1) Paul McCart… Read Full Bio ↴There is more than one artist sharing the name Wings;
1) Paul McCartney and Wings (also known by their original name Wings) were a British–American rock band formed in 1971 by former Beatle Paul McCartney, his wife Linda McCartney on keyboards, session drummer Denny Seiwell, and former Moody Blues guitarist Denny Laine. Wings were noted for frequent personnel changes along with their commercial successes, going through three lead guitarists and four drummers. However, the core trio of the McCartneys and Laine remained intact throughout the group's existence.
Created following the McCartneys' 1971 album Ram, the band's first two albums, Wild Life (1971) and Red Rose Speedway (1973) (the latter featuring guitarist Henry McCullough), were viewed as artistic disappointments beside Paul's work with the Beatles. After the release of the title track of the James Bond movie Live and Let Die, McCullough and Seiwell resigned from the band. The McCartneys and Laine then released 1973's Band on the Run, a commercial and critical success that spawned two top ten singles in "Jet" and the title track. Following that album, the band recruited guitarist Jimmy McCulloch and drummer Geoff Britton, only for Britton to quit shortly afterwards and be replaced by Joe English. With the new line-up, Wings released 1975's Venus and Mars, which included the US number one single "Listen to What the Man Said", and undertook a highly successful world tour over 1975–76. Intended as more of a group effort, Wings at the Speed of Sound (1976) was issued midway through the tour and featured the hit singles "Silly Love Songs" and "Let 'Em In".
In 1977, the band earned their only UK number one single, with "Mull of Kintyre", which became the then-best-selling UK single in history. Wings experienced another line-up shuffle, however, with both McCulloch and English departing before the release of the group's 1978 album London Town. The McCartneys and Laine again added new members, recruiting guitarist Laurence Juber and drummer Steve Holley. The resulting album, Back to the Egg, was a relative flop, with its singles under-performing and the critical reception negative. During the supporting tour, Paul was arrested in Japan for cannabis possession, putting the band on hold. Despite a final US number one with a live-recorded version of "Coming Up" (1979), after Laine departed from the band, Wings discontinued in 1981.
Wings had twelve top-10 singles (including one number one) in the UK and fourteen top 10 singles (including six number ones) in the US. All 23 singles released by Wings reached the US top 40, and one two-sided hit, "Junior's Farm"/"Sally G", reached the top 40 with each side. Of the nine albums released by Wings, all went top 10 in either the UK or the US, with five consecutive albums topping the US charts. Paul McCartney was unquestionably Wings' leader and dominant creative force, but Denny Laine, Jimmy McCulloch, and Linda McCartney all contributed in songwriting, and Laine, McCulloch, Joe English, and Linda McCartney all performed lead vocals.
The success of Wings was a vindication for McCartney. His first few post-Beatles albums were highly criticized and often dismissed by critics as "lightweight" next to the more serious nature of his former bandmates' solo output. But by the mid-1970s, the solo careers of the other three former Beatles were in varying degrees of decline, with John Lennon putting his career on hold in 1975 for the first five years of his son Sean's life. A year later, George Harrison had all but retired from live performances, with his new releases failing to match the success of his initial solo output. Ringo Starr was living in Los Angeles and was writing and recording, but as a solo artist had not been performing onstage other than rare guest appearances. Meanwhile, Wings continued to tour regularly and enjoy much commercial success. According to author Robert Rosen, by 1980, Lennon was envious enough of McCartney's continuing success to make his re-emergence on the music scene.
One of the criticisms of Wings was that the other members were little more than sidemen backing up a solo McCartney. Guitarist Henry McCullough quit the band because he grew tired of being told by McCartney exactly what to play, and said that Wings were never a "real band." On the other hand, other former members of Wings such as Joe English and Laurence Juber have said that they were allowed a degree of creative freedom. In an interview, Juber, Wings' third lead guitarist, said, "I was a sideman, but the job assignment very much included considering myself a part of the band ... In all its incarnations Wings sounded like a band, not like a solo McCartney project and I think that reflects well not only on Paul's ability to share in the creative process, but also on the importance of Denny and Linda's contributions, too. The other players brought their own personalities to the scene."
