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.
Mistress
Paul McCartney Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Come In My Dear,
You're Looking Tired Tonight.
Your Bath Is Drawn, Let Me Loosen Your Tie
And Fix You Your Usual Drink.
He Settles Back,
Takes A Magazine,
Of Every Appealing Soubrette.
But Where Are The Flowers That He Used To Bring?
Every Endearing Remark
Reminds Her Of Passionarte Promises,
That He Only Made In The Dark.
In Her Bed,
She Wants To Shout At The Back Of His Head
Look At Me, Look At Me, Look At Me I'm Afraid
See What It's Come To,
I'm Just Your Mistress And Maid.
The Wine Is Warm
But The Dinner Is Cold.
The Look In His Eye Tells Her It Won't Be Long
'Till The Girls On The Page Come To Life.
And They'll Get The Flowers That He Used To Bring
With Every Endearing Remark,
And All Of The Passionate Promises
He'll Never Fulfil In The Dark.
In Their Bed,
She Wants To Shout At The Back Of His Head
Look At Me, Look At Me, Now That I'm Not Afraid.
See What It's Come To,
I'm Not Your Mistress And Maid.
See What It's Come To,
I'm Not Your Mistress And Maid.
The song "Mistress and Maid" by Paul McCartney is a melancholic reflection on the decaying relationship between two people. The verses depict a scene of a man coming home tired, settling back with a magazine, and drinking his usual drink while his partner, who is referred to as a mistress and maid, draws him a bath and serves him dinner. The man seems disinterested in his partner and is more focused on the Soubrettes in his magazine. The woman feels neglected and forgotten, reminiscing on the days when her partner used to bring her flowers and make passionate promises. However, those promises remained unfulfilled, and she is now just his mistress and maid.
The chorus attests to her suppressed frustration and disappointment with her partner as she wants to shout at him to look at her but instead reiterates how she is just his mistress and maid. The second verse is similar to the first as the man's focus remains on the magazine and the woman's on their decaying relationship. Although the dinner is cold, the wine is warm, and the man seems to be enjoying himself with the girls in the magazine, the woman knows that he will never fulfill the promises he made to her in the dark. The song's final chorus mirrors the first chorus, emphasizing the woman's realization that she is not his mistress and maid, and the relationship's deterioration is inevitable.
Overall, "Mistress and Maid" is a poignant song about the difficulties of maintaining a relationship and how promises can remain unfulfilled, leading to disappointment and the eventual end of a relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
She Said
His mistress invites him in.
Come In My Dear,
His mistress welcomes him inside.
You're Looking Tired Tonight.
His mistress notices his exhaustion.
Your Bath Is Drawn, Let Me Loosen Your Tie
His mistress prepares a bath and offers to help him relax.
And Fix You Your Usual Drink.
His mistress makes him his favorite drink.
He Settles Back,
He relaxes in his mistress's company.
Takes A Magazine,
He occupies himself with the magazine she gave him.
Kicks Off His Shoes, As He Studies The Form
He gets comfortable as he admires the women in the magazine.
Of Every Appealing Soubrette.
He is drawn to the alluring actresses in the magazine.
But Where Are The Flowers That He Used To Bring?
His mistress misses the romantic gestures he used to make.
Every Endearing Remark
His mistress recalls his sweet words.
Reminds Her Of Passionarte Promises,
His mistress remembers the passionate promises he made.
That He Only Made In The Dark.
His mistress realizes that those promises were only made in private.
In Her Bed,
His mistress thinks to herself in bed.
She Wants To Shout At The Back Of His Head
His mistress wishes he would pay attention to her.
Look At Me, Look At Me, Look At Me I'm Afraid
His mistress is afraid he doesn't love her anymore.
See What It's Come To,
His mistress realizes what their relationship has become.
I'm Just Your Mistress And Maid.
His mistress feels like nothing more than his servant.
The Wine Is Warm
The wine has been sitting out for too long.
But The Dinner Is Cold.
The meal his mistress prepared is no longer warm.
The Look In His Eye Tells Her It Won't Be Long
His mistress senses that he wants to leave soon.
'Till The Girls On The Page Come To Life.
He becomes so caught up in the magazine that he forgets his surroundings.
And They'll Get The Flowers That He Used To Bring
He will give the actresses in the magazine attention yet neglect his mistress.
With Every Endearing Remark,
He will compliment the actresses yet not show affection toward his mistress.
And All Of The Passionate Promises
He will continue to make false promises to his mistress.
He'll Never Fulfil In The Dark.
He won't keep his promises to his mistress in private.
In Their Bed,
His mistress thinks to herself in bed again.
She Wants To Shout At The Back Of His Head
His mistress wishes he would love her again.
Look At Me, Look At Me, Now That I'm Not Afraid.
His mistress is no longer afraid to confront him and wants him to see her.
See What It's Come To,
His mistress realizes the crux of their relationship.
I'm Not Your Mistress And Maid.
His mistress no longer wants to be treated as his servant.
See What It's Come To,
The repetition of this line emphasizes his mistress's realization.
I'm Not Your Mistress And Maid.
His mistress doesn't want to be just a servant in his life anymore.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: ELVIS COSTELLO, PAUL MCCARTNEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind