"Backwards Traveller"/"Cuff Link" | |
---|---|
Single by Wings | |
from the album London Town | |
A-side | "With a Little Luck" |
Released | 20 March 1978 |
Recorded | October–December 1977 |
Genre | Synth-pop, synth-funk [1] |
Length | 1:07(Backwards Traveller) 2:03 (Cuff Link) |
Label | Parlophone (UK) Capitol (US) |
Songwriter(s) | Paul McCartney |
Producer(s) | Paul McCartney |
"Backwards Traveller"/"Cuff Link" is a medley of two short songs written by Paul McCartney that was first released on Wings' 1978 album London Town . The medley was also released as the B-side of Wings' US No. 1 single "With a Little Luck". Both "Backwards Traveller" and "Cuff Link" were recorded in October 1977 and completed in January 1978. [2] By this point in the London Town recording sessions, guitarist Jimmy McCulloch and drummer Joe English had left the band, so the songs were recorded by only McCartney, Linda McCartney and Denny Laine. [3] [4]
"Backwards Traveller" is only a little more than a minute long. [5] It is a "mid-tempo rocker" in the key of C major. [3] The song consists of a verse followed by two repetitions of the refrain. [3] The lyrics are about the singer going back in time while "sailing songs" and "wailing on the moon." [3] Paul McCartney plays drums, bass guitar, acoustic guitar and keyboards. [2] According to music professor Vincent Benitez, the organ arrangement with its repeating chords gives the song a "retrospective, 1960s-style sound". [3]
Rolling Stone critic Janet Maslin praises the beginning of "Backwards Traveller" as "brilliant, jolting hard-rock" but laments that it ends quickly as if no one could be bothered to complete it. [5] Author Howard Sounes also complains that the song sounds "half-finished". [6] Chip Madinger and Mark Easter likewise believe that the song had more potential than its ultimate fate as the prelude to "Cuff Link". [4] Author John Blaney describes "Backwards Traveller" as "a typical McCartney pot-boiler". [2] Music critic Tom Waseleski describes it as "a swinging little rocker." [7]
A demo version of "Backwards Traveler" featuring drums, drum machine, keyboard and vocals has been released on several bootleg albums. [4] Neil Hamburger covered "Backwards Traveler" on his 2019 Drag City album Still Dwelling, in an ambitious version with a more expansive arrangement [8] by Erik Paparozzi, current bass player in Denny Laine's band.
"Cuff Link" is an instrumental in the key of D minor. [3] Its original title was "Off the Cuff Link". [4] Perhaps the most interesting feature of "Cuff Link" is the use of a Moog synthesizer to sound like a sitar. [9] Blaney describes the song as "uninspired", [2] and Benitez considers it "unimaginative", [3] but author Mark Bowen regards it as a predecessor to McCartney's experiments with electro-pop on the 1980 album McCartney II . [10] Music journalist Ian Peel also notes its electronic pop elements, which are also present in parts of "With a Little Luck". [11] In 2013 Classic Rock Review described it as a "synth-driven funk instrumental" which "may have sounded hip in 1978 but sounds dated today." [12]
Paul McCartney and Wings, often billed simply as Wings, were an English-American rock band formed in 1971 in London by former Beatles songwriter, bassist, guitarist, and singer Paul McCartney; his wife Linda McCartney on keyboards; session drummer Denny Seiwell; and former Moody Blues guitarist Denny Laine. They were noted for their commercial successes, musical eclecticism, and frequent personnel changes. They went through three lead guitarists and four drummers. The core trio of the McCartneys and Laine, however, remained intact throughout the group's existence.
Back to the Egg is the seventh and final studio album by the British–American rock band Wings, released in June 1979 on Parlophone in the UK and Columbia Records in North America. Co-produced by Chris Thomas, the album reflects band leader Paul McCartney's embracing of contemporary musical trends such as new wave and punk, and marked the arrival of new Wings members Laurence Juber and Steve Holley. Back to the Egg adopts a loose conceptual theme around the idea of a working band, and its creation coincided with a period of considerable activity for the group, which included making a return to touring and work on several television and film projects.
Red Rose Speedway is the second studio album by the English-American rock band Wings, although credited to "Paul McCartney and Wings". It was released through Apple Records on 4 May 1973, preceded by its lead single, the ballad "My Love". By including McCartney's name in the artist credit, the single and album broke with the tradition of Wings' previous records. The change was made in the belief that the public's unfamiliarity with the band had been responsible for the weak commercial performance of the group's 1971 debut album Wild Life.
London Town is the sixth studio album by the British–American rock group Wings. It was released in March 1978, two years after its predecessor, Wings at the Speed of Sound. The album had a long and tumultuous gestation during which the band's tour plans for 1977 were cancelled, due to Linda McCartney becoming pregnant with her and Paul McCartney's fourth child and two members of Wings having departed, leaving the band as a trio comprising Paul, Linda and Denny Laine. Recording sessions were held intermittently over a period of a year, mainly at Abbey Road Studios in London and aboard a luxury yacht in the Virgin Islands.
