Happy Birthday, Paul!

Sir Paul McCartney is 70 years ago today.

One of the greatest songwriters and singers in rock and roll, Sir Paul McCartney turns 70 today (June 18). With the Beatles and later as a solo performer and bandleader, McCartney created some of the best (and worst) music in rock and roll history. He isn’t as cool today as he was in the 1960s or in the early part of the 1970s, but even at the twilight of his career McCartney is still a formidable talent.

In 1965 McCartney wrote “Yesterday,” which the Guinness Book of World Records says is the most covered song ever. It has been covered more than 3,000 times and in the 20th century alone the song was performed more than 7 million times.

Here you have a handful of tunes to represent Sir Paul’s long and fruitful career. McCartney may be rather unfairly judged by his output over recent years, but most of this shit rocks. Happy birthday!

MP3: “Yesterday” by Frank Sinatra

MP3: “Goodbye” by Mary Hopkin

MP3: “Blackbird” by Billy Preston

MP3: “Hey Jude” by Wilson Pickett

MP3: “Maybe I’m Amazed” by The Faces

MP3: “Smile Away” by The Krayolas

MP3: “Let It Be” by Aretha Franklin

MP3: “Michelle” by Iggy Pop

MP3: “On The Wings Of A Nightingale” by the Everly Brothers

MP3: “All Together Now” by Jim White

MP3: “Come And Get It” by Badfinger

MP3: “Give Ireland Back To The Irish” (alternate version) by Wings

MP3: “Every Night” (live) by Wings

MP3: “Scrambled Eggs” by Jimmy Fallon (feat. Paul McCartney)

MP3: “I Saw Her Standing There (Take 9)” by The Beatles

MP3: “The Fool On The Hill (Take 4)” by The Beatles

MP3: “Yesterday” (live, 1965) by The Beatles

MP3: “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” (live, 1989) by Paul McCartney

Je n’ai rien appris, Part 2 – More foreign language fun

The Beach Boys in Japan, 1966.

More versions of English/American hits done in other languages by the original artists. Now, there are TONS of hit songs that were remade for European and Japanese music fans – the Beatles’ remakes alone could fill a large warehouse – but we thought we’d focus here on the versions cut by the people who made the hits. I would give anything to see how long it took Johnny Cash to lay down German versions of his songs.

Full disclosure: “Santo Domingo” by Wanda Jackson, was actually originally recorded only in German in 1965. She cut a handful of German-language songs that were eventually collected on an album, Made In Germany.

MP3: “Le Temps des Fleurs” (Those Were The Days) by Mary Hopkin (French)

MP3: “Lowdown” (live, sung in Japanese) by Chicago

MP3: “Santo Domingo” by Wanda Jackson (German)

MP3: “My Cherie Amor” (Italian version) by Stevie Wonder

MP3: “Wer kennt den Weg” (I Walk The Line) by Johnny Cash (German)

MP3: “Sie Liebt Dich” (She Loves You) by the Beatles (German)

MP3: “L’amore Verrà” (You Can’t Hurry Love) by the Supremes (Italian)

MP3: “Call Me” (Spanish version) by Blondie

MP3: “96 Tears” (en Español) by ? and the Mysterians

MP3: “Waterloo” (French version) by ABBA

MP3: “Wie Schön Das Ist” (How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You) by Marvin Gaye (German)

MP3: “Green Circles” (Italian version) by the Small Faces

MP3: “Downtown” (German version) by Petula Clark

MP3: “Gira Gira” (Reach Out I’ll Be There) by the Four Tops (Italian)

Happy Birthday, Paul!

One of the greatest songwriters and singers in rock and roll, Paul McCartney turns 67 on Thursday (June 18).  With the Beatles and later as a solo performer and bandleader, McCartney created some of the best (and worst) music in rock and roll history.  He isn’t as cool today as he was in the 1960s, or in the early part of the 1970s, but even at the twilight of his career McCartney is still a formidable talent.  His album Electric Arguments, released as The Fireman late last year, was considered to be one of the year’s best and a return to form for McCartney.  A collaboration with fellow legend Bob Dylan may be in the works – if it happens, that would be another milestone in an incredible career.

In 1965 McCartney wrote “Yesterday,” which the Guinness Book of World Records says is the most covered song ever.  It has been covered more than 3,000 times and in the 20th century alone the song was performed more than 7 million times.  We thought about doing a marathon with different covers of one song (as we did a few weeks ago on Bob Dylan’s birthday) but thought it would be more fun to just dig up songs from throughout McCartney’s career.  So after the jump you have some of McCartney’s best music as performed by others, as well as a few versions of “Yesterday.”  McCartney may be rather unfairly judged by his output over recent years, but most of this shit rocks.  Happy birthday!

With A Little Help For Their Friends

Between 1963 and 1969 the songwriting team of Lennon/McCartney produced 21 songs for other artists, who took some of them to the upper reaches of the British pop charts.  These songs were never officially recorded or released by the Beatles, although some “bootleg” versions have surfaced over the years. 

In the early days most of these artists who recorded Beatles originals were artists signed by Brian Epstein, the Beatles’ manager.  Usually Epstein gave away “leftover” songs to these artists, most of these were written by McCartney alone.  Some of these were big hits and “World Without Love,” by Peter & Gordon, was a No. 1 U.K. and U.S. smash in 1964.

Cilla Black, a British TV star of the time, had a couple of hits with McCartney-penned songs, as did Mary Hopkin, who recorded for the Beatles’ Apple Records in the late 1960s.  Billy J. Kramer & the Dakotas had four U.K. hits with McCartney songs.  Lennon, for his part, wrote songs for British group The Fourmost.