After Stint with Fleetwood Mac, Had Platinum and Gold Albums
Bob Welch (right), lead guitar, and John McVie, bass, for Fleetwood Mac, perform with the band at Tarrant County Convention Center in Fort Worth in late 1974. (Joe Abell/San Antonio Express-News, June 8, 2012)
Musician Bob Welch, a onetime guitarist and backing vocalist in Fleetwood Mac, was born on August 31, 1945, in Los Angelis, the first child of actress Templeton Fox and producer and screenwriter Robert L. Welch, Sr. He was a direct descendant of Stukely and Juliana Westcott in the 13th generation: Robert L. Welch, Jr.13, Templeton (born Esther) Fox12, Lawrence Fox11, Augusta Snow10, Mary Sisson9, William Sisson8, Elizabeth Bliven7, Nathan Bliven6, Freelove Barker5, Freelove Bliss4, Damaris Arnold3, Damaris Westcott2, Stukely Westcott1.
Welch was a guitarist and vocalist for Fleetwood Mac from 1971 to 1974. He formed the British rock group Paris in 1976. He had hits including “Sentimental Lady” in 1977 and “Ebony Eyes” in 1978. Fleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie and Lindsey Buckingham did backing vocals on “Sentimental Lady.”
Here’s a Bob Welch Biography by Bret Adams at AllMusic.com:
Future Games
Singer, songwriter, and guitarist Bob Welch enjoyed a brief streak of mainstream success in the late ’70s after a four-year, pre-phenomenon stint in Fleetwood Mac. In 1971, Welch replaced Jeremy Spencer and stayed for the albums Future Games (1971), Bare Trees (1972), Penguin (1973), Mystery to Me (1973), and Heroes Are Hard to Find (1974). Welch’s finest Fleetwood Mac moment was the dreamily jazzy “Hypnotized” on Mystery to Me.French Kiss
Welch was asked to stay despite the addition of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks, but he departed and formed a hard rock trio called Paris. The band — which included former Jethro Tull bass guitarist Glenn Cornick, former Nazz drummer Thom Mooney, and then future Tin Machine drummer Hunt Sales — released two poorly received albums in 1976. Welch then decided to craft blatantly commercial pop music, and he succeeded with 1977’s French Kiss, which went platinum and featured the hit singles “Sentimental Lady” (a re-recording of the Bare Trees cut) and “Ebony Eyes.”Three Hearts
Released in 1979, Three Hearts largely repeated the formula, but it only went gold; the single “Precious Love” hit the Top 40. Both albums featured guest appearances by Fleetwood Mac members. Welch released four more albums through 1983, but sales steadily declined.By 1987, Welch had moved to Phoenix, Arizona and formed Avenue M. In the late ’90s, he pursued a songwriting career in Nashville, Tennessee. Welch also publicly clashed with his former Fleetwood Mac bandmates. In 1994, he filed a lawsuit claiming he was underpaid royalties during his tenure. The case was settled out of court, but Welch says Fleetwood Mac retaliated by having him excluded from the band’s 1998 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction. Welch was the only early member not honored. He died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at his home in Nashville on June 7, 2012; Bob Welch was 65 years old.