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).
Richard Cory
Wings Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
owns one half of this whole town
With political connections
to spread his wealth around
Born into society, a banker's only child
He had everything a man could want
Money, grace, and style
almost everywhere he goes
Richard Cory at the opera
Richard Cory at the shows
And the rumor of his parties
and the orgies on his yacht
Oh, he surely must be happy
with everything he's got
But I work in his factory
And I curse the life I'm living
And I curse my poverty
And I wish that I could be
Oh, I wish that I could be
Oh, I wish that I could be
John Denver
He freely gave to charity
he had the common touch
And they were grateful for his patronage
and thanked him very much
So my mind was filled with wonder
when the evening headlines read
"Richard Cory went home last night
and put a bullet through his head
But I work in his factory
And I curse the life I'm living
And I curse my poverty
And I wish that I could be
Oh, I wish that I could be
Oh, I wish that I could be
Richard Cory
The lyrics to Wings's song Richard Cory tells the story of a man named Richard Cory who seemingly has it all; he has money, power, grace, style, and is born into high society as a banker's only child. The song reflects on the stark contrast between how the media portrays Richard Cory and the reality of his life. The papers print his picture everywhere he goes, and rumors of his luxurious parties and orgies on his yacht circulate like wildfire. The song suggests that despite all of his material possessions, Richard Cory is not truly happy.
The song's message is summed up in the final verse, where it's revealed that Richard Cory has taken his own life. The singer, who is a factory worker, curses the life he's living in comparison to the life that Richard Cory had. They wish that they could be Richard Cory, despite the fact that he took his own life. The song suggests that wealth and power do not guarantee happiness, and that the grass is not always greener on the other side.
Overall, Wings's song Richard Cory is a cautionary tale about the pitfalls of judging a person's life based on their external circumstances. The song reminds us that despite appearances, everyone carries their own burdens and struggles in life.
Line by Line Meaning
They say that Richard Cory
It is widely believed that Richard Cory
owns one half of this whole town
He owns a considerable amount of property in the town.
With political connections
He has strong connections to influential people in the government.
to spread his wealth around
He leverages his connections to distribute his wealth.
Born into society, a banker's only child
He was born into a wealthy and privileged family as an only child of a banker.
He had everything a man could want
He possessed all the things that a man could desire.
Money, grace, and style
He had wealth and elegance in abundance.
The papers print his picture
His photographs are frequently published in the newspapers.
almost everywhere he goes
Whenever he goes out in public, cameras instantaneously focus on him.
Richard Cory at the opera
He is seen attending the opera.
Richard Cory at the shows
He is also seen at other cultural events.
And the rumor of his parties
There are rumors circulating his parties.
and the orgies on his yacht
There are talks about wild parties taking place on his yacht.
Oh, he surely must be happy
It seems that he is a happy person with everything he has.
with everything he's got
He has acquired or achieved everything he set out to obtain.
But I work in his factory
The artist is an employee of his factory.
And I curse the life I'm living
The artist is unhappy with his life situation.
And I curse my poverty
Financially, the singer is in a state of want.
And I wish that I could be
The singer desires to be someone else.
Oh, I wish that I could be
The artist repeats his wish to become someone different.
Oh, I wish that I could be
The artist reiterates his yearning to be someone else.
John Denver
This line is an intentional non-sequitur from the rest of the song.
He freely gave to charity
Richard Cory was a philanthropist who generously donated to charitable causes.
he had the common touch
Despite his wealth and status, Richard Cory was approachable and relatable to common people.
And they were grateful for his patronage
People appreciated Richard Cory's support and guidance.
and thanked him very much
They expressed their gratitude for his help and assistance.
So my mind was filled with wonder
The singer was amazed and bewildered.
when the evening headlines read
The artist was surprised by the news reported in the evening newspapers.
"Richard Cory went home last night
Richard Cory went home the previous night.
and put a bullet through his head
He committed suicide by shooting himself in the head.
But I work in his factory
The singer reiterates his employment status.
And I curse the life I'm living
The artist repeats his curse on his life's circumstances.
And I curse my poverty
The artist repeats his anger regarding his financial condition.
And I wish that I could be
The artist repeats his wish to be someone else.
Oh, I wish that I could be
The singer repeats his urging to become someone different.
Oh, I wish that I could be
The artist repeats his desire to be someone else.
Richard Cory
The singer reveals his yearning to be the former subject of their attention.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Paul Simon
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind