Despite Repeated Warnings

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"Despite Repeated Warnings"
Song by Paul McCartney
from the album Egypt Station
Released7 September 2018
Studio Henson Recording Studios, Hogg Hill Mill, Abbey Road Studios [1]
Genre
Length6:58
Label Capitol
Songwriter Paul McCartney
Producers

"Despite Repeated Warnings" is a song by the English musician Paul McCartney from his 2018 album Egypt Station .

Contents

Lyrics

During a July 2017 speech at the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, McCartney revealed that his next album would contain a song about United States president Donald Trump. He did not say if the song was positive or negative towards Trump, only that he felt that he had to write it. [2] In promotional material for Egypt Station, McCartney explained that the title of the song was inspired by a newspaper he read in Japan that contained the phrase while discussing climate change. [3] McCartney was later asked in a BBC News interview about the "mad captain" the song refers to. McCartney stated that while primarily being about Trump, it was also referring to any other leaders who thought climate change was a hoax. [4] McCartney has denied that the repeated "lock him up" lyric was a reference to Trump's use of the phrase "lock her up" in relation to Hillary Clinton. [5] While explaining the song's lyrics in his 2021 book The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present, McCartney refers to Trump as a "braggart" who is "not necessarily the smartest" despite being "the loudest". [1]

Composition

In an interview with Rolling Stone, album producer Greg Kurstin discussed the song as being alike McCartney's other "epic, extended songs" such as "Band on the Run" and "Live and Let Die". Kurstin said that the idea to make a song with multiple sections and movements was McCartney's. The song, which grew to nearly seven minutes, required an orchestra and multiple session musicians to complete the arrangement. [6] McCartney described the song as "a little bit operatic" and "something of an epic," with multiple changes in tempo and key throughout the song. [1]

Critical reception

The song received generally positive reviews. Zoya Teirstein of the environmental magazine Grist reviewed the song, calling it a "climate anthem" and praising its composition and message. [7] In Rolling Stone's review of Egypt Station, music journalist Rob Sheffield compared the song to Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey while saying that "Paul's gonna Paul. As he always should." [8] Kitty Empire of The Observer said the song was "another highly characteristic McCartney piano ballad gone funny" and criticized McCartney's use of the name "Janet" to rhyme with "Planet". [9] Slant Magazine's Jeremy Winograd praised the song as one of "McCartney's most exciting and grandiose efforts in years", alongside album closer "Hunt You Down/Naked/C-Link". [10]

Personnel

According to the Egypt Station website: [11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 McCartney, Paul; Muldoon, Paul (2023). The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present . New York, NY: Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W.W. Norton & Company. ISBN   978-1-324-09409-8.
  2. ↑ Kirkham, Jenny (28 July 2017). "Paul McCartney explains why he's written a song about Donald Trump on new album". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  3. ↑ Paul McCartney on ‘Despite Repeated Warnings’ (‘Words Between The Tracks’). 3 September 2018. Retrieved 8 February 2026– via YouTube.
  4. ↑ "Paul McCartney on handling crowds, and why he calls Donald Trump 'the mad captain'". BBC News. 12 September 2018. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  5. ↑ "Paul McCartney - Inside the Studio". iHeart. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  6. ↑ Greene, Andy (3 July 2018). "Paul McCartney's Producer Greg Kurstin Breaks Down 'Egypt Station'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  7. ↑ Teirstein, Zoya (17 September 2018). "Paul McCartney's new climate anthem is fire". Grist. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  8. ↑ Sheffield, Rob (5 September 2018). "Review: Paul McCartney's Awesomely Eccentric 'Egypt Station"". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  9. ↑ Empire, Kitty (9 September 2018). "Paul McCartney: Egypt Station review – Macca's back in the groove". The Observer. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  10. ↑ Winograd, Jeremy (11 September 2018). "Review: Paul McCartney, Egypt Station". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  11. ↑ "Despite Repeated Warnings". Egypt Station. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
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