Picking up the guitar at the age of 10 or 11 with a hand-me-down from his older brother, he recalls that Hank B. Marvin (from The Shadows), Muddy Waters and B.B. King were early influences. In 1966, when only 20, he replaced Eric Clapton in John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and with their subsequent recording Hard Road, had begun to make a name for himself, with his sensitive and lyrical playing. As B.B. King commented in 1966, "I've got to say that Peter Green is the best." A year later he left Mayall and teamed up with Mick Fleetwood and subsequently John McVie to form Fleetwood Mac on the urging of producer, Mike Vernon, who was creating a new label, "Blue Horizon". Three LP'S were released under this label and even though at times inconsistent, these recordings display the maturing of Peter's playing. It was during this time that such compositions as "Albatross" & "Black Magic Woman" were penned and with arrangements of standards like "Need Your Love So Bad", established Peter Green as force to be reckoned with. A wonderful 6 CD package of those early recordings is now available entitled Fleetwood Mac, The Complete Blue Horizon Sessions, 1967-1969. Included in this collection are a lot of out-takes, different mixes and extensive liner notes, written by producer Mike Vernon. In addition to the first three releases of Fleetwood Mac, this set also includes 2 CD's of music that was recorded at Chess Studios, with Otis Spann and Willie Dixon among others. The last disc, "The Original Fleetwood Mac", is a 1971 release that consists of tracks that did not make it on to the earlier recordings. By the time the group had signed with Reprise in 1969 and had released "Then Play On", Peter's drug use had started to affect him. His last concert with Fleetwood Mac was in June 1970.

    For the following 10 years, Peter lost sense of reality. Giving away his money, working as a gravedigger, living in a kibbutz, or threatening his accountant with a shotgun were the only times people saw his name in the paper. During this period, he hardly touched the guitar. His medication made it hard for him to concentrate and there were rumors that he spent sometimes 16 hours a day sleeping. In the late 70's he rallied a little and released some inconsis-tent albums. In 1979, a well-received album entitled "In the Skies" was released, but after this, he disappeared from view again, heading back to a life on medication.

    In 1995 Mich Renolds, ex-wife of Fleetwood Mac's former manager sought him out and began caring for him. With the help of her brother, musician Nigel Watson and the late Cozy Powell, he started to pick-up the guitar and began to relearn everything he had forgotten. Slowly venturing out to appear in some live shows, Peter Green Splinter Group released an album of live performances in early 1997 that received strong reviews. The follow-up release, The Robert Johnson Songbook won the W.C. Handy Blues Award. This was the first time the Rhythm & Blues Foundation had honored a UK musician. The same year he was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, where he jammed live with Carlos Santana in a performance of "Black Magic Women".

    Destiny Road, the first studio release of the Splinter Group, contains mostly origi-nal material from the band, on which Peter shares vocals and guitar with Nigel Wat-son. "You'll be Sorry Someday", "Turn Your Love Away" and "I Can't Hide Myself" has Peter playing some very lyrical solos, reminiscent of his early years. The instrumental "Hiding in the Shadows", displays Peter's gift of creating magic with his guitar. His guitar sings in a way that very few musicians can achieve, saying so much with just a couple of notes. The last untitled instrumental, penned by Peter, resembles "Man of the World" on the "Then Play On" release. A very reflective and sad composition, with some wonderful guitar work from both Peter and Nigel Watson.

    Whether or not Peter can reach the degree of subtlety and sophistication that were his trademark in the late sixties remains to be seen, but with improved health, a great band and supportive friends, the next few years could see the re-emergence of one of the truly great blues guitarists of our generation.