| Off the Ground | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1 February 1993 | |||
| Recorded | 1 September 1991 – 30 June 1992 | |||
| Studio | The Mill, Sussex; Hit Factory, London | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 50:25 | |||
| Label | Parlophone (UK) Capitol (US) | |||
| Producer | ||||
| Paul McCartney chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Off the Ground | ||||
| ||||
Off the Ground is the ninth solo studio album by Paul McCartney, released on 1 February 1993. [1] As his first studio album of the 1990s, it is also the follow-up to the well received Flowers in the Dirt (1989).
After planning another world tour, The New World Tour, in 1993, to promote the album, McCartney chose to record Off the Ground with his touring band. Blair Cunningham joined on drums to replace Chris Whitten, who left to join Dire Straits.
McCartney decided to record the album "live in the studio", meaning that the band would rehearse an entire song then record it in one take, instead of recording each vocal track and instrumental track separately. This approach gave a raw, direct feel to the work.
The compositions, some of which were outtakes from Flowers in the Dirt, seemed less complex than those on the earlier album. "Mistress and Maid" and "The Lovers That Never Were", which emerged from McCartney's songwriting collaboration with Elvis Costello, made their appearance on this album. Costello, who had performed on Flowers in the Dirt, did not appear on Off the Ground.
The first two songs taped were "Biker like an Icon" and "Peace in the Neighbourhood", both derived from some album rehearsals in November 1991. [2]
McCartney's increased interest in social issues came to prominence on this album, with the anti animal cruelty rocker "Looking for Changes" (McCartney and his wife Linda both being long time vegetarians by this time) and paeans for a better world ("Hope of Deliverance" and "C'Mon People"). The B-Side "Big Boys Bickering" lambasted politicians, with the phrase "Big boys bickering, fucking it up for everyone" showing a more aggressive side of McCartney and rare use of a swear word in the song. Another notable B-Side is "Long Leather Coat", a protest song co-written by Linda McCartney.
The CD's hidden track, a short excerpt of "Cosmically Conscious", was written by McCartney in 1968 during The Beatles' stay in Rishikesh. A full-length version of the recording was released as the B-Side of the "Off the Ground" single and later included on Off the Ground: The Complete Works.
The feet on the album cover are of McCartney, his wife Linda, and his touring band.
This album was the penultimate McCartney studio album to feature vocals and participation from Linda, who died of breast cancer in 1998. [3]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| Calgary Herald | B− [5] |
| Chicago Tribune | (favourable) [6] |
| Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [7] |
| Entertainment Weekly | C− [8] |
| The Essential Rock Discography | 4/10 [9] |
| Houston Chronicle |  [10] |
| Los Angeles Times | [11] |
| MusicHound | [12] |
| Music Week | [13] |
| The New York Times | (favourable) [14] |
| Q | [15] |
| Rolling Stone | [16] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [17] |
The lead single, "Hope of Deliverance", was released on 29 December 1992, [18] [19] and the album followed on 2 February 1993. [20] Off the Ground was the first Paul McCartney album to contain no sizeable US hit singles since Wings' Wild Life in 1971. The album's first single barely reached the top 20, hitting number 18, in the UK, where "C'Mon People" became a minor hit as well. In the US, the album's title track also entered the Adult Contemporary chart at number 27. Singles from Off the Ground floundered on the US and the UK charts. However, "Hope of Deliverance" achieved commercial success elsewhere. It became McCartney's first international hit single since "Say, Say, Say" with Michael Jackson in 1983, cracking the top 5 on the charts in over five European territories except his homeland and selling over 250,000 copies in Germany alone.
In the United Kingdom, the album itself debuted at number 5 and quickly fell off the chart, spending only 6 weeks inside the top 100. [21] In the United States, it peaked at the number 17 on the Billboard 200 with the first-week sales of only 53,000 copies, managing to receive Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. [22] Although it met with mixed reviews from critics and suffered from lackluster sales in the UK and North America, the album fared better in other key markets such as Spain. In Japan, it surpassed its predecessor Flowers in the Dirt in cumulative sales. [23] In Germany, Off the Ground has been McCartney's best-selling album, spending 20 weeks on the top-ten and eventually achieving Platinum for shipments of over half a million copies. [24]
Some weeks after its release, McCartney launched "The New World Tour", taking in many successful shows across the globe during the summer months. These gigs were documented on the album Paul Is Live , which followed at the end of 1993.
All tracks are written by Paul McCartney, except where noted
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Off the Ground" | 3:40 |
| 2. | "Looking for Changes" | 2:47 |
| 3. | "Hope of Deliverance" | 3:22 |
| 4. | "Mistress and Maid" (McCartney, Declan MacManus) | 3:00 |
| 5. | "I Owe It All to You" | 4:51 |
| 6. | "Biker Like an Icon" | 3:26 |
| 7. | "Peace in the Neighbourhood" | 5:06 |
| 8. | "Golden Earth Girl" | 3:45 |
| 9. | "The Lovers That Never Were" (McCartney, Declan MacManus) | 3:43 |
| 10. | "Get Out of My Way" | 3:32 |
| 11. | "Winedark Open Sea" | 5:27 |
| 12. | "C'Mon People" (ends at 5:46, features an excerpt of "Cosmically Conscious" as a hidden track) | 7:42 |
| Total length: | 50:25 | |
| Off the Ground: The Complete Works | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Studio album (reissue)by | |
| Released | 1 December 1993 |
| Genre | Rock |
| Length | 98:56 |
| Label | |
| Producer | |
Off the Ground: The Complete Works is a two-disc set released in Germany and the Netherlands. The first disc contains the original Off the Ground album, with the second collecting various B-sides and two previously unreleased tracks from his 1991 MTV Unplugged concert, "Things We Said Today" and "Midnight Special", which were later released as B-sides to the single "Biker Like an Icon."
Despite the title, the set is missing two B-sides, three promo remixes, one promo B-side, and one international single mix: "Deliverance" and "Deliverance (Dub Mix)", dance-oriented reworkings by Steve Anderson of the song "Hope of Deliverance", released as B-sides of the "C'mon People" CD single No. 1; the three promo remixes of "Off the Ground" released to American radio, namely the Bob Clearmountain remix, the Keith Cohen remix, and the Keith Cohen AC remix; the MTV Unplugged outtake "Mean Woman Blues", which was a B-side of the "Biker Like An Icon" promo CD single, and the single mix of "Off the Ground" contained on the EU and Japanese CD singles.
Off the Ground: The Complete Works has not been reissued and is now out of print and not legally for sale as a digital download.
| No. | Title | B-side of | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Long Leather Coat" (McCartney, Linda McCartney) | "Hope of Deliverance" | 3:35 |
| 2. | "Keep Coming Back to Love" (McCartney, Hamish Stuart) | "C'Mon People" | 5:01 |
| 3. | "Sweet Sweet Memories" | "Off the Ground" | 4:03 |
| 4. | "Things We Said Today" (Lennon–McCartney) | "Biker Like an Icon" | 3:38 |
| 5. | "Midnight Special" (arranged by "Lead Belly" Ledbetter, Alan Lomax) | "Biker Like an Icon" | 4:03 |
| 6. | "Style Style" | "Off the Ground" | 6:01 |
| 7. | "I Can't Imagine" | "C'Mon People" | 4:40 |
| 8. | "Cosmically Conscious" | "Off the Ground" | 4:39 |
| 9. | "Kicked Around No More" | "Hope of Deliverance" | 5:29 |
| 10. | "Big Boys Bickering" | "Hope of Deliverance" | 3:22 |
| 11. | "Down to the River" | "C'Mon People" | 3:32 |
| 12. | "Soggy Noodle" | "Off the Ground" | 0:28 |
| Total length: | 47:25 | ||
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA) [41] | Gold | 35,000^ |
| Austria (IFPI Austria) [42] | Gold | 25,000* |
| Canada (Music Canada) [43] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| France (SNEP) [44] | Gold | 100,000* |
| Germany (BVMI) [45] | Platinum | 500,000^ |
| Japan (RIAJ) [46] | Gold | 92,000 [23] |
| Spain (PROMUSICAE) [47] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
| Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland) [48] | Gold | 25,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI) [49] | Silver | 60,000^ |
| United States (RIAA) [50] | Gold | 500,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
Run Devil Run is the eleventh solo studio album by Paul McCartney, released in 1999. It features mostly covers of both familiar and obscure 1950s rock and roll songs, along with three original McCartney compositions written in the same style, including the title track, making it the second McCartney covers album, after his Russian cover album. As his first project following first wife Linda's death in 1998, McCartney felt the need to get back to his roots and perform some of the music he loved as a teenager. On 14 December 1999, McCartney returned to the Cavern Club stage to play a set publicising the new album.
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.
Venus and Mars is the fourth studio album by the British–American rock band Wings. Released in May 1975 as the follow-up to Band on the Run, Venus and Mars continued Wings' run of commercial success and provided a springboard for a year-long worldwide tour. The album was Paul McCartney's first post-Beatles album to be released worldwide by Capitol Records rather than Apple.
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 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.
Flaming Pie is the tenth solo studio album by English musician Paul McCartney, released on 5 May 1997 by Parlophone in the UK and Capitol Records in the US. His first studio album in over four years, it was mostly recorded after McCartney's involvement in the highly successful Beatles Anthology project. The album was recorded in several locations over two years, between 1995 and 1997, featuring two songs dating from 1992.
Paul Is Live is a live album by Paul McCartney, released in 1993 during his New World Tour in support of his studio album Off the Ground, released that same year. Paul Is Live contains live recordings of McCartney and his touring band—which at the time included his then-wife Linda and guitarist Robbie McIntosh—performing songs by McCartney's former bands The Beatles and Wings, as well as songs from his solo career. The tracks included on the album were recorded at various concerts during his New World Tour, in several American cities and in Australia.
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.
Pipes of Peace is the fourth solo studio album by English singer-songwriter Paul McCartney, released on 31 October 1983. As the follow-up to the popular Tug of War, the album came close to matching the commercial success of its predecessor in Britain but peaked only at number 15 on America's Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart. While Pipes of Peace was the source of international hit singles such as "Say Say Say" and the title track, the critical response to the album was less favourable than that afforded to Tug of War.
Give My Regards to Broad Street is the fifth solo studio album by Paul McCartney and the soundtrack to the film of the same name. The album reached number 1 on the UK chart. The lead single, "No More Lonely Nights", was BAFTA and Golden Globe Award nominated. It was also to be his final album to be released under Columbia Records, which had been his US label for over five years.
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.
Tripping the Live Fantastic is Paul McCartney's first official solo live album and his first release of concert material since Wings' 1976 Wings over America live package. It was released in 1990 as triple LP, double cassette and double CD. Tripping the Live Fantastic reached number 17 in the UK and number 26 in the US. It was also simultaneously released in an abridged form, entitled Tripping the Live Fantastic: Highlights!
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.
"Mull of Kintyre" is a song by the British-American rock band Wings. It was written by Paul McCartney and Denny Laine in tribute to the Kintyre peninsula in Argyll and Bute in the south-west of Scotland and its headland, the Mull of Kintyre, where McCartney has owned High Park Farm since 1966.
"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".
"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.
In 1993, Paul McCartney and his band embarked upon The New World Tour, spanning almost the entire year and almost the entire globe. This tour featured a controversial pre-concert film, which was shown before all of the concerts and had graphic animal test footage in the film. The tour incorporated painted stage sets, projections, and promotional material designed by a regular McCartney collaborator, the artist Brian Clarke.
"Hope of Deliverance" is a song by English singer-songwriter Paul McCartney, released in December 1992 as the lead single from his ninth solo studio album, Off the Ground (1993). The rock and Latin song reached number 18 on the UK Singles Chart and became a top-five hit in Austria, Canada, Germany, Italy, Norway, and Switzerland. The song was recorded during sessions for Off the Ground, which took place on 17 July 1992. The overdub session is described in detail by Italian percussionist Maurizio Ravalico in the book Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969–2013).
"C'Mon People" is a single from English singer-songwriter Paul McCartney's 1993 album, Off the Ground. The song reached number 41 on the UK Singles Chart. The video for the single was directed by ex-10cc member Kevin Godley and shows McCartney at the piano singing the song while workmen speedily deconstruct it and re-build it around him.
His new single Hope Of Deliverance isn't released until December 29...
Paul McCartney's Hope Of Deliverance, released on December 29...
