"Tug Of War" sessions at AIR Studios, Montserrat
February 2 till March 3, 1981 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Tug Of War
Recording studio: AIR Studios, Montserrat
Album Feb 23, 1981 • "The McCartney Interview" by Paul McCartney released in the UK
Session Feb 24, 1981 • Recording "Get It"
Session Feb 25, 1981 • Recording "My Old Friend"
Session Feb 28, 1981 • Recording "Ebony And Ivory"
Session Mar 01, 1981 • Recording "What's That You're Doing", "Tug Of War"
AlbumSome of the songs worked on during this session were first released on the "Go Cat Go!" Official album
Carl got out his guitar while we were on the [Mike Batt’s yacht in Montserrat], and I said, ‘Oh great, yeah, play that. Sing us your new song!’
So he starts. ‘On the isle of Montserrat /Though I never shall forget …” and then, silence. Carl blanks it. He’s forgotten the words. Having said ‘I never shall forget’, then he did! Forget the next line. Totally blanked it! We were rolling on the floor of the boat … Oh Carl! Of course, he recalled it all in due course, but that’s the moment I remember.
Paul McCartney, from the Tug Of War Archive Collection, 2015
Written by Carl Perkins
Recording
Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs (Vol. 1) 1970-1989
With 25 albums of pop music, 5 of classical – a total of around 500 songs – released over the course of more than half a century, Paul McCartney's career, on his own and with Wings, boasts an incredible catalogue that's always striving to free itself from the shadow of The Beatles. The stories behind the songs, demos and studio recordings, unreleased tracks, recording dates, musicians, live performances and tours, covers, events: Music Is Ideas Volume 1 traces McCartney's post-Beatles output from 1970 to 1989 in the form of 346 song sheets, filled with details of the recordings and stories behind the sessions. Accompanied by photos, and drawing on interviews and contemporary reviews, this reference book draws the portrait of a musical craftsman who has elevated popular song to an art-form.
Eight Arms to Hold You: The Solo Beatles Compendium
We owe a lot to Chip Madinger and Mark Easter for the creation of those session pages, but you really have to buy this book to get all the details!
Eight Arms To Hold You: The Solo Beatles Compendium is the ultimate look at the careers of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr beyond the Beatles. Every aspect of their professional careers as solo artists is explored, from recording sessions, record releases and tours, to television, film and music videos, including everything in between. From their early film soundtrack work to the officially released retrospectives, all solo efforts by the four men are exhaustively examined.
As the paperback version is out of print, you can buy a PDF version on the authors' website
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