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   BILL HARRY. THE PAUL MCCARTNEY ENCYCLOPEDIA

Baby Face

Number which closed the unreleased MPL film One Hand Clapping. It was recorded at the Sea Saint Studios in 1975 with Paul and the Young Tuxedo Brass Band who comprised Frank Naundorf on trombone, Greg Stafford on trumpet, Ted Reilly on trumpet, Walter Payton on sousaphone, Herman Sherman on alto sax, Joe Torregano on clarinet, Emile Knox on bass drum and Laurence Trotter on snare drum.

Baby Make Love To You

A home recording which Paul made in the summer of 1980.

Baby You're A Rich Man

A song issued as the flipside of 'All You Need Is Love' and which had a similar genesis to 'A Day In The Life'.

Two separate songs, one by John, one by Paul, were fused together. The number penned by John had been called 'One Of The Beautiful People' and the song by Paul, 'Baby, You're A Rich Man'. It was said that the numbers had been merged to provide a song for the Yellow Submarine film, but was then rushed out as the B-side to a single. The song is, in fact, heard only in part in Yellow Submarine.

Baby, The

Nickname that the 'Exis' (Existentialists) gave to Paul during the Beatles' first trip to Hamburg. The 'Exis' were the students who attended their gigs and who included Astrid Kirchherr and Klaus Voormann. They called George 'the Beautiful One' and John 'The Sidie Man'. Paul says that the 'Exis' liked Stuart (Sutcliffe) the most, with John second, George third, himself fourth and Pete Best fifth.

Baby's Request

A number that Paul wrote specially for the veteran vocal group the Mills Brothers, who he'd met backstage following their performance when he attended one of their shows while on holiday in France. He made a demo disc of the number but when he offered it to them, the Mills Brothers said they wanted him to pay them for recording it, so he included the demo on his Back To The Egg album instead.

The Mills Brothers had three basic members, Harry Mills, born in 1913, Herbert Mills, born in 1912 and Donald Mills, born in 1915. John Mills Jr, born in 1889 also performed with them, playing guitar. When John died in 1935 the brothers' father John Mills Sr joined them, in addition to guitarist Bernard Addison. When their father retired the brothers continued as a trio and when Harry died in 1962 the others continued with another singer. They had numerous hits, including 'You Rascal, You', 'You Always Hurt The One You Love', and 'I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm'.

'Baby's Request' was the last track on the Back To The Egg album and the number was also issued as a double A-side single with 'Getting Closer' on Friday 10 August 1979 on Parlophone R6027. Its highest position in Britain was at No. 60 in the BMRB charts.

'Baby's Request', a two-and-a-half minute track, was one of the songs used in the Band On The Run promotional video.

Back In The Sunshine

A track on the Driving Rain album. It lasts for 4 minutes and 21 seconds. The number was recorded on 28 February 2001 and David Leonard mixed the track.

Paul had written it in Arizona five years previously with the help of his son James, who contributed to the riff and the bridge. James also played rhythm guitar on the track.

Back In The USSR

Paul originally wrote this song for a television documentary about Twiggy that didn't come off. It was a fusion of Beach Boys style with a little bit of Chuck Berry's Back In The USA thrown in. As Twiggy didn't use the number, it was used to open The Beatles White Album. Paul handled the lead guitar honours on the track while John and George played bass. Ringo was absent from the track as he'd left the group for several days, frustrated at the arguments which occurred during the making of the album.

The number also appears on The Beatles 1967-1970 album, the 1980 Rock And Roll Music compilation and on The Beatles Box set.

Paul's brother Mike at one time suggested that they get the Beach Boys to sing the middle section of the song, but the idea was rejected.

Paul was to comment, 'This just, sort of, came. Chuck Berry once did a song called "Back In The USA", which is very American, very Chuck Berry, you know. He was "serving in the army and, when I get back home, I'm gonna kiss the ground," you know, "can't wait to get back to the States". It's very much an American thing, I always thought. So, this one, "Back In The USSR", was about, in my mind, a spy who has been in America for a long, long time. Some fellow who's been in America for a long time and he's picked up and he's very American, but he gets back to the USSR, and he's, sort of, saying "Leave it till tomorrow, honey to disconnect the phone", and "come here, honey", with Russian women, and all that. It concerns the attributes of Russian women, a sole element created by George's guitar and heavy bass.'

A version of this number lasting 3 minutes and 16 seconds was included on the Tripping The Live Fantastic album. It was recorded live at the Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan on 5 March 1990 during the 1989/90 World Tour.

Back Off Bugaloo

A single by Ringo Starr issued in the UK and US in March 1972. It was rumoured that 'Bugaloo' was a nickname the other Beatles had given to Paul, but Ringo said that the name was influenced by Marc Bolan who Ringo was currently directing a film about.

Back On My Feet

A song co-written by Paul and Elvis Costello and produced by Phil Ramone at Paul's home studio in Rye in June 1987.

Back Seat Of My Car, The

The closing track on the Ram album, which was also issued as a single in Britain on Apple R5914 on Friday 13 August 1971 with the credit 'Paul and Linda McCartney'. Paul had actually written the song prior to January 1969 and was seen rehearsing it on 14 January 1969 during the filming of Get Back at Twickenham Studios.

'Heart Of The Country' was the flip.

The record failed to make as much impact as Paul's previous single 'Another Day', issued earlier that year, only reaching No. 39 in the British charts, and thus not even registering in a number of the music papers, which only carried a Top 30 chart at the time.

It wasn't issued in America.

Back To The Egg (album)

An album produced during 1978 and 1979 by Paul and Chris Thomas at several locations, including the Spirit of Ranachan Studio in Scotland between 29 June and 27 July, Lympne Castle in Kent from 11-20 September and the Replica Studios and EMI Studios in London in November and December. The master tape was completed on 1 April 1979.

The engineer on the session was Phil McDonald, assisted by Mark Vigars. It was released in 1979, in Britain on Parlophone/MPL PCTC 257 on 8 June and in America on Columbia FC 36057 on 24 May, the first Wings album to be issued on that label. Back To The Egg reached No. 4 in Britain and No. 8 in America.

A special half-hour promotional video was made to accompany the album. The album cover featured a fantasy scene, designed by Hipgnosis and depicting Wings in a small living room peering at a space in the floor through which the planet Earth could be seen hovering.

The album featured two tracks from the supergroup Rockestra: 'Rockestra Theme' and 'So Glad To See You Here'. The other tracks were: Side One: 'Reception', 'Getting Closer', 'We're Open Tonight', 'Spin It On', 'Again And Again And Again', 'Old Siam Sir' and 'Arrow Through Me'. Side Two: 'To You', 'After The Ball', 'Million Miles', 'Winter Rose', 'Love Awake', 'The Broadcast' and 'Baby's Request'.

Back To The Egg (TV special)

A 31-minute special which was videotaped between Monday 4 June and Wednesday 13 June 1979. It included promotional film clips for 'Getting Closer', 'Baby's Request', 'Old Siam Sir', 'Winter Rose', 'Love Awake', 'Spin It On', 'Again And Again', 'Arrow Through Me' and 'Goodnight Tonight'. It was syndicated in America during November and December 1979 and screened in Britain on BBC 1 on Wednesday 10 June 1981.

Backyard, The

A film of Paul playing old rock 'n' roll standards on an acoustic guitar, clips of which were originally intended to be included in the documentary short 'One Hand Clapping,' but weren't used. The MPL film of Paul, given the name The Backyard, was made in August 1974 but never shown.

The 9-minute short, directed by David Litchfield, showed Paul sitting on a stool in the back gardens of Abbey Road Studios with a couple of mikes in front of him, running through numbers such as 'Twenty Flight Rock', 'Sweet Little Sixteen', 'I'm Gonna Love You Too' and 'Peggy Sue' on acoustic guitar. He also performs an unreleased track called 'Blackpool'. Numbers filmed which ended up on the cutting-room floor were 'Blackbird', 'Country Dreamer', 'Loving You', 'We're Gonna Move' and 'Blue Moon Of Kentucky'. Clips were included in the MPL/BBC TV special 'McCartney' in 1986.

Badfinger

A group who were to become the most successful group on the Apple label, next to the Beatles. They were originally called the Iveys and were managed by Bill Collins, father of actor Lewis Collins, who had once worked with Mike McCartney in a Liverpool hairdressing salon. Bill had also known Paul's father Jim McCartney from the days he played in dance bands in Liverpool. Mai Evans, who also knew Collins, invited him to a Beatles recording session for 'Within You, Without You'. At Abbey Road Studios, Collins met Paul and told him about his group the Iveys. Paul said he'd be interested in hearing more about them.

Collins didn't follow through on the invitation. However, when Evans heard that the group wrote their own music he took a tape of them to Apple.

They comprised two members from Liverpool and two from Wales and the line-up at the time was: Pete Ham, vocalist, guitarist, pianist; Tom Evans, rhythm guitarist; Mike Gibbons, bass guitarist and Ron Griffiths on drums.

Mike Berry, who had recently joined Apple Publishing from Sparta Music, actually knew the group and had wanted to sign them to Sparta the previous year. He said, 'I remember telling my Apple publishing partner, Terry Doran, that the Iveys were going to be our first signing. I had actually given Paul McCartney my personal Iveys demo tape, but Paul said he didn't see anything in it. I'd planned to get him another one in the near future.'

Evans brought in the new tape and played it to Paul, Derek Taylor and Peter Asher.

Paul phoned Berry and said, 'Have you heard the new Iveys tape? It's fucking great.' Mike said, 'That's the sign of a good publisher, Paul. To see it before anyone else does.'

Paul had been impressed by a number called 'Knocking Down Our Home' and wanted to hear more of their work, so another demo reel was brought in. There were a few problems. Each Apple signing had to be approved by all four members of the Beatles, although Paul had managed to get Mary Hopkin signed, George had decided to sign up Jackie Lomax and Peter Asher was determined to sign James Taylor -all without necessarily having all four Beatles agree. Asher was to say, 'John Lennon was scathing about everybody. He would say "Who needs James Taylor or the Iveys when you have true artists like Yoko Ono?"'

Mai Evans was determined to secure a contract for them with Apple and brought in a fourth tape and on 23 July 1968 they signed to the label and made their debut with a Tom Evans composition 'Maybe Tomorrow'.

In the meantime, Paul had been asked to write the score for a film The Magic Christian which starred Peter Sellers and Ringo Starr.

At the time the Beatles were busy recording Abbey Road, He arranged a meeting with the Iveys saying that he had been asked to write the music for the film and was willing to give them a song he had written for it for them to record. The number was 'Come And Get It' and Paul made a demo of the number for them to listen to and he recorded them performing it. He then asked them to take over the assignment for The Magic Christian and write the other numbers themselves - and he also recorded them in the studio, advising them and playing some of the instruments. One of the numbers, 'Crimson Ship', contained references to Paul and the Beatles.

Prior to the release it was felt that the Iveys had become too associated with the Merseyside scene and a new name was sought. They thought of names such as Hyena's Nose, the Old, the Glass Onion and Fresh, while Paul suggested Home and John Lennon suggested Prix.

Eventually, Mai Evans remembered 'Badfinger Boogie', a working title for Paul's composition 'With A Little Help From My Friends' and the group were dubbed Badfinger.

Gibbons had left the band, so Evans then took over on bass. They had to find a replacement. The members wanted Scottish guitarist Hamish Stuart of Marmalade to join them and Stuart was interested, but his manager insisted that they would have to pay £10,000 if he was to leave Marmalade, so they looked elsewhere and eventually settled on another Liverpool guitarist, Joey Molland.

Many years later, Hamish Stuart was to join Paul's band.

Despite the success of their hits 'Come And Get It', 'No Matter What', 'Day After Day' and 'Baby Blue', Apple were encountering problems with the advent of Allen Klein. Paul was absent from the offices and had gone to Scotland where he was to begin recording his solo album; Peter Asher left the company, as did his signing James Taylor. Mary Hopkin was also to leave Apple.

On leaving Apple, Badfinger suffered immense financial difficulties, despite writing the international hit 'Without You' and both Pete Ham and Tom Evans were to hang themselves.

Bag O' Nails Club

A club opened on Thursday 24 November 1966 by John Gunnell and Lawrie Leslie at 9 Kingley Street, London. It was here that Francie Schwartz headed for when she arrived in England. She met Mike McCartney at the club and was soon involved in an affair with Paul. It was here that Paul was first introduced to Linda Eastman on the evening of Monday 15 May 1967 during a performance by Georgie Fame & the Blue Flames.

Baker, Celia

A clothes designer who, together with Tony Walker, made and designed the costumes for Wings' first major tour. The only stipulation they were given was that both Paul and Linda wanted the costumes to be in the same colours as those featured on the Venus and Mars album sleeve: red, yellow, black and white. Celia and Tony had three weeks in which to complete the entire project.

