127-529: The Paul McCartney Archive Collection is a project to remaster and reissue Paul McCartney 's solo catalogue, including various albums released with Wings . These editions feature deluxe packaging and bonus rare tracks. Thus far, there have been 14 releases since the project began in 2010 (seven solo albums, six Wings albums, and one new Wings live album of previously unreleased material). They are overseen by McCartney himself and remastered at Abbey Road Studios . Albums reissued in this project are visually marked by
254-837: A Liver bird holding an acoustic guitar in its claw, reflects his background in Liverpool and his musical career. The shield includes four curved emblems which resemble beetles ' backs. The arms' motto is Ecce Cor Meum , Latin for "Behold My Heart". In 2003, the McCartneys had a child, Beatrice Milly. In July 2005, he performed at the Live ;8 event in Hyde Park , London, opening the show with " Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band " (with U2 ) and closing it with " Drive My Car " (with George Michael ), " Helter Skelter ", and " The Long and Winding Road ". In September, he released
381-456: A string quartet . Included on the Help! LP, the song was the group's first recorded use of classical music elements and their first recording that involved only a single band member. "Yesterday" became one of the most covered songs in popular music history. Later that year, during recording sessions for the album Rubber Soul , McCartney began to supplant Lennon as the dominant musical force in
508-460: A Dream (from their 1996 album The Best of Pieces of a Dream ), and Michael Lington (from the 2004 album Stay with Me ). An instrumental of the song can be heard during Monica and Chandler's wedding in the American sitcom Friends . Corinne Bailey Rae released a cover of the song on The Love EP (2011). Harry Connick Jr covered "My Love" on the 2014 album The Art of McCartney ,
635-591: A bassist with the Beatles, he played a number of other instruments, including keyboards, guitars, and drums, on various songs. After the Beatles disbanded , he debuted as a solo artist with the 1970 album McCartney and went on to form the band Wings with his first wife, Linda , and Denny Laine . Under McCartney's leadership, Wings became one of the most successful bands of the 1970s. He wrote or co-wrote their US or UK number-one hits, such as " My Love ", " Band on
762-416: A bicycle to her patients; McCartney described an early memory of her leaving at "about three in the morning [the] streets ... thick with snow". On 31 October 1956, when McCartney was 14, his mother died of an embolism as a complication of surgery for breast cancer. McCartney's loss later became a connection with John Lennon , whose mother, Julia , died in 1958 when Lennon was 17. McCartney's father
889-581: A bit, but it's silly to fight that discipline if it's our own". In March 1969, McCartney married his first wife, Linda Eastman , and in August, the couple had their first child, Mary , named after his late mother. Abbey Road was the band's last recorded album, and Martin suggested "a continuously moving piece of music", urging the group to think symphonically . McCartney agreed, but Lennon did not. They eventually compromised, agreeing to McCartney's suggestion: an LP featuring individual songs on side one and
1016-623: A double LP, it remained an unimpressive collection of songs. By the late 1970s, "My Love" was the second most-covered song written and released by a former Beatle since the band's break-up, after Harrison's " My Sweet Lord ". Tony Bennett , Nancy Wilson and Cass Elliot are among the many singers who recorded the song. Others include Johnny Gill , Cher , Brenda Lee (from New Sunrise ), Margie Joseph , Salena Jones , Mina , Shinehead , Andy Williams , Juice Newton , Warren Hill and Dottie West . There have also been three jazz instrumental versions, by Ivan "Boogaloo Joe" Jones , Pieces of
1143-403: A four-year break, he returned to touring and has since performed over 80 shows. More than forty-five years after the Beatles first appeared on American television during The Ed Sullivan Show , he returned to the same New York theatre to perform on Late Show with David Letterman . On 9 September 2009, EMI reissued the Beatles catalogue following a four-year digital remastering effort, releasing
1270-449: A guitar solo by Henry McCullough that some commentators view as a highlight of the track. In his improvised playing, McCullough imposed his own style on a Wings song for the first time, countering the more regimented approach favoured by McCartney. Despite its commercial success, "My Love" was given an unfavourable reception by many music critics, some of whom considered it overly sentimental and lyrically inconsequential. A live version of
1397-413: A hard-bound book. Some releases contain booklets, rare photos, interviews, artwork, promotional video clips, or documentaries. The "special" editions of the albums were also released as double LPs on 180 gram " audiophile vinyl", with the original album on one record and bonus material on the second. The records also came with a download card for MP3 versions of all tracks included. The special editions of
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#17327800950511524-525: A long medley on side two. In October 1969, a rumour surfaced that McCartney had died in a car crash in 1966 and was replaced by a lookalike, but this was quickly refuted when a November Life magazine cover featured him and his family, accompanied by the caption "Paul is still with us". John Lennon privately left the Beatles in September 1969, though agreed not to go public with the information to not jeopardise ongoing business negotiations. McCartney
1651-471: A music video game called The Beatles: Rock Band the same day. McCartney's enduring fame has made him a popular choice to open new venues. In 2009, he performed three sold-out concerts at the newly built Citi Field , a venue constructed to replace Shea Stadium in Queens , New York. These performances yielded the double live album Good Evening New York City later that year. In 2010, McCartney opened
1778-506: A musical piece by him to celebrate its sesquicentennial . He collaborated with composer Carl Davis , producing Liverpool Oratorio . The performance featured opera singers Kiri Te Kanawa , Sally Burgess, Jerry Hadley and Willard White with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and the choir of Liverpool Cathedral . Reviews were negative. The Guardian was especially critical, describing
1905-438: A nickel-plated trumpet from his father for his fourteenth birthday, but when rock and roll became popular on Radio Luxembourg , McCartney traded it for a £15 Framus Zenith (model 17) acoustic guitar , since he wanted to be able to sing while playing. He found it difficult to play guitar right-handed, but after noticing a poster advertising a Slim Whitman concert and realising that Whitman played left-handed, he reversed
