The song was first performed by the British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac as the opening track of their 1977 album Rumours.
[1] According to author Jacob Hoye, its opening lines "I know there's nothing to say/Someone has taken my place" set the mood for the entire album.
[2] "Second Hand News" is one of several songs on Rumours that reflects the romantic breakup of Buckingham and bandmate Stevie Nicks.
[5][6] Fleetwood Mac biographer Donald Brackett highlights the irony of lines such as "One thing I think you should know/I ain't gonna miss you when you go.
[3] Buckingham and co-producer Richard Dashut built up the song with four audio tracks of electric guitar and the use of chair percussion to evoke Celtic rock.
[7][9] To achieve a bright and ringy snare drum, Caillat and Richard Dashut tuned the instrument high and placed it in a large vocal booth.
[7][10] Originally, John McVie contributed a bass part that Ken Caillat described as "melodic" and "flowing".
[6] Carroll sums up the song by stating that "the romping acoustic guitars, pounding piano, and vigorous vocals combine in the final mix as an exuberant and hyper-rhythmic whole.
"[6] Pitchfork critic Jessica Hopper describes "Second Hand News" as "perhaps the most euphoric ode to rebound chicks ever written.
"[14] Musically, Swenson claims that "the chunking acoustic guitar rhythm carries the song to a joyful chorus," resulting in "timeless pop harmony.
"[16] Classic Rock History critic Millie Zeiler rated it Buckingham's 4th best song with Fleetwood Mac.