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.
Go Now
Paul McCartney Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Since you've gotta go,
Oh, you better go now, go now, go now, go now,
Before you see me crying.
I don't want you to tell me what you intend to do now.
How many times do I have to tell you, darlin',
I'm still in love with you now?
Oh, oh, oh, oh.
We already said so long,
I don't want to see you go,
Oh, you better go now, go now, go now, go now,
And don't you even try, yeah,
Tellin' me that you really don't wanna end up this way, yeah.
How many times do I have to tell you, darlin',
I want you to stay?
Hey, hey, hey, hey.
Talk about it.
(ah-) sing it to me!
Ooh -
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!
(ah-) oh, oh, oh.
Since you've gotta go,
Oh, you better go now, go now, go now, go now,
Before you see me crying.
Well, I want you to tell me what you intend to do now.
How many times do I have to tell you, darlin',
I'm still in love with you now?
Oh, oh, oh, oh.
Oh - oh oh.
I don't wanna see you go, but darlin',
You better go now.
Yeh-hey-hey-hey-hey.
The lyrics to Paul McCartney's song Go Now are about a breakup and the mixed emotions that come along with it. The singer has already said goodbye to their partner, but is urging them to leave now before they see them crying. They don't want to hear what their partner intends to do next or be given false hope. Despite the breakup, the singer is still in love with their partner and is struggling to let go. They want them to go, but at the same time, they don't want to see them leave.
The repeated phrases of "go now" and "how many times do I have to tell you, darlin'" emphasize the urgency and frustration felt by the singer. They are desperate for their partner to leave but are also conflicted because they still love them. The song captures the complexity of saying goodbye to someone that you still care about, but know that it's time to move on.
Line by Line Meaning
We've already said goodbye,
We already parted ways
Since you've gotta go,
Since you have to leave
Oh, you better go now, go now, go now, go now,
It's best if you depart right away
Before you see me crying.
Before you witness me being emotional
I don't want you to tell me what you intend to do now.
I don't want to hear your future plans
How many times do I have to tell you, darlin',
I've already mentioned several times, my love
I'm still in love with you now?
I'm still in love with you in this moment?
Oh, oh, oh, oh.
Expressing a feeling of longing
We already said so long,
We already said goodbye
I don't want to see you go,
I don't want you to leave
And don't you even try, yeah,
Don't attempt to say
Tellin' me that you really don't wanna end up this way, yeah.
Saying that you don't want to end things like this
I want you to stay?
I want you to remain by my side?
Hey, hey, hey, hey.
Expressing a sense of urgency
(ah-) sing it to me!
Sing it to me
Ooh -
Expressing a sense of satisfaction
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!
Expressing agreement or enthusiasm
(ah-) oh, oh, oh.
Expressing a feeling of longing
Well, I want you to tell me what you intend to do now.
I want you to share your future plans with me
Oh - oh oh.
Expressing a feeling of longing
I don't wanna see you go, but darlin',
I don't want you to leave, but my love
You better go now.
It's best if you depart right away
Yeh-hey-hey-hey-hey.
Expressing a sense of urgency or encouragement
Contributed by Olivia O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Boulevard Blue Band
Great old song. Great tone in the vocals. Good to see Paul had Denny do it live.
Patti Emminger
How great is this
Denny is underrated, great voice and cute as can be
Wings was a great band for the times
Jeff Allen
Denny in his prime right here
Official 1SP
You are so courageous, you have such a fearless spirit. You're not like many people. You're a very special to the world. A blessing to the world in fact. The fact that you had more than one of greatest shows on earth that tells me that you put Ringley Bros. out of business. I think you did a phenomenal job making this video.
clive taylor
Dont know why Denny left Moody Blues But its a good job he did!.. Just like Eno leaving Roxy Music. It all turned out for the better.
michael templeton
and if The Beatles didn’t break up when they did, THIS might have never happened!
Don't Bet on It
Turned out just fine for him and Moody Blues.
Расул Кусаинов
Niceee
That London Guy
For me the old school English pub piano whatever you call it bit was so good on the original. Shame they changed it to guitar
Joseph Weaver
I thought it was the other away . Denny played piano on this version. Guitar on the original!