Album This song officially appears on the Driving Rain Official album.
Timeline This song was officially released in 2001
This song was recorded during the following studio sessions:
Feb 17, 2001
Getting Better All the Time - The complete interview - live and uncut!
November 2001 • From Reader's Digest
November 2001 • From paulmccartney.com
“She’s Given Up Talking” is a track from Paul McCartney’s 2001 album “Driving Rain“.
Recorded on 17th February 2001 onto 16-track analogue tape then loaded into Logic Audio for overdubs. Paul played Martin acoustic guitar and sang the lead vocal then overdubbed Hofner bass with a fuzz effect and his own Ludwig drum kit. Abe played Roland Handsonic electronic percussion. Rusty played Gibson SG electric guitar through a Leslie pedal and overdubbed other guitar parts. Gabe played Hammond Organ. David overdubbed electric guitar.
From the liner notes of the album, and from paulmccartney.com
‘She’s Given Up Talking’ was about someone I know whose kid had gone to school and wouldn’t talk all day that she was in school. For a year she wouldn’t talk at school and his idea of her giving up talking seemed like a good title to me. I wrote the song a couple of years ago; when I was on holiday in Jamaica and remembered this story of this girl who wouldn’t talk to the teachers or anything – which I ended up thinking that was a pretty good strategy for school, I wish I’d have thought of that. Of course I would have just got caned, they were wise to that kind of shit, my school. Then I hastily put together the middle of ‘She’s Given Up Talking’ here in LA. One of the fun things about working here was because I hadn’t told anyone what we were going to do and hadn’t played them any demos, and instead came in and just said ‘right, we’re going to do this song,’ doing that gave me a little freedom and I didn’t have to finish the songs before ten minutes before the session. I’d run upstairs to the lounge above the studio and finish it quickly. I knew what I wanted for the middle – that when she gets home she talks a lot – so I just finished it fast.
Paul McCartney – From “The Driving Rain interview” published on paulmccartney.com, November 2001
She's given up talking
Don't say a word
Even in the classroom
Not a dickie bird
Unlike other children
She's seen and never heard
She's given up talking
Don't say a word
You see her in the playground
Standing on her own
Everybody wonders
Why she's all alone
Someone made her angry
Someone's got her scared
She's given up talking
Don't say a word
Ah but when she comes home
It's yap-a-yap-yap
Words are running freely
Like the water from a tap
Her brothers and her sisters
Can't get a word in edgeways
But when she's back at school again
She goes into a daze
Ah but when she comes home
It's yap-a-yap-yap
Words are running freely
Like the water from a tap
Her brothers and her sisters
Can't get a word in edgeways
But when she's back at school again
She goes into a daze
She's given up talking
Don't say a word
Even in the classroom
Not a dickie bird
Unlike other children
She's seen and never heard
She's given up talking
Don't say a word
She's given up talking
She don't say a word
Don't say a word
Official album • Released in 2001
4:57 • Studio version • A
Paul McCartney : Acoustic guitar, Bass, Drums, Executive producer, Vocals Rusty Anderson : Electric guitar, Leslie pedal Abe Laboriel Jr. : Electronic percussion Gabe Dixon : Hammond organ David Kahne : Electric guitar, Mixing engineer, Producer Mark Dearnley : Mixing engineer, Recording engineer Jaime Sickora : Assistant engineer Kevin Mills : Second assistant engineer
Session Recording: Feb 17, 2001 • Studio Henson Recording Studio, Los Angeles
Driving Rain - Ultimate Archive Collection
Unofficial album • Released in 2015
4:57 • Studio version • A
Paul McCartney : Acoustic guitar, Bass, Drums, Executive producer, Vocals Rusty Anderson : Electric guitar, Leslie pedal Abe Laboriel Jr. : Electronic percussion Gabe Dixon : Hammond organ David Kahne : Electric guitar, Mixing engineer, Producer Mark Dearnley : Mixing engineer, Recording engineer Jaime Sickora : Assistant engineer Kevin Mills : Second assistant engineer
Session Recording: Feb 17, 2001 • Studio Henson Recording Studio, Los Angeles
Paul McCartney has never played this song in concert.
The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present
"She's Given Up Talking" is one of the songs featured in the book "The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present," published in 2021. The book explores Paul McCartney's early Liverpool days, his time with the Beatles, Wings, and his solo career. It pairs the lyrics of 154 of his songs with his first-person commentary on the circumstances of their creation, the inspirations behind them, and his current thoughts on them.
Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs (Vol. 2) 1990-2012
This new book by Luca Perasi traces Paul McCartney's post-Beatles output from 1990 to 2012 in the form of 250 song entries, filled with details about the recordings, stories behind the sessions and musical analysis. His pop albums, his forays into classical and avant-garde music, his penchant for covering old standards: a complete book to discover how these languages cross-pollinate and influence each other.
The second volume in a series that has established itself as a unique guide to take the reader on a journey into the astonishing creativity of Paul McCartney.
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Corey Spaulding • 6 years ago
it is called selective mutism - my child suffers from it and it was pure hell with the schools.
Mark Adams • 6 years ago
Thank you for this, probably not a great idea to listen to this while at work as I am now in bits. It is like you have written a song specifically about my little girl. Thank you, I have forward this to my family members. I should say there are many out there with Selective Mutism and this no doubt speaks to the other parents as well. We can all shed a collective tear.
The PaulMcCartney Project • 6 years ago
@corey, @mark, thanks you for sharing your personal experiences - great if Paul's song can put words on this, and share awareness / potentially bring some kind of relief as well.
sandyneedsmusic • 5 years ago
Thank you for that song. As child i was suffering selektive mutism, too. By the way, it was music that helped me overcome!!
Erika Tobin • 3 years ago
@thepaulmccartneyproject This song makes it seem like talking for this little girl is a choice, which it is not. SM happens because of paralyzing anxiety. My 5 daughter has SM and its been a nightmare for us all, not "a strategy" to get out of things at school.
The PaulMcCartney Project • 3 years ago
Thanks Erika for sharing your experience - yes, I would imagine that "strategy" was not a well-chosen word when Paul explained the context of this song.
JoAnn • 2 years ago
This describes my granddaughter to a tee. How did you nail this. I never heard of it before now... TY...people should be made aware...
JoAnn Murphy • 2 years ago
My granddaughter to a tee, Otherwise a very bright delightful child.. People should be made aware, that it is real....
