McCartney - the album

famous beagle

famous beagle

Well-known member
Does anyone know who engineered McCartney's first (self-titled) solo album? I know he recorded most (if not all) of it at home, and that he performed all the instruments himself (save for Linda's harmonies) but I can't find any mention of an engineer--recording or mixing--anywhere. Did he do all that himself? If so, that's damned impressive --- even for Paul!
 
ALBUM NOTES

Released in 1970, a month before The Beatles' swansong Let It Be, McCartney was Paul's first solo album. Notable for the fact that he performed all instruments and vocals himself, aside from some backing vocals performed by Linda, it's an album rich in experimentation, and the original home of ‘Maybe I’m Amazed’. “The McCartney album was good fun,” Paul remembers, “because I got a machine from EMI, only a four-track, and I just had it in my living room where I lived in London at the time. I’d just go in for the day like Monsieur Magritte. Go in and do a little bit of stuff and make something up, and knock off in the evenings. It was very interesting to do and it had a certain kind of rawness, because I was breaking loose after The Beatles, we all got a feeling of that, I think. During the Beatles period I’d said to John, ‘I think I should do an album called Paul McCartney Goes Too Far”. He said, 'That’s a great idea man, you should do it.' Of course, I never really did. It was just, Well, I’ll do it one day.” In 2011, the album was remastered and reissued as part of the Paul McCartney Archive Collection, with a bonus disc of outtakes, demos and live versions, as well as a DVD of documentaries and live performances.

Release Date: 17th April 1970 (UK), 20th April 1970 (USA)
Paul McCartney - All instruments and vocals
Linda McCartney - Harmonies
All tracks composed by Paul McCartney
Produced & arranged by Paul McCartney
 
Again, no mention of an engineer. It really does seem as though he may have done the whole thing himself.

I just finished reading Here, There, and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles by Geoff Emerick, and, although he's very thorough about the albums (relating to the Beatles or members thereof) on which he worked, he doesn't make mention of McCartney at all.
 
I Believe Paul did most of his own engineering---remember he just plugged a mic into
the Back of the Studer j-37 4-track. Also when he recorded at Morgan Studios a guy
by the name of "Robin Black" Engineered according to THE COMPLETE BEATLES CHRONICLES
by Mark Lewisohn P.345. And I think Eddie Kramer helped out on this Album to--I maybe wrong on this though.

Jack
 
yep looks like a home recording job, I couldn't find any info apart from that parts of the album were tracked in abbey road and various other studios, looks like at least 90% was done at his home/mansion.
 
I think McCartney II was done similarly, and a much preferable album in my opinion. More far out. Temporary Secretary? One of the best non beatles songs.

Gotta love Ram too, but that wasn't at home I don't think.
 
Jonk said:
I think McCartney II was done similarly, and a much preferable album in my opinion. More far out. Temporary Secretary? One of the best non beatles songs.

Gotta love Ram too, but that wasn't at home I don't think.
Click to expand...

I'm actually not familiar with II at all. I know "Coming Up" for sure, but I didn't recognize the rest of the songs. I just checked out "Temporary." I have to say it's not one of my favorites of Paul's, but to each his own! :) And yes, Ram wasn't done at home, but it's a great one!
 
famous beagle said:
Does anyone know who engineered McCartney's first (self-titled) solo album? I know he recorded most (if not all) of it at home, and that he performed all the instruments himself (save for Linda's harmonies) but I can't find any mention of an engineer--recording or mixing--anywhere. Did he do all that himself? If so, that's damned impressive --- even for Paul!
Click to expand...

I think he did "Maybe I'm Amazed" at EMI (Abbey Road) in Feb. 1970 but I think most of the rest was done at home. He knew "Maybe I'm Amazed" was special. Geoff Emerick did not work for EMI in 1970, he worked for Apple, which Paul wanted nothing to do with by that point. Emerick, after he left Apple, did work on "Band on the Run."
 
Just got my vinyl copy in the mail yesterday. I was hoping it would elaborate a bit more, but it doesn't. All it says is:

"Instruments and Voices by Paul McCartney. Written and Produced by Paul McCartney. Harmonies by Linda McCartney. Recorded in England."

Actually, now that I look closely, it says "Harmonics by Linda McCartney," which must be a typo.

It was released by Apple, so I'm assuming it was also mastered there since they had a mastering facility in use at the time.


I see that on the "Maybe I'm Amazed" wikipedia page, it says that song was recorded at EMI, so you're probably right.
 
AndyK235 said:
I think he did "Maybe I'm Amazed" at EMI (Abbey Road) in Feb. 1970 but I think most of the rest was done at home. He knew "Maybe I'm Amazed" was special. Geoff Emerick did not work for EMI in 1970, he worked for Apple, which Paul wanted nothing to do with by that point. Emerick, after he left Apple, did work on "Band on the Run."
Click to expand...

Yes I read about the horrible circumstances of the Band on the Run session. It's hard to believe that album turned out so well!
 
halljack said:
Also when he recorded at Morgan Studios a guy
by the name of "Robin Black" Engineered according to THE COMPLETE BEATLES CHRONICLES
by Mark Lewisohn P.345.
Click to expand...

I suspect Robin Black was the house engineer at Morgan at the time - I know he engineered "Now we are Six" and "Commoner's Crown" by Steeleye Span, (the latter he also mixed) and I think he also did some of the Jethro Tull albums.
 
Love that album. I think it was pretty much covered above. Most of it at home, Maybe I'm Amazed finished in the studio. That's what I remember reading about it.
 
SteveM said:
Love that album. I think it was pretty much covered above. Most of it at home, Maybe I'm Amazed finished in the studio. That's what I remember reading about it.
Click to expand...

Yeah I love it too. He just sounds as though he's having fun. By that point, I'd say he'd earned that opportunity. :)
 
famous beagle said:
Again, no mention of an engineer. It really does seem as though he may have done the whole thing himself.

I just finished reading Here, There, and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles by Geoff Emerick, and, although he's very thorough about the albums (relating to the Beatles or members thereof) on which he worked, he doesn't make mention of McCartney at all.
Click to expand...
he had a machine at home and played around with it when he felt like it .... there was no engineer.
Also .... while a lot of it is pretty good there's at least one tune (can't remember which but I listened to this thing about a year ago ) anyway .... at least one tune where the bass was badly out of tune.
These guys lived in the studio and were present as the engineers and they came up with ways to get sounds and mix and etc.
They ( and he ) were studio veterans and the boys knew about as much as most 'engineers' at the time of their breakup because they had helped develope studio recording as it had come to be.
it doesn't surprise me he did a decent job.
 
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