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.
My One and Only Love
Paul McCartney Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Like an April breeze on the wing of spring
And you appear in all your splendour
My one and only love.
The shadows fall and spread their mystic charms
In the hush of night while you're in my arms
I feel your lips, so warm and tender
The touch of your hand is like heaven
A heaven that I've never known
The blush on your cheek whenever I speak
Tells me you are my own.
You fill my eager heart with such desire
Every kiss you give sets my soul on fire
I give myself in sweet surrender
My one and only love.
The touch of your hand is like heaven
A heaven that I've never known
The blush on your cheek whenever I speak
Tells me that you are my own, mmm.
You fill my eager heart with such desire
Every kiss you give sets my soul on fire
I give myself in sweet surrender
My one and only love.
The song "My One and Only Love" by Paul McCartney contains lyrics that express the intense love and passion the singer feels for their significant other. The singer is completely enamored by their partner, as nothing else in the world can compare to the feeling they experience when they think about them. The very thought of their partner makes their heart sing and gives them a sense of happiness that is comparable to an April breeze on the wing of spring.
As night falls and the shadows spread their mystic charms, the singer holds their partner closely, and they feel the warmth and tenderness of their partner's lips. The touch of their partner's hand feels like heaven, and they have never experienced such bliss before. The singer becomes lost in their partner's beauty and is filled with an intense desire.
They are completely surrendered to their love, and every kiss they receive sets their soul on fire. The singer gives themselves entirely to their partner, as they are their one and only love.
Line by Line Meaning
The very thought of you makes my heart sing
Thinking about you gives me immeasurable joy and excitement.
Like an April breeze on the wing of spring
Your presence is like an invigorating breeze, bringing new life and vitality to me.
And you appear in all your splendour
When I see you, I am dazzled by your beauty and magnificence.
My one and only love.
There is no one else in the world who captures my heart like you do.
The shadows fall and spread their mystic charms
As the night falls, a magical atmosphere envelops us, creating an enchanting setting for our love to flourish.
In the hush of night while you're in my arms
When we are together, holding each other close, the world fades away and nothing else matters.
I feel your lips, so warm and tender
Kissing you is an experience that fills me with tenderness and passion.
My one and only love.
I cherish you above all others, and my love for you will never diminish.
The touch of your hand is like heaven
The sensation of your touch is pure bliss, an experience that transcends anything I've ever felt before.
A heaven that I've never known
Being with you is like discovering a new world, where everything is perfect and beautiful.
The blush on your cheek whenever I speak
Your reaction to my words shows how deeply you are moved by my love and affection.
Tells me you are my own.
Your response confirms that our love is special and unique, something that we both feel deeply and profoundly.
You fill my eager heart with such desire
My heart is overflowing with love and desire for you, and nothing else compares to what I feel when I'm with you.
Every kiss you give sets my soul on fire
Kissing you creates an intense passion inside me, a flame that cannot be extinguished.
I give myself in sweet surrender
I willingly submit myself to you, because my love for you is unconditional and all-consuming.
My one and only love.
You are the love of my life, and nothing else matters as long as we are together.
Contributed by Madelyn A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.