Release
The song was released as a single (with "Country Dreamer" on the B-side) prior to Band on the Run and was not included on the British release of the album. However, Capitol Records vice president of promotion Al Coury persuaded McCartney to include it on the American release. The song peaked at number 10 in the US chart on 12 January 1974 and at number 12 in the UK chart. [1] [2]
In the book Paul McCartney In His Own Words published in 1976, McCartney said:
"Helen Wheels is our Land Rover. It's a name we gave to our Land Rover, which is a trusted vehicle that gets us around Scotland. It takes us up to the Shetland Islands and down to London. The song starts off in Glasgow, and it goes past Carlisle, goes to Kendal, Liverpool, Birmingham and London. It's the route coming down from our Scottish farm to London, so it's really the story of the trip down. Little images along the way. Liverpool is on the West coast of England, so that is all that means." [3]
The music video was directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg (who also directed the Beatles' final movie Let it Be ) and shows McCartney singing and playing his left-handed Rickenbacker 4001 bass, Linda playing a Minimoog synthesizer and singing backing vocals, Denny Laine playing his Fender Telecaster Thinline and singing backing vocals while additional footage shows McCartney doubling on drums and lead guitar in place of departed members Denny Seiwell and Henry McCullough, both of whom quit the band prior to the sessions for Band on the Run, and the trio in a car. [4]
Billboard described "Helen Wheels" as a "driving rock tune" with a "catchy chorus." [5] Cash Box called it "a savage rocker from a band that has become more proficient at rock with each outing." [6] Record World predicted that this "rock and rolling number should drive to number one in a matter of weeks." [7]
It was later included on The 7" Singles Box in 2022. [8]
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.
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.
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"Band on the Run" is a song by the British–American rock band Paul McCartney and Wings, the title track to their 1973 album Band on the Run.
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"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.
"Goodnight Tonight" is a song by the British–American rock band Wings. Written and produced by Paul McCartney, it was released as a non-album single on 23 March 1979 by Parlophone in the UK and Columbia Records in the US. It was recorded during the sessions for the band's 1979 album Back to the Egg and is notable for its disco-inflected sound and spirited flamenco guitar break.
"Getting Closer" is a rock song from the British rock band Wings, Paul McCartney's post-Beatles band. The song was released on the album Back to the Egg.
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"Country Dreamer" is the B-side song to the single "Helen Wheels" released by Paul McCartney and Wings on 26 October 1973 in the UK and 12 November 1973 in the US. It was recorded in October 1972, and its country ambiance is similar to "Heart of the Country" from Paul McCartney's 1971 album Ram.
"Girlfriend" is a song by English rock band Wings, from their 1978 album London Town. It was written by Wings frontman Paul McCartney, who originally intended it to be sung by Michael Jackson. Jackson then covered the song the following year on his 1979 album Off the Wall, and in 1980 it was released as the 5th and final single of that album.
