinks of Stevie very fondly. Rojas’ memories of how some of Stevie’s songs were created particularly Sara and The Dealer, are also fascinating especially given how Buckingham is often credited as the saviour of her songs. Sara it seems was pretty much a masterpiece before Lindsey added his magic.
Buckingham of course sounds difficult and frustrating but then geniuses often are and what he achieved with Tusk has in recent years meant it has finally got some of the recognition it deserves. Mick Fleetwood comes across as a bit of a buffoon and John McVie as a quiet thoughtful no-nonsense man. No wonder he took off sailing as soon as he could (his annual sailing trip being the reason for his absence in the Tusk video rather than a fight with Stevie Nicks, which Edith Bowman bewilderingly claimed in a Fleetwood Mac doc last year).
Most of the stories about Christine McVie revolve around her relationship with Beach Boy Dennis Wilson and despite all the tales of his crazy life and extravagance, it does sound like Christine truly had a lot of fun with him and they really loved each other.
The recording of every song is described in detail and for any would-be producer or engineer the book will be a treasure trove of technical information, although I must admit a lot of the tech talk went over my head. There’s no doubt though, both Caillat and Rojas are masters of their craft.

[The Daniels Family · Rating 5 out of 5]

sort of like The Making of Rumours......

Brilliant book just not as good as the making of Rumours. The book is well written and feels like a great companion to the Tusk album its self. I look forward to the next one be it Live or Mirage, it will still adorn my book case!!!!

[Aaron Tremper · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kindle Version riddled with typos.

Sections are riddled with typos in the Kindle version. The coverage of the band is great, but I was less eager to hear about Caillat's sexual exploits. That being said, I hope we get a sequel covering the making of 'Mirage.'

[C · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Not nearly as compelling as Making Rumours but I don’t particularly care about Caillat’s hijinks.
Worth the read for Mac fans though.

[Len or Len · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too much about the authors’ girlfriends, but I enjoyed the behind the scenes stuff.

[Hugh Owens · Rating 3 out of 5]

5 stars for subject matter - Tusk being FM's high water mark and all - but could've done without Ken's constant horndoggin'.

[Niamh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book. Learnt about Tusk which I didn’t know much about - came to appreciate it and the songs a lot more. A lot of specifics about the recording and mixing of songs, which didn’t interest me greatly but that’s just me. A lot of personal details about the authors and how much sex Ken Caillat had which really doesn’t interest me. Interesting politics about the band. Did find out about the racism of the British members of the band which wasn’t great and they just laughed off. Interesting overall