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Paul McCartney writes recollections of 154 of his songs in his two volume mega memoir, “The Lyrics.” The books come in a gorgeous box set and are released on Tuesday.
So many hits, more than anyone: “Yesterday,” “Let it Be,” “Hey Jude,” and on and on. So what’s his favorite? Or, in English, favourite?
McCartney has said in years past that he listens to the most to “Let it Be.” He’s joked around about that single’s B Side, “I Know Your Name (Look Up My Number” as his best. But that wasn’t serious.
In “The Lyrics,” McCartney settled on one song as his all time favourite: “Here, There, and Everywhere.”
“Now when I sing it, I look back at it and think, ‘The boy’s not bad.'”
The Beatle says in coming up with the lyrics, he wanted to come up with a preamble a la Cole Porter. Hence the opening couplet: “To lead a better life/I need my love to be here.”
He says that the song is directly influenced by the Beach Boys’ “God Only Knows,” which he thinks is ironic since that group’s album, “Pet Sounds,” was influenced by the Beatles’ “Revolver.”
There are so many insights and revelations in “The Lyrics,” it’s overwhelming. He writes that his favourite line from the song is “Changing my life with a wave of her hand.” He says: “I look at that line and wonder where it came from? What was it?”
Earlier in “The Lyrics,” McCartney writes in his introduction of the mystery surrounding the Beatles’ recordings, compositions, and successes. He says he’s happy to let it remain a mystery in the end.
