A self-taught musician, McCartney is proficient on bass, guitar, keyboards, and drums. He is known for his melodic approach to bass-playing (mainly playing with a plectrum), his versatile and wide tenor vocal range (spanning over four octaves), and his eclecticism (exploring styles ranging from pre-rock and roll pop to classical and electronica). McCartney began his career as a member of the Quarrymen in 1957, which evolved into the Beatles in 1960. Starting with the 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, he gradually became the Beatles' de facto leader, providing the creative impetus for most of their music and film projects. His Beatles songs "And I Love Her" (1964), "Yesterday" (1965), "Eleanor Rigby" (1966) and "Blackbird" (1968) rank among the most covered songs in history.
In 1970, McCartney debuted as a solo artist with the album McCartney. Throughout the 1970s, he led Wings, one of the most successful bands of the decade, with more than a dozen international top 10 singles and albums. McCartney resumed his solo career in 1980. Since 1989, he has toured consistently as a solo artist. In 1993, he formed the music duo the Fireman with Youth of Killing Joke. Beyond music, he has taken part in projects to promote international charities related to such subjects as animal rights, seal hunting, land mines, vegetarianism, poverty, and music education.
McCartney is one of the most successful composers and performers of all time. He has written or co-written 32 songs that have reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and as of 2009, had sales of 25.5 million RIAA-certified units in the United States. 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), 18 Grammy Awards, an appointment as a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1965, and a knighthood in 1997 for services to music. As of 2020, he is also one of the wealthiest musicians in the world, with an estimated fortune of £800 million.
Best known for primarily using a plectrum or pick, McCartney occasionally plays fingerstyle. He was strongly influenced by Motown artists, in particular James Jamerson, whom McCartney called a hero for his melodic style. He was also influenced by Brian Wilson, as he commented: "because he went to very unusual places". Another favourite bassist of his is Stanley Clarke. McCartney's skill as a bass player has been acknowledged by bassists including Sting, Dr. Dre bassist Mike Elizondo, and Colin Moulding of XTC.
During McCartney's early years with the Beatles, he primarily used a Höfner 500/1 bass, although from 1965, he favoured his Rickenbacker 4001S for recording. While typically using Vox amplifiers, by 1967, he had also begun using a Fender Bassman for amplification. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, he used a Wal 5-String, which he said made him play more thick-sounding basslines, in contrast to the much lighter Höfner, which inspired him to play more sensitively, something he considers fundamental to his playing style. He changed back to the Höfner around 1990 for that reason. He uses Mesa Boogie bass amplifiers while performing live.
McCartney was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 as a member of the Beatles and again as a solo artist in 1999. In 1979, the Guinness Book of World Records recognised McCartney as the "most honored composer and performer in music", with 60 gold discs (43 with the Beatles, 17 with Wings) and, as a member of the Beatles, sales of over 100 million singles and 100 million albums, and as the "most successful song writer", he wrote jointly or solo 43 songs which sold one million or more records between 1962 and 1978. In 2009, Guinness World Records again recognised McCartney as the "most successful songwriter" having written or co-written 188 charted records in the United Kingdom, of which 91 reached the top 10 and 33 made it to number one.
McCartney has written, or co-written, 32 number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100: twenty with the Beatles; seven solo or with Wings; one as a co-writer of "A World Without Love", a number-one single for Peter and Gordon; one as a co-writer on Elton John's cover of "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"; one as a co-writer on Stars on 45's "Medley"; one as a co-writer with Michael Jackson on "Say Say Say"; and one as writer on "Ebony and Ivory" performed with Stevie Wonder. As of 2009, he has 15.5 million RIAA certified units in the United States as a solo artist plus another 10 million with Wings.
