Few tales are as captivating and enigmatic as the love affair between Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks and Eagles’ Don Henley. Amidst the whirlwind of their two-year romance, a poignant claim emerged, suggesting that the 1979 Fleetwood Mac track ‘Sara’ bore the weight of a profound and personal story.
“I believe, to the best of my knowledge, she became pregnant by me. And she named the kid Sara, and she had an abortion and then wrote the song of the same name to the spirit of the aborted baby,” Henley claimed in a GQ interview in 1991.
The revelation stirred intrigue and speculation, adding layers to the mystique of ‘Sara.’
Nicks, however, later clarified the inspiration behind the song, dispelling rumors and shedding light on her unique approach to songwriting.
“It’s not about Mick’s Fleetwood’s ex-wife, who was also one of my best friends, even though everybody thinks it is,” Nicks revealed to Leah Greenblatt in 2009.
Instead, ‘Sara’ emerged as a tapestry woven from the threads of Nicks’ complex relationships, capturing the essence of her connection with Fleetwood Mac’s Mick Fleetwood and her subsequent romance with Henley.
“I used her name because I love the name so much, but it was really about what was going on with all of us at that time. It was about Mick’s and my relationship, and it was about one I went into after Mick,” Nicks clarified.
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Nicks’ songwriting process reflects her ability to encapsulate the multifaceted nuances of her life within emotive narratives, creating music that is simultaneously universal and deeply personal.
“Some songs are about a lot of things, some songs only have one or two lines that are that main thing, and then the rest of it, you’re just making a movie, writing a story around this one paragraph, that little kernel of life,” she explained.
Addressing Henley’s claims, Nicks dismissed the notion with a characteristic blend of humor and candor.
“He wishes! If Don wants to think the ‘house’ was one of the 90 houses he built—and he did build house after beautiful house, and once they were done, he would move because he wasn’t interested in them anymore [laughs]. No. He is one of my best friends in the world. If anything happened to me, he would be there, always. But if someone said that, they’re so full of shit!” Nicks declared.
‘Sara,’ with its intricate layers and haunting melody, stands as a testament to Nicks’ artistic depth, offering a glimpse into the complex interplay of love, loss, and the timeless magic of her songwriting.
Listen to Sara in the video below: