Screenwriting : DAISY JONES & THE SIX from a screenwriter/musician's perspective. by Phillip E. Hardy, Prolifique

I was a musician in LA, started playing in nightclubs around 1978, and was heavily immersed in the New Wave/alternative music scene. During the 1980s, I had a blast playing the Starwood, Whiskey, Troubadour, Club Lingerie, and the LA Street scene. I received some radio play on the KLOS program local licks and during an impromptu visit to the old KROQ studio in Pasadena. However, when Fleetwood Mac released Rumors in 1977, I played mainly at backyard parties. And, if I’m being honest, their music and that record were pretty far from what I was into.

Daisy Jones and the Six, created by Will Graham and Scott Neustadter and written by a team of over a dozen screenwriters, is a mini-series on Amazon Prime that loosely inspired Fleetwood Mac’s stellar career. It focuses on the tumultuous relationship of the two bandleaders, Daisy Jones and Billy Dunne, who are inspired by Stevie and Lindsey. As someone who experienced the inner workings of recording studios, record companies, and playing LA venues, I was excited to see what this show delivered, and for me, the verdict is still out.

During the 1980s, I was around a lot of drugs, alcohol, and women. Consequently, I met my wife doing a gig as a lead-singing drummer at The Central on the Sunset Strip. However, I was also a white-collar working man at an aerospace company from 1981-1988 while extensively gigging and making recordings. And though I partook in some vices, I never had to go to rehab and experienced very little melodramas working with several attractive and talented female musicians. It’s commonly stated that “you should write what you know.” Based on my experiences, I’ve written three romcoms inspired by my years playing clubs and serial relationships. And I approached my creative and romantic experiences as an LA musician with much more Joy.

Therefore, I find Daisy Jones & The Six comes at the subject with too much of what we’re used to seeing in rock and roll biopics and fictional stories. I will hang in until the end, but I would’ve liked to see a little humor and joy infused into the story to balance the usual conflict and psychodrama. Of course, many folks will disagree, but I’m coming at this as a screenwriter and musician. I wonder how many of the thirteen people involved in writing this show can say that.