Credited with more number ones in the UK than any other artist, McCartney has participated in twenty-four chart topping singles: seventeen with the Beatles, one solo, and one each with Wings, Stevie Wonder, Ferry Aid, Band Aid, Band Aid 20 and "The Christians et al." He is the only artist to reach the UK number one as a soloist ("Pipes of Peace"), duo ("Ebony and Ivory" with Wonder), trio ("Mull of Kintyre", Wings), quartet ("She Loves You", the Beatles), quintet ("Get Back", the Beatles with Billy Preston) and as part of a musical ensemble for charity (Ferry Aid).
"Yesterday" is one of the most covered songs in history with more than 2,200 recorded versions, and according to the BBC, "the track is the only one by a UK writer to have been aired more than seven million times on American TV and radio and is third in the all-time list ... [and] is the most played song by a British writer [last] century in the US". His 1968 Beatles composition "Hey Jude" achieved the highest sales in the UK that year and topped the US charts for nine weeks, which is longer than any other Beatles single. It was also the longest single released by the band and, at seven minutes eleven seconds, was at that time the longest number one. "Hey Jude" is the best-selling Beatles single, achieving sales of over five million copies soon after its release.
In July 2005, McCartney's performance of "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" with U2 at Live 8 became the fastest-released single in history. Available within forty-five minutes of its recording, hours later it had achieved number one on the UK Official Download Chart.
In December 2020, the release of his album McCartney III and its subsequent charting at number 2 on the US Billboard 200 earned McCartney the feat of being the first artist to have a new album in the top two chart positions in each of the last six decades.
12. Get Yourself Another Fool
Paul McCartney Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All I can do is pack up and run
Now I know the rules, find yourself another fool
You said that you loved me, I was yours to command
Your kind of loving, my heart couldn't stand
You played me for a fool, find yourself another fool
You say, you wished you'd be true
Oh, but deep down in my heart
I know our love could never grow
And now, now that we're through
You say you wished you'd be true
Oh, but deep down in my heart
I know our love will never grow
At last I've awakened to see what you've done
All I can do is pack up and run
Now I know the rules, find yourself another fool
Now I know the rules, find yourself another fool
The lyrics of "Get Yourself Another Fool" talk about a relationship gone sour. The song speaks of a betrayal of trust and deception from the singer's point of view, making the song sound raw and personal. The lyrics suggest that the singer had committed a lot to the relationship and had now come to the realization that it was all for nothing. The singer has finally understood the truth of the situation and decided to take the necessary step to end the relationship, which is illustrated in the line, "All I can do is pack up and run."
The lines "Now I know the rules, find yourself another fool" demonstrate that the singer has been able to learn from the experience and has gained wisdom in the aftermath of the relationship. The title of the song is also significant because it conveys the thoughts of the singer; they believe that their partner is mistaken and requires someone else to be fooled.
Overall, the lyrics are written in a manner that demonstrates the melancholy and bitterness of the situation, and the arrangement of the instruments establishes the tone of the song that complements the emotions conveyed by the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
At last I've awakened to see what you've done
Finally, I have realized the consequences of your actions.
All I can do is pack up and run
I have no choice but to leave you and get away from this relationship.
Now I know the rules, find yourself another fool
I have learned my lesson and understand that you cannot be trusted, so find someone else to deceive.
You said that you loved me, I was yours to command
You told me that you cared for me and that I belonged to you.
Your kind of loving, my heart couldn't stand
The way you loved me was too much for me to bear and it hurt me deeply.
You played me for a fool, find yourself another fool
You took advantage of me and treated me as a fool, so go find someone else to manipulate.
And now, now that we're through
Since our relationship is over...
You say, you wished you'd be true
You are expressing regret that you weren't honest with me.
Oh, but deep down in my heart
Despite your words, I still have a strong feeling...
I know our love could never grow
...that our love was never meant to be and could never have flourished.
Now I know the rules, find yourself another fool
Again, repeating that I have learned from our experience and that you should find someone else to deceive.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ERNEST MONROE TUCKER, FRANK A HAYWOOD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind