She was also best known as the first wife of English musician Paul McCartney and for her photographs of celebrities and contemporary musicians like Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and The Rolling Stones. She photographed British musician Eric Clapton for Rolling Stone magazine and became the first woman to have a photograph on the cover (May 11, 1968). After she married McCartney, her photo of the two of them appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone on January 31, 1974, making her the only person to appear on the magazine's cover who was also the photographer. Her photographs were later exhibited in more than 50 galleries internationally, and at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
After the 1970 breakup of The Beatles, Paul and Linda recorded the album Ram and formed the band Wings in 1971. They garnered several Grammy Awards, becoming one of the most successful British bands of the 1970s. The McCartneys also shared an Oscar nomination for the song "Live and Let Die" for the James Bond film of the same name. She continued to be part of her husband's touring band following Wings' breakup in 1981 up until The New World Tour in 1993.
McCartney became an animal rights activist and wrote and published several vegetarian cookbooks. She also founded the vegetarian Linda McCartney Foods company with her husband. In 1995, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and died from the disease three years later at the age of 56 in her home of Tucson, Arizona.
Linda's album Wide Prairie, which included "Seaside Woman", a song recorded by Wings in 1972. Written in response to allegations from Paul's publisher that Linda's co-writing credits were inauthentic and that she was not a real songwriter, it was released posthumously in 1998 by the McCartney family.
Cow
Linda McCartney Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Standing in your June field
Placid creature
Standing in your June field
With one more day of grazing
Before the slaughter truck
And when it comes you will go
With quiet dignity
Up the ramp
Into the truck, Oh
Trusting creature
Going to meet the final man
With nothing on your face
Except for that familiar beauty
And he will eat you
Because he didn't look
Because he didn't look
He didn't look
Placid creature
Standing in your June field
With one more day of grazing
Before the slaughter truck
Placid creature
Standing in your June field
With one more day of grazing
Before the slaughter truck
Placid creature
Standing in your June field
With one more day of grazing
Before the slaughter truck
And he will eat you
Because he didn't look
Because he didn't look
He didn't look
The lyrics of Linda McCartney's song "Cow" describe the life of a cow that is about to be slaughtered. The song portrays the cow as a placid creature, calmly grazing in the fields until the day it will go to the slaughter truck. The lyrics express a sense of sadness and injustice in the slaughter of the animal, as it is going to be killed only for human consumption, without any recognition of its life or beauty.
In the lyrics, the cow is described as having "quiet dignity" as it goes towards the slaughter truck, trusting the final man that will take it to its fate. The lines "he will eat you / because he didn't look" express a sense of regret and guilt for the act of killing the animal, as if it was an act of thoughtless violence. The repetition of "placid creature / standing in your June field" reinforces the idea of the cow's peaceful presence, placing the focus on the brutality of its fate.
Overall, the song "Cow" is a poignant commentary on animal rights and the cruelty of the meat industry. Linda McCartney's lyrical prowess and empathy towards the animal world are evident in the way she describes the cow's story, and the song serves as a reminder of the ethical implications of our food consumption.
Line by Line Meaning
Placid creature
An animal that is calm and peaceful
Standing in your June field
This animal is currently in a pasture, enjoying nature's bounty and freedom
With one more day of grazing
This animal has one more day to enjoy eating grass and living in the moment
Before the slaughter truck
Unfortunately, soon this animal will be taken away to be killed for meat
And when it comes you will go
When the slaughter truck arrives, this animal will be taken away from its happy life
With quiet dignity
Even though this animal will die, it remains graceful until the end
Across the yard
The animal is moved from one place to another, probably to be processed for meat
Up the ramp
This animal has to be taken up a ramp, likely into the slaughter truck
Into the truck, Oh
The animal is loaded into the truck, and its fate is sealed
Trusting creature
The animal does not know what awaits them, but it trusts the humans around it
Going to meet the final man
The animal is destined to meet the person who will kill them for meat
With nothing on your face
The animal does not show any fear or anger; it is just a peaceful animal
Except for that familiar beauty
The animal's familiar beauty is what draws humans to it, but they will still kill it for meat
And he will eat you
The person who kills this animal will consume its flesh as meat
Because he didn't look
The person who kills and eats this animal does not consider the life and beauty that was lost
Because he didn't look
The person continues to consume meat without truly acknowledging the life that was taken
He didn't look
The person is blind to the suffering and death that is required to provide them with meat
Contributed by Joseph F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.