In addition to its own output, Wings recorded several songs that were released through various outlets both before and after the band's break-up. Denny Laine's 1977 solo album Holly Days was a joint effort by Laine with Paul and Linda McCartney; three songs on Laine's 1980 solo album Japanese Tears were performed by Wings with Laine on lead vocals; Laine also contributed to several songs on Paul McCartney's 1982 and 1983 solo albums Tug of War and Pipes of Peace, respectively. Juber's instrumental "Maisie"—which was backed by members of Wings—appeared on his solo album Standard Time. The McCartneys and Laine contributed backing vocals to George Harrison's 1981 tribute to John Lennon, "All Those Years Ago". Linda McCartney continued to tour and record with her husband up until her death in 1998, after which a compilation of her songs entitled Wide Prairie was released that featured seven Wings songs written or co-written by her. Wings also backed Paul's brother Mike McGear on the McGear album, as well as McGear's band the Scaffold on the single "Liverpool Lou" and its B-side "Ten Years After on Strawberry Jam". Paul McCartney also used three unreleased Wings songs as B-sides of his solo singles several years after Wings' break-up.
Wings' 1977 single "Mull of Kintyre"/"Girls School" is still the biggest-selling non-charity single in the UK (although Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" sold more, its sales include a reissue in aid of the Terrence Higgins Trust), and it ranked fourth in the official list of all-time best-selling singles in the UK issued in 2002.
In 2001, Wingspan: Hits and History was released, a project spanning an album and a television special retrospective.
2) Wings: A Rock band from Malaysia. Their history began on the establishment in 1985 the Secondary School Sri Ampang in Kuala Lumpur. There, four young men who are still demanding joined forces to form a school band. As motivated and very interested in Rock music, especially rhythm, they agreed to singing rock'n'roll participating during their presentations. When it began the birth of WINGS although this group has no name.
Wings' original members are Awie, Jojet, Jo and Sham. The break-hit group when Jojet migrate to GERSANG while Arid and Jo resigned. While Syria set up new groups, named Group CRK.
Members:
Vocalists:
1) Awie (Ahmad Azhar Othman) 1985 - 1993. 2002 - Now
2) Mel (Ismail Zainuddin) 1995 - 1996
3) Mus (Mustafa Din) 1996 - 2001
Guitarists
1) Sham (Sham Baharom) 1985 - 1987
2) Tham Wing Kwan 1987
3) Joe (Abdul Zamin bin Abdul Kadir) 1988
Bassist
Eddie (Samsaidi Haji Ulong Idris) 1985 -Now
Drummer
1)Black(Azmi Hashim) 1985 - 1990. 1994 - Now
2) Jojet 1990 - 1993
3) Wings was also a Finnish death metal band which started in the early 90’s as a side project of Cartilage’s Gabriel Suoraniemi. This incarnation of Wings released a demo and a 7’‘EP. In 1994 Suoraniemi found a full line-up and the style changed to a more modern direction. They released one demo and a full-lenght album through Woodcut Productions (run by Suoraniemi’s ex-Cartilage comrade Mikki Salo) before splitting up. Most of the Wings line-up played in Enochian Crescent as well.
4) A duo in Korea is also using the name Wings (윙스).
Famous Groupies
Wings Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Take A Snap Of The Famous Groupies For MeÂ
Behold The Famous GroupiesÂ
They Are Alike As Two PeasÂ
And Where The Other Goes, The Other GoesÂ
But Though The Famous GroupiesÂ
Are Only Paid In RupiesÂ
Nobody Knows What The Famous Groupies KnowÂ
There Was A Bango PlayerÂ
Who Kept An Extra LayerÂ
Of Dunlopillo Mattress In His VanÂ
But When The Famous GroupiesÂ
Arrived With Their Twin SnoopiesÂ
Nobody Saw Which Way The Poor Boy RanÂ
Nobody Does It Like A Famous Groupie CanÂ
All Stand Back, Let The People SeeÂ
Take A Snap Of The Famous Groupies For MeÂ
There Was A Lead GuitaristÂ
Who Lived In Epping ForestÂ
And All He Ever Wanted Was To BlowÂ
When The Girls Were With HimÂ
He Never Lost His RhythmÂ
And Nobody Knows What The Famous Groupies KnowÂ
Nobody Goes Where The Famous Groupies GoÂ
There Was A Classic StoryÂ
Of A Roadic Nicknamed RoryÂ
Who Used To Practice Voodoo On The SideÂ
When The Famous TwosomeÂ
Suggested Something GruesomeÂ
All That They Found Was A Crater Two Miles WideÂ
Which Left The Music Business Absolutely HorrifiedÂ
Ladies And Gentlemen, Those Magnificent Examples OfÂ
Female Pulchritude And Luminosity, Direct From TheirÂ
Global Perambulations To The Very Boards Of ThisÂ
Supremely Magnificent Proscenium Arch - Ladies AndÂ
Gentlemen; I Give You Famous Groupies!
