Big Barn Bed

Last updated
"Big Barn Bed"
Song by Paul McCartney and Wings
from the album Red Rose Speedway
Released30 April 1973
RecordedMarch–October 1972
Genre Rock
Length3:48
Label Apple
Songwriter(s) Paul McCartney,
Linda McCartney
Producer(s) Paul McCartney

"Big Barn Bed" is a song by Paul McCartney and Wings from the band's 1973 album Red Rose Speedway . The songwriting credits are attributed to Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney. [1]

Contents

Background

Like the Red Rose Speedway tracks "Get On the Right Thing" and "Little Lamb Dragonfly", "Big Barn Bed" was a leftover from the McCartneys' solo career. The song dates back to 1971, with the opening lines of the track constituting the coda to the "Ram On" reprise on the McCartneys' album Ram . [2] [3] [4] [5] However, during the recording sessions for Red Rose Speedway, the song was recorded by the band for the new album. "Big Barn Bed" was originally intended to be the opening track of the double-LP version of Red Rose Speedway, but although the final album was cut down to a single disc, the song remained the album's opener.

A live version of "Big Barn Bed" was also included as the opening track in the James Paul McCartney television special, broadcast on 10 May 1973. [6] Throughout the performance of the song, a brief description of each member of the band was displayed on screen. [7]

Lyrics and music

According to music professor Vincent Benitez, "Big Barn Bed" has a freer structure than most of Paul McCartney's songs. [4] He finds the lyrics to seem more like the words were just "strung together" rather than formed into a coherent whole. [4] The lyrics involve big barn beds and leaping armadillos. [8] The song is in the key of F major. [4] Beatle historian Bruce Spizer described the song as "a pleasant-sounding mid-tempo rocker." [5]

Reception

In a contemporary review for Rolling Stone , Lenny Kaye described the track as "captur[ing] McCartney's current approach as well as any", saying, "Neither verse nor chorus are anything much, but the song draws you slowly in with the same steady roll of traction demonstrated by that odd union of records which score heavily in the discotheque markets, reaching its peak with the endless repetitions of the chorus line in the end." [9] AllMusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine includes "Big Barn Bed" among "the greatest songs" on Red Rose Speedway, but labels the track as "slight". [10] Guitar World contributor Damien Faneilli rated it as one of McCartney's 15 best "under-the-radar" post-Beatle songs, praising its simplicity, harmonies, acoustic guitars and "weird but fun lyrics". [8] Author John Blaney considered "Big Barn Bed" to be "little more than an underdeveloped fragment that went nowhere". [11] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Dave Swanson rated "Big Barn Bed" as McCartney's 4th most underrated song, saying that it starts Red Rose Speedway "in wonderful fashion" and that "A seductive rhythm lures in the listener and the echo-laden vocals keep you hooked as a catchy-as-can-be chorus ices the cake." [12]

Wings' lead guitarist Henry McCullough included a version of "Big Barn Bed" on his 2011 solo album Unfinished Business. [8]

Personnel

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul McCartney and Wings</span> English–American rock band

Paul McCartney and Wings, often billed simply as Wings, were an English-American rock band formed in 1971 in London by former Beatles bassist and singer Paul McCartney, his wife Linda McCartney on keyboards, session drummer Denny Seiwell, and former Moody Blues guitarist Denny Laine. Wings were noted for their commercial successes, musical eclecticism and frequent personnel changes; going through three lead guitarists and four drummers. However, the core trio of the McCartneys and Laine remained intact throughout the group's existence.

<i>Band on the Run</i> 1973 album by Paul McCartney and Wings

Band on the Run is the third studio album by the British–American rock band Paul McCartney and Wings, released by Apple on 30 November 1973. It was McCartney's fifth album after leaving the Beatles in April 1970. Although sales were modest initially, its commercial performance was aided by two hit singles – "Jet" and "Band on the Run" – such that it became the top-selling studio album of 1974 in the United Kingdom and Australia, in addition to revitalising McCartney's critical standing. It remains McCartney's most successful album and the most celebrated of his post-Beatles works.