Baker, Geoff

Paul's long-standing press officer. He was formerly a show business writer for the Daily Star and became Paul's press agent at the close of the 1980s after writing a piece about Paul and Linda, which Paul liked.

Bakewell, Gary

The actor who portrayed Paul in the film Backbeat. He was also to appear as Paul in the CBS drama 'The Linda McCartney Story' in 2000.

Ballad of James Paul McCartney, The

A track written and recorded by David Peel and featured on his album Bring Back The Beatles, issued in America on Orange 004 in 1977.

Ballad of John and Yoko, The

A Beatles single on which only John and Paul appear. On Monday 14 April 1969 John brought the number around to Paul's house in Cavendish Avenue for him to aid in its completion. They finished it quite quickly and then went round to nearby Abbey Road Studios to record it.

At the time Ringo was filming The Magic Christian and George was out of the country, but John was in such a hurry to get it recorded that only the two of them appear on the recording.

Paul provided the bass, piano, maracas and drumming sounds.

It was released in Britain on Friday 30 May on Parlophone R 5786 and in America on Apple 2531 on 4 June.

Ballad of Paul

A record by the group Mystery Tour with 'Ballad Of Paul (Follow The Bouncing Ball)' on the flipside. A novelty disc issued on MGM 14097 in 1969.

Ballad of The Skeletons, The

A political poem by Allen Ginsberg, which was set to music. Recording began at Kampo Studios in Greenwich Village, New York when the initial track was cut with Ginsberg and guitarists Mark Ribot and David Mansfield. Lenny Kaye produced it. The tapes were then sent on to Paul McCartney in Britain and Paul added organ, drums and maracas. Then he returned the tapes to America where Philip Glass added further keyboard overdubs.

Executive producer of the project was David Silver, who commented that 'The Ballad of the Skeletons' was: a funny, but trenchant political poem, which surveys the US political scene taking a satirical swipe at its hypocrisies'. He also said, 'Paul did a beautiful job. He was wonderful, especially in terms of the priority he gave it.'

When Ginsberg premiered the poem at 'The Return of Forgotten Poetry' event at the Royal Albert Hall on Monday 16 October 1995, Paul joined him onstage and played electric guitar while Ginsberg recited the poem.

The single was issued in America on Mouth Almighty 697 120 101-2, an imprint of Mercury Records.

Ginsberg died on Saturday 5 April 1997. He was seventy years old.

Band On The Run (12")

A 12" interview disc to promote the album was distributed to radio stations in America in 1973. It was an open-end interview, in which local disc jockeys could ask the questions themselves and play Paul's answers on the disc.

The record was sent with a script enclosed. Fred Robbins conducted the interview during Wings' British tour on Monday 9 July 1973.

What follows is a transcript of part of the interview disc, indicating the scripted questions and Paul's reply:

Question: Hi! This is (disc jockey's name) and guess who's our special guest? Paul McCartney and his wife Linda! That's right, and they've got a great new album with their band Wings called Band On The Run on Capitol Records. We'll be playing some of the tracks and rapping with Paul and Linda by way of a pre-taped interview recorded while they were on tour in Leicester, England.

I understand when you started Wings you went around like wandering minstrels and played wherever you could, in various towns and colleges. What was behind that strategy?

Paul: Just that I like being in a band, you know? I don't like being out of work, and, in a way, when you're just recording, you can get to feel a bit out of work. You like to have a strum and sing. So that's the main reason behind it.

We had to do it that way because we're a totally new band. We've never played anywhere before, so we couldn't just do big dates and say, 'Hello folks! Here we are, without ever having played together before!' so we chose a few dates that were a surprise to get us worked in.

Question: How did you arrange to play in each place?

Paul: We did a little tour. The first little thing we did, we were in Britain and we went up the motorway. We headed for the nearest nice-sounding town, we didn't book any hotels or any halls or anything. We ended up in Nottingham University and we just said to them, 'OK if we play here tomorrow?' And they kind of put the word round and said, 'Yeah, OK.' So we turned up and played. It was like a kind of little college dance.

Question: No admission charge?

Paul: Oh yeah, 50p. Very reasonable. We actually handled the whole thing ourselves from a mini-van. We just turned up and said 'OK, we're here, we'd like to play, we wanna play our band in, would you like to listen to us while we do it? We don't wanna make too big a deal of this, but, you know, it's only 50p.'

Question: Did you enjoy ad-libbing your way around like that, Linda?

Linda: Oh yeah, very much. It's great. It's good to do that. But I like the other ones, well, where the audience is expecting you.

Question: What a contrast to the frenzied arrivals in town by the Beatles! It's like starting all over again!

Paul: It really is starting all over again. We just all enjoy the idea of being in a band. So here we go lads, one, two, three, off we go!

Question: What had to happen in your own life before you were ready to organise a new band?

Paul: I don't know, really. We had some business problems, you know, and I was getting sick of those. I thought, 'Well, it's not really my gig to go worrying about all the business, I'd rather just play and sing.' So that was it. I thought, Tm gonna get back to that, then. Let the business things sort themselves out.' Which they look like they might be going to do.

Question: Did you have any preconceived ideas of what you wanted Wings to sound like, or was it an experimental affair?

Paul: Sort of experimental, yeah. I knew that the people I was getting together had a lot of potential, and we needed to work together and see if we liked each other, and see if we could get on. It's coming together very well, considering. I mean, with the Beatles you couldn't say what the sound was. The press said it was Mersey Beat or whatever, you know. I knew roughly what I wanted - just a rock 'n' roll band, that'll do me.

Question: Did you want to approximate the Beatle sound, or get as far away from that as possible?

Paul: Neither ... I don't mind if it gets near it. They were a pretty good band. But if it gets miles away from it, there are a lot of other good bands that don't sound like the Beatles. We're just aiming to be what we are, which is what any band anywhere wants to be. It's what the Beatles wanted to be.

Question: Linda, isn't it rough for a girl to go on the road, even though she's with her husband?

Linda: So far, no. I like being in a band. I like it all, really. I like playing the best, being on stage, and being with an audience who enjoy it.

Paul: We were up in Scotland and I was saying to Linda, 'Look, we were thinking of going back on the road. Do you think you could kind of enjoy it? There's that feeling when you're behind a curtain waiting to go on, you get that kind of terrible nerves. Once you get on you get the feel of an audience behind you. Do you think you can enjoy all of that?' She's like, 'Sure, show me the curtain!'

Question: It seems that a musical career has been thrust upon you, Linda!

Linda: It has, yeah. I'm just one of the members, though -" there's not too much pressure on me. I don't get out and sing main vocal, or anything.

Paul: She's my wife, as you might know, but the thing is that we don't try and play her up as a big member of the band. As you say, she's kind of had it thrust upon her, but the stuff she does is great. It's a bit like Johnny Cash working with June Carter, and June kind of walks over and sings back-up with the Carter Family. She does her own little bit and stuff, but it isn't a big heavy Johnny and June Carter show, it's mainly 'Johnny Cash, ladies and gentlemen'.

Question: Was it always intended, Linda, that you'd be part of any new group Paul would organise?

Linda: Yeah, I'd say so. Just sing harmonies and play a bit of keyboard.

Paul: That's how it started, you know. It started off just as a kind of loon. We were just thinking, 'OK, let's go and make a record. Would you like to sing some harmonies, Linda?' That's how it started off, but it worked itself into a band. So we're just taking it from there and seeing how it goes.

Question: You reached such heights with the Beatles, so is it part of your plan to shoot for the same level of success with Wings?

Paul: No, not really. That's the obvious thing that people will think. But as I say, the main reason everyone's in the band is just to be in a band. All the other things are incidental.

We played Glasgow and got a ridiculous welcome there, and it was really a bit like the Beatles, you know? It was ridiculous, there were police outside and crowds and stuff, the whole bit - in some places you go, it really is like that. But we're just as pleased if the audience in the hall that night just enjoyed it. If they don't enjoy it then we'll be disappointed. But if they like it, it doesn't really matter if it's a pub in the King's Road or Madison Square Gardens to us, you know.

Question: Paul, I suppose you realise that your fans expect you to be as good as you were before ...

Paul: People do come along kind of thinking that, but that's one of those things, you know. Let them think it. We won't bother about it, we'll just get on playing. And if we start to come together well, and do some great tracks, then we'll just kinda see how we go. Our records sell very well worldwide, so it's not even a kind of comeback. For me, it's like a continuation. If it's as good as the Beatles, then great, obviously. If it isn't, well, hopefully it's as good in another field.

Question: Isn't it amazing, Paul, how well each of you has done on his own since the break-up - when everyone was wondering whether you would be able to get along without each other?

Paul: That's it, you know. A thing can't go on in one form forever. Things are always changing. With the Beatles, it was one of those things, it had to finish, almost. That was then. As you say, everyone's got on with a new type of thing. It's interesting, to say the least.

Question: Do you find more freedom in being able to write on your own now, without needing to collaborate?

Paul: No, I don't think there's any more freedom. It's different, there's no getting away from that, and in fact, I wouldn't like to get away from that. I don't think I'd like to be the Beatles all over again, I don't think there's any point to that.

Question: But you probably wouldn't have written these songs, or recorded several sides in Lagos, if you had still been part of the Beatles. These songs could only have happened on your own, couldn't they?

Paul: Well I suppose so, but you never can tell. I take it myself much more simply, as I say. I just wake up each morning and think, 'Ah, I'm alive. Great! What do we do today?' If I got into all the implications and all the ifs and buts ... when the Beatles were around, you never caught the Beatles analysing it half as much as the press or the fans did it.

Question: I guess we have to ask you what everyone wants to know - will the Beatles ever play together again?

Paul: The Beatles -1 wouldn't think the Beatles would get together and play again. I think if they did, it might be a bit of a comedown on what it was. The Beatles, when they were together, always used to say, 'When it reaches its end, we get out cleanly.' Now we didn't, as it happens, get out quite so cleanly as we wanted to, with all the business stuff. But at least there's a kind of an end to it now, and I think you'll find that's the end of the Beatles.

Question: But you've been playing on each other's albums ...

Paul: Yeah, that's right. I don't see any reason why that kind of thing shouldn't happen. I played a little bit on Ringo's LP; so did John and George. Obviously, to the press and to fans, when it's put the right way, it looks like the Beatles coming back together again. A lot of people get into all that. But we did what we did and that was it. I think it's best now to forget that and look to the new thing, and see if there's any possibility of enjoying that.

We've got a lot of fans from what we've been doing now, who've written afterwards and said, 'When I came to see you, I thought it really would just be a kind of sentimental evening where I'd think, "Ah! I wish I'd been with the Beatles".' But they write and say, 'It's amazing, I'm really happy. When are Wings coming back to town, as we're really interested?'

It's not this great eternal rift where no-one can come together and work with each other again. It depends what the projects are. We'll be working on each other's albums, keeping the thing together on that kind of level, I think you'll find.

Question: I want to ask about the way you're raising your children. Are you permissive parents or strict parents?

Linda: Honest parents. I think if anything bothers us, we let them know.

Paul: If the kids do anything that really doesn't fit in with what we're doing, then to that extent we'd say 'No,' rather than some parents who'd say 'Yes, OK.' I don't see really how you can do anything else. If someone's going to smash a bottle or something, we say 'No!' If that's being strict, we're strict. But I think they seem to be pretty well-adjusted kids at the moment.

Question: Well, the new band seem to be pretty well-adjusted as well, Paul. May all your future albums be as great as this one, Band On The Run?

Paul: OK, thanks, same to you. I must say goodbye to all the listeners in America. Wanna say a big 'hi' to you. Hello, hope you're enjoying yourself as you're listening to this and look us up when we come to your town. Тага.

Band On The Run (album)

Wings' second album was released in America on Wednesday 5 December 1973 on Apple SO 3415 and it was to top the charts the following April. The album was issued in Britain on Friday 7 December (minus the track 'Helen Wheels') on Apple PAS 10007 and topped the charts for seven weeks, although it first reached No. 1 in April 1974.

The reason 'Helen Wheels' was included on the American release was due to Al Corey of Capitol. He phoned Paul prior to the release and said, 'I just did the Pink Floyd thing and we took a single off that and we increased the sales by two hundred thousand units. I think you should do it in America, especially as "Helen Wheels" is doing great guns over here. Put it on the album.' Paul agreed.

Band On The Run was the first Wings album to top the charts on both sides of the Atlantic and the first Wings LP to go platinum.

As Abbey Road Studios were fully booked when Paul wanted to record, he decided to find an available EMI Studio abroad. It was a choice between the EMI Studio in Rio de Janeiro and the one in Lagos. Paul said, 'It was going to be either Brazilian percussion or African percussion and I said African, that would be a great, great vibe.'

There were initial difficulties when Paul set off to record the album in Nigeria. Five days before they were to due leave Henry McCullough resigned from the band and then three hours before the plane was due to take off Denny Seiwell abruptly announced his departure.

Paul, Linda and Denny Laine nonetheless flew out to Lagos and recorded tracks in two studios there - the EMI Studios and Ginger Baker's ARC Studios. Paul was to reveal that the reason they travelled to Nigeria was that EMI's 8-track studio there was the only EMI studio available during the three-week period he wanted to record.

Discussing the Nigeria trip, Paul said, 'We thought, "great - lie on the beach all day, doing nothing. Breeze in the studios and record." It didn't turn out like that. One night Linda thought I had died. I was recording and suddenly I felt like I had a lung collapse. So I went outside to get some air, and there wasn't any. It was a humid, hot tropical night. So I collapsed and fainted.'

Linda added, 'I laid him on the ground and his eyes were closed and I thought he was dead! We went to the doctor's and he advised Paul that he was smoking too much.'

There was some bad feeling when Nigerian musicians suggested that Paul was trying to capitalise on African music, but Paul had no intention of 'ripping off the local style. In fact, on their return to London they had percussion added to the 'Bluebird' track at AIR Studios by Remi Kabaka who, by coincidence, had been born in Lagos - but he was the only African musician on the album.

Faced with the last-minute defection of two of his musicians, Paul improvised by playing several instruments himself, including guitar, bass, drums and synthesisers. Tony Visconti, who also did some arrangements, added orchestral backings at AIR Studios. Paul produced the album with the help of engineer Geoff Emerick.

The tracks on the album are: 'Band On The Run', 'Jet', 'Bluebird', 'Mrs Vandebilt', 'Let Me Roll It', 'Mamunia', 'No Words', 'Picasso's Last Words' and 'Nineteen Hundred And Eighty Four'.

Rumour has it that the title track was inspired by a remark George Harrison made about the problems of Apple: 'If we ever get out of here.'

'Picasso's Last Words' was inspired by the Spanish painter's last words: 'Drink to me, drink to my health, you know I can't drink anymore.'

It has also been suggested that Paul took a slightly satirical dig at John Lennon on the 'Let Me Roll It' track. Paul co-wrote 'No Words' with Denny Laine and composed the rest of the material himself.

The album spawned three hit singles. 'Helen Wheels' had been included on the American album but not the British one and was a chart single in the UK. 'Jet' and 'Band On The Run' became hit singles in both Britain and America.

For the Band On The Run cover Paul gathered together several celebrities to pose with him, Linda and Denny. The group included American actor James Coburn, Member of Parliament Clement Freud, chat-show host Michael Parkinson, singer Kenny Lynch, horror star Christopher Lee and Liverpool boxing champion John Conteh. All are caught cowering in the beam of a powerful spotlight.

He commented, 'We thought, Band On The Run, let's have a group of people caught in a spotlight as if they're trying to escape from jail.

We thought, well, we'll use actors, and then we thought, no, that's not really going to mean much, so we thought, let's try and get different people who are personalities from various walks of life.'

On Monday 22 March 1999, to celebrate its 25th anniversary, the album was re-released throughout the world with some bonus tracks, a booklet and mini poster.

It was issued in France on EMI/Pathe Marconi DC9/2C064 05503.

In Italy it was issued on Apple/EMI Italiana 3C064 05503 on Wednesday 28 November 1973 and on EMI Italiana 3C 064 05503 on Friday 3 October 1980.

There were various reissues in Britain and the initial CD version was released on Parlophone/EMI CDP 7460552 on Monday 4 February 1985, then on Parlophone/EMI 0777 789240 29 on Monday 7 June 1993.

The album was reissued on Parlophone EMI CENT 30/7243 8 2157915 on Friday 14 November 1997 - this was on the occasion of the one hundredth anniversary of EMI Records.

After the initial release in America there was a picture disc issued on Capitol SEAX 11901 in December 1978. The album was also re-released on Columbia FC-36482 on Thursday 22 May 1980 and on Columbia HC-46982 on Thursday 24 April 1981. A CD version was issued on Columbia CK-36482 in 1984.

Band On The Run (movie)

In 1979, Liverpool playwright Willy Russell was commissioned by Paul to write a script for a feature film of Band On The Run, in which Paul played a rock star named Jet. EMI Films had agreed to produce, but the project was abandoned.

The basic story concerned a rock star who had walked out in the middle of a concert, fed up with his fame. He finds himself in a cafe, but after ordering a meal realises he doesn't have the funds on him to pay for it. He notices a local band in the cafe who have been fired from a gig and decides to team up with them.

Russell spent some time up in Scotland with Wings to study their individual characters for the script.

Band On The Run (single)

The single 'Band On The Run', credited to Paul McCartney and Wings, was released in Britain on Apple R5997 on Friday 28 June 1974 where it reached No. 3 in the charts, 'Zoo Gang' was on the flipside.

It was issued in Spain on Apple 1C006-09683.

In America, where it was to top the charts, the single was issued with a different track on the flipside, 'Nineteen Hundred And Eighty Four' when it was issued on Apple 1873 on 8 April 1974.

This version was also issued in Germany on EMI Electrola/Apple 1C006-05635.

The number was also included on the EMI double CD set Back To The 70s issued in Britain on CDEMTV 77 in 1993.

A version of this number, lasting 5 minutes and 10 seconds was included on the Tripping The Live Fantastic album. It was recorded live at Wembley Arena, London on 16 January 1990 during the 1989/90 World Tour.

On the origin of the number, Paul told disc jockey Paul Gambaccini, 'It started off with "If I ever get out of here," That came from a remark George made at one of the Apple meetings. He was saying that we were all prisoners in some way, some kind of remark like that. "If we ever get out of here," the "prison" bit, and I thought that would be a nice way to start an album.'

Bardot, Brigitte

Brigitte Bardot, the French actress, was one of the cinema's most potent sex images of the late 1950s and early 1960s.

Paul and John regarded Brigitte Bardot as 'the epitome of female beauty'. They compared every girl with Brigitte and encouraged their own girlfriends to look like her, John with Cynthia and Paul with Dot Rhone. Paul bought Dot a leather skirt in Hamburg and encouraged her to grow her blonde hair long. They even called Astrid Kirchherr 'the Bardot of Hamburg'.

When Paul originally began to sketch out the ideas for the Sgt Pepper sleeve he had the four Beatles standing before a wall which was covered in framed pictures of their heroes - and taking prominence was a pinup poster of Bardot. Although Bardot was drawn ten times larger than any other figure on Paul's original drawing, she was absent from the final tableau, indicating that a number of the Beatles' original suggestions of their own heroes were left off the final set by Peter Blake and Robert Fraser who replaced them with a number of their own selections.

Bates, Simon

A Radio One disc jockey. Paul recorded an interview with him at Broadcasting House on Thursday 16 June 1983 that was transmitted the following day. He discussed his Pipes Of Peace album, the Give My Regards To Broad Street film and also sang the Radio One jingle.

Baywatch

An American TV show. In 1994 there were rumours that Paul would appear in a cameo role in an episode of the series during which he would give the kiss-of-life to Pamela Anderson. Paul's spokesman Geoff Baker scotched the rumours, saying, 'Paul was offered a part in the series, but the answer was an emphatic no!' As to other rumours that Paul was a fan of the series male star David Hasselhof, Baker said, 'He bumped into him at a party - that was about it.'

However, Paul was eventually to turn up on one of Pamela Anderson's TV shows on an episode of VIP aired on Saturday 5 February 2000. In an episode entitled 'All You Need Is VaP, Pam's character Val is hired to protect an awards ceremony from a bomb scare. Actual footage of Paul at the PETA Awards in September 1999 was used and at the end of the show Paul is seen presenting an award to Val.

BBC America

An American channel available on digital cable and satellite. On 15 April 2000 they held a special Sir Paul McCartney night which included the screening of Paul's appearance on the Parkinson chat show and his appearance on Later With Jools Holland.

Beatles Album Sleeves

Paul always had aspirations of being an artist and he also had a hands-on approach to every aspect of the Beatles' career, which involved his suggestions and participation in the various Beatles album sleeves, in particular with Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, arguably the most famous sleeve of any album.

Initially, the Beatles debut album was to be called Off The Beatle Track and Paul designed a cover for it that included a head and shoulders image of each member of the band, with the 'B' in Beatle sporting an antenna. The idea was dropped and the album became Please Please Me.

It was also Paul who came up with the idea for the Abbey Road sleeve, another famous image (how many people have had their photo taken on that zebra crossing?). Paul presented his original idea in the form of a sketch to photographer Iain Macmillan and he also selected the final cover shot from the pictures taken by Macmillan.

Beatles At The Beeb, The

The Beatles performed 88 different songs for BBC radio in the 1960s. The numbers on which Paul sang lead vocals were: 'All My Loving', 'And I Love Her', 'Beautiful Dreamer', 'Besame Mucho', 'Can't Buy Me Love', 'Clarabella', 'Dream Baby', 'The Hippy Hippy Shake', 'The Honeymoon Song', 'I'll Follow The Sun', 'I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Cry (Over You)', 'I Saw Her Standing There', 'Kansas City', 'Hey! Hey! Hey!' 'Long Tall Sally', 'Love Me Do', 'Lucille', 'The Night Before', 'Ooh! My Soul', 'PS I Love You', 'She's A Woman', 'Sure To Fall (In Love With You)', 'A Taste Of Honey', 'That's All Right Mama', 'Things We Said Today', 'Till There Was You' and 'Youngblood'.

Beatles National Lampoon

A special Beatles edition of the American humorous magazine, issued in October 1977, with a cover depicting the Fab Four squashed flat on the Abbey Road zebra crossing by a passing steamroller.

Among the features was a satire on the 'Paul is Dead' affair, entitled 'He Blew His Mind Out In A Car: The True Story Of Paul McCartney's Death,' which relates how, on the morning of 18 January 1967, Paul left a party at Guildford, Surrey. Hours later his body was found in the wreck of the car, having been garrotted, stabbed and shot several times. There was a double-page photograph showing his body on a mortuary slab with a bruise on the temple, knife in the chest and tyre marks across his stomach and shins. Such black humour was probably the best response to the absurdities of the 'Paul is Dead' affair.

Beatles, The (album)

A double album released in November 1968 and often called 'the White Album' because of its plain white cover.

It contained several numbers written by Paul. They are; 'Back In The USSR', 'Martha My Dear', 'Blackbird', 'Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da', 'Wild Honey Pie', 'Rocky Racoon', 'Why Don't We Do It In The Road?', 'Mother Nature's Son', 'Honey Pie', 'I Will' and 'Helter Skelter'.

He also co-wrote 'Birthday' with John Lennon.

Included with the album were four colour shots of the individual Beatles and a large poster with a montage of photographs. A minute photograph of Paul completely nude, although discreetly posed behind a white column, caused an outcry in the British press at the time, although a larger photograph of John in the nude on the same poster was virtually ignored.

Beatles9 Break-Up, The

Paul began proceedings to dissolve the Beatles' partnership because of advice from his legal representative John Eastman, his brother-in-law, that it would be the only way he could break away from Allen Klein, who had been appointed manager of Apple's affairs over Paul's protests.

Paul had originally wanted Eastman &C Eastman, his in-law's family firm, to represent Apple, but the other members of the group disagreed. Paul, however, felt very strongly about Klein. There were many decisions, apart from financial ones, which upset Paul. Klein, for instance, brought in Phil Spector to remix the Let It Be tapes. This interfered with the artistic control the Beatles had over their own product. It was most obvious in Paul's case when Spector completely altered the atmosphere of 'The Long And Winding Road' by adding lush strings, lots of voices, the usual Spector 'wall of sound'. In other words, he was imposing his own particular style over Paul's music without Paul having any say in the matter.

The Beatles' legal partnership as it stood had originally been set up in April 1967. In 1969 John had privately announced that he would not work with the Beatles again and was annoyed when Paul made a public statement in a newspaper in April 1970 to the effect that the Beatles had ceased to exist as a group. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine in December 1970, John said that Paul's attempts to dominate the group had led to its break-up. He said that all the other members of the Beatles had 'got fed up of being side men for Paul'.

The writ eventually issued by Paul was: 'A declaration that the partnership business carried out by the plaintiff and the defendants under the name of "The Beatles and Co" and constituted by a deed of partnership dated 19 April 1967, and made between the parties hereto ought to be dissolved and that accordingly the same be dissolved.'

During the course of the case, Paul was able to point out how Klein had tried to cause discontent and had told him over the phone: 'You know why John is angry with you? It is because you came off better than he did on Let It Be.'

Klein also said to him: 'The real trouble is Yoko. She is the one with ambition.' Paul said, 'I often wonder what John would have said if he had heard that remark.'

David Hurst QC, acting for Paul, said that Allen Klein had instructed his accountants not to give Paul information about the group's finances. 'He is a man of bad commercial reputation. Mr McCartney has never either accepted him as a manager or trusted him. And on the evidence his attitude has been fully justified.'

The reasons put forward for the dissolution were: (1) The Beatles had long since ceased to perform together as a group, so the whole purpose of the partnership had gone. (2) In 1969, Mr McCartney's partners, in the teeth of his opposition and in breach of the partnership deal, had appointed Mr Klein's company ABKCO Industries Limited as the partnership's exclusive business manager. (3) Mr McCartney had never been given audited accounts in the four years since the partnership was formed.

Beautiful Night

A song that Paul had originally written and recorded in 1986. It had been literally lying on a shelf for a decade when Paul became involved in the Beatles' Anthology and suggested that he and Ringo team up once again, after an absence of ten years. Paul made some minor alterations to the lyrics and recorded it, with himself on piano and Ringo on drums. Nine months later he enhanced it with an orchestral arrangement, scored by George Martin and recorded in Studio One of Abbey Road on Wednesday 14 February 1997.

The number was included on the Flaming Pie album and became the third single issued from the album. It was released on Monday 15 December 1997 in three formats, a 7" picture disc (Parlophone RP 6489) which included 'Beautiful Night' and 'Love Come Tumbling Down' and two CDs.

The two CDs feature extracts from the 1995 American radio series Oobujoobu.

CD 1 contained: 'Beautiful Night', 'Love Come Tumbling Down' and 'Oobu Joobu Part 5'. There were nine excerpts on the Oobu Joobu section: 'And Now' (a jingle), 'Oobu Joobu Main Theme', 'Beautiful Night Chat', 'Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr Chat About Beautiful Night', 'Ringo Starr Chat', 'Beautiful Night (Flaming Pie Mix)', 'Beautiful Night (original version)', 'Goodbyes' and 'Oobu Joobu Main Theme'.

CD 2 contained: 'Beautiful Night', 'Same Love' and 'Oobu Joobu Part 6'. There were 15 excerpts on the Oobu Joobu section: 'This One' (a jingle), 'Oobu Joobu Main Theme', 'Oobu Joobu We Love You' (a jingle), 'Paul McCartney Chats About Abbey Road', 'Strawberry Fields Forever' (a Paul solo), 'Come On Baby', 'Paul McCartney Chats About Abbey Road', 'Come on Baby' (continued), 'End Chat Abbey Road', 'OK Are you Ready? (a jingle), 'Love Mix', 'Wide Screen Radio' (a jingle), 'Goodbye' and 'Oobu Joobu Main theme.'

'Beautiful Night' was 5 minutes and 18 seconds in length and produced by Paul and Jeff Lynne. Engineers were Geoff Emerick and Jan Jacobs with assistance from Keith Smith. Recording began on 13 May 1996 and Paul sang lead vocals and backing vocals and played bass guitar, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, Wurlitzer piano, Hammond organ and additional percussion. Jeff Lynne sang backing vocals and played electric guitar and acoustic guitar. Ringo Starr sang backing vocals at the end and played drums and additional percussion. There was also orchestral backing, conducted by David Snell with orchestration by George Martin. The musicians were: John Barclay, Andrew Crowley and Mark Bennett on trumpets; Richard Edwards and Andy Fawbery on trombones; Michael Thompson, Richard Watkins and Nigel Black on horns; Marcia Cray ford, Adrian Levine, Belinda Bunt, Bernard Partridge, Jackie Hartley, Keith Pascoe, David Woodcock, Roger Garland, Julian Tear, Briony Shaw, Rita Manning, Jeremy Williams, David Ogden, Bogustav Kostecki, Maciej Rakowski and Jonathan Rees on violins; Robert Smissen, Stephen Orton, Martin Loveday and Robert Bailey on cellos; Chris Laurence and Robin McGee on double basses; Susan Milan on flute and David Theodore on oboe.

Paul was to comment, 'I'd written it a few years ago and I'd always liked the song, and I'd done a version in New York, but I didn't feel we'd quite pulled it off.

'So I got this song out for when Ringo was coming, changed a few of the lyrics, and it was like the old days. I realised we hadn't done this for so long, but it was really comfortable and it was still there. So we did "Beautiful Night" and we tagged on a fast bit on the end which wasn't there before.'

The official press release for the single read:

Paul McCartney has re-formed the Beatles' rhythm section and made one of the most lavish videos of his career for the release of

his Christmas single, 'Beautiful Night'. Parlophone Records will release the single on 15 December.

Much attention around the release is expected to be caused by director Julien Temple's spectacular - and lengthy - video, which includes scenes of actress Emma Moore stripping naked to go skinny dipping in the River Mersey and sees Paul performing with a new band of 16-year-old London schoolboys whilst being 'bombed' by falling TV sets.

'Beautiful Night' - taken from Paul's acclaimed solo album Flaming Pie - reunites the Beatles bassist with Beatles drummer Ringo Starr, who plays on the track and provide its Beatle-humoured ending.

'I think everyone who makes a record always has that option, to leave the daft stuff on at the end,' said Paul. 'You nearly always fade it out but at the end of "Beautiful Night", it had been such a good take that Ringo started having fun, acting like he was a doorman, throwing people out. I love that so much, it's very Beatley. It's a very Beatley idea to do that, because we did a bit of that in the group.

'But "Beautiful Night" also actually sounds a bit Beatley too. In fact, I swear that at the end of "Beautiful Night" you can almost hear a sort of very John Lennony voice in there. Listen to it, check it out.

'It was a bit eerie listening to that - and I thought, "wow!" It's so Beatley sounding, that. I love it.'

Working with Ringo on The Beatles Anthology projects spurred Paul to hook up in the studio again for 'Beautiful Night', which was in part recorded at Abbey Road and orchestrated by George Martin.

Said Paul: 'Ringo and I had not worked together for a long time before we did "Free As A Bird". Then we did "Real Love" and it was just such a laugh that I said I was doing a new album and I'd love him to drum on a couple of tracks.

'So I got "Beautiful Night" together, Ringo came down to my studio and we did it and it was such great fun. It was really good to see that Ringo and I locked in, the Beatles rhythm section, drum and bass, we just locked in. It would have been kind of disappointing if we'd lost it, but we hadn't. I suppose we'd just played together for so many years with the Beatles that it was still there and really easy to record together.'

Ringo added: 'Paul invited me to play on "Beautiful Night" and I said "sure" because it was a beautiful track. We spent the day recording together and I still feel really comfortable playing with his bass-playing - well, playing with him basically, that drums and bass. We have all that history and it all comes into play when we play together. You just can't dismiss that.'

'I didn't consciously start off trying to make a Beatles sound, although these days I don't try to avoid it,' said Paul.

'There are a lot of other people trying to make that same sound, with great success too. But that's good, it's a turn-on for me. I suppose you could say that when I play it's sort of a Beatles sound anyway. I didn't avoid it or go for it. It just came out that way.'

Beautiful Night (promotional video)

The video for this number, released in December 1997, proved quite controversial as it featured a full-frontal nude scene of actress Emma Moore swimming in the River Mersey. MTV banned the clip and Paul had to have an edited version made which was acceptable to the broadcasters, although the banned version was screened on the Playboy channel in America. The video was directed by Julien Temple who spotted a four-piece group called Spud in a London club and had them appear in the clip performing with Paul. Ringo Starr can also be seen as a night watchman who then begins to play drums.

When Paul appeared on the Oprah Winfrey show, the scenes were censored from the video.

Paul's spokesman Geoff Baker said, 'However, another hot and uncut version of the "Beautiful Night" video will be available worldwide to television programmers who are not restricted by censorship or nudity.'

One of Paul's friends admitted that Paul had taken a chance with the promotional film but said, 'It's without doubt the riskiest thing Paul's done in a long time. People were stunned to discover he had nude women and men frolicking in the Mersey River to promote his single. The jokes have already started about "Hey Nude" but he sees the funny side.'

The five-minute video was screened in Liverpool and London.

Be-Bop-A-Lula

A major hit single for Gene Vincent in the 1950s and the first record which Paul ever bought.

Besame Mucho

A song Paul introduced into the Beatles repertoire in 1961 on which he sang lead vocal. He was influenced by the Coasters' version, released in 1960. Paul also performed it at their Decca audition, on the BBC radio show Here We Go and it's also featured on The Beatles Anthology I CD.

The number was originally penned by Consuelo Valazquez and Selig Shaftel in 1943.

Best Of Chris Farley, The

A 62-minute video and DVD, released in America on 25 April 2000. Chris Farley was a comedian who made his Saturday Night Live debut in 1990 and featured many guests in his sketches, including Paul

McCartney. He died at the age of 33 on Thursday 18 December 1997 of a deadly mixture of opiates and cocaine. Paul is one of the guests included on this compilation.

Best Of СШа, The

An album by Cilia Black issued in Britain on Friday 8 November 1968 on Parlophone PCS 7065. It contained all three Paul McCartney compositions which Cilia had recorded - 'Love Of The Loved', 'Step Inside Love' and 'It's For You'.

Best Of Paul McCartney And Wings: Wingspan, The

A VHI special that was televised in America on Monday 14 May 2001 and attracted 15 million viewers. The one-hour programme included an exclusive interview between Paul and VHI's Rebecca Rankin.

Beware My Love

A track from the Wings At The Speed Of Sound album, 6 minutes and 28 seconds in length.

Bibliography

Body Count, Francie Schwartz, Straight Arrow, 1972.

The Paul McCartney Story, George Tremlett, Futura, 1975.

Paul McCartney: In His Own Words, Paul Gambaccini, Omnibus Press, 1976.

Linda's Pictures, Linda McCartney, Alfred A Knopf, 1976.

The Facts About A Pop Group, Featuring Wings, Dave Gelly, Andre Deutsch, 1977.

Paul McCartney And Wings, Tony Jasper, Octopus Books, 1977.

Paul McCartney And Wings, Jeremy Pascall, Hamlyn, 1977.

Paul McCartney, A Biography In Words And Pictures, John Mendelsohn, Sire Books/Chappell Music Ltd, 1977.

Wings, Rock Fun, 1977.

Paul McCartney: Beatle With Wings!, Martin A Grove, Pyramid Books, 1978.

Hands Across The Water/Wings Tour USA, Hipgnosis, Paper Tiger, 1978.

Paul McCartney und Wings, Klaus Dewes and Rudi Oertel, Bergisch Gladbach, 1980.

Paul McCartney - Composer, Artist, Paul McCartney, Pavilion Books, 1981.

Photographs, Linda McCartney, MPL Communications, 1982.

Remember: Recollections and Photographs of the Beatles, Mike McCartney, Henry Holt & Co, 1982.

The Ocean View, Humphrey Ocean, MPL Communications/Plexus Books, 1983.

Paul McCartney, Alan Hamilton, Hamish Hamilton, 1983.

Paul McCartney: The Definitive Biography, Chris Welch, Proteus Books, 1984.

McCartney: Songwriter, Howard Elson, Comet Books, 1986.

The McCartney File, Bill Harry, Virgin Books, 1986.

McCartney: The Definitive Biography, Chris Salewicz, St Martin's Press, 1986.

Mike Mac's Black And White's Plus One Colour, Mike McCartney, Aurum Press, 1986.

Paul McCartney's Rupert & The Frog Song, adapted by David Hately, Ladybird Books, 1986.

McCartney, Chet Flippo, Sidgwick & Jackson, 1987.

Paul 1st Schuld, Corinne Ullrich Crox, Phantom Verlag, 1987.

Sunprints, Linda McCartney, Barrie & Jenkins, 1988.

Paul 1st Schuld, Corrin Ullrich Crux, Phantom Verlag, 1989.

Paul McCartney, Jurgen Siebold, Moewig, 1989.

Paul McCartney Solo 1970-1990, Rob van den Berg, Loeb, 1989.

Sixties: Portrait Of An Era, Linda McCartney, Reed Books, 1992.

Paul McCartney, Carola Deurwaarder, De Geillustreerde Pers, 1992.

Mike McCartney's Merseyside, Cornerhouse Publications, 1992.

Paul McCartney: From Liverpool To Let It Be, Howard A DeWitt, Horizon Books, 1992.

Paul McCartney, Dominique Grandfils, Zelie, 1992.

Linda McCartney's Main Courses, Bloomsbury, 1992.

Linda McCartney's Light Lunches, Bloomsbury, 1992.

McCartney: 50 Ans, Jordi Sierra I Fabra, Plaza у Janes, 1992.

Paul McCartney - Im Gesprach Fur Europa, Christian Frietsch, Radio Victoria, 1992.

Listen To What The Man Said, Judith Philipp and Ralf Simon, Pendragon.

Turn Me On Dead Man: The Complete Story Of The Paul McCartney Death Hoax, Andru J Reeve, Popular Culture Ink, 1994.

The McCartney Interviews: After The Breakup, Paul Gambaccini, Omnibus Press, 1995.

The Walrus Was Paul - The Great Beatles Death Clues of 1969, R Gary Patterson, Dowling Press, 1996.

Roadworks, Linda McCartney, Bullfinch Press, 1996.

Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now, Barry Miles, Seeker 6c Warburg, 1997.

Sir Paul McCartney, Tracks, 1997.

Sir Paul McCartney, Liverpool Echo, 1997.

Paul McCartney: The Standing Stone Premiere, Harriet L Perry, Tracks, February 1998.

Paul McCartney's Oratorio, Festival van Vlaanderen, May 1998.

Wide Open, Linda McCartney (with a foreword by Paul), Bulfinch Press/Little Brown, 1999.

Paul McCartney 1942-1966, Gerrit Wijnne, АО BV, 1999.

Paul McCartney Paintings, Wolfgang Suttner and Nicola van Velsen, Kultur Verlag, 1999.

Paul McCartney, Arturo Blay, Editorial La Mascara, 1999.

Paul McCartney Paintings, Little Brown, 2000.

Performances, Linda McCartney, Little Brown, 2000.

Paul McCartney: I Saw Him Standing There, Jorie Green, Billboard Books/Watson-Guptill, 2000.

Paul McCartney: Faces, Thorsten Schmidt, 2000.

Paul McCartney: Blackbird Singing, Faber & Faber, 2001.

Paul McCartney: 20 Years On His Own, Edward Gross, Pioneer Books, 2001.

Best Of Масса, Paul Nash, Tracks, 2001.

Paul McCartney, Paul Dowswell, Heineman Profiles, 2001.

Big Barn Bed

A number that opened both the Red Rose Speedway album and the 'James Paul McCartney' television special. It was recorded at Olympic Studios during the Red Rose Speedway sessions.

Big Boys Bickering

The third track on the CD single of 'Hope Of Deliverance', released in January 1993. Due to the use of the F-word in the lyrics, both the BBC and MTV banned the number, with MTV banning it from Up Close, the series in which Paul had performed a special show for MTV.

An MPL spokesman said, '"Big Boys Bickering" is a protest song about governments' inability to agree on anything, which results in things like a hole in the ozone layer, and people starving in Africa.' Commenting on the use of the F-word, the spokesman said, 'Paul feels very strongly about this, and he considered using the words "muckin' it up", or even "cockin' it up" in the song, but felt that these words didn't quite capture his anger.'

Paul himself commented, 'People are wrecking our world and the governments are doing nothing to stop it. People are dying in famines and governments are doing nothing. I'm protesting against these men who sit in smoke-filled rooms and tell us what to do, whether we want to do it or not - it's like telling women they can't have abortions or other such nonsense.'

He added, 'I'm protesting against people like George Bush going to the Rio Earth Summit last year and saying, "I'm not signing any agreement".'

On his use of the expletive in the song, he added, 'I sympathise with people who do not approve of swearing, especially those with young children. I must admit I don't like it in front of the kids. I don't normally go for swearing in songs. It has always struck me as a bit gratuitous. But in this case, I felt it was essential to the song. If, like me, you think of that hole in the ozone layer, you don't tend to think, "Oh that flipping great hole in the ozone layer" - you think, "That fucking great hole…”

The song in its entirety was included in a special adults-only version of the ITV programme Chart Show. The show's representative Keith Macmillan commented, 'We are happy to take this step because we believe in the sentiments behind Paul's song.'

Big Breakfast, The

An early morning Channel Four show. Paul appeared on the programme on Tuesday 16 November 1999. The subject of Liam Gallagher of Oasis naming his son Lennon came up and Paul joked that he had suggested to his son James that if he had a son he could call him Lennon McCartney. Clips of the 'No Other Baby' video were also screened.

Biker Like An Icon

The third single from the Off The Ground album, penned by Paul and lasting 3 minutes and 24 seconds. Parlophone issued it in Britain on Tuesday 20 April 1993. The 7" was on R 6347, the cassette on TCR 6347 and the CD on CDR5 6347. The flipside was 'Things We Said Today'. The CD also contained the tracks 'Midnight Special' and 'Mean Woman Blues'.

With the exception of 'Biker Like An Icon', all the tracks were from the MTV 'Unplugged' appearance.

A white vinyl version was also issued in America on Capitol /СЕМА 17319 on Tuesday 20 April 1993 in a limited edition of 17,000.

Discussing the song, Paul said 'Once I'd messed about with the words, I went up to my attic and wrote it with a 12-string. Robbie (Mclntosh) added that great lead guitar break when we cut it, and we got ourselves a good little rocky song.'

Talking about the recording in the studio, he said, 'What I especially like about the record is that the song you hear is the first take. We just did it first time, it rocked along and we thought, "that's it"; we went for the feel, we didn't want to labour over it after that first take.'

In Germany 'Biker Like An Icon' was issued as a 4-track CD on EMI 8810422 along with 'Midnight Special' and 'Things We Said Today', the latter from the 'Unplugged' sessions and also a live version of the title track. A 4-track CD was also issued in Holland, together with a 2-track CD on EMI 8810432 with 'Mean Woman Blues' as the second track. It was issued in Spain as a 7" vinyl single.

A live version of the number lasting 3 minutes and 40 seconds, recorded in Boulder, Colorado on 26 May 1993, was included on the Paul Is Live album.

Bip Bop

A track on Wings' Wild Life album that Paul was later to say was 'the weakest song I have ever written in my life.' He also commented, 'It just goes nowhere. I still cringe every time I hear it.' Yet another comment from Paul: 'It's the one our baby likes.'

Bip Bop Link

An instrumental version of 'Bip Bop,' which was included on the Wild Life album.

Birthday (single)

The first single to be released from the Tripping The Live Fantastic triple album. The number, which was 2 minutes and 43 seconds in length, was recorded during the concert at Knebworth on Saturday 30 June 1990.

The single was available in four formats: 7" (R 6271), 12" <12R 6271), cassette (TCR 6271) and CD (CDR 6271). The 7" and cassette had 'Good Day Sunshine' as the second track. The 12" and CD had the two tracks plus *PS Love Me Do' and 'Let 'Em In'.

'Birthday' was the only track of the above numbers that was actually taken from the Tripping The Live Fantastic album and was issued in Britain on Monday 8 October 1990 and in America on cassette only on Tuesday 16 October.

The British release of the live recording of 'Birthday' was issued to mark what would have been John Lennon's fiftieth birthday.

MPL issued a statement about the release telling how Paul and John had written the number at Abbey Road one night when Pattie Boyd and other friends were present. Paul remarked, 'It all became a little bit of a party, so rather than get too serious, I just said to John, "Let's just make something up."

'So we worked out this riff and then we just thought of this birthday idea because I remember saying "Some songs are kind of useful, let's do a useful song." What I meant was songs like "White Christmas" are very useful, if you want to get into a Christmas mood, whack that on ... so going on that sort of vibe, I thought, "Well, there's been a Christmas song and an Easter song, how about a birthday song?" Of course, there was "Happy Birthday To You" but we wanted to do a rock song for people who were into rock and roll who could use it as just another way of saying, "it's your birthday". So we came up with this really simple lyric, put a riff in the middle, a little instrumental break and we got the crowd of guests there to sing along to the chorus. And by the end of the evening, we'd done it.'

When it was mentioned that the release coincided with what would have been John's birthday, Paul said, 'That's just a happy coincidence. It's my nod and a wink to an old mate.'

Birthday (song)

A song written and recorded on Wednesday 18 September 1968. Chris Thomas, who was producing the Beatles at the time, mentioned that Paul arrived in the Abbey Road Studio first and began playing the 'Birthday' riff. By the time the others had arrived Paul had virtually completed writing the song in the studio.

It was then decided to cut short the recording session because they wanted to rush back to Paul's place to watch the movie The Girl Can't Help It. Thomas had told them days earlier that the movie was being given its first British airing on BBC 2 on the Wednesday evening.

Paul said, 'The Girl Can't Help It was on television. Fats Domino, Gene Vincent and Eddie Cochran were in it, and we wanted to see it, so we started at five o'clock and just did a backing track, a very simple 12-bar blues thing with a few bits here and there. We had no idea what it was going to be. We'd just say, "12 bars in A", and then we'd change to D, then we'd do a few beats in С Just like that. Then we went back to my house, watched the film, and then went back to the studio and made up some words to go with it all. This song was just made up in an evening. We hadn't even thought of it before then. It's one of my favourites because it was instantaneous. Also, it's a good one to dance to. As for the big long drums break, normally we might have four bars of drums, but, with this, we thought, "No, let's keep it going." We all like to hear drums plodding on.'

John and Paul sang the song together, with Paul playing piano on the track, although the instrument had been adjusted to sound like an electric harpsichord. The number was included on their The Beatles double album.

John was later to refer to the number as 'a piece of garbage'. He also said '"Birthday" was written in the studio. Just made up on the spot. I think Paul wanted to write a song like "Happy Birthday Baby" the old '50s hit.'

Black, Cilia

The leading female singer of the Mersey-sound era, born Priscilla Maria Veronica White on 27 May 1943. At the age of seventeen, as Cilia White, she began singing with local groups such as Kingsize Taylor & the Dominoes, the Big Three and Rory Storm & the Hurricanes. In the first issue of the Mersey Beat newspaper, published on 6 July 1961, she was mistakenly referred to as Cilia Black and decided to keep the name.

In the evenings she used to work occasionally at the Zodiac coffee bar in Duke Street, Liverpool, where she met her future husband Bobby Willis. The stories about her being the Cavern cloakroom girl are greatly exaggerated as she only unofficially helped out a couple of times.

At the age of twenty she became the only female singer to be signed by Brian Epstein and he immediately placed her with Beatles recording manager George Martin and gave her a Paul McCartney song 'Love Of The Loved' as her debut disc. It was issued in October 1963 on

Parlophone R5065 and was a minor hit, reaching No. 35 in the British charts.

In 1964 she was given another song by Paul, 'It's For You'. It was issued in August on Parlophone R5162 and reached No. 7 in the charts. The number was also issued in the States on 17 August 1974 on Capitol 5258, reaching No. 78 in the American charts. Cilia said, 'Paul sounded great on the demo disc, which he let me hear at the Palladium. He sang the song as a waltz and George Martin put in the jazzy bits for the session arrangement. John and Paul came along to the recording session the same day they arrived back from Australia. George Martin told them they'd better wait outside because I was nervous, and he was right about that. But with John and Paul, I didn't mind. They'd often drop in when I was at the studios, and anyway I was glad to see them back safely from Australia.'

When Cilia was given her own BBC TV series, simply called Cilia, Paul was approached to see if he would write the theme tune for it. He agreed and made a demo of the number at his Cavendish Avenue house.

It was 'Step Inside Love', which Paul was to describe as 'not a bad little song'. When Cilia sang it on her first show, which was live, she couldn't remember the words because she didn't have much time to rehearse. She said, 'I'd just forgotten them! I thought since it was the first time on telly and nobody had heard the right words then nobody would know if I sang the wrong words. But one viewer did - Paul himself! He got the impression that my television producer had deliberately changed the lyrics and he rang the BBC to complain.'

'Step Inside Love', was issued in March 1968 on Parlophone R5674 and reached No. 8 in the British charts. It was issued in America on Bell 726, but made no impact.

On Paul's fortieth birthday, Cilia sent him a telegram which read: 'Life begins at forty, what the 'ell 'ave you been doing all these years?'

Black Dyke Mills Band, The

A famous British brass band of international repute, with whom Paul recorded his composition 'Thingumybob', the theme tune of London Weekend Television's comedy series of the same name.

On 30 April 1968, a Sunday afternoon, Paul went up to Bradford, Yorkshire to record the single, which he also arranged.

The band, conducted by Geoffrey Brand, also produced an instrumental version of 'Yellow Submarine' for the flip, which Paul produced.

The single was issued in Britain on Apple 4 on 6 September 1968 but failed to register in the charts. In America, 'Yellow Submarine' became the A-side when the disc was issued on Apple 1800 on 26 August 1968. Although the band never recorded for the Apple label again, Paul was to feature them on a Wings album over a decade later, in 1979, when they performed on 'Winter Rose' and 'Love Awake' for Back To The Egg-

Blackbird (song)

Paul taped this track solo on Tuesday 11 June 1968. He used a sound-effects record of birdsong to fill out the track from 'Volume Seven: Birds Of A Feather' taken from the Abbey Road taped sound collection. He sings, plays acoustic guitar and percussion. Three microphones were used on the recording. One for his voice, one for his guitar and one for his tapping feet.

John Lennon was to provide one line in the song, which Paul said he was inspired to write after reading about the American race riots.

It appeared on The Beatles double album.

Paul was to say, 'It's simple in concept because we couldn't even think of anything else to put on it. Maybe on Pepper, we would have worked on it until we could find some way to put violins on it, or trumpets. But, I don't think it needs it. There's nothing to the song. This is just one of those pick-it-and-sing-it songs. It doesn't need anything else in the backing because, as a song, there's nothing to it. The only point where we were thinking of putting anything on it was where it comes back in the end, stops, and then comes back in. So, instead of putting any backing on it, we put a blackbird on it, so, there's a blackbird singing at the very end. Somebody said it's a thrush, but I think it's a blackbird.

'Blackbird' was one of five Beatles songs that Paul included on his Wings Over America tour in 1976.

Blackbird Singing

Paul's first book of poetry, published by Faber and Faber in 2001. Paul was inspired to publish the work by the death of Linda and dedicated the book to their children Mary, Stella and James and to Heather, Linda's daughter by a previous marriage.

It contains more than a hundred poems written between 1965 and 2000, in addition to some of his best-known song lyrics. A dozen of the poems are about Linda and were written in the months before and after her death in April 1998.

Poet and playwright Adrian Mitchell aided Paul in compiling the collection, and commented, 'It was Linda who wanted Paul to get them published. Paul is not afraid to take on the art of poetry, which is the art of dancing naked.'

Paul said he wasn't worried about what critics may say about the book, commenting, 'The critics are always mixed with me. I always say they sharpen their pencils when they see me coming. But I don't care, you know, they criticised Sgt Pepper and look what happened to that.'

Blackboard Jungle, The

A famous 1950s film starring Glenn Ford and Sidney Pokier that featured the Bill Haley number 'Rock Around The Clock'. When Paul was sixteen he went along to see the film with George Harrison, who was only fifteen. To make George look a little bit older and thus ensure his entrance to the cinema, they went into the back garden to get some mud to put on George's upper lip to give the impression of a moustache!

Blackpool

One of a number of demo home recordings Paul made in the years 1971 and 1972. It is a band demo rather than the usual solo demo discs he was making around that time. This one features three acoustic guitars, an electric keyboard and drums.

Blair, Tony

British prime minister who, during the first year of office in 1998, said that one of the highlights of his year was meeting Paul McCartney who was, he said, 'a total hero of mine'. He also mentioned that his wife Cherie used to have a picture of Paul by her bed.

Paul was to meet Prime Minister Blair on a number of occasions, although he took him to task during a press conference in London on Thursday 10 June 1999.

He said, 'Tony Blair is wrong to support genetically modified food.

'I can understand what he is doing. He does not want people to panic. But I think he's wrong. I don't think there is enough evidence about the problems that might arise through GM foods. I don't think people are worrying unnecessarily. The last time they got into something like this was BSE when people did swallow it quite literally. This time we have to take time to find out exactly what the implications of GM food are.'

Blake, Peter

A British painter, born in June 1932 in Dartford, Kent.

Art dealer Robert Freeman had introduced Blake to Paul. And Paul later asked Freeman if he could obtain one of Blake's paintings for him. When Paul discussed with Blake what kind of painting he would like, Blake asked Paul what his favourite paintings were. Paul mentioned he liked Sir Edwin Landseer's Monarch Of The Glen and Blake painted him a new version After 'The Monarch Of The Glen' by Sir Edwin Landseer, Peter Blake, 1966. Paul placed it above his fireplace at Cavendish Avenue.

When Paul showed Freeman his ideas for the cover of the Sgt Pepper sleeve, Freeman suggested that they go to Blake's house to discuss it. Following a few meetings, Peter Blake was commissioned to do the sleeve, which was to become the most famous album sleeve of all time.

Paul had also asked Blake if he could give him some painting hints, but Blake forgot about the request.

Peter Blake asked Paul if he could provide a background soundtrack to his 'About Collage' exhibition at the Tate, Liverpool, which ran until 4 March 2001. Paul composed 'Liverpool Sound Collage' and also supplied a picture collage to the exhibition. It was called The World and was featured on the cover of the album. The images included a cow, a dog, a screaming man, a corridor, a murder victim and a portrait and photo of a young girl combined to form the shape of a cross.

Commenting on Paul's audio and visual contribution, Blake said, 'Paul surprised me with his offer to do something for this show. Although he is a keen painter, he had never done a collage before.'

There was also a track on the album called 'Peter Blake 2000' which lasted for 10 minutes and 54 seconds.

Blankit's First Show

A 1985 MPL film short in which Linda relates the story of Blankit, son of Lucky Spot, the Appaloosa pony that she had bought in Texas.

In 1976 when Wings were touring America, they were in Texas on the way to a gig when Paul and Linda saw a horse grazing by the roadside. They were so struck by the animal that they immediately made enquiries and bought it.

The movie shows Blankit at Parkhurst Stables with his trainer Peter Larrigan and follows the horse on his first show in front of judges. Included on the soundtrack are several compositions by Paul including 'The Man', 'The Other Me', 'Sweetest Little Show' and 'Hey Hey', mainly from his album Pipes Of Peace. In one scene Paul acts as an announcer at a dressage meeting when he sings a number called 'All You Horseriders'.

The documentary was first transmitted on BBC 2 on Saturday 12 July 1986. It was repeated on Thursday 6 November and also on Wednesday 10 May 1989 and Monday 14 June 1993.

Blockbuster Entertainment Corp

The company that sponsored the American leg of Paul's New World Tour in 1993. The company took out television, radio and newspaper advertising and promoted the concerts with in-store posters in all their outlets.

Paul's manager Richard Ogden commented, 'Since Paul started touring again in 1989 we have sought a sponsor who is in the same business as we are. We're pleased that Blockbuster fills the role.'

Blue Angel Club, The

A London club, formerly situated at 15 Berkeley Street, which the Beatles used to frequent during the evenings in 1965. It was during one of these visits that Paul first heard the song 'Those Were The Days', which he was later to record with Mary Hopkin.

Blue Jean Bop

A track on the Run Devil Run album lasting 1 minute and 57 seconds. It was penned by Vincent/Levy and originally recorded by Gene Vincent & the Blue Caps in Nashville on 26 June 1956. Paul recorded it at Abbey Road Studios on Friday 5 March 1999. The musicians were Paul on lead vocal and bass guitar, Dave Gilmour on electric guitar, Mick Green on electric guitar and Ian Pake on drums.

The reason why Paul chose this as the first song on the album is that he first heard it when he was at a friend's house near Penny Lane and they played the Vincent album with this track on it. The number immediately brought back memories of those days to him. He also wanted to remain close to the original interpretation of the song.

Blue Moon Of Kentucky

Originally a country hit by Bill Monroe in 1947. Paul was influenced by Elvis Presley's version of the number and first began singing it as a member of the Quarry Men. He included it in his repertoire during his 1972 tour and also featured it on the MTV special Unplugged and on Unplugged (The Official Bootleg).

Blue Swat

One of several numbers Paul recorded in July 1979 during sessions for McCartney II, which weren't used on the album.

Bluebird

A song, 3 minutes and 21 seconds in length, penned by Paul and included on the 1973 album Band On The Run. Paul first performed the number with Linda two years previously on a live radio interview in New York. 'Bluebird' was one of the numbers in the repertoire of the 1975/76 world tour and was also included on the Wings Over America album.

Boardwalk

A restaurant at 18 Greek Street, London. Paul and Linda held an 'End Of The World Tour' party there from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on 12 December 1990.

A contest had been held by MTV in November called 'The Long And Winding Road'. It was the channel's first global contest and five winners from the USA, Europe, Japan, Brazil and Australia would be flown to London to join the end-of-tour party.

MTV announced the American winner with the news story headed 'MTV To Fly Connecticut Woman To London For Special Private Dinner With Paul McCartney' which read: '5 December 1990, New York, NY - MTV: Music Television is sending Stacey Eisenberg of Waterbury, CT to London as the grand prize winner in MTV's 'The Long And Winding Road' contest. Stacey and her guest will be having an unforgettable feast on Wednesday, 12 December with Paul and Linda McCartney, and their band, for an end-of-tour celebration.

'Eisenberg is 29 years old and an assignment editor for ESPN. This private dinner party will include selections from Linda's own vegetarian cookbook.

'"The Long And Winding Road" contest was the first global MTV contest, where viewers from MTV affiliates, US, Europe, Japan, Brazil and Australia were able to enter. From these five corners of the world, five grand prize winners were chosen for this once in a lifetime dinner.'

The Brazilian competition proved interesting as this press release illustrates:

Paul McCartney's biggest fan on earth was in tears last night after sending 29,000 personal entries to a 'Meet McCartney' competition - and losing.

Heart-broken waiter Rosalvo Melo was certain that he'd win the MTV competition - after delivering a mountain of envelopes in a truck.

The competition - run by MTV Brazil - drew 31,000 entries in just three weeks. Plus another 29,000 from Rosalvo.

But - when all the entries went into a giant hat, with Rosalvo standing by with a great chance of winning - he blew it.

'I just can't believe it,' he sobbed.

'I spent all the money I have ever saved on this competition. I must be the unluckiest person in Brazil.'

MTV is running a global contest - with winners coming from South America, Australia, Europe, Japan and the USA as special guests for Paul's private End of Tour Party in Soho, London tonight (Wednesday, 12 December).

The party is to mark the presentation to Paul of the Guinness Book of Records award for the biggest stadium rock show ever -for playing to 184,000 in Rio de Janeiro in April.

MTV Brazil's Deborah Cohen said: 'This is the most incredible example of a super-fan.

'Rosalvo spent his entire fortune - $400 - on envelopes for the competition and called us to say could he bring in his entries because he couldn't afford the stamps.

'We said, "Well, the rules are that you have to post them ... how many entries have you made?" When he said 29,000 we freaked. He ended up driving in an open-back truck to our San Paulo office and dumping them on the pavement.'

But as Rosalvo grew excited at his chance of winning, he was hit by another setback.

'The government rules decree that competition entries must have the PO Box number on them at least,' said Deborah.

'So this guy sits out on the carpet with a mate and a few of our staff who felt sorry for him, frantically writing in the PO Box number.

'In the five hours he had left before the deadline, he got 11,000 entries done.

'So he still had a 25 per cent chance of winning. But another name was drawn out of the hat.

'His face just dropped. I have never seen anyone so sad in my entire life. He was in tears, his friend was in tears, we were in tears.'

Back at work at San Paulo's Crown Plaza Hotel last night, the 23-year-old waiter said: 'It was the biggest dream of my life to meet Paul. I am devastated.'

Cinderella Postscript: On Tuesday, 11 December, Rosalvo went to work as normal and was surprised to find MTV calling on him at the hotel.

'What are you doing tonight, Rosalvo?' Deborah Cohen asked.

'Working,' said Rosalvo.

'No you're not,' said Deborah, 'you're booked on Varig Flight RG760 to London - as Paul McCartney's personal guest. He heard about your hard luck - you're going to the ball after all.'

The Brazilian winner was a twelve-year-old boy, who was accompanied by his father, the others were a young married couple from Australia, two sisters from the Netherlands and a mother and her son from Japan.

The winners had originally been given the impression that they would be among a small group of around 35 people present at Paul's home, with Linda preparing a vegetarian dinner for them.

As it was, the Boardwalk had approximately a hundred people in attendance with the McCartneys and the band, MPL officials, the road crew and personnel connected with the tour, MTV and Capitol/EMI reps, plus a horde of media people due to the fact that Paul was also to be presented with a Guinness Book of Records award that night.

This was reported in an official press release issued the next day headed: 'Christmas Comes Early For McCartney As Paul Is Voted No. 1 Rock Star Of The Year'.

The handout read:

Christmas came early for Paul McCartney last night (Wednesday, 12 December) as he was officially declared the world's top live rock and roll star of 1990.

At a series of celebrations in London, Paul received award after award recognising him as the rock record-breaker of the year.

The music industry's official arbiters revealed that Paul's recent

Get Back World Tour beat all-comers - knocking the Rolling Stones off the perch as only runners-up to McCartney.

All day long, Paul was receiving awards and prizes for the record-shattering, ten-month tour.

The most prestigious of the glittering prizes was the Guinness Book of Records award for the biggest concert in history by a solo star.

Paul set the new rock and roll attendance record on 21 April, when he played to 184,000 fans at Rio de Janeiro's Maracana Stadium - shattering the previous world best of a crowd of 170,000, held by Frank Sinatra.

Also yesterday, America's prestigious Billboard magazine, the rock business's bible, revealed that Paul's USA concerts had also out-sold every other top act. Paul took 5 of Billboard's top 12 concerts of the year - including the No. 1 slot. The Rolling Stones were No. 2 - and Madonna No. 12.

Yet another award followed for McCartney when he received the top honour from the leading British rock magazine, Q.

At the Q Awards ceremony in London, Paul became the first musician to receive the magazine's Merit Award for 'outstanding and continued contribution to the music industry'.

There were more awards still for the 48-year-old former Beatle when he hosted an end-of-tour celebration in Soho last night.

There he received six awards from rock and roll promoters for breaking attendance records during the world tour at Phoenix, Arizona; Berkeley, California; Ames, Iowa; Cleveland, Ohio; Dallas, Texas; and London's Wembley Arena.

Paul confessed he was amazed and delighted that he'd swept the awards board after thirty years in rock.

He said, 'I'm totally flabbergasted. I don't know why I just don't go straight home and put my feet up. I guess I must be in love with the music business.'

Bogey Music

A number penned by Paul and lasting 3 minutes and 3 seconds which was included as a track on the McCartney 11 album.

The song was written after Paul had been introduced to the popular British children's book Fungus The Bogeyman, a most unusual creation by Raymond Briggs.

Bogeydom exists in dank, subterranean tunnels where Fungus lives with his wife Mildew and son Mould in a place of filth and slime.

Boil Crisis

A punk song written by Paul after he'd seen an 'Oil Crisis!' headline in a newspaper. He slightly changed the headline and made a demo disc of the number at his Rude Studios in the summer of 1977.

Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, The

A highly individual eccentric group of ex-art students who formed a band in 1965. They can be seen in the film Magical Mystery Tour performing at Raymond's Revuebar, a Soho strip club. They also played at the Beatles' celebration party at the end of filming, when they were joined by members of the Beach Boys and Fred Lennon, John's dad.

In 1968 the group were having problems recording a single called 'I'm the Urban Spaceman', penned by group member Neil Innes. They approached Paul to produce it for them and he agreed. The saxophonist and group's model maker (they included bizarre models in their stage act) Roger Ruskin Spear, told journalist Chris Welch in an interview: 'We really needed someone we would all respect to produce us, and Paul was asked if he could come down and help us out. We had met him before when we appeared in a scene in Magical Mystery Tour.'

Paul turned up for the session at ChappelPs recording studio in Bond Street. He showed the bass player Joel Druckman what to play but 'he wouldn't play the bass line on the record. In the end he did play some ukulele. He thrashed at it along with Neil Innes and Viv Stanshall, out in the corridor, and you can hear it plucking in the background.'

Joel had brought a number of names over from America, one of which was Apollo С Vermouth, and it was decided that Paul would use it as a pseudonym.

Roger told Chris: 'Of course, it was cleverly leaked to the press that it was really Paul McCartney. He was only with us for a day but it was extraordinary what he achieved.'

The record was issued in Britain in October 1968 and reached No. 5 in the charts, but it didn't make any great impact when it was issued in the States in December. When the album Urban Spaceman, which contained the track, was issued in America in June 1969, Paul's name had replaced the Apollo С Vermouth credit.

Bootlegs

There have been more than 200 different bootleg titles of McCartney/ Wings albums that contain unique material, even more if you include different titles that contain the same recordings.

The first McCartney bootleg was probably one called First Live Show spring '72, which was a recording of a Wings' concert at Hull University on 11 February 1972. The sound quality was appalling. Paul and his company MPL are completely opposed to bootlegs, although in early issues of the official McCartney Fan Club magazine, fans could openly trade bootleg recordings. Paul also mentioned 'Bootlegs' in the song 'Hi, Hi, Hi' and is on record as saying that he recorded ('bootlegged') several concerts that he attended, such as one for Stevie Wonder.

Bootlegs were declared illegal in Britain and are very difficult to obtain. They are mostly bought on mail order from Europe, the USA and Japan. In Britain, bootleg sellers usually deal at small local record fairs that are held almost every day of the week at venues such as pubs and churches. Bootlegs are now banned from most of the major weekend record fairs, although they are frequently found on the internet on such sites as eBay.

A bootleg CD will sell for anything between £12 and £20 and the latest trend is for CD-R copies, which can be obtained much more cheaply.

In the early 1970s a couple of the bootleg labels offered to pay royalties, but this simply alerted their whereabouts and they were quickly shut down. In the 1980s a label called Great Dane in Italy actually operated officially because of different copyright laws in that country -and they paid royalties to the Italian equivalent of the Performing Rights Society. Since all European law has become standardised, Great Dane is once again operating illegally.

It is very hard to trace bootleggers because as soon as one label is shut down another one starts up. Bootlegging tends to be a very small industry, as the nature of the material only appeals to 'die hard' fans and collectors. The authorities would be better off tracking down the manufacturers of 'pirate' copies of the latest top twenty. These crooks seem to be at every market and boot sale and cost the music industry millions. A bootleg collector would already own an artist's entire catalogue, so bootlegs do not affect the music industry at all.

There is a distinction that must be recognised between 'bootleg' (unreleased) recordings and 'pirate' (released) recordings.

Among the best McCartney bootlegs are 'Cold Cuts', 'One Hand Clapping' and 'Pizza And Fairy Tales' as these three titles would be considered essential listening for McCartney fans.

In 1990 Paul discussed a Beatles bootleg series called Ultra Rare Trax.

He said, 'This comes from all the outtakes and all the ... well, the thing is, we were never really very careful. I mean, we went down to EMI to record and when the recording was done, we went home. You know, we didn't watch where they put the tape. So all you needed was one engineer to let a friend in one night, or even take a little copy for himself. You'd be surprised how kind of available that stuff is. You've just got to know where the file is, and get in one evening. It's funny, some guys broke into EMI once to try and get some tapes, but they couldn't find it. They couldn't find all our stuff. I was like amongst all this crazy stuff... We'd have little demo tapes just to check on whether the mix was the mix we wanted you know. And it falls by the wayside. You move house or something ... and a box goes. I think that is where it all comes from.'

Paul actually admitted that he was a bootlegger of other people's concerts. When he was asked if this fitted in with his attitude of prohibiting others from taping his shows he said, 'Yeah, some guy accosted me on the street the other day and said, "Your Company has just sued me for bootlegging. And I just saw you say you like bootlegs." And I said, "yeah, but you got caught".'

Bored As Butterscotch

A poem composed by Roger McGough when he was a member of the Scaffold. Paul read the poem and wrote a tune around it, which his brother Mike, also a member of the Scaffold, played around with. The group recorded the number, but it remained unreleased by them. Eventually, the number appeared on Woman, Mike McGear's (McCartney's) 1972 album issued by Island Records. The track was credited to Mike McGear/A Friend/Roger McGough.

'Woman' was also the title of completely different numbers written separately by John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

Brainsby, Tony

A British publicist who acted as Paul's personal PR for several years in the 1970s. He died in 2000.

Brand New Boots And Panties

A tribute album in honour of the late Ian Dury, issued in Britain on Monday 9 April 2001. It featured every song from Dury's 1977 album New Boots And Panties, with the tracks being performed by several different artists. Paul recorded the Dury number 'I'm Partial To Your Abracadabra' for the album, backed by Dury's original band, the Blockheads.

The ten tracks were: 'Wake Up And Make Love With Me', Sinead O'Connor; 'Sweet Gene Vincent', Robbie Williams; 'I'm Partial To Your Abracadabra', Paul McCartney; 'My Old Man', Madness; 'Billericay Dickie', Billy Bragg & the Blokes; 'Clever Trevor', Wreckless Eric; 'If I Was With A Woman', Cerys Matthews; 'Blockheads', Grant Nicholas; 'Plaistow Patricia', Shane MacGowan; 'Blackmail Man', Keith Allen.

The album featured a cover with artwork by Peter Blake, who designed the Sgt Pepper cover and was issued as a CD on Newboots 2CD, on cassette on Newboots 2MC and in a limited edition on gold vinyl on Newboots 2LP.

Brat Awards

An awards ceremony presented by the New Musical Express. Paul attended the 1 February 2000 ceremony at the Mermaid Theatre, London to accept an award for the Beatles as 'The Best Band Ever'.

Paul thanked John, George, Ringo and God and said, 'I'm delighted. I would much rather attend a ceremony with awards voted for by the readers. I came here because it was the readers' choice, unlike the Brits, which is chosen by a committee. With these awards, you know what's going on. With the others, you don't know what's happening backstage politically.

'I was told that we had won by a landslide, so that's why I wanted to come here today. The Beatles were a good mix of people. We were the coolest. There was a time when I wondered whether I would ever feel like playing again, but I am enjoying it as much now as I did when the Beatles first started.'

Bread

A hit comedy series on BBC 1 TV, penned by Carla Lane. Carla was a friend of the McCartneys and talked Linda into appearing in an episode of the series. Paul and Linda travelled to Liverpool and filmed there on Sunday 26 June and Monday 27 June 1988, with Paul appearing as Linda's driver. Some additional filming took place in front of a live audience at the BBC TV Centre in Wood Lane, London on Sunday 11 September. The episode was first shown on BBC 1 on Sunday 30 October 1988. George Harrison mistakenly watched the BBC show Howard's Way, and missed Paul's appearance on Bread. He said, 'I'd never seen the show before, and I just couldn't figure out how Paul was going to fit in with all these posh people on boats.'

Breakfast Blues

An unreleased track recorded during the Wild Life sessions. Paul played the number when he appeared on WBCS-FM, the New York radio station, on Wednesday 15 December 1971.

Breakfast Time

An early-morning BBC 1 TV programme. Paul appeared on the show on Thursday 17 July 1986 in an interview which had been recorded the previous day at MPUs offices in Soho Square, London. Selina Scott conducted the interview. The interview was 14 minutes in length and was split into two sections, separated by the 8 o'clock news bulletin. The first part saw Paul discussing the subject of hard drugs. During the second half of the programme he discussed his appearance on the Prince's Trust Gala, his making of the 'Press' video, and talked about his movie Give My Regards To Broad Street, of which, when considering the critical mauling it received, he said 'I didn't like it that much either.'

Breakfast With Frost

An interview with Paul by David Frost that took place at the MPL offices in London on Friday 28 November 1997. It was pre-recorded and broadcast by the BBC on Sunday 7 December 1997.

During the interview, Paul revealed that during Linda's struggle with cancer he talked to God. He commented: 'It makes you talk to it, or God, or It, a little more often. There's a thing in alcoholism - we have a few friends who are reformed alcoholics - called the 12-step programme, and that's very helpful. When everything is on top of you, and you've really got nowhere to turn, hand it over, give it all up and say "This is too much for me, I'm going crazy, I'm crying, I'm weeping, I'm frightened." Linda and I both found that very useful, the idea that there is someone to hand it over to. I think that unless you're very religious you live your life not thinking there's anyone you can hand it over to and I think, you know, that was quite a blessing for us to find.'

When asked if he believed in life after death, he said: 'When we were kids we always used to say, "OK, whoever dies first get a message through." Stuart Sutcliffe was the first to die, and I never had a message, and I don't think any of us did. Then when John died, I thought, well maybe we'll get a message from John. So I don't know, I don't know if you can get a message back (after death). Maybe you live but there's no postal service.'

On the subject of drugs Paul mentioned that he has called for the legalisation of cannabis and said that he favoured decriminalisation of the drug. He also recalled the time he spent in jail in Japan after being found in possession of marijuana and said that he would advise people not to take drugs. When his children asked him about drugs he said, 'I always say to them ... if you want my advice, you know, don't do any.'

Paul also revealed that John Lennon was not to blame for the breakup of the Beatles and that John wasn't as acerbic in private as he appeared to be in public, in public, his front would come down. I never needed it, because my family in Liverpool were quite comfortable, so I was always comfortable around people. But John was always having to fight. He had this acerbic wit, so they call it, as a defence mechanism. When we were in private, he had no need of that. I could just as often be the baddie in a situation, and he could be a real soft sweetie, you know. He took everyone by surprise there.'

He also said, 'When we got to America, the first question was, "Who does the. words, and who does the music?" Everyone had always done it like that. And we said, "Well, he does them some days, and I do them others. It depends, really, we'll swap around."'

Returning to the subject of John, he commented, it's not that John's home life wasn't happy: it was the circumstances - not living with his dad, then his uncle dying, and then his mum being run over when she'd come to visit him and his auntie, who was a lovely lady called Mimi. They were more middle-class than any of us other Beatles had ever met. We thought of John as quite posh. Later, the image was - oh, the Working Class Hero! Power To The People - which he was, and which he believed. But his upbringing was quite posh compared to us. We'd lived in council houses, and they owned their own house. How posh can you get?!

'Aunt Mimi used to take the mickey out of me. She'd say, "Your little friend's here, John," and I'd say, "Thank you" - that was me. But she didn't like George at all - she thought John was scraping the bottom of the barrel there, for some reason.'

When Frost asked Paul who was responsible for the Beatles splitting up, he said, 'I think we'd come full circle, I think we all sort of knew it.

There wasn't really anywhere else to go, except what I suggested, which was to go back to square one, and go out and work little clubs. I thought that might re-energise us, give us an idea of where it was really at - which was the four of us playing music. But to blame any one person, I don't think that's right. I think we all shared whatever blame there was going round.'

Bridge On The River Suite

An instrumental number. While recording 'Country Dreamer', Paul began to play this to get the feel of the 'Country Dreamer' song by playing the guitar for five minutes before starting on the song. Alan Parsons, the engineer on the session, liked the instrumental and edited it together. He then gave it to Paul who overdubbed it with bass, drums, synthesiser and rhythm guitar while recording in Paris in November 1973. Then, during the Nashville sessions on 11 July 1974, Paul and Tony Dorsey added a horn arrangement played by Bill Puitt on sax, George Tidwell and Barry McDonald on trumpets, Norman Ray on baritone sax, Dale Quillen on trombone and Thaddeus Richard on a sax solo. The number, 3 minutes and 12 seconds in length, was then issued as the flipside of 'Walking In The Park With Eloise' by the Country Hams. It was also issued as a bonus track on the 1993 re-release of the Wings At The Speed Of Sound album.

Britton, Geoff

A drummer and karate specialist, born on 1 August 1943. Geoff had represented Britain in the first karate international tournament in Japan and held a black belt. He had also been in rock bands such as the Wild Angels and East of Eden and had turned down jobs with Uriah Heep and Curved Air.

Geoff was teaching karate at Maidstone when he was informed by one of his pupils, Clifford Davies, former manager of Fleetwood Mac, that Paul was holding auditions in London for a Wings drummer to replace Denny Seiwell.

On Friday 26 April 1974 Geoff applied and was given an audition at the Albery Theatre, St Martin's Lane, London. There were 52 drummers at that initial audition.

He was to comment, 'You should have seen the people there. It was like a Who's Who of the music industry. But I was a bit disappointed actually because I thought it would be a chance to play with McCartney, but they'd hired session men to play with us instead. Wings just sat out in front in the audience and watched. I wasn't really nervous. I'm never nervous, although I might be a bit apprehensive. We had to play about four numbers - some of it quite advanced stuff for an ordinary rock and roll number. Anyway, I got up there and did my stuff.'

He was to perform at a second audition at a ballroom in Camden and was to add, 'A few days later I got this phone call and they said I

was on the short list of five, and this time it would be Paul and the group playing. That time I had a twenty per cent chance, yet I felt it was more hopeless than ever. I met Paul and the group and they were really nice. After that I got a phone call saying they'd narrowed it down to two geezers. Each of us spent a whole day with the group and had dinner with them.'

On Thursday 16 May, after the third audition, he received confirmation that he'd got the job. He said, 'One day the phone rang. It was Paul. He said, "Well, we've decided," and he was mucking about, geeing me up. In the end I said, "Well, who's it gonna be?" and he said, "You got the job".'

Geoff told Melody Maker, 'Working with McCartney is such an opportunity, such an eye-opener that you just can't afford to blow it. You can learn so much from him.'

Unfortunately, there were frictions within the band and Geoff didn't get on well with either Jimmy McCulloch or Denny Laine. During recordings in New Orleans the following year he was sacked.

He'd initially been sacked when they were in Nashville, reportedly for fighting with McCulloch. He had also blotted his copybook by telling the British music press that he was the only health nut in the group and didn't use drugs like the others. He also complained that when he'd joined Wings he'd been promised royalties in the order of 'telephone figures', but had only received his scale wages, plus session fees and bonuses.

Recalling the time, he said, 'I was so depressed. I dreaded going to New Orleans with them. It should have been the happiest time of my life. But I was miserable and hated it. There was no sincerity in the band and every day it was a fight for survival, a fight to re-establish yourself. Denny could be very cruel. He and Jimmy were supposed to be close moochers who would go out boozing together and yet, when the chips were down, he tried to get Jimmy shafted out with a knife in the back. He's a bastard. I should have chinned him. I regret it now.

Britton was later to call Rolling Stone magazine to inform them that the Melody Maker had misquoted him. He said, 'They said I hate Jimmy McCulloch's guts. What I really said is that he's a nasty little cunt.'

On his return to Britain following his participation in part of the Venus And Mars recordings, he said, 'I completed half the tracks on the album and then a local drummer called Joe English did the rest.' He added, 'It's a funny band, Wings. From a musician's point of view, it's a privilege to do it. From a career point of view, it's madness! No matter how good you are, you're always in the shadow of Paul.'

Joe English replaced him.

Other groups Britton was also a member of include Gun, Rough Diamond, Manfred Mann's Earthband, Raphael Ravenscroft and Key.

Broadcast, The

Recorded during the Back To The Egg sessions at Lympne Castle in Kent in September 1978. The number was meant to give the effect of a multitude of radio stations weaving in and out of the track and features the poems 'The Sport Of Kings' by Ian Hay and 'The Little Man' by John Galsworthy, both read by Harold Margery.

David Bowie was to say that 'The Broadcast' was his favourite number on the LP.

Broadway Avenue

Situated in Wallasey, L45, 'over the water' from Liverpool. The McCartney family lived in No. 92 for almost two years in 1942 and 1943. Jim and Mary McCartney had moved into the small house with baby Paul, but decided to move back to Liverpool after Mike McCartney was born, because being near the docks the street suffered damage in some of the worst air raids.

Brolly, Brian

The managing director of MPL Communications Ltd and Paul's business manager for five years from 1974 to 1978 when he resigned. He gave no public statement as to the reason for his resignation but later became a director of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Really Useful Company. After leaving the Really Useful Company he formed a partnership with Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson.

Brother Paul

A disc inspired by the 'Paul is Dead' rumour. Issued in America on Silver Fox 121 in 1969, it was by Billy Shears and the All Americans and had 'Message To Seymour' as the flip.

Brown Eyed Handsome Man

A track from the Run Devil Run album lasting 2 minutes and 27 seconds. It was penned by Chuck Berry and recorded at Abbey Road Studios on Friday 5 March 1999 with Paul on lead vocal, bass guitar, percussion and electric guitar, Dave Gilmour on electric guitar, Mick Green on electric guitar, Peter Wingfield on piano, Ian Paice on percussion and Chris Hall on accordion.

Paul felt that the accordion sound gave the number a Cajun feel. Buddy Holly's version of the number is well known, but Paul liked Berry's original version, particularly the humour in the lyrics and his mention of 'Milo De Venus' when referring to the Venus de MHo.

Brown, Bryan

An Australian actor whose films include Breaker Morant, Kim and Tai Pan.

Brown has also starred in a number of television epics such as A Town Like Alice and The Thorn Birds (during the filming of which he met British actress Rachel Ward whom he would later marry).

Paul was looking for an Australian actor to portray his manager in Give My Regards To Broad Street and picked Brown, commenting: 'I had the idea to take some of the elements from my life and slightly exaggerate or change the facts wherever necessary. So, Stephen Shrimpton, mild-mannered Australian manager of MPL in London, became Steve Stanley, tough, outspoken Aussie with a sarcastic streak.'

Bruce McMouse Show, The

In 1974, Paul worked out several ideas for movies that he wanted to make utilising the film arm of his MPL organisation. One of them was to be a television special called The Bruce McMouse Show, a documentary of the 1972 Wings tour of Europe that would use actual film clips intercut with animation relating the adventures of a family of mice (Bruce, his wife Yvonne and kids Soily, Swooney and Swat) who lived under the stage.

It was a 50-minute film directed by Barry Chattington. The project was never shown although Paul, in a 1975 interview, mentioned that he was 'just finishing a children's thing we've had for a couple of years now'.

Brung To Ewe By

A 12" promotional one-sided disc to promote the Ram album, which was issued in 1971 on SPRO-6210. The disc was sent to radio stations in the US and was accompanied by two notes, one from McCartney Productions, the other from Paul and Linda.

The message from McCartney Productions read: The enclosed disc contains fifteen different 30-second and 60-second introductions to Ram album tracks. These spots were recorded in the studio by Paul and Linda during their work on Ram. This disc is an exclusive limited pressing for radio stations only. We hope you will use and enjoy them. If you have any questions or comments, please contact me at McCartney Productions, 257 Central Park West, New York City, 212-787-3811.

'Regards, Diana Brooks, McCartney Productions Inc.'

The message from Paul and Linda read:

'Dear DJ,

'Here are some introductions you might like to use before Ram album tracks.

'We made them while we were doing Ram and they're designed to play straight into an album track, or out of it for that matter.

'Anyway, if you'd enjoy using them, we'd enjoy having you. Ram on!

'Paul and Linda McCartney.'

The spots included jingles, the sound of Paul and Linda bleating like sheep and spoof interviews.

B-Side To Seaside

The flipside of 'Seaside Woman', the Suzy And The Redstripes single.

The number was recorded by Paul and Linda at Abbey Road Studios on Wednesday 16 March 1977. Paul produced and the engineer was Mark Vigars. Paul played drums, Mellotron, electric guitars, Moog, congas and banjo, in addition to providing backing vocals.

'B-Side To Seaside' was also included on the Wide Prairie album.

Burfitt, Eddy

He is now the Reverend Eddy Burfitt. The Catholic priest had attended Liverpool Institute with Paul. He recalled that he and Paul had a habit of turning up late for school and said that when they found the gates closed they went through the office and mingled with the crowd. This came to an end when they were caught rushing in one day.

He also remembered that another pupil called Neil Harding actually recorded Paul singing 'Pick A Bale Of Cotton'. Burfitt, Harding, Baz Evans and another pupil provided four-part harmony.

Burfitt also remembered George Harrison being a very popular pupil, but also a rebel who would wear a fluorescent tie instead of the standard school tie.

Butlin's

British holiday camps, originally launched by Billy Butlin.

They were particularly popular in the immediate post-war years when few Britons travelled abroad for their holidays. The camps had lots of entertainment provided with theatres and ballrooms, bars, talent competitions and variety shows.

In 1957, the McCartneys went to Butlin's in Filey for their holiday, possibly because their cousin Bett Robbins and her husband Mike were redcoats at the camp. While they were there, Paul and Mike were encouraged to enter a talent competition in the Gaiety Theatre there where they performed 'Bye Bye Love'.

The camps also had 'Rock And Calypso' ballrooms where young groups could perform. Rory Storm & The Hurricanes, with drummer Ringo Starr, were to appear at Butlin's holiday camps.

Paul wrote a letter to Butlin's early in 1960 trying to get work for the group.

'I should like to apply for an engagement at your holiday camp. The group is known as the Beatles and is led by John Lennon. The boys, whose ages range from eighteen to twenty, have a good deal of experience behind them (Ardwick Hippodrome, Manchester, Liverpool Empire, many local ballrooms and clubs too numerous to mention) and, as they have been working together for four years, have acquired three very important things - competence, confidence and continuity. I am sure that the group will completely fill your requirements.

'Yours sincerely, 'JP McCartney.'

Bye Bye Love

The Everly Brothers hit record. This was the first number Paul ever performed in front of an audience, together with his brother Mike. The occasion took place at a Butlin's holiday camp in Filey, Yorkshire in August, 1957.

Jim McCartney had taken his two sons to the camp for a holiday and Mike was nursing a broken arm from an earlier accident.

Bett, one of their cousins, worked at the camp and her husband Mike Robbins was host of a singing contest sponsored by the People newspaper. 'Cash prizes of over £5,000 must be won', was the slogan on posters for the nationwide contest in which various heats were taking place.

For the Filey audition Paul, who had brought his guitar with him, entered both himself and his brother Mike, although he hadn't informed Mike about it.

They arrived at the Gaiety Theatre in the camp and Robbins announced, 'Ladies and gentlemen, for the first time on any stage, a really warm welcome for - the McCartney Brothers.'

The 13-year-old Mike was surprised, slightly annoyed, but agreed to get up on stage and sing 'Bye Bye Love', which the two had often rehearsed together at home. Paul then sang 'Long Tall Sally', but they failed the audition because of their tender age, which rendered them ineligible.

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