The song “Famous Groupies” by Wings details the lives of women who travel with famous musicians in pursuit of pleasure, fame and wealth. The opening lines call for everyone to stand back and take a photo of the famous groupies, who look so alike that they could be twins. The chorus emphasizes the mystery of their knowledge and their travels, likening them to secret agents. This implies that they hold important knowledge about the famous musician that no one else possesses. The second verse goes on to detail how these women can distract even the most professional musicians during a performance with their beauty and charm, highlighting their power and influence on the music industry. The final verse tells the story of a roadie who turned to voodoo and, when the famous groupies encouraged him to take it too far, caused a huge explosion that left everyone horrified.
The song isn't meant to glorify or vilify the famous groupies, but rather present a glimpse into their lives and the role they played in the rock n’ roll scene of the time. It seems to be a commentary on the darker side of the celebrity lifestyle and how like-minded individuals tend to gravitate towards each other.
Line by Line Meaning
All Stand Back, Let The People See
Step aside and give a clear view
Take A Snap Of The Famous Groupies For Me
Capture a picture of the famous female admirers on my behalf
Behold The Famous Groupies
Look at the famous groupies with wonder and awe
They Are Alike As Two Peas
The two groupies are very similar in their mannerisms and appearance
And Where The Other Goes, The Other Goes
The two groupies follow each other everywhere they go
But Though The Famous Groupies
Despite the groupies' popularity and fame
Are Only Paid In Rupies
They are only paid in the Indian currency rupees
Nobody Knows What The Famous Groupies Know
The knowledge and secrets of the famous groupies are unknown to others
And Nobody Goes Where The Famous Groupies Go
No one knows where the groupies travel and stay during their journeys
There Was A Bango Player
A musician who plays the banjo
Who Kept An Extra Layer
Who always carried an extra piece of clothing
Of Dunlopillo Mattress In His Van
The mattress in his van was made of Dunlopillo material
But When The Famous Groupies
But when the famous groupies arrived in his van
Arrived With Their Twin Snoopies
With their identical stuffed animals named Snoopy
Nobody Saw Which Way The Poor Boy Ran
No one knows what happened to the musician after the groupies got into his van
Nobody Does It Like A Famous Groupie Can
The ability of the famous groupies to provide unique experiences is unrivaled
There Was A Lead Guitarist
A musician who primarily played the lead guitar
Who Lived In Epping Forest
A region located in the outskirts of London
And All He Ever Wanted Was To Blow
He always desired to succeed in the music industry
When The Girls Were With Him
When the groupies were with the guitarist
He Never Lost His Rhythm
He never lost his musical flow or beat
And Nobody Knows What The Famous Groupies Know
The groupies possess knowledge that no one else has access to
Nobody Goes Where The Famous Groupies Go
The destination of the groupies' travels is a mystery to others
There Was A Classic Story
A popular tale or rumor
Of A Roadic Nicknamed Rory
A roadie or touring personnel known as Rory
Who Used To Practice Voodoo On The Side
He secretly practiced voodoo or other spiritual practices
When The Famous Twosome
When the famous pair of groupies
Suggested Something Gruesome
Proposed a terrifying or awful plan
All That They Found Was A Crater Two Miles Wide
The outcome of the groupies' plan caused a massive crater to form
Which Left The Music Business Absolutely Horrified
The music industry was appalled or shocked by the incident
Ladies And Gentlemen, Those Magnificent Examples Of
A formal announcement to introduce
Female Pulchritude And Luminosity, Direct From Their
Describing the beauty and glamour of the famous groupies who have traveled widely
Global Perambulations To The Very Boards Of This
The groupies have traveled across the globe to make an appearance on this stage
Supremely Magnificent Proscenium Arch - Ladies And
The grand, ornamental arch structure that frames the stage
Gentlemen; I Give You Famous Groupies!
An exclamation to introduce the famous groupies to the audience
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: PAUL MCCARTNEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind