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.
All Shook Up
Paul McCartney Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What's wrong with me?
I'm itching like a man on a fuzzy tree
My friends say I'm acting wild as a bug
[Chorus]
I'm in love
I'm all shook up
My hands are shaky and my knees are weak
I can't seem to stand on my own two feet
Who do you thank when you have such luck?
[Chorus]
I'm in love
I'm all shook up
Please don't ask me what's on my mind
I'm a little mixed up, but I'm feeling fine
When I'm near that girl that I love best
My heart beats so it scares me to death
She touched my hand what a chill I got
Her lips are like a volcano that's hot
I'm proud to say she's my buttercup
I'm in love
I'm all shook up
Mm mm oh, oh, yeah, yeah!
My tongue get tied when I try to speak
My insides shake like a leaf on a tree
There's only one cure for this body of mine
That's to have the girl that I love so fine
The lyrics to "All Shook Up" by Paul McCartney seem to describe a person who is head over heels in love with someone to the point of being physically and emotionally affected by their presence. The opening line, "A well I bless my soul, what's wrong with me?" suggests that the singer is confused about the intensity of their feelings. They are experiencing physical sensations such as itching and shaking, and their behavior is being described as "wild as a bug." The chorus, "I'm in love, I'm all shook up," further emphasizes the singer's state of heightened emotion.
The second verse adds more detail to the singer's experience. Their hands are shaky, their knees are weak, and they feel unable to stand on their own. They are grateful for their good luck in finding this person and being able to feel such strong emotions. The third verse reveals that the person they love is a girl, and that being near her causes their heart to beat so strongly that it scares them. She is described as a "volcano that's hot" and "buttercup," highlighting the singer's admiration for her.
Overall, the song is a testament to the power of love to affect us both physically and emotionally. The description of physical sensations like shaky hands and weak knees contrasts with the joyful exuberance of the chorus. Ultimately, the singer's desire is to be with the person they love, seeing this as the only cure for their "body of mine" that is experiencing such intense emotions.
Line by Line Meaning
A well I bless my soul
I am surprised and grateful
What's wrong with me?
I'm confused
I'm itching like a man on a fuzzy tree
I am restless and can't settle down
My friends say I'm acting wild as a bug
My friends think I'm out of control
I'm in love
I have fallen in love
I'm all shook up
I feel overwhelmed by my emotions
My hands are shaky and my knees are weak
I am nervous and unsteady
I can't seem to stand on my own two feet
I feel unbalanced and unstable
Who do you thank when you have such luck?
I wonder who I should thank for being lucky in love
Please don't ask me what's on my mind
I don't want to share my thoughts
I'm a little mixed up, but I'm feeling fine
I am confused but still happy
When I'm near that girl that I love best
I feel happiest when I'm around my true love
My heart beats so it scares me to death
I feel so strongly that it's frightening
She touched my hand what a chill I got
I felt goosebumps when she touched me
Her lips are like a volcano that's hot
Her kisses are passionate and intense
I'm proud to say she's my buttercup
I am happy to call her my sweetheart
Mm mm oh, oh, yeah, yeah!
An exclamation expressing joy and excitement
My tongue get tied when I try to speak
I get tongue-tied when I try to talk to her
My insides shake like a leaf on a tree
I feel nervous and scared
There's only one cure for this body of mine
Being with my true love is the only thing that will make me feel better
That's to have the girl that I love so fine
I need my true love by my side
Lyrics © DistroKid, BUDDE MUSIC FRANCE, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Elvis Presley, Otis Blackwell
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind