McCartney I II III | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Box set by | ||||
Released | 5 August 2022 | |||
Recorded | 1 December 1969 – 25 February 1970 (McCartney) June – August 1979 (McCartney II) 1992, 2020 (McCartney III) | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 117:09 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer | Paul McCartney | |||
Paul McCartney chronology | ||||
|
McCartney I II III is a box set by English musician Paul McCartney. Released on August 5, 2022, [5] it contains McCartney's three eponymous solo albums: McCartney (1970), McCartney II (1980), and McCartney III (2020). The release was made available on CD and both limited edition colored and standard black vinyl. [6] All three albums feature McCartney on all instruments and vocals, with the exception of harmony vocals provided by Linda McCartney on McCartney, and the track "Slidin'" from McCartney III, which features drums and guitar performed by members of his backing band. Additionally, the three albums were primarily recorded at McCartney's home studios, with the first recorded in London, the second in Scotland and the third in Sussex.
All three albums included in the box set are noted for their carefree and sometimes experimental nature, due to the circumstances under which they were recorded. The majority of the material on each album was recorded in McCartney's home studio, with him performing all instrumentation and vocals aside from the above exceptions. McCartney consists mainly of acoustic tracks, some of which are instrumentals, and contains "Maybe I'm Amazed", one of McCartney's most popular solo songs despite the studio version never receiving release as a single. The album was subject to harsh criticism at the time of its release but attained a much more positive reputation in later decades, being noted as an early example of lo-fi music. [7]
The experimental McCartney II consisted of recordings made in June 1979, once again at McCartney's home in Scotland. [8] The album spawned the successful single "Coming Up", which reached number two in the UK. [9] A live version of the track, recorded in 1979 with Wings, was included as a B-side and was more successful than the studio recording in the US, reaching the top of the chart. [6] Two further singles were released, the minimalist "Waterfalls" and the experimental "Temporary Secretary", with the latter being released exclusively as a 12" single. "Waterfalls" became a top 10 hit in McCartney's home country, reaching number 9, [9] but became his first single to miss the Billboard Hot 100 completely. "Temporary Secretary" was restricted to only 25,000 copies and did not chart in either the US or UK.
McCartney II featured prominent use of synthesizers on many tracks and a more experimental sound than McCartney's previous releases. Like its predecessor, it received negative reviews upon release but has been viewed more highly in recent years, being considered by some as a precursor to popular genres of the 1980s such as synthpop and new wave. [10]
The third album in the set, McCartney III, was released in December 2020, forty years after its predecessor. Aside from "When Winter Comes", an acoustic track dating back to 1992, the album was recorded at McCartney's home studio in Sussex during the COVID-19 pandemic. [11] The album's sound is similar to the material McCartney recorded with his band. "Find My Way" was released as the album's lead single the same day as the album's release. Unlike his previous two self-titled albums, McCartney III received positive reviews upon its release. A "reimagined" version of the album, entitled McCartney III Imagined , was released the following year and features covers and remixes of the album's tracks featuring Beck, EOB, Dominic Fike and more.
McCartney I II III received generally positive reviews from critics. The Quietus named the box set "reissue of the week", lauding the playful atmosphere of each album, and Spectrum Culture stated the albums "capture a celebrity reveling in artistic freedom." [12] [13]
All songs written by Paul McCartney.
Side one
Side two
Side one
Side two
Side one
Side two
McCartney:
McCartney II:
McCartney III:
Wild Life is the debut studio album by the British-American rock band Wings and the third studio album by Paul McCartney after the breakup of the Beatles. The album was mainly recorded in seven sessions between 24 July and 4 September 1971, at EMI Studios by McCartney, his wife Linda, session drummer Denny Seiwell, whom they had worked with on the McCartneys' previous album Ram, and guitarist Denny Laine, formerly of the English rock band the Moody Blues. It was released by Apple Records on 7 December in the UK and US, to lukewarm critical and commercial reaction.
Red Rose Speedway is the second studio album by the British–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.
Wings over America is a triple live album by the British–American rock band Wings, released in December 1976. The album was recorded during the American leg of the band's 1975–76 Wings Over the World tour. It peaked at number 8 on the UK Albums Chart and reached number 1 on the US Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart.
Chaos and Creation in the Backyard is the thirteenth solo studio album by Paul McCartney, released on 12 and 13 September, 2005. Some 18 months in the making, the album was produced by Radiohead and Beck collaborator Nigel Godrich at George Martin's suggestion.
"And I Love Her" is a song recorded by English rock band the Beatles, written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. It is the fifth track of their third UK album A Hard Day's Night and was released 20 July 1964, along with "If I Fell", as a single release by Capitol Records in the United States, reaching No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100.
McCartney II is the second solo studio album by the English musician Paul McCartney, released on 16 May 1980. It was recorded by McCartney at his home studio in the summer of 1979, shortly before the dissolution of his band Wings in 1981. Like his debut solo studio album, McCartney (1970), he performed all the instruments himself. It yielded three singles: "Coming Up", "Waterfalls", and "Temporary Secretary".
"Maybe I'm Amazed" is a song written by English musician Paul McCartney that was first released on his 1970 debut solo album McCartney.
Flowers in the Dirt is the eighth solo studio album by Paul McCartney. The album was released on 5 June 1989 on Parlophone, as he was embarking on his first world tour since the Wings Over the World tour in 1975–76. It earned McCartney some of his best reviews for an album of original songs since Tug of War (1982). The album made number one in the United Kingdom and Norway and produced several hit singles. The album artwork was a collaboration between artist Brian Clarke, who painted the canvas and arranged the flowers, and Linda McCartney, who produced the cover photography.
Off the Ground is the ninth solo studio album by Paul McCartney, released on 1 February 1993. As his first studio album of the 1990s, it is also the follow-up to the well received Flowers in the Dirt (1989).
Tug of War is the third solo studio album by English musician Paul McCartney, released on 26 April 1982. It is his 11th album overall following the break up of the Beatles in 1970, his first album released after the dissolution of his band Wings the previous year, and his first album following the murder of his former songwriting partner John Lennon. The cover features an abstract oil painting by the artist Brian Clarke, a frequent McCartney collaborator, incorporating an overpainted transparency of a portrait of Paul taken by Linda McCartney.
"Coming Up" is a song written and performed by the English rock musician Paul McCartney, released as the opening track on his second solo studio album McCartney II (1980). Like other songs on the album, the song has a synthesised sound, featuring sped-up vocals created by using a vari-speed tape machine. McCartney played all instruments.
"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".
"Jet" is a song by Paul McCartney and Wings from their third studio album Band on the Run (1973). It was the first British and American single to be released from the album.
"With a Little Luck" is a single by the band Wings from their 1978 album London Town.
"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.
"Waterfalls" is a Paul McCartney ballad from his first solo album after Wings, McCartney II. The song has a minimalist sound, with McCartney only playing a Fender Rhodes electric piano and a synthesizer and singing, and a short solo performed on acoustic guitar.
"Eight Days a Week" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. It was written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon based on McCartney's original idea. The song was released in the United Kingdom in December 1964 on the album Beatles for Sale. In the United States, it was first issued as a single in February 1965 before appearing on the North American release Beatles VI. The song was the band's seventh number 1 single on the Billboard Hot 100, a run of US chart success achieved in just over a year. The single was also number 1 in Canada, Belgium and the Netherlands.
All the Best! is the second official compilation album of Paul McCartney's music, after 1978's Wings Greatest. It was released in 1987 on Capitol Records and Parlophone Records.
Hollywood Vampires is the self-titled debut studio album by American rock supergroup Hollywood Vampires, formed in 2015 by Alice Cooper, Johnny Depp and Joe Perry to honor the music of the rock stars who died from excess in the 1970s. Released on September 11, 2015 for Republic Records, the album features guest appearances by Paul McCartney, Robby Krieger, Orianthi, Dave Grohl, Christopher Lee, Slash, Brian Johnson, Joe Walsh, Perry Farrell, and Zak Starkey amongst others.
McCartney III is the 18th solo album by English musician Paul McCartney, released on 18 December 2020 by Capitol Records. It serves as a continuation to his solo albums McCartney (1970) and McCartney II (1980). Similar to those albums, McCartney III features McCartney on all instruments. It became McCartney's first UK number-one solo album since Flowers in the Dirt in 1989, and debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 albums chart. The album received a nomination at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards for "Best Rock Album", along with "Find My Way" for "Best Rock Song". In 2022, the album was packaged with McCartney and McCartney II as part of the McCartney I II III box set.