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Paul McCartney
More than a rock star, more than a celebrity, Paul McCartney is a cultural touchstone. As one half of the legendary Lennon-McCartney songwriting duo, he helped transform popular music, moving from the simplistic pop of "Love Me Do" to the avant-garde symphonics of "A Day in the Life" to generation-binding anthems such as "Hey, Jude" and "...more
Hardcover, 374 pages
Published
November 3rd 2009
by Touchstone
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We'll never really know, will we? But just try to tell some people that. Beatle books are a plentiful species, and they should all be read to get an overall picture. I'm not sure if this book needed to be written, but it should be read all the same. It's entertaining enough in its own way. The writing style sometimes gets on my nerves, and Carlin does have great affection for his subject.
People get so polarised when it comes to the Beatles. They have rigid ideas about who they were, w...more
People get so polarised when it comes to the Beatles. They have rigid ideas about who they were, w...more
I've never read any other McCartney or Beatles-related biography or memoir, so I can't really speak to the accuracy of this one. But still, for me, this book would fall between so-so and ok. I didn't dislike it, but something seems missing or like its just skimming the surface. [Maybe it's because I'd just listened to Keith Richard's book, which is great; this one doesn't have that depth & I wonder if the author ever actually interviewed Paul for it -- no endnotes/bibliography in the audiobook v...more
I really hated Paul McCartney as a kid. I thought he was the lame Beatle, the wimpy Beatle, the one hiding behind a smile and a smirk while John Lennon changed the world with his bold ideas and George Harrison defied the wealthy in favor of spiritual quests and Ringo Starr just took in and healed all of the loneliness and pain of teenage life on earth with his big, sad eyes.
Having grown up a lot in the past thirty five years, I was really impressed by this book and all it reveals abo...more
Having grown up a lot in the past thirty five years, I was really impressed by this book and all it reveals abo...more
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On Sept. 26, 2006, my friend Bob Simpson & I made the three hour journey down I-95 to the TD Garden in Boston to see Paul McCartney. For two dyed in the wool Beatlemaniacs, it was a long awaited trip to musical nirvana. At one point we just looked at each other & said, we're watching Paul! For me, a concert goer my whole life, it was the pinnacle to see the guy who was, along with John Lennon, the driving force in the most acclaimed band of all time. Peter Carlin's book doesn't reveal anything r...more
Reason for Reading: I like the Beatles but I love Paul.
Comments: Normally, I steer away from biographies, trying to read memoirs instead unless the person in question is dead and never wrote their own auto-biography. Well, Paul is neither, but given his extremely private nature I find it doubtful he'll ever write a memoir and if he did it would not be in-depth but more like musings of good memories. So I jumped on this book when it came out.
Again, I find when reading thes...more
Comments: Normally, I steer away from biographies, trying to read memoirs instead unless the person in question is dead and never wrote their own auto-biography. Well, Paul is neither, but given his extremely private nature I find it doubtful he'll ever write a memoir and if he did it would not be in-depth but more like musings of good memories. So I jumped on this book when it came out.
Again, I find when reading thes...more
Like the rest of the world, I loved the Beatles, and after the Beatles, Paul McCartney. But I never felt drawn to read any books about McCartney, till I read a review of this one in the NYT. I don't know how this book compares with other biographies of McCartney, but I enjoyed it tremendously. I learned so much about the group and the individuals in the group from the stories in this book and it changed previous impressions I had in so many ways.
For example, I hadn't really rea...more
For example, I hadn't really rea...more
Keep the kids from this book. It is full of expletives, both from Paul and friends,and the author. It is difficult to sort the author's speculation about songs and situations as the documentation is not noted in the text. Many of his statements are completely undocumented and presented as fact. For example, he claims that Paul wrote the last line of Norwegian Wood to state that the narrator was scorned and gleefully looked back at the blazing apartment after he torched it. Looking for documentat...more
This book invites the reader into the extraordinary life and career of one of Britain's most famous rock icons, Sir Paul McCartney, beginning with his childhood in Liverpool and including his musical union with Lennon at age fifteen. I was amazed to learn how much of the Beