Mick Fleetwood

Mick Fleetwood (born Michael John Kells Fleetwood in Cornwall, June 24, 1947) is the longtime drummer in rock band Fleetwood Mac. After dropping out of school aged 15, Fleetwood moved to London in 1963 to pursue a career as a drummer and got his first job playing in the band The Cheynes. Stints playing in the Bo Street Runners, Shotgun Express and John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers followed. It was during his time in The Bluesbreakers he met long time friend bassist John McVie and guitarist Peter Green.

After dropping out of school aged 15, Fleetwood moved to London in 1963 to pursue a career as a drummer and got his first job playing in the band The Cheynes. Stints playing in the Bo Street Runners, Shotgun Express and John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers followed. It was during his time in The Bluesbreakers he met long time friend bassist John McVie and guitarist Peter Green. After being fired from the group for drunkenness during gigs, a few months later Green asked him to play, along with McVie, on some recordings he was making and not long after this line-up became the first incarnation of Fleetwood Mac. Green prophetically named his new band after his rhythm section, as Fleetwood and McVie were to be the only original members to stay in the group over the years.
After much success in the 60s as one of Britain's finest blues rock bands, during which they scored their only British number one with Albatross, Green finally left the band in 1970 and Fleetwood became instrumental in keeping the band together through many line-up changes over the years, the most successful being the Christine McVie/Lindsey Buckingham/Stevie Nicks line-up that recorded the mega-successful Rumours in 1977. Fleetwood remains an important member of the band and tours with them to this day.
Aside from playing with Fleetwood Mac he's also recorded five albums outside the band, The Visitor in 1981, I'm Not Me in 1983, Shakin' the Cage in 1992 (recorded with The Zoo) and two albums recorded as The Mick Fleetwood Band, Something Big in 2004 and most recently, Blue Again in 2009.