Breakup Albums, Pt. 1: You're An Idiot, Babe

February is, of course, the month of Valentine’s Day. Therefore, I can think of nothing more appropriate for this month’s feature than breakup albums. I find breakup albums to be one of the most fascinating and timeless musical trends around. Ever since there’s been heartbreak and loneliness, people have been channeling those feelings into music. However, there are a few albums that stand out from the rest. These are the albums that tell very specific stories about relationships ending, forever marking that time in the musician’s life. I’d like to spend this week discussing ten of these great breakup albums, looking at the stories they tell and how these artists choose to manifest their heartache.

Artist: Bob Dylan
Album: Blood On The Tracks
Year: 1975

No discussion of breakup albums can begin without mentioning Bob Dylan’s Blood On The Tracks. Much has been said about how much his wife Sara and their separation at the time influenced the songs on this album. Dylan himself has maintained that they’re not supposed to be autobiographical. However, the fact that he wrote ten exquisite songs about broken relationships when he himself was suffering through a broken relationship seems too appropriate to be accidental. The album opens with “Tangled Up In Blue”, and from the very first lines, Dylan is already wistful about his missing love: “early one morning, the sun was shining, I was laying in bed, wondering if she’d changed at all, if her hair was still red.” From there, Dylan jumps back and forth, examining his broken heart from every different angle. The detached, confused “Simple Twist Of Fate” ponders how all of this happened and where it has gone, while “Shelter From The Storm” is impossibly tender and nostalgic, remembering the comfort and love “in another lifetime.” Dylan tackles all of these songs with his usual peerless lyricism, but seldom before this album had Dylan been so raw or exposed. By 1975, Highway 61 Revisted was ten years old. It also marked the ten-year anniversary of his marriage to Sara. Dylan had lived and experienced much since his crazed 60s days and you can hear that on Blood On The Tracks. He sounds older and wiser than the cheeky imp who plugged his electric guitar in on a July evening in 1965 and scared a bunch of folkies shitless. However, he still finds time to record the most vicious and pointed song of his entire career. “Idiot Wind” is virtually unparalleled when it comes to capturing the flailing rage you experience when a long-term relationship ends. The third chorus hits the hardest, with Dylan positively spitting out the words “idiot wind, blowing like a circle around my skull.” Few lyrics are as damning as “you’re an idiot, babe, it’s a wonder that you still know how to breathe.” It’s the perfect centerpiece to the golden standard of breakup albums.

Artist: Fleetwood Mac
Album: Rumours
Year: 1977

No matter what you personally feel about Fleetwood Mac’s music, their 1977 masterpiece Rumours is another cornerstone in the grand tradition of breakup albums. In the years leading up to this album, it’s truly terrifying how many relationships were disintegrating within the band. Bassist John McVie and keyboardist Christine McVie were divorcing, while guitarist Lindsey Buckingham and singer/gypsy waif Stevie Nicks were ending their own relationship. To top it all off, drummer Mick Fleetwood was also getting divorced, although he was the only member smart enough to be with someone outside of the band (also, everyone was coked out of their minds). Of course, anyone who knew that Fleetwood Mac had two couples in it knew the day it all fell apart was inevitable, but few could have predicted it would all happen at once. Needless to say, all this angst, pain and jealousy found its way into the songwriting. “Second Hand News” introduces the record’s themes, with Buckingham crooning “someone has taken my place.” Moments of optimism (“Don’t Stop”) are balanced by cruel attacks like “Go Your Own Way”. The latter song is particularly noteworthy, since Lindsey Buckingham has the balls to make his ex sing harmony on a song in which he declares “loving you isn’t the right thing to do.” I can’t even imagine what these recording sessions were like, with people recording bitter songs about people who are sitting right across the goddamn room! Thankfully, everything (and everybody) finally comes together for “The Chain”, the only song all five band members ever wrote together and probably the finest song on Rumours. Driven by a lurking, ominous bassline, it shows the entire band finding a way to put their personal drama aside for four-and-a-half minutes to create a great moment of music, united by their collective heartbreak. Rumours stands as the strongest warning ever about mixing business and pleasure.