2032-484: A perception that was increased by his decision to supply the theme song for the 1973 James Bond film Live and Let Die . According to Beatles biographer Nicholas Schaffner , the inclusion of lyrics such as "Wo wo wo wo, only my love does it good" in the packaging for Red Rose Speedway "didn't help McCartney's dissolving reputation" as a lyricist. Schaffner said that the James Paul McCartney special
2159-597: A prolonged vocalisation of the word "to" then resolving to "me". McCartney invited Richard Hewson , with whom he had worked before while with the Beatles, to arrange the orchestral accompaniment for "My Love". The song was recorded live at Abbey Road Studios in London with a 50-piece orchestra accompanying the band. The session took place in January 1973, late in the recording for Wings' second album, Red Rose Speedway . McCartney played Fender Rhodes electric piano on
2286-788: A record 32 songs that have topped the Billboard Hot 100 and, as of 2009 , he had sales of 25.5 million RIAA-certified units in the US. His honours include two inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (as a member of the Beatles in 1988 and as a solo artist in 1999), an Academy Award , a Primetime Emmy Award , 18 Grammy Awards , an appointment as a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1965, and an appointment as Knight Bachelor in 1997 for services to music. As of 2024, he
2413-465: A selection of acoustic-only songs on MTV Unplugged and released a live album of the performance titled Unplugged (The Official Bootleg) . During the 1990s, McCartney collaborated twice with Youth of Killing Joke as the musical duo "the Fireman" . The two released their first electronica album together, Strawberries Oceans Ships Forest , in 1993. McCartney released the rock album Off
2540-509: A set that included "Let It Be" and "Live and Let Die". He closed the opening ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London on 27 July, singing " The End " and " Hey Jude " and inviting the audience to join in on the coda . Having donated his time, he received £1 from the Olympic organisers. On 12 December 2012, McCartney performed with three former members of Nirvana ( Krist Novoselic , Dave Grohl , and guest member Pat Smear ) during
2667-584: A short promotional film for the song, and another for its B-side, " Rain ". The films, described by Harrison as "the forerunner of videos ", aired on The Ed Sullivan Show and Top of the Pops in June 1966. Revolver also included McCartney's " Eleanor Rigby ", which featured a string octet . According to Jonathan Gould, the song is "a neoclassical tour de force ... a true hybrid, conforming to no recognizable style or genre of song". Except for some backing vocals,
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#17327800950512794-686: A song for the comedic feature film Spies Like Us . He composed and recorded the track in four days, with Phil Ramone co-producing. McCartney participated in Live Aid , performing "Let it Be", but technical difficulties rendered his vocals and piano barely audible for the first two verses, punctuated by squeals of feedback . Equipment technicians resolved the problems and David Bowie , Alison Moyet , Pete Townshend and Bob Geldof joined McCartney on stage, receiving an enthusiastic crowd reaction. McCartney collaborated with Eric Stewart on Press to Play (1986), with Stewart co-writing more than half
2921-494: A teenager, having been influenced by his father, a jazz player, and rock and roll performers such as Little Richard and Buddy Holly . He began his career when he joined Lennon's skiffle group, the Quarrymen , in 1957, which evolved into the Beatles in 1960. Sometimes called "the cute Beatle", McCartney later immersed himself in the London avant-garde scene and played a key role in incorporating experimental aesthetics into
3048-433: A tribute album to McCartney. Rodriguez describes "My Love" as McCartney's "first post-Beatles evergreen" and a standard , due to its instant popularity among other recording artists. In 1976, Linda reflected that Red Rose Speedway was "such a non-confident record" made during a "terribly unsure period", yet it still contained "beautiful songs" such as "My Love". In 1986, McCartney selected it as his favourite track from
3175-473: A void, which left the Beatles perplexed and concerned about their future. McCartney stepped in to fill that void and gradually became the de facto leader and business manager of the group that Lennon had once led. In his first creative suggestion after this change of leadership, McCartney proposed that the band move forward on their plans to produce a film for television, which was to become Magical Mystery Tour . According to Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn ,
3302-466: A white stripe along the left side of the album cover that reads "Paul McCartney Archive Collection" and a copy of McCartney's signature. The albums are typically released in a variety of formats: a "standard" edition that contains the original album digitally remastered on one CD; a "special" edition which contains additional discs of bonus tracks; and a "deluxe" edition which comes with extra features like bonus CDs or DVDs of unreleased material packaged in
3429-527: A year earlier. It was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 10 April 1999, and was organised by two of her close friends, Chrissie Hynde and Carla Lane . Also during 1999, he continued his experimentation with orchestral music on Working Classical . In 2000, he released the electronica album Liverpool Sound Collage with Super Furry Animals and Youth, using the sound collage and musique concrète techniques that had fascinated him in
3556-404: Is a one-man album, with McCartney providing compositions, instrumentation and vocals. In 1971, he collaborated with Linda and drummer Denny Seiwell on a second album, Ram . A UK number one and a US top five, Ram included the co-written US number-one hit single " Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey ". Later that year, ex-Moody Blues guitarist Denny Laine joined the McCartneys and Seiwell to form
3683-481: Is in the key of F major . It opens with an extended ambient note before the vocal enters. The composition has an AABAA structure followed by an outro, with the A sections comprising verse-choruses and the B section containing a bridge. According to musicologist Vincent Benitez, the verses establish a "sense of instability" through lyrics such as "And when I go away" and "And when the cupboard's bare", implying distance and material emptiness, respectively, and this mood
3810-618: Is one of the wealthiest musicians in the world, with an estimated fortune of £1 billion. McCartney was born on 18 June 1942 at Walton Hospital in the Walton area of Liverpool , where his mother, Mary Patricia ( née Mohin), had qualified to practise as a nurse. Both of his parents were of Irish descent. McCartney has a younger brother, Peter Michael , and a younger stepsister, Ruth, born to his father Jim's second wife, Angie, during her first marriage. Paul and Michael were baptised in their mother's Catholic faith, even though their father
