July 27, 1981: Stevie Nicks Goes Solo With ‘Bella Donna’

All too often, whenever a member of a popular band member tries to breakaway and put out a solo project, the result isn’t very favorable.  Stevie Nicks, however, is a very notable exception, and with the release of her debut solo album Bella Donna, she proved she can be just as strong on her own as she was with Fleetwood Mac.

Released between Fleetwood Mac’s Tusk (1979) and Mirage (1982), Bella Donna would yield four hit singles for Nicks:  “After the Glitter Fades,” “Leather and Lace” with Don Henley, “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers” and, of course, the monster hit “Edge of Seventeen.”

Bella Donna proved to have some incredible staying power.  It managed to stay on the Billboard 200 charts for three whole years.  With the exception of “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” (which was written by Petty), every track was written or co-written by Nicks, which proved her strength as a singer-songwriter.

…And then she released three more hit albums in the 1980’s to solidify that fact, just in case she had any doubters.

Erica Banas is a rock/classic rock blogger. The first man she ever loved was Jack Daniel.  (True story.)