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.
Medley
Paul McCartney Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To get back homeward
Once there was a way
To get back home
Sleep, little darling, do not cry
I will sing a lullaby
Smiles await you when you rise
Sleep, little darling, do not cry
And I will sing a lullaby
Once there was a way
To get back homeward
Once there was a way
To get back home
Sleep, little darling, do not cry
And I will sing a lullaby
Boy, you're gonna carry that weight
Carry that weight a long time
Boy, you're gonna carry that weight
Carry that weight a long time
Oh yeah, I never give you my pillow
I only send you my invitations
And in the middle of a celebration, I lay down
Boy, you're gonna carry that weight
Carry that weight a long time
Boy, you're gonna carry that weight
Carry that weight a long time
Oh yeah, all right
Well, you're gonna be in my dreams tonight
Love you, love you
Love you, love you
Love you, love you
Love you, love you
And in the end
The love you take
Is equal to the love
You make
Oh, oh
Yeah-yeah-yeah-yeah-yeah
The song Medley by Paul McCartney is a collection of different melodies and lyrics from different songs, skillfully pieced together to create a beautiful and emotional masterpiece. In the first set of lyrics, the singer is reminiscing about a time when there was a clear path to return to a place he once called home. He sings about the comfort of being able to find one's way back, but now realizing with regret that this path is no longer available. The second set of lyrics is a lullaby to a child, urging them to sleep with the assurance that they will wake up to smiles in the morning. The repetition of the phrase “Once there was a way” in both sets of lyrics suggests the theme of a loss of something that once was, but now no longer exists.
The final set of lyrics is a combination of two different song fragments. The first is about the weight that one carries after making mistakes or experiencing hardship, and how the burden of that weight can be carried for a long time. The second is about the love that one gives and receives in life, and how it ultimately determines what one takes away from the experience of living. The final phrase - “The love you take is equal to the love you make” - serves as both a hopeful and a poignant conclusion to the song, emphasizing the importance of love and the legacy it leaves behind.
Overall, the song Medley is a beautiful tribute to the emotions that come with loss, regret, love, and redemption. The various melodies and lyrics are woven together seamlessly, creating an emotional and thought-provoking experience for listeners.
Line by Line Meaning
Once there was a way
There was a time when we had a clear path to our destination
To get back homeward
To return to a place that we consider home
Once there was a way
There was a time when we had a clear path to our destination
To get back home
To return to a place that we consider home
Sleep, little darling, do not cry
Rest easy, dear one, do not worry
I will sing a lullaby
I will calm you with a gentle song
Golden slumbers fill your eyes
Your eyes close like precious metal with sleep
Smiles await you when you rise
Happiness will be there for you when you wake up
Sleep, little darling, do not cry
Rest easy, dear one, do not worry
And I will sing a lullaby
I will calm you with a gentle song
Boy, you're gonna carry that weight
You will have a heavy burden to carry in life
Carry that weight a long time
This burden will be with you for a long time
Oh yeah, I never give you my pillow
I only send you invitations, not intimacy
I only send you my invitations
I only invite you to join me in celebrations
And in the middle of a celebration, I lay down
Even in the midst of my joy, I am still sad
Boy, you're gonna carry that weight
You will have a heavy burden to carry in life
Carry that weight a long time
This burden will be with you for a long time
Oh yeah, all right
Yes, everything is good
Well, you're gonna be in my dreams tonight
You are on my mind and I will dream of you
Love you, love you
I love you very much
Love you, love you
I love you very much
Love you, love you
I love you very much
Love you, love you
I love you very much
And in the end
Finally, at the conclusion
The love you take
The affection you receive from others
Is equal to the love
Is no greater than the love
You make
That which you provide to others
Oh, oh
Oh!
Yeah-yeah-yeah-yeah-yeah
Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Paul McCartney, John Lennon
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Robert Cottam
What a fantastic - and very moving - comment.
I'm sixty. With two much older sisters who were both into The Beatles. They WERE remarkable. But, at the same timefor me, they were 'normal' because they were the soundtrack to my childhood.
I can begin to imagine how you felt when you discovered them because five minutes ago, I heard the last song of the three for the first time in over forty years. I 'forgot to breathe' for over a minute - literally - took my breath away.
It was a favourite of my middle sister who has died. Someone must be holding an onion under my eyes because water is leaking from them as I type.
Best wishes to you and yours.
Jaden Stead
Ringo's brush drumming in this is just spectacular
Roger Pr
😂
IslandGirl 9152
Paul takes everything he does and turns it into magic. He was just pure raw talent. You cannot fake that.
Михаил Боглоцишвили
PAUL'S MAGICAL MYSTERY MUSIC TOUR. AND BEATLES FOREVER
paninovevo
But why "raw"
Worn Yodel Records
@paninovevo why was?
shore348450
Does anyone remember from the Mozart film when Salieri goes looking for Mozart’s working papers, the prelude to the final version, and Mozart’s wife says there’s only one copy, and Salieri realises that the music comes to Mozart fully formed, as if from God.
That’s how I see Paul McCartney. A person who G-d chose to be his messenger.
Curtis Holmes
@Worn Yodel Records because let’s be honest he’s not as good as he was
Rudy Creel
Paul McCartney is one of the greatest musicians of all times God ever created
Jorge Puente
The best on