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Released in 2020

Winter Bird

Written by Paul McCartney • Instrumental

Last updated on December 21, 2020

Album This song officially appears on the McCartney III Official album.

Timeline This song was officially released in 2020

Timeline This song was written, or began to be written, in 2020, when Paul McCartney was 78 years old)

Master album

Related session

This song was recorded during the following studio sessions:

Related songs

Related interviews

“Winter Bird” is a track from 2020 album “McCartney III“. This 25-second-long instrumental was conceived as an intro to the latest song of the album, “When Winter Comes“. It also evolves into a longer track, “Long Tailed Winter Bird“, which became the album opener.

From the “McCartney III” press release:

Recorded earlier this year in Sussex, McCartney III is mostly built from live takes of Paul on vocals and guitar or piano, overdubbing his bass playing, drumming, etc. atop that foundation. The process first sparked when Paul returned to an unreleased track from the early 90s, ’When Winter Comes’ (co-produced by George Martin). Paul crafted a new passage for the song, giving rise to album opener ’Long Tailed Winter Bird’ — while ’When Winter Comes’, featuring its new 2020 intro ’Winter Bird’, became the new album’s grand finale. 

From Universal Music – Calling all musicians – McCartney III is almost here! Teasers are popping up in cities across the globe, sharing excerpts of the sheet music from each song.We would love to see your takes on each song. Join in the fun by recording your own version! – In Rio

Officially appears on

See all official recordings containing “Winter Bird”

Live performances

Paul McCartney has never played this song in concert.

Paul McCartney writing

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L • 3 years ago

very nice

Paul is the very best

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