| Fuelled by the romantic breakup of several members, Fleetwood Mac’s album Rumours is recognized by many as their greatest effort. They weren’t the only ones to take romantic disaster and turn it into creative success.
MARVIN GAYE – Here, My Dear
As part of his divorce settlement in 1977, the legendary soul singer is ordered to give a large percentage of the royalties from his next album to his ex-wife. Gaye responds by making an uncommercial, double-length concept album about the divorce (sample song titles: "When Did You Stop Loving Me, When Did I Stop Loving You," "You Can Leave, But It’s Gonna Cost You"). The woman he divorced was Anna Gordy, the sister of Motown Records founder (and Gaye’s boss) Berry Gordy, Jr.
RICHARD AND LINDA THOMPSON – Shoot Out the Lights
The golden couple of British folk-rock recorded this highly acclaimed album in the midst of a reportedly very acrimonious divorce. Although some of its songs predate their marital woes, "Don’t Renege On Our Love" and "Did She Jump or Was She Pushed" drop plenty of hints – as does the fact that Richard posed in person for the album sleeve, while Linda is represented by a portrait hanging on the wall beside him.
WOODY ALLEN AND MIA FARROW – Husbands and Wives
It’s 1991. In real life, Woody Allen and Mia Farrow are breaking up (they were never married, but their long-term relationship is presumed to be rock solid). In Husbands and Wives, the movie Allen wrote and is currently directing, the marriage of characters Gabe Roth (Allen) and his wife Judy (Farrow) is falling apart, not least because Gabe is infatuated with one of the young students at the university where he teaches literature. During production of the film, Farrow discovers some explicit Polaroids that reveal Allen to be sexually involved with their adopted teenage daughter. A true professional, Farrow continues to report to the film set – one of her first tasks is to shoot a tense scene in which Judy asks Gabe, "Do you ever hide things from me?"
ERIC’S TRIP — Forever Again
Much like the indie-rock version of Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours, this lo-fi gem was recorded following the breakup of band members Rick White and Julie Dorion. It’s hard to imagine them recording "About You" and "Always There" – songs about how difficult it is to talk about things – with their respective exes across the studio from one another. White went on to not only form a band with, but marry, the title figure of Eric’s Trip’s 1993 album Love Tara.
SHELLAC – 1000 Hurts
Never one to let anger get in the way of songwriting, this album came hard on the heels of frontman Steve Albini’s wife leaving him for another man. Not necessarily easy listening, 1000 Hurts is compelling like a car wreck. Midway through the record, Albini rhymes "What would want to make him/ make a mess of my life" with "What would want to make him/ stick his cock in my wife" on "Canaveral," but that is not nearly as brutal as the lead off track "Prayer to God." There Albini looks to a higher power to kill both his wife and her lover. The closing refrain of "fucking kill him, fucking kill him, amen" is haunting and terrifying.
DAVID CRONENBERG – The Brood
When the Canadian horror auteur was left by his wife (who took the kids with her), he holed up in a heatless attic and penned his most terrifying film ever. In The Brood the main character is a woman so angry she actually gives birth to her rage. The resulting progeny is a group of merciless blonde haired kids who do mom’s bidding, no matter how messy. Not a pleasant goodbye to his ex, but it probably kept Cronenberg out of therapy.
MICHEAL WHITE AND JASON LEWIS
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