The tremendous James PAUL McCartney is 82 today. Wow. It would be nearly impossible to write up a blog encompassing so huge a life. He is currently in his 67th year of performing, with shows scheduled in South America and Europe.

No less an authority than Bob Dylan said the following:

“I’m in awe of Paul McCartney. He’s about the only one that I am in awe of. But I’m in awe of him. He can do it all and he’s never let up, you know. He’s got the gift for melody, he’s got the rhythm. He can play any instrument. He can scream and shout as good as anybody and he can sing the ballad as good as anybody, you know so … And his melodies are, you know, effortless. That’s what you have to be in awe of. I’m in awe of him, maybe just because he’s just so damn effortless. I mean I just wish he’d quit, you know? [Laughs] Just everything and anything that comes out of his mouth is just framed in a melody.”

There is one album of Paul’s that I return to often. It was born out of severe depression from a downward spiral, following the demise of the only gig he’d ever known, and the loss of friendships he’d had since his early teens. Out of that difficulty came one of the best albums of his career, the first of three completely solo albums he would make within the 50 years from 1970 to 2020. It was released April 17, 1970. My copy of McCartney:

McCartney had retreated to his farm in Scotland following John Lennon’s divorce announcement to the group in late 1969. John’s decision was not made public on the advice of the group’s business manager Allen Klein, who was negotiating with EMI on a new royalty deal for the band. Klein becoming the group’s business manager was anathema to McCartney, who tried to persuade John, George & Ringo to not hire him. They were taken with Klein’s charisma, as well as not trusting Paul’s idea for John Eastman, his Father-in-law, to take on the role. Between the falling out of his band and friendships, and the isolation of being on the farm in Scotland, Paul went into a drink-fueled tailspin that scared the hell out of Linda McCartney. She told friends it was the worst time of their lives, and Paul himself years later told his daughter Mary that “I nearly had a breakdown. I suppose the hurt of it all, and the disappointment, and the sorrow of losing this great band, these great friends…I was going crazy.” It was Linda who encouraged him to complete some half-written songs and start writing others as a way to begin picturing what his post-Beatles life might look like.

Heading back to his London home in St. John’s Wood, Paul took delivery of a Studer 4-track tape machine, one microphone and a mic cable. There was no recording console, so he had no VU meters to gauge the recording levels. He usually began with a vocal and acoustic guitar, then overdubbed bass, percussion, electric guitar, and a few backing vocals from Linda. The first track on the album was the very first test of the equipment, :45 worth of a new song “The Lovely Linda,” which wouldn’t be fully completed for the album. He would complete two songs begun during the Beatles’ 1968 trip to India, “Junk” and “Teddy Boy.” With the completed tapes in tow, he eventually decamped to Morgan Studios in London, booking time under the name Billy Martin to maintain the secrecy of the project. The 4-track tapes were recorded on to 8-track tape at Morgan, where Paul went on to add further overdubs, including a vocal for the new lyrics to the previously instrumental “Oo You.” He also added a mellotron-played string section overdub to the instrumental “Singalong Junk.” Moving over to EMI Studios in mid-February (also booked as Billy Martin), McCartney recorded two of his greatest songs, “Every Night” and “Maybe I’m Amazed.”

While Paul was in EMI’s Studio 2, Phil Spector was remixing and reassembling Let It Be in Studio 4. This is when things began to go very wrong.

Due to Paul remaining separated from The Beatles, John, George & Ringo were forced to make business decisions without his vote. Paul had privately set a release date of April 17, 1970 for McCartney with Apple Records chief Neil Aspinall, but that was now in direct conflict with the upcoming late April release of the Let It Be documentary. Plus, Phil Spector was now saying he’d have the accompanying album ready by the end of the month. It would also closely follow Ringo’s album Sentimental Journey, released at the tail end of March. It was decided that Paul’s album would have to be bumped to early June to avoid competition. George and John wrote a letter explaining the situation, telling Paul they’d instructed Apple’s parent company EMI to postpone McCartney until June. Ringo took it upon himself to deliver the letter personally. By all accounts, Paul went apeshit. Despite the others backing down and agreeing to not postpone Paul’s album, the situation between the band members became a 3-against-1 battle that would take years to subside.

Overall, critical reception to McCartney was lukewarm at best. The lo-fi production alienated those used to the professional-level recordings of The Beatles. The shorter pieces sounded unfinished. Melody Maker magazine said “with this record, [McCartney’s] debt to George Martin becomes increasingly clear.” Rolling Stone called the songs “second rate, with only “Maybe I’m Amazed” possibly coming close to a higher standard.”

Two of his bandmates didn’t have much good to say either. John called the album “rubbish,” and “Englebert Humperdink music.” George was a little nicer, saying “Maybe I’m Amazed” and “That Would Be Something” were “great.” But he added the rest of the songs “don’t do much for me,” elaborating that Paul was too isolated from other musicians, leaving Linda as the only person to tell him if something was any good or not.

Albums change as time goes on. McCartney is a beautiful record, written and performed by a man with all the fame in the world, looking for a way to manifest a new life for himself to follow The Beatles. It does indeed have its share of half-baked ideas and silliness, traits that would appear on many of his albums both solo and with Wings. But the great stuff is as classic as any Paul McCartney classic, and the sound quality is fantastic. Years later he’d tell Mojo Magazine, “I was like a professor in his laboratory. Very simple [set-up], as basic as you can get…Even now that album has an interesting sound. Very analogue, very direct.” He’d revisit the solo concept again in 1980 with the largely electronic McCartney II, and forty years later in 2020 with McCartney III.

I’ve got a Paulie story. In late April 2009, The New York Yankees played two exhibition games against the Chicago Cubs at the new Yankee Stadium, sort of as a dress rehearsal for the venue. I got tickets for my sons, and their Mother and I, for the April 22nd game. We drove in to Manhattan and parked on the Upper East Side near the 4 train to go up to The Bronx. We headed back after the game and walked down Lexington Avenue to 84th Street. We’re waiting for the light to change, and something caught my attention. I glanced to my right. Walking up Lexington is none other than Paul McCartney and his Wife. He’s (of course) recognized by everyone, but he doesn’t simply keep walking while waving or saying hello. He stopped for every single person that wanted a minute of his time. A walk around the block must take this guy four hours. Anyway, we waited while he made his way up the street, finally getting to us a few minutes later. He said Hi, shook all our hands, letting us say a few things that he just may have heard once or twice before. I pointed out my younger son to him who was 9 or so at the time, and already a huge Beatles and Paul fan. He even liked Paul’s theme song to the loony movie Vanilla Sky. So Paul shakes his hand again but he doesn’t let go. He says “it’s OK, I’m just a regular guy, you can let go now.” My son’s chin was on the street by this point. Paul was so nice to my boy, and to all of us. He waved goodbye and turned to walk west on 85th Street. We watched him for a couple of minutes, and he kept stopping for everyone all the way up the block. What a guy.

In honor of that event:

For Paulie’s 82nd birthday, Today’s Playlist is a SomethingIsHappening compendium celebrating Paul McCartney. 3+ hours of of post-Beatles solo cuts and select Wings tracks:

#PaulMcCartney #Beatles #GeorgeHarrison #JohnLennon #Ringo #Guitar #Bass #McCartney #Studer #London #GeorgeMartin