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Sarah McLachlan is the latest musician to find out the hard way that dating (and worse yet, marrying) your band mate can strain both the relationship and the band. McLachlan married her drummer, Ashwin Sood, in 1997. She's probably going to need another drummer now that the couple is divorcing. The upside? She's got new songs out of the breakup: "U Want Me 2" and "Don't Give Up On Us."

This is the great rock ’n’ roll rite of passage: date your band mate, split up, write a song about it, and get a hit. It's the best revenge of all. Most of us when dealing with a painful breakup have to settle for dissing our ex in private. We make phone calls, write e-mails, or have drinks with friends and reveal all of our former lover’s dirty secrets and nasty habits. Songwriters and musicians, however, get to share their heartbreaks with anyone who has a radio, buys a concert ticket, or downloads a song. Plus, they get paid for their pain. This is a great country.

I wish Sarah the best. I hope she finds a drummer who keeps good time. I hope she's able to stay away from him. Above all else, I hope "U Want Me 2" and "Don't Give Up On Us" are her biggest hits yet. So she knows she's not alone, I offer her these famous romantic band breakups and the songs that resulted. And to rock ’n’ roll lovers everywhere, I say, "Protect your heart, and keep the publishing."

FLEETWOOD MAC

Fleetwood Mac had probably the most famous, complicated, and yet musically successful romantic band breakup. It goes like this: group members Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks were dating but then split up. Stevie then started dating drummer Mick Fleetwood, who was divorcing his wife (though she was not in the band). Meanwhile Fleetwood Mac’s husband-and-wife team, John and Christine McVie, were also divorcing. What's a ’70 supergroup to do? Go in the studio and record Rumours, the quintessential breakup album — and one of the best-sellers of all time.

"The Chain"

NO DOUBT

1994 was a rough year for the Anaheim band. Four years after being signed to Interscope, they still hadn't generated a hit. To make matters worse, bass player Tony Kanal decided that he "needed some space," and he ended his seven-year relationship with singer Gwen Stefani. Good news for Gavin Rossdale. And good news for the band: Their next album, 1995's Tragic Kingdom, catapulted them into the big time. 

CULTURE CLUB

This one is a bit of the inverse of the romantic band breakup rule, but it's still a cautionary tale. Singer Boy George and drummer Jon Moss had been privately dating for four years during the group's peak success. By all accounts, the relationship was less than healthy, and when Culture Club released their third album, Waking Up With the House on Fire, the relationship and their careers were plummeting.

"Mistake No. 3"

RICHARD & LINDA THOMPSON

Richard is a guitar legend who began his career in the British folk-rock band Fairport Convention. He recorded his first solo album in 1972 and began dating his background vocalist. Richard and Linda were married and recorded together for 10 years until their acrimonious divorce. Their last album, 1982's Shoot Out the Lights, was actually written before their split, but even so, it still sounds like a nasty breakup record. By the time they went on tour to support the album, they were definitely over — and it showed onstage.

"A Man In Need"

JEFFERSON AIRPLANE

Grace Slick famously slept with nearly every member of her '60s psychedelic rock crew. By 1971 she and guitarist Paul Kantner had a baby together. A few years later, the Jefferson Airplane was a bust and Paul was suing for rights to the group’s name. Ain't love grand? 

Who's the Best Music Couple EVER? Vote!

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