The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present - Paperback

by Paul McCartney (Author), Paul Muldoon (Introduction by), Paul Muldoon (Editor)

Finally in paperback and featuring seven new song commentaries, the #1 New York Times bestseller celebrates the creative life and unparalleled musical genius of Paul McCartney.

Spanning sixty-four years--from his early days in Liverpool, through the historic decade of The Beatles, to Wings and his solo career--Paul McCartney's The Lyrics revolutionized the way artists write about music. An unprecedented "triumph" (Times UK), this handsomely designed volume pairs the definitive texts of over 160 songs with first-person commentaries on McCartney's life, revealing the diverse circumstances in which songs were written; how they ultimately came to be; and the remarkable, yet often delightfully ordinary, people and places that inspired them. The Lyrics also includes:

- A personal foreword by McCartney
- An unprecedented range of songs, from beloved standards like "Band on the Run" to new additions "Day Tripper" and "Magical Mystery Tour"
- Over 160 images from McCartney's own archives

Edited and introduced by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Paul Muldoon, The Lyrics is the definitive literary and visual record of one of the greatest songwriters of all time.

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From his early Liverpool days, through the historic decade of The Beatles, to Wings and his long solo career, The Lyrics pairs the definitive texts of Paul McCartney's songs with first-person commentaries on his life and music. Spanning two alphabetically arranged volumes, these commentaries reveal how the songs came to be and the people who inspired them: his devoted parents, Mary and Jim; his songwriting partner, John Lennon; his "Golden Earth Girl," Linda Eastman; his wife, Nancy McCartney; and even Queen Elizabeth, among many others. Here are the origins of "Let It Be," "Lovely Rita," "Yesterday," and "Mull of Kintyre," as well as McCartney's literary influences, including Shakespeare, Lewis Carroll, and Alan Durband, his high-school English teacher.

With images from McCartney's personal archives--handwritten texts, paintings, and photographs, many previously unseen--The Lyrics, spanning sixty-four years, becomes the definitive literary and visual record of one of the greatest songwriters of all time.