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).
London Town
Wings Lyrics
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I was accosted by a barker playing a simple tune
Upon his flute - toot toot toot toot
Silver rain was falling down
Upon the dirty ground of London Town
People pass me by on my imaginary street
Ordinary people it's impossible to meet
Holding conversations that are always incomplete
Well, I don't know
Oh, where are there places to go
Someone somewhere has to know
I don't know
Out of work again the actor entertains his wife
With the same old stories of his ordinary life
Maybe he exaggerates the trouble and the strife
Well, I don't know
Oh, where are there places to go
Someone somewhere has to know
Crawling down the pavement on a Sunday afternoon
I was arrested by a rozzer wearing a pink balloon
About his foot - toot toot toot toot
Silver rain was falling down
Upon the dirty ground of London Town
Someone somewhere has to know
Silver rain was falling down
Upon the dirty ground of London Town
The opening lyrics of “London Town” capture a sense of aimlessness and disorientation in one of the world's busiest cities. Paul McCartney sings of walking down the sidewalk on a “purple afternoon” and being accosted by a barker playing a simple tune on his flute. The song then moves into a depiction of other ordinary people on the streets of London, people who the singer can’t seem to connect with. He describes them as holding conversations that are always incomplete.
The next section of the song describes an actor who is out of work and entertaining his wife with the same old stories of his ordinary life. The singer muses that maybe the actor exaggerates the trouble and strife, but he really doesn’t know for sure. The song then returns to the chorus, with the repeating line of “Oh, where are there places to go / Someone somewhere has to know.”
Overall, “London Town” highlights the contrast between the beauty and excitement of the city and the isolation and uncertainty that can be present. It’s a timeless theme that could resonate with anyone who has spent time in a large metropolis.
Line by Line Meaning
Walking down the sidewalk on a purple afternoon
I was walking down the road on a quiet and non-descript afternoon in London.
I was accosted by a barker playing a simple tune Upon his flute - toot toot toot toot
A passerby addressed me by playing a generic tune on his flute.
Silver rain was falling down Upon the dirty ground of London Town
It started to rain quite heavily, and the somewhat unclean streets of London were becoming more so.
People pass me by on my imaginary street Ordinary people it's impossible to meet Holding conversations that are always incomplete Well, I don't know Oh, where are there places to go Someone somewhere has to know I don't know
As people went about their day-to-day business, I found it challenging to engage with anyone or find a place to visit or see that I hadn't before. Somewhere, there has to be an answer, but I don't currently possess it.
Out of work again the actor entertains his wife With the same old stories of his ordinary life Maybe he exaggerates the trouble and the strife Well, I don't know Oh, where are there places to go Someone somewhere has to know
A man who works as an actor regularly tells his wife the same stories about his unremarkable life, perhaps embellishing them somewhat. I'm still uncertain about what to do or where to go.
Crawling down the pavement on a Sunday afternoon I was arrested by a rozzer wearing a pink balloon About his foot - toot toot toot toot
On a leisurely Sunday afternoon, a police officer with a strange pink balloon on his foot detained me.
Silver rain was falling down Upon the dirty ground of London Town
As the officer held me down, the rain continued to pour down on the unclean pavement of London.
Someone somewhere has to know
I remain convinced that someone out there must know what I'm looking for.
Silver rain was falling down Upon the dirty ground of London Town
The rain never stopped, and the grime of the city only grew worse.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: LAINE MCCARTNEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind