Mick Fleetwood Once Drove a Car From the Backseat While High and Lost in New Orleans

When The Grateful Dead were touring around 1970, they brought Fleetwood Mac along as openers. At a stop in New Orleans, The Dead were involved in an incident with police. In an alleged setup, their hotel room was raided, and the band was arrested for drug possession.

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While the charges were eventually dropped, the arrest was dragged out longer than necessary. The New Orleans police held the band despite the bail money being readily available. After the incident, The Dead were inspired to include a reference to it in their hit song “Truckin’” later that year.

Meanwhile, Fleetwood Mac was on their own adventure in New Orleans. In a 1990 interview with Q Magazine, Mick Fleetwood recalled the story of the band’s experience in New Orleans. It started with meeting The Grateful Dead in San Francisco, where they were also introduced to the known LSD producer and technician for The Dead, Augustus Owsley Stanley, also known as Bear.

“When The Grateful Dead had originally met us in San Francisco, we had no idea who they were,” said Fleetwood. “They took care of these funny English guys, and that’s when we met Owsley. He’d say, ‘Come on, try some of this. Ooooh no! Don’t touch it! Maybe a little bit of pot and a few beers’ … But eventually we succumbed, and had wild times.”

Mick Fleetwood Tells the Story of Getting Lost in New Orleans and Driving a Car With His Feet

Mick Fleetwood went on to describe one of the band’s acid trips, having thoroughly entrenched themselves in Owsley’s world. According to Fleetwood, the band was gathered in a hotel room, going through a bad experience, when Owsley called them to talk them through it.

However, the clock was ticking for the king of LSD. “The police were out to bust Owsley’s ass, and they busted the Grateful Dead too. He lost all his money keeping out of jail for years, but eventually they got him,” said Fleetwood.

“That Dead song with the line ‘Busted down on Bourbon Street’ [‘Truckin’’ from American Beauty], that was the night that Fleetwood Mac played with them at the Warehouse in New Orleans,” he continued.

Owsley had allegedly spiked the water fountains in The Warehouse with acid. The audience, as well as John McVie, had what Fleetwood called “a massive freakout.” However, he clarified that everybody “loved it.”

Still, the incident directly led to The Grateful Dead being raided that night, and Owsley finally went to jail. “We were nearly there. We were following their car back to the hotel, absolutely out of it on acid,” said Mick Fleetwood.

“I drove the car from the back seat with my feet while somebody else worked the pedals from the side—nobody was in the driver’s seat. Oh God!” he exclaimed. “We got lost, and by the time we arrived, they’d been busted.”

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