"Give Ireland Back to the Irish" is the debut single by the British–American rock band Wings that was released in February 1972. It was written by Paul McCartney and his wife Linda in response to the events of Bloody Sunday, on 30 January that year, when British troops in Northern Ireland shot dead thirteen civil rights protestors. Keen to voice their outrage at the killings, Wings recorded the track two days later at EMI Studios in London. It was the band's first song to include Northern Irish guitarist Henry McCullough.
"My Love" is a song by the British–American band Paul McCartney and Wings that was first released as the lead single from their 1973 album Red Rose Speedway. It was written by Paul McCartney as a love song to his wife and Wings bandmate Linda. The single marked the first time that McCartney's name appeared in the artist credit for a Wings record, after their previous releases had been credited to Wings alone. Released on 23 March 1973, the song topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US for four weeks and peaked at number 9 on the UK Singles Chart. The single was viewed as Wings' first significant success in the US and helped Red Rose Speedway achieve commercial success.
"Letting Go" is a song credited to Paul and Linda McCartney and originally released by Wings on their 1975 album Venus and Mars. The song was remixed and released as a single on 4 October 1975 in the United States, and on 18 October 1975 in the United Kingdom. The song peaked at number 41 in the UK, 41 on the Cash Box Top 100 and number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"With a Little Luck" is a single by the band Wings from their 1978 album London Town. It reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in May 1978.
"I've Had Enough" is a song by the British–American rock band Wings, released as a single from their 1978 album London Town. It reached No. 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, No. 24 in Canada and No. 42 in the UK as well as reached No. 11 in Ireland. In the Netherlands, the 2-sided single "I've Had Enough" combined with its B-side "Deliver Your Children" reached No. 13.
"London Town" is a song by the British-American rock band Wings. The title and opening track of their 1978 album London Town, it was the third of three single releases from the album, reaching No. 39 in the US, No. 43 in Canada and No. 60 in the UK. It also reached No. 17 on the Billboard Easy Listening chart in the US.
Sir James Paul McCartney is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One of the most successful composers and performers of all time, McCartney is known for his melodic approach to bass-playing, versatile and wide tenor vocal range, and musical eclecticism, exploring genres ranging from pre–rock and roll pop to classical, ballads, and electronica. His songwriting partnership with Lennon is the most successful in modern music history.
"Bluebird" is a song written by Paul and Linda McCartney and originally performed by the British rock band Wings, released on their 1973 album Band on the Run. According to author John Blaney, it was written during a vacation in Jamaica. However, author Vincent Benitez claims the song was written as early as 1970 or 1971, noting that Paul and Linda sang the song during a live interview in New York City in 1971. In Continental Europe it was also released as the B-side of the "Mrs. Vandebilt" single.
"Mamunia" is a song written by Paul and Linda McCartney that first appeared on Wings' 1973 album Band on the Run. It was also released as the B-side of the "Jet" single in the US, but was replaced by "Let Me Roll It" when "Mamunia" was being considered as a possible future A-side.
"Beware My Love" is a rock song credited to Paul and Linda McCartney that was first released on the Wings 1976 album Wings at the Speed of Sound. It was also used as the B-side of the single that included "Let 'Em In". A live version recorded on June 7, 1976, in Denver, Colorado, was included on the Wings' album Wings Over America and another live version from three days later in Seattle, Washington, was shown in the concert film Rockshow. An excerpt from the Rockshow performance was also included in the documentary Wings Over the World.
"Love in Song" is a song credited to Paul and Linda McCartney that was released on Wings' 1975 album Venus and Mars. It was also released as the B-side of Wings' number 1 single "Listen to What the Man Said." It has been covered by artists such as Helen Merrill and the Judybats.
"Must Do Something About It" is a song credited to Paul and Linda McCartney that first appeared on the Wings 1976 album Wings at the Speed of Sound.
"Little Lamb Dragonfly" is a song by Paul McCartney and Wings, composed by Paul and Linda McCartney and originally released on the 1973 album Red Rose Speedway. The song was originally recorded during the sessions for McCartney's Ram album in early 1971, and thus Hugh McCracken plays guitar on the recording rather than Wings' guitarist Denny Laine. However, Laine did provide backing vocals during the production work for Red Rose Speedway. McCartney originally intended to use the song as part of his Rupert and the Frog Song animated film project. Chip Madinger and Mark Easter noted that drummer Denny Seiwell may have assisted in writing the song, although he was not credited.
"Tomorrow" is a song by the British–American band Wings from their debut album Wild Life, released in December 1971. It was written by band members Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney. In 1976, American singer David Cassidy had a hit with his cover version of the song.
"Cook of the House" is a song written by Paul and Linda McCartney that was first released on Wings' 1976 album Wings at the Speed of Sound. It was also released as the B-side to the number 1 single "Silly Love Songs." The song was included on Linda McCartney's posthumous 1998 solo album Wide Prairie.
"Deliver Your Children" is a song written by Denny Laine and Paul McCartney that was first issued on Wings' 1978 album London Town. It was also released as the B-side of Wings' single "I've Had Enough". In the Netherlands, it received enough airplay to be ranked on the national charts along with its A-side, and joint single reached No. 13. On some charts within the Netherlands "Deliver Your Children" was ranked alone on the single charts, and it reached No. 9 on the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40 chart. Laine also released solo recordings of the song.