3937-484: Is supported by the inclusion of chords such as B ♭ maj7 and D9 that suggest a departure from the home key. He says the choruses and the bridge then convey the emotional security provided by the singer's lover – lyrically, and through the incorporation of a plagal progression (in the chorus) and other chords that correspond with F major. The outro consists of the first part of the bridge; McCartney sings "Only my love does it good" before pausing and then returning with
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4064-687: The Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania; it was his first concert in Pittsburgh since 1990 due to the old Civic Arena being deemed unsuitable for McCartney's logistical needs. In July 2011, McCartney performed at two sold-out concerts at the new Yankee Stadium . A New York Times review of the first concert reported that McCartney was "not saying goodbye but touring stadiums and playing marathon concerts". In August 2011, McCartney left EMI and signed with Decca Records ,
4191-467: The Northern Songs publishing catalogue, dropping his legal objections to Linda being credited as a co-writer on many of his songs since 1971. The band filmed a performance of "My Love" for Top of the Pops , which was shown on the 4 and 11 April editions of the show. Immediately after completing this performance, McCullough vomited on the stage; drunk beforehand, he had become nauseated by
4318-535: The Royal College of Music —"kind of amazing for somebody who doesn't read a note of music", commented McCartney. In 1997, McCartney released the rock album Flaming Pie . Starr appeared on drums and backing vocals in " Beautiful Night ". Later that year, he released the classical work Standing Stone , which topped the UK and US classical charts. In 1998, he released Rushes , the second electronica album by
4445-465: The Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band , standing with a host of celebrities . The cover piqued a frenzy of analysis. After Brian died ... Paul took over and supposedly led us you know ... we went round in circles ... We broke up then. That was the disintegration. I thought, 'we've fuckin' had it.' — John Lennon, Rolling Stone magazine, 1970 Epstein's death in August 1967 created
4572-543: The soundtrack album issued six months later received a less enthusiastic response. By late 1968, relations within the band were deteriorating. The tension grew during the recording of their eponymous double album, also known as the " White Album ". Matters worsened the following year during the Let It Be sessions, when a camera crew filmed McCartney lecturing the group: "We've been very negative since Mr. Epstein passed away ... we were always fighting [his] discipline
4699-451: The "sublime solo" contributed by McCullough. Robert Rodriguez, writing in his book on the Beatles' first decade as solo artists, says that McCullough's playing redeemed a "potentially mawkish McCartney valentine" and he considers the track to be the highlight of a mediocre album. Former Record Collector editor Peter Doggett calls the song "sickly" and says that even after EMI had persuaded McCartney not to release Red Rose Speedway as
4826-450: The 418th spot on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time . In 1974, McCartney hired guitarist Jimmy McCulloch and drummer Geoff Britton to replace McCullough and Seiwell. Britton subsequently quit during recording sessions in 1975 and was replaced by Joe English . Wings followed Band on the Run with the chart-topping albums Venus and Mars (1975) and Wings at
4953-401: The Beatles were breaking up in 1969–70, McCartney fell into a depression. His wife helped him pull out of that condition by praising his work as a songwriter and convincing him to continue writing and recording. In her honour, he wrote " Maybe I'm Amazed ", explaining that with the Beatles breaking up, "that was my feeling: Maybe I'm amazed at what's going on ... Maybe I'm a man and maybe you're
5080-444: The Beatles' 1962–1966 and 1967–1970 compilation albums, which were released around the same time in 1973 and "reminded everyone of just how good Paul's old band was". Writing in 2017, Rolling Stone critic Rob Sheffield dismissed it as "the worst song any of the Beatles had anything to do with". In Sheffield's opinion, McCartney was seeking to emulate the Beatles' 1969 ballad " Something ", written by Harrison, but he missed
5207-403: The Beatles' studio productions . Starting with the 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band , he gradually became the band's de facto leader, providing creative impetus for most of their music and film projects. Many of his Beatles songs, including " And I Love Her ", " Yesterday ", " Eleanor Rigby ", and " Blackbird ", rank among the most covered songs in history. Although primarily
Paul McCartney Archive Collection - Misplaced Pages Continue
5334-427: The Beatles' partnership on 9 January 1975, though sporadic lawsuits against their record company EMI , Klein, and each other persisted until 1989. I didn't really want to keep going as a solo artist ... so it became obvious that I had to get a band together ... Linda and I talked it through and it was like, "Yeah, but let's not put together a supergroup, let's go back to square one." — McCartney As
5461-627: The Best Albums of the Year for 1973, and in 1975, Paul McCartney and Wings won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance for the song "Band on the Run", and Geoff Emerick won the Grammy for Best Engineered Recording for the album. In 1974, Wings achieved a second US number-one single with the title track . The album also included the top-ten hits " Jet " and " Helen Wheels ", and earned
5588-511: The Best! (1987), Wingspan: Hits and History (2001), Pure McCartney (2016) and on the 2022 box set The 7" Singles Box . A live version from Wings' 1976 US tour , with McCullough's replacement, Jimmy McCulloch , on lead guitar, was released on the Wings over America triple album. McCartney has since included live performances of the song on his albums Paul Is Live (1993), Back in
5715-541: The Dirt ; a collaborative effort with Elvis Costello that included musical contributions from Gilmour and Nicky Hopkins . McCartney then formed a band consisting of himself and Linda, with Hamish Stuart and Robbie McIntosh on guitars, Paul "Wix" Wickens on keyboards and Chris Whitten on drums. In September 1989, they launched the Paul McCartney World Tour , his first in over a decade. During
5842-507: The Fireman. In 1999, McCartney released Run Devil Run . Recorded in one week, and featuring Ian Paice and David Gilmour, it was primarily an album of covers with three McCartney originals. He had been planning such an album for years, having been previously encouraged to do so by Linda, who had died of cancer in April 1998. McCartney did an unannounced performance at the benefit tribute, " Concert for Linda ", his wife of 29 years who died
5969-627: The Ground in 1993. The subsequent New World Tour followed, which led to the release of the Paul Is Live album later that year. Starting in 1994, McCartney took a four-year break from his solo career to work on Apple's Beatles Anthology project with Harrison, Starr and Martin. He recorded a radio series called Oobu Joobu in 1995 for the American network Westwood One , which he described as "widescreen radio". Also in 1995, Prince Charles presented him with an Honorary Fellowship of
6096-561: The Life " required a forty-piece orchestra, which Martin and McCartney took turns conducting. The sessions produced the double A-side single " Strawberry Fields Forever "/" Penny Lane " in February 1967, and the LP followed in June. Based on an ink drawing by McCartney, the LP's cover included a collage designed by pop artists Peter Blake and Jann Haworth , featuring the Beatles in costume as
6223-547: The Little Richard cover " Long Tall Sally " was the only song that the Beatles had previously recorded. McCartney wanted the tour to avoid large venues; most of the small halls they played had capacities of fewer than 3,000 people. In March 1973, Wings achieved their first US number-one single, " My Love ", included on their second LP, Red Rose Speedway , a US number one and UK top five. McCartney's collaboration with Linda and former Beatles producer Martin resulted in
6350-407: The McCartneys and Laine recorded Band on the Run . The album was the first of seven platinum Wings LPs. It was a US and UK number one, the band's first to top the charts in both countries and the first ever to reach Billboard magazine's charts on three separate occasions. One of the best-selling releases of the decade, it remained on the UK charts for 124 weeks. Rolling Stone named it one of
6477-800: The Presidents, the Prime Minister, I never met anyone half as nice as some of the people I know from Liverpool who are nothing, who do nothing. They're not important or famous. But they are smart, like my dad was smart. I mean, people who can just cut through problems like a hot knife through butter. The kind of people you need in life. Salt of the earth. — Paul McCartney, Playboy interview, 1984 Mary McCartney's midwifery paid well, and her earnings enabled them to move into 20 Forthlin Road in Allerton , where they lived until 1964. She rode
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#17327800950516604-682: The Run ", " Listen to What the Man Said ", " Silly Love Songs ", and " Mull of Kintyre ". He resumed his solo career in 1980 and has been touring as a solo artist since 1989. Apart from Wings, his UK or US number-one hits include " Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey " (with Linda), " Coming Up ", " Pipes of Peace ", " Ebony and Ivory " (with Stevie Wonder ), and " Say Say Say " (with Michael Jackson ). Beyond music, he has been involved in projects to promote international charities related to animal rights , seal hunting , land mines , vegetarianism, poverty, and music education . McCartney has written or co-written
6731-534: The Speed of Sound (1976). In 1975, they began the fourteen-month Wings Over the World Tour , which included stops in the UK, Australia, Europe and the US. The tour marked the first time McCartney performed Beatles songs live with Wings, with five in the two-hour set list : " I've Just Seen a Face ", "Yesterday", " Blackbird ", " Lady Madonna " and "The Long and Winding Road". Following the second European leg of
6858-585: The UK that included the live debut of the Beatles songs " Got to Get You into My Life ", " The Fool on the Hill " and "Let It Be". In 1980, McCartney released his second solo LP, the self-produced McCartney II , which peaked at number one in the UK and number three in the US. As with his first album, he composed and performed it alone. The album contained the song " Coming Up ", the live version of which, recorded in Glasgow , Scotland, in 1979 by Wings, became
6985-505: The UK in 1963 , and in the US a year later. The fan hysteria became known as " Beatlemania ", and the press sometimes referred to McCartney as the "cute Beatle". McCartney co-wrote (with Lennon) several of their early hits, including " I Saw Her Standing There ", " She Loves You ", " I Want to Hold Your Hand " (1963) and " Can't Buy Me Love " (1964). In August 1965, the Beatles released the McCartney composition " Yesterday ", featuring
7112-497: The US , released internationally in 2003 as Back in the World . The tour earned a reported $ 126.2 million, an average of over $ 2 million per night, and Billboard named it the top tour of the year. The group continues to play together; McCartney has played live with Ray, Anderson, Laboriel, and Wickens longer than he played live with the Beatles or Wings. In July 2002, McCartney married Heather Mills . In November, on
7239-500: The US for four weeks and peaked at number 9 on the UK Singles Chart . The single was viewed as Wings' first significant success in the US and helped Red Rose Speedway achieve commercial success. Wings recorded "My Love" at Abbey Road Studios in London in January 1973. The song is a piano ballad and features an orchestral arrangement by Richard Hewson that was recorded live with the main track. The recording also includes
7366-512: The Wings era and recalled the time as "a romantic period, folks!" McCullough, whose post-Wings career included playing with Joe Cocker and Donovan , and recording albums under his own name, considered the guitar solo on "My Love" to be the best of his career. Following Linda's death in 1998, "My Love" was among the songs McCartney chose for the musical program at the two memorial services held in her memory, in London and New York City. McCartney
7493-432: The World (2002) and Good Evening New York City (2009). Cash Box ' s single reviewer described "My Love as a "fine ballad" and said that, although it was lacking in melody, McCartney's "added sentiment & crooning will soon make this a classic". Record World called it "a luscious ballad that should become an instant standard." Chris Welch of Melody Maker wrote: "A grand ballad from Paul, rather in
7620-571: The addition of guitarist Henry McCullough , Wings' first concert tour began in 1972 with a debut performance in front of an audience of seven hundred at the University of Nottingham . Ten more gigs followed as they travelled across the UK in a van during an unannounced tour of universities , during which the band stayed in modest accommodation and received pay in coinage collected from students, while avoiding Beatles songs during their performances. McCartney later said, "The main thing I didn't want
7747-412: The aesthetic significance of the six-note guitar "hook" that precedes the verse of Harrison's composition, instead inserting the "Wo-wo-wo-wo" refrain that sinks "My Love". Sheffield says the ending provides a "whopper of unintentional comedy", as McCartney dramatically draws out the word "me" to become " Meeeeeee-wo-wo-wo-wo-wo-ho, wo-ho, whooooa! " In his song review for Stereogum , Tom Breihan gives
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#17327800950517874-658: The age of fifteen on 6 July 1957, McCartney met John Lennon and his band, the Quarrymen, at the St Peter's Church Hall fête in Woolton . The Quarrymen played a mix of rock and roll and skiffle , a type of popular music with jazz , blues and folk influences. Soon afterwards, the members of the band invited McCartney to join as a rhythm guitarist, and he formed a close working relationship with Lennon. Harrison joined in 1958 as lead guitarist, followed by Lennon's art school friend Stuart Sutcliffe on bass, in 1960. By May 1960,
8001-478: The albums are available on streaming services worldwide. Below is a list of albums that have been reissued so far. The Paul McCartney Archive Collection received two Grammy Awards. Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles , for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon . One of
8128-490: The band Wings . McCartney had this to say on the group's formation: "Wings were always a difficult idea ... any group having to follow [the Beatles'] success would have a hard job ... I found myself in that very position. However, it was a choice between going on or finishing, and I loved music too much to think of stopping." In September 1971, the McCartneys' daughter Stella was born, named in honour of Linda's grandmothers, both of whom were named Stella. Following
8255-686: The band had tried several names, including Johnny and the Moondogs , Beatals and the Silver Beetles . They adopted the name the Beatles in August 1960 and recruited drummer Pete Best shortly before a five-engagement residency in Hamburg . In 1961, Sutcliffe left the band, and McCartney became their bass player. It is disputed whether he did so reluctantly or actively sought out the role. While in Hamburg, they recorded professionally for
8382-453: The band. Musicologist Ian MacDonald wrote, "from [1965] ... [McCartney] would be in the ascendant not only as a songwriter, but also as instrumentalist, arranger, producer, and de facto musical director of the Beatles." Critics described Rubber Soul as a significant advance in the refinement and profundity of the band's music and lyrics. Considered a high point in the Beatles catalogue, both Lennon and McCartney said they had written
8509-550: The closing act of 12-12-12: The Concert for Sandy Relief , seen by approximately two billion people worldwide. On 28 August 2013, McCartney released the title track of his upcoming studio album New , which came out in October 2013. A primetime entertainment special was taped on 27 January 2014 at the Ed Sullivan Theater with a 9 February 2014 CBS airing. The show featured McCartney and Ringo Starr, and celebrated
8636-459: The end of the Beatles' performing career, McCartney sensed unease in the band and wanted them to maintain creative productivity. He pressed them to start a new project, which became Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band , widely regarded as rock's first concept album . McCartney was inspired to create a new persona for the group, to serve as a vehicle for experimentation and to demonstrate to their fans that they had musically matured. He invented
8763-483: The fictional band of the album's title track . As McCartney explained, "We were fed up with being the Beatles. We really hated that fucking four little mop-top approach. We were not boys we were men ... and [we] thought of ourselves as artists rather than just performers." Starting in November 1966, the band adopted an experimental attitude during recording sessions for the album. Their recording of " A Day in
8890-727: The fire brigade at night. The growing family was rehoused at a flat in Knowsley in 1944 and then in a council housing development in Speke in 1946. After the war, Jim returned to his job at the cotton merchants with a reduced income. Mary's work as a visiting midwife was much more remunerative. McCartney attended Stockton Wood Road Primary School in Speke from 1947 until 1949, when he transferred to Joseph Williams Junior School in Belle Vale because of overcrowding at Stockton. In 1953, he
9017-549: The first anniversary of George Harrison's death, McCartney performed at the Concert for George . He participated in the National Football League 's Super Bowl , performing "Freedom" during the pre-game show for Super Bowl XXXVI in 2002 and headlining the halftime show at Super Bowl XXXIX in 2005. The English College of Arms honoured McCartney in 2002 by granting him a coat of arms . His crest, featuring
9144-487: The first time and were credited as the Beat Brothers, who were the backing band for English singer Tony Sheridan on the single " My Bonnie ". This resulted in attention from Brian Epstein , who was a key figure in their subsequent development and success. He became their manager in January 1962. Ringo Starr replaced Best in August, and the band had their first hit, " Love Me Do ", in October, becoming popular in
9271-414: The first time in the group's career, the release was credited to "Paul McCartney & Wings", rather than Wings alone. The name change was made in the belief that the disappointing sales of Wings' 1971 debut, Wild Life , were due to the public being unaware of McCartney's involvement. Red Rose Speedway was released on 30 April 1973 and was similarly credited to Paul McCartney & Wings. "My Love"
9398-483: The first time since 1993. McCartney performed the song in Linda's memory, as his renditions of "Something" and " Here Today " were tributes to his former Beatles bandmates Harrison and John Lennon , respectively. Following his acrimonious divorce from Mills in 2008, he again performed the song in concert as a tribute to Linda. According to Sounes, whereas the live renditions of "My Love" had "seemingly irritated" Mills on
9525-473: The first time since 25 April 1964 that the Beatles had occupied the top two positions on the chart, and the only occasion that any of its former members have done so as solo artists. The popularity of "My Love" also contributed to the commercial success of Red Rose Speedway , which became the first of five consecutive Wings albums to top the Billboard LPs chart; according to author Bruce Spizer , it
9652-568: The group's last number-one hit. By 1981, McCartney felt he had accomplished all he could creatively with Wings and decided he needed a change. The group discontinued in April 1981 after Laine quit following disagreements over royalties and salaries. In 1982, McCartney collaborated with Stevie Wonder on the Martin-produced number-one hit " Ebony and Ivory ", included on McCartney's Tug of War LP, and with Michael Jackson on " The Girl Is Mine " from Thriller . "Ebony and Ivory"
9779-561: The group's official canon of studio albums, the Magical Mystery Tour LP achieved $ 8 million in sales within three weeks of its release, higher initial sales than any other Capitol LP up to that point. The Beatles' animated film Yellow Submarine , loosely based on the imaginary world evoked by McCartney's 1966 composition , premiered in July 1968. Though critics admired the film for its visual style, humour and music,
9906-473: The legacy of the Beatles and their groundbreaking 1964 performance on The Ed Sullivan Show . The show, titled The Night That Changed America: A Grammy Salute to The Beatles , featured 22 classic Beatles songs as performed by various artists, including McCartney and Starr. My Love (Paul McCartney and Wings song) " My Love " is a song by the British–American band Paul McCartney and Wings that
10033-406: The many artists who have covered the song. Paul McCartney began writing "My Love" on piano as a love song to his wife Linda. He said he wrote it early on in their relationship; McCartney biographer Luca Perasi dates the composition to 1969 or 1970. The song is a piano ballad in the style of McCartney's Beatles song " The Long and Winding Road ". After forming the band Wings with Linda in
10160-485: The merits of the work." The New York Times was slightly more generous, stating, "There are moments of beauty and pleasure in this dramatic miscellany ... the music's innocent sincerity makes it difficult to be put off by its ambitions". Performed around the world after its London premiere, the Liverpool Oratorio reached number one on the UK classical chart, Music Week . In 1991, McCartney performed
10287-566: The mid-1960s. He contributed the song "Nova" to a tribute album of classical, choral music called A Garland for Linda (2000), dedicated to his late wife. Having witnessed the September 11 attacks from the JFK airport tarmac, McCartney was inspired to take a leading role in organising the Concert for New York City . His studio album release in November that year, Driving Rain , included
10414-511: The most successful composers and performers of all time , McCartney is known for his melodic approach to bass-playing, versatile and wide tenor vocal range, and musical eclecticism , exploring genres ranging from pre–rock and roll pop to classical, ballads, and electronica . His songwriting partnership with Lennon is the most successful in modern music history. Born in Liverpool , McCartney taught himself piano, guitar, and songwriting as
10541-464: The music as "afraid of anything approaching a fast tempo", and adding that the piece has "little awareness of the need for recurrent ideas that will bind the work into a whole". The paper published a letter McCartney submitted in response in which he noted several of the work's faster tempos and added, "happily, history shows that many good pieces of music were not liked by the critics of the time so I am content to ... let people judge for themselves
10668-462: The music for the song " In My Life ". McCartney said of the album, "we'd had our cute period, and now it was time to expand." Recording engineer Norman Smith stated that the Rubber Soul sessions exposed indications of increasing contention within the band: "the clash between John and Paul was becoming obvious ... [and] as far as Paul was concerned, George [Harrison] could do no right—Paul
10795-430: The only woman who could ever help me; Baby won't you help me understand ... Maybe I'm amazed at the way you pulled me out of time, hung me on the line, Maybe I'm amazed at the way I really need you." He added that "every love song I write is for Linda." In 1970, McCartney continued his musical career with his first solo release, McCartney , a US number-one album. Apart from some vocal contributions from Linda, McCartney
10922-441: The opportunity to express himself in his playing and depart from what he saw as McCartney's regimented approach to recording. McCullough later said, "it had got to the point where I achingly wanted to be the guitar player in the band", rather than a sideman playing lines dictated by McCartney. McCartney recalled in a 2010 interview: I'd sort of written the solo, as I often did write our solos. And he walked up to me right before
11049-459: The order of the strings. McCartney wrote his first song, " I Lost My Little Girl ", on the Zenith, and composed another early tune that would become " When I'm Sixty-Four " on the piano. American rhythm and blues influenced him, and Little Richard was his schoolboy idol; " Long Tall Sally " was the first song McCartney performed in public, at a Butlin's Filey holiday camp talent competition. At
11176-442: The project was "an administrative nightmare throughout". McCartney largely directed the film, which brought the group their first unfavourable critical response. However, the film's soundtrack was more successful. It was released in the UK as a six-track double extended play disc (EP) and as an identically titled LP in the US, filled out with five songs from the band's recent singles. The only Capitol compilation later included in
11303-493: The rock album Chaos and Creation in the Backyard , for which he provided most of the instrumentation. In 2006, McCartney released the classical work Ecce Cor Meum . The rock album Memory Almost Full followed in 2007. In 2008, he released his third Fireman album, Electric Arguments . Also in 2008, he performed at a concert in Liverpool to celebrate the city's year as European Capital of Culture . In 2009, after
11430-399: The sales of the previous record holder, " She Loves You ", and went on to sell 2.5 million copies and hold the UK sales record until the 1984 charity single, " Do They Know It's Christmas? " London Town (1978) spawned a US number-one single (" With a Little Luck "), and continued Wings' string of commercial successes, making the top five in both the US and the UK. Critical reception
11557-738: The same month that the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences honoured him as the MusiCares Person of the Year , two days prior to his performance at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards . McCartney remains one of the world's top draws. He played to over 100,000 people during two performances in Mexico City in May, with the shows grossing nearly $ 6 million. In June 2012, McCartney closed Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee Concert held outside Buckingham Palace , performing
11684-541: The same record company that famously rejected The Beatles back in January 1962. McCartney was commissioned by the New York City Ballet , and in September 2011, he released his first score for dance, a collaboration with Peter Martins called Ocean's Kingdom on Decca Records. Also in 2011, McCartney married Nancy Shevell. He released Kisses on the Bottom , a collection of standards , in February 2012,
11811-529: The solo exactly as heard on the studio recording. The single topped the US Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks and peaked at number nine on the UK Singles Chart . The song also went to number one on Billboard ' s Easy Listening chart for three weeks. On the Billboard Hot 100, it was demoted by George Harrison 's " Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth) " in late June, marking
11938-490: The song " Freedom ", written in response to the attacks. The following year, McCartney went out on tour with a new band that included guitarists Rusty Anderson and Brian Ray , accompanied by Paul "Wix" Wickens on keyboards and Abe Laboriel Jr. on drums. They began the Driving World Tour in April 2002, which included stops in the US, Mexico and Japan. The tour resulted in the double live album Back in
12065-481: The song " Live and Let Die ", which was the theme song for the James Bond film of the same name . Nominated for an Academy Award , the song reached number two in the US and number nine in the UK. It also earned Martin a Grammy for his orchestral arrangement. Music professor and author Vincent Benitez described the track as " symphonic rock at its best". After the departure of McCullough and Seiwell in 1973,
12192-433: The song appears to lack a formal structure, "It chugs and twinkles with the slow confidence of an old torch song , while the orchestra ... swells and contracts." According to Hewson, around 20 takes were performed over three hours, leaving the musicians tired and having to assure McCartney that their playing could not be improved on. The song contains a guitar solo by Northern Irish guitarist Henry McCullough , who took
12319-429: The song as "positively oozing Manciniesque strings and the kind of sentimentality that one finds either cloying or soothing". Writing in the 2004 edition of The Rolling Stone Album Guide , Greg Kot described "My Love" as McCartney's "soggiest hit" and "over-orchestrated". Former Mojo editor Mat Snow calls it a " slow-dance single" that, although commercially successful, suffered unfavourable comparison with
12446-547: The song included only McCartney's lead vocal and the strings arranged by producer George Martin . The band gave their final commercial concert at the end of their 1966 US tour . Later that year, McCartney completed his first musical project independent of the group—a film score for the UK production The Family Way . The score was a collaboration with Martin, who used two McCartney themes to write thirteen variations. The soundtrack failed to chart, but it won McCartney an Ivor Novello Award for Best Instrumental Theme. Upon
12573-414: The song was included on Wings' 1976 album Wings over America , and McCartney has continued to perform it in concert as a tribute to Linda following her death in 1998. He included the song in the musical programme for Linda's memorial services in London and New York City, where it was performed by a string quartet. Tony Bennett , Nancy Wilson , Brenda Lee , Andy Williams and Harry Connick Jr are among
12700-541: The song with " Maybe I'm Amazed " as "ode[s] to Linda" that, in the context of McCartney's songwriting in 1973, were "so far beyond his usual Wingspan that the dream-voices which had whispered "Yesterday" and " Let It Be " into his ear might have returned". In his book on McCartney for the Praeger Singer-Songwriter Series, Vincent Benitez describes "My Love" as "an outstanding song highlighted by equally outstanding ensemble playing", particularly
12827-600: The songs on the LP. In 1988, McCartney released Снова в СССР , initially available only in the Soviet Union , which contained eighteen covers ; recorded over the course of two days. In 1989, he joined forces with fellow Merseysiders Gerry Marsden and Holly Johnson to record an updated version of " Ferry Cross the Mersey ", for the Hillsborough disaster appeal fund. That same year, he released Flowers in
12954-419: The studio smoke effects. The incident had an adverse effect on his already fractious relationship with McCartney. Wings played "My Love" throughout their 1973 UK tour . These live performances were the source of frustration for McCullough, who was denied the freedom to improvise when playing the solo. Adhering to a populist approach over McCullough's blues sensibilities, McCartney insisted that he reproduce
13081-432: The summer of 1971, McCartney included "My Love" in the set lists for the group's two concert tours in 1972. When they performed it at Nottingham University on 9 February for Wings' public debut, the song included Linda singing lines in response to McCartney's lead vocal. According to Perasi, the performance was otherwise "almost identical" to the version that the band subsequently recorded for official release. The song
13208-453: The take and said, "Hey, would it be alright if I try something else?" And I said, "Er ... yeah." It was like, "Do I believe in this guy?" And he played the solo on "My Love", which came right out of the blue. And I just thought, Fucking great. And so there were plenty of moments like that where somebody's skill or feeling would overtake my wishes. According to McCullough, it was the first time that anyone in Wings had challenged McCartney, and it
13335-470: The tour and extensive rehearsals in London, the group undertook an ambitious US arena tour that yielded the US number-one live triple LP Wings over America . In September 1977, the McCartneys' third child was born, a son they named James . In November, the Wings song " Mull of Kintyre ", co-written with Laine, was quickly becoming one of the best-selling singles in UK chart history. The most successful single of McCartney's solo career, it achieved double
13462-637: The tour, McCartney performed for the largest paying stadium audience in history on 21 April 1990, when 184,000 people attended his concert at Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. That year, he released the triple album Tripping the Live Fantastic , which contained selected performances from the tour. McCartney ventured into orchestral music in 1991 when the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Society commissioned
13589-409: The track a score of five out of ten and concludes: "So 'My Love,' like a lot of McCartney songs, is a pretty and fluffy and sincere and meaningless thing – a song that would probably work as a prom ballad if it had the discipline to hit the big prom-ballad moments. It's nice enough, and I'll never understand, beyond simple name recognition, how it was as big as it was." Biographer Philip Norman pairs
13716-512: The track, while Denny Laine substituted for McCartney on bass guitar. The idea to tape the basic track and the orchestral arrangement simultaneously went against music industry convention, since the session musicians were paid by the hour. Hewson recalled that he recruited "the best jazz musicians I knew ... They had this particular warm sound" and that the reason for the live recording was because McCartney wanted to capture "a certain feeling". In music journalist Tom Breihan's description, although
13843-508: The tradition of songs that turned on the troops in the days of the Cyprus Crisis and other manifestations of the '50s. In a way its appeal is timeless, and it certainly rates among his seemingly unstoppable flow of classics." Welch highlighted the "splendid gutty guitar solo" and predicted: "Much fluttering of wings and handkerchiefs as this sails up the charts." When "My Love" came out, John Lennon actually said, "If only everything
13970-504: The worst album ever made by a rock and roller of the first rank". Five years later, in his review of Wings Greatest , Christgau wished for "a stylus-width scratch across 'My Love'". NME critics Roy Carr and Tony Tyler said the song was among the "dreamy weepies" that were a signature of McCartney's songwriting and, with all the former Beatles' artist royalties frozen due to ongoing litigation over Apple, an important source of income as material for other artists to cover. They described
14097-499: Was "the song that sold the album". The single was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on 9 July, for sales of over one million copies. Billboard ranked "My Love" at number five on its Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1973 chart. The song was subsequently included on the 1978 Wings compilation album Wings Greatest . It has also appeared on the McCartney compilations All
14224-596: Was McCartney's record 28th single to hit number one on the Billboard 100 . The following year, he and Jackson worked on " Say Say Say ", McCartney's most recent US number one as of 2014 . McCartney earned his latest UK number one as of 2014 with the title track of his LP release that year, " Pipes of Peace ". In 1984, McCartney starred in Give My Regards to Broad Street , a feature film he also wrote and produced and which included Starr in an acting role. It
14351-403: Was a former Protestant who had turned agnostic. Religion was not emphasised in the household. Before the war, Jim had worked as a salesman for the cotton merchants A. Hannay and Co., having been promoted from his job as a sample boy in their warehouse; when the war broke out, Hannay's was shuttered, and Jim was employed as a lathe turner at Napier 's defence engineering works, volunteering for
14478-534: Was a trumpet player and pianist who led Jim Mac's Jazz Band in the 1920s. He kept an upright piano in the front room, encouraged his sons to be musical and advised McCartney to take piano lessons. However, McCartney preferred to learn by ear . When McCartney was 11, his father encouraged him to audition for the Liverpool Cathedral choir, but he was not accepted. McCartney then joined the choir at St Barnabas' Church, Mossley Hill . McCartney received
14605-436: Was absolutely finicky." In 1966, the Beatles released the album Revolver . Featuring sophisticated lyrics, studio experimentation, and an expanded repertoire of musical genres ranging from innovative string arrangements to psychedelic rock , the album marked an artistic leap for the Beatles. The first of three consecutive McCartney A-sides , the single " Paperback Writer " preceded the LP's release. The Beatles produced
14732-598: Was an approach that others in the band encouraged, in an effort to make Wings a genuine band and improve McCartney's image. He described the result on "My Love" as "a stroke of luck, a gift from God really, and you get that in music". Apple Records issued "My Love" as a single on 23 March 1973, with the US release following on 9 April. The B-side was "The Mess", recorded live at the Netherlands Congresgebouw in The Hague on 21 August 1972. For
14859-517: Was as simple and unaffected as McCartney's new single, then maybe Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis would reunite with the Marx Brothers." We were going through a slagging off period with each other ... He called me Engelbert, and Engelbert Humperdinck started getting annoyed with me. – Paul McCartney Other critics ridiculed the song. To writers in the countercultural press, it furthered McCartney's standing as an artist of little consequence,
14986-460: Was disparaged by critics: Variety described the film as "characterless, bloodless, and pointless"; while Roger Ebert awarded it a single star, writing, "you can safely skip the movie and proceed directly to the soundtrack ". The album fared much better, reaching number one in the UK and producing the US top-ten hit single " No More Lonely Nights ", featuring David Gilmour on lead guitar. In 1985, Warner Brothers commissioned McCartney to write
15113-437: Was even more damaging to McCartney's image and that, among the show's worst moments, "Paul tried to make passionate faces while crooning 'My Love,' looking instead as if he'd just sucked a lemon." In his "Consumer Guide" review for The Village Voice , Robert Christgau wrote that "[McCartney's] new love ballad meanders hopelessly where ' Yesterday ' shifted enticingly" and he described Red Rose Speedway as "Quite possibly
15240-486: Was first released as the lead single from their 1973 album Red Rose Speedway . It was written by Paul McCartney as a love song to his wife and Wings bandmate Linda . The single marked the first time that McCartney's name appeared in the artist credit for a Wings record, after their previous releases had been credited to Wings alone. Released on 23 March 1973, the song topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart in
15367-632: Was highly public in his expression of grief and organised the services with what biographer Howard Sounes describes as "the same professionalism he brought to his concert performances". Arranged for strings, the song was the closing piece performed by the Brodsky Quartet at St Martin-in-the-Fields church in London's Trafalgar Square on 8 June. At the New York service, held at Riverside Church in Upper Manhattan on 22 June, it
15494-464: Was in the midst of business disagreements with his bandmates, largely concerning Allen Klein 's management of the group, when he announced his own departure from the group on 10 April 1970. He filed a suit for the band's formal dissolution on 31 December 1970, and in March 1971 the court appointed a receiver to oversee the finances of the Beatles' company Apple Corps . An English court legally dissolved
15621-533: Was one of only three students out of 90 to pass the 11-Plus exam, meaning he could attend the Liverpool Institute , a grammar school rather than a secondary modern school . In 1954, he met schoolmate George Harrison on the bus from his suburban home in Speke. The two quickly became friends; McCartney later admitted: "I tended to talk down to him because he was a year younger." The type of people that I came from, I never saw better! [...] I mean,
15748-601: Was performed by the Loma Mar Quartet. Both events were given heavy coverage by news media. McCartney also included the song among the Linda-inspired compositions recorded for his 1999 classical music album Working Classical , where it was again performed by the Loma Mar Quartet. McCartney included "My Love" in the set list for his Driving World Tour in 2002, when, bolstered by the support of his second wife, Heather Mills , he returned to touring for
15875-574: Was sequenced as the album's second track, between " Big Barn Bed " and "Get on the Right Thing". The single's release marked the start of a highly active period for Wings. The band filmed a promotional clip for the song, which used an alternate McCartney lead vocal. They also promoted the single on the James Paul McCartney TV special. McCartney had agreed to do the special in return for Lew Grade , whose company ATV owned
16002-456: Was to come on stage, faced with the whole torment of five rows of press people with little pads, all looking at me and saying, 'Oh well, he is not as good as he was.' So we decided to go out on that university tour which made me less nervous ... by the end of that tour I felt ready for something else, so we went into Europe." During the seven-week, 25-show Wings Over Europe Tour , the band played almost solely Wings and McCartney solo material:
16129-496: Was unfavourable, and McCartney expressed disappointment with the album. Back to the Egg (1979) featured McCartney's assemblage of a rock supergroup dubbed "Rockestra" on two tracks. The band included Wings along with Pete Townshend , David Gilmour , Gary Brooker , John Paul Jones , John Bonham and others. Though certified platinum, critics panned the album. Wings completed their final concert tour in 1979, with twenty shows in
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