The 1950s Track Lindsey Buckingham Credits for His Entire Rock Career: “I Wouldn’t Be Doing What I’m Doing”

Lindsey Buckingham is certainly not alone in his praise of Elvis Presley. It’s basically a given at this point that most classic rockers were moved to pick around on a guitar for the first time because of The King. Whether it was the screaming attention he got from his fans, his incomparable swagger, or his oft-imitated vocals, Presley was an unparalleled source of inspiration.

Buckingham followed suit with many before him, giving praise to the legendary rocker. In fact, he credited him with his entire career as Fleetwood Mac’s guitarist and a solo force. Find out why below.

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The 1950s Elvis Presley Song That Inspired Lindsey Buckingham To Become a Rocker

Buckingham was just a kid when he first heard Elvis, but he soaked him up like a sponge. When his brother brought in a record of “Heartbreak Hotel”, there was no going back for a young Buckingham. All of a sudden, with just a few chords and some crooning vocals leading the way, Buckingham was set on a new path.

“Without him, I probably wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing,” Buckingham once said of Presley. “I was only six when Elvis Presley came on the scene with ‘Heartbreak Hotel.’ It’s hard to even characterize how impactful that was. At six years old, I wasn’t in any position to be buying hundreds of 45s, but my brother, who was seven years older, came home one day and said, ‘Hey, there’s this new singer out there named Elvis Presley, and he’s really cool.’”

“The deep meaning of rock ’n’ roll was suddenly that young people had their own music, so to hear this guy singing, and to see what it looked like, it was just mind-blowing,” he continued.

Buckingham took the newfound independence he got from rock music and modeled himself after it. He continued in the same conversation, calling Presley a “role model,” which was the exact opposite of the cry from parents back in the 1950s.

“I wasn’t looking at Elvis like ‘I wanna be that,’” he added. “It wasn’t the iconic James Dean look that was drawing me, it was more just the overall presence of what it seemed to represent: the freedom, the possibility, the freshness. He was such a role model, with his Martin guitar – the whole package was just so incredible.”

Buckingham took a different approach with his own music, compared to Presley’s bluesy, rootsy, crooning numbers. But, as with most rockers, you can feel Presley’s fingerprints in Buckingham’s career.

(Photo by Robin Platzer/Getty Images)