Paul McCartney said that making songs for the Beatles and the Wings was like writing a comedy. He cited the use of a “wacky” instrument on The Beatles’ “We Can Work It Out” as an example of this. Afterwards, Paul revealed what he thought of the Beatles and Wings’ willingness to experiment.
Paul McCartney revealed what it was like making Beatles songs with producer George Martin
During a 2002 interview with Hot Press, Paul discussed working with Beatles producer George Martin. “Well, you know, me and John would be arriving at 10:30 in the morning,” he said. “We would show George, Ringo and George Martin what the song was.”
Paul revealed how he felt about this situation in retrospect. “And I suddenly thought, ‘Cheek him!'” he said. “You know, you’d think George or Ringo would call us and say, ‘Give us a hint,’ you know, but it felt like we knew each other pretty well and that was just the accepted way it fell. .”
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Paul McCartney Says George Martin Tried A ‘Wacky Idea’ On The Beatles’ ‘We Can Work It Out’
Paul cited “We Can Work It Out” as an example of Martin’s spontaneity. “He said, ‘What if I put a harmonium here?’ “recalls Paul. “Now that’s a wacky idea, let’s try it.” For context, a harmonium is a type of organ.
Paul compared this style of songwriting to comedy. “So you just tried everything on the spot and, like you say, we started again with Wings and that was always my favorite way to work,” he revealed. “It’s like improvisation, you know, for a comedian. There’s something workshop about it that’s kind of exciting.
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How ‘We Can Work It Out’ fared on the charts in the US and UK
“We Can Work It Out” became a huge hit for The Beatles. For three of its 12 weeks on the chart, the song topped the Billboard Hot 100. The song appeared on the compilation album 1. The compilation was No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for eight weeks. It remained on the chart for a total of 520 weeks.
According to The Official Charts Company, “We Can Work It Out” was also big in the UK. “We Can Work It Out” was No. 1 for five of its 12 weeks on the UK Chart. Meanwhile, 1 was No. 1 for nine of its 367 weeks on the chart.
Many artists have covered “We Can Work It Out”. Stevie Wonder, Johnny Mathis, Deep Purple and Big Time Rush each recorded it. Paul thought “We Can Work It Out” was a bit far-fetched and the audience thought it sounded like a hit.
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