<i>Red Rose Speedway</i> 1973 studio album by Paul McCartney and Wings

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 5 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Another Day (Paul McCartney song)</span> 1971 single by Paul McCartney

"Another Day" is a song by English rock musician Paul McCartney that was released as the A-side of a non-album single in February 1971. It was his debut single as a solo artist following the Beatles break-up in 1970. McCartney credited his wife Linda as a co-writer on the song, triggering legal action from ATV on behalf of the publishing companies Northern Songs and Maclen Music. The lyrics describe the daily routine of a lonely woman, using an observational style similar to McCartney's narrative in the 1966 ballad "Eleanor Rigby".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eat at Home</span> 1971 single by Paul and Linda McCartney

"Eat at Home" is a 1971 single by Paul and Linda McCartney that also appeared on their album Ram from the same year. The song, a standard rock number, features McCartney on lead vocals, electric guitar and bass, and Linda McCartney performing backing vocals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Give Ireland Back to the Irish</span> 1972 single by Wings

"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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">My Love (Paul McCartney and Wings song)</span> 1973 single by Paul McCartney and Wings

"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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I've Had Enough (Wings song)</span> 1978 single by Wings

"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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London Town (Wings song)</span> 1978 single by Wings

"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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mrs. Vandebilt</span> 1974 single by Wings

"Mrs. Vandebilt" is a song by the British–American rock band Paul McCartney and Wings from the album Band on the Run. The track was not issued as a single in the UK or US, but was a single in Continental Europe and Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little Woman Love</span> 1972 single by Wings

"Little Woman Love" is a Wings song released as the B-side of the non album single "Mary Had a Little Lamb" on 12 May 1972 by Apple Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bluebird (Paul McCartney and Wings song)</span> 1974 single by Paul McCartney and Wings

"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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five</span> 1974 single by Paul McCartney and Wings

"Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five" is a song by the British–American rock band Paul McCartney and Wings, released as the final track on their 1973 album Band on the Run. It has been featured on the 2001 documentary DVD Wingspan and Paul McCartney and Wings' 1974 TV special One Hand Clapping. A 2016 remix of the song was nominated for a Grammy Award. The song was referenced in Brett Easton Ellis’s novel Glamorama, driving a group of fictional supermodels to extreme terrorist acts.

"Call Me Back Again" is a song credited to Paul and Linda McCartney and performed by Wings. It was originally released on the album Venus and Mars. It was performed throughout their world tours in Australia and America and a live version was included on the album Wings Over America. It was also included on the compilation album Wingspan: Hits and History. The song was also included on the theatrical version of the film Rockshow, documenting the Wings 1976 tour, but was excluded from the laserdisc version of the film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mamunia</span> 1974 single by Paul McCartney and Wings

"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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beware My Love</span> 1976 single by Wings

"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.

"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.

"No Words" is a song written by Paul McCartney and Denny Laine, and first released on 7 December 1973 on Band on the Run by Paul McCartney and Wings. The song was Laine's first co-writing on a Wings album and his only writing credit on Band on the Run.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deliver Your Children</span> 1978 single by Wings

"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.

References

  1. Paul McCartney: Chord Songbook Collection ISBN   978-1-783-23326-7 p. 1956
  2. McGee, Garry. Band on the Run: A History of Paul McCartney and Wings. Taylor Trade Publishing.
  3. Rodriguez, R. (2010). Fab Four FAQ 2.0: The Beatles' Solo Years 1970–1980. Hal Leonard. pp. 373–374. ISBN   978-0-87930-968-8.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Benitez, V.P. (2010). The Words and Music of Paul McCartney: The Solo Years. Praeger. pp. 39, 43. ISBN   978-0-313-34969-0.
  5. 1 2 Spizer, Bruce (2005). The Beatles Solo on Apple Records. 498 Productions. p. 156. ISBN   0966264959.
  6. Doyle, Tom. Man on the Run.
  7. McCartney Solo: See You Next Time ISBN   978-1-409-29879-3 p. 41
  8. 1 2 3 Fanelli, Damian (17 June 2018). "Paul McCartney: 15 of His Best Under-the-Radar Solo Songs". guitarworld.com. Retrieved 27 December 2018.
  9. Kaye, Lenny (5 July 1973). "Red Rose Speedway". Rolling Stone . p. 68. Retrieved 28 October 2011.
  10. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Paul McCartney/Wings Red Rose Speedway". AllMusic . Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  11. Blaney, John (2007). Lennon & McCartney: Together Alone. Jawbone Books. pp. 75–76. ISBN   978-1-906002-02-2.
  12. Swanson, Dave (18 June 2015). "Top 10 Underrated Paul McCartney Songs". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 2023-01-01.