When Peter Green left Fleetwood Mac in 1970 and disappeared into obscurity, many guitarists – including Snowy White – felt his recording days were over. However, White, best known for his work with Thin Lizzy and Pink Floyd, eventually played a key role in bringing the blues rock electric guitar hero out from the dark.
In a new interview with Guitar WorldWhite discusses how their surprise guitar tandem came about on Green’s comeback album, In the Skies. At the time, it was Green’s first record in eight years and one that lifted him out of obscurity and back into the limelight.
White says work began in 1977, two years prior to the album’s release, with White fresh off the Animals sessions with Pink Floyd. The record may not have been possible without him.
“Peter rang me one day and said, ‘I’m doing an album for a small record company that my brother is involved in, can I use you and your band?’ So, we went into a studio and basically just jammed.”
Green founded Fleetwood Mac in 1967, and his slick, timeless, blues-y playing is evident in their earliest releases, including tracks such as Oh Well and the seductive Albatross.
But his exit wasn’t all that amicable and in 1970, against a backdrop of drug use and mental health issues, Green left the group. Almost a decade later, he would re-emerge professionally, with his passion for jams and connecting with other musicians returning.
“Peter was in a good mood and it was a fun session,” White continues. “He started playing rhythm stuff and asked me to play lead. I said, ‘Pete, it’s your album, you play some lead.’ In the end, we both did a bit of each.”
Despite his deep-rooted connection to the Les Paul, Green wielded an unassuming 1965 Fender Duo-Sonic on In The Skieswhich was the sound of Green finding himself again. It had been a turbulent period, and Snowy White was there to help him find his musical feet again.
“Of course, I was very happy to be recording with Peter,” White reflects. “I’d known him for a few years and didn’t think he would ever record again. Then he took away the tracks and worked on them, put some lyrics on.”
Green and White returned to the studio, setting up at The Who’s Battersea, London, location. The album would prove a success, but White does have one niggling regret about the experience.
“Unfortunately, I’d put in some of my ideas but in the end, I wasn’t credited with any songwriting,” he explains. “That was a pity but I didn’t make a fuss about it, as I figured that Peter was still pretty fragile and unsure about dealing with the business side of things, so I let it pass.”
Elsewhere in his Guitar World interview, White reveals how both Moore and David Gilmour would come to feature on his 1994 solo album, Highway to the Sun.
Snowy White’s full interview with GW will be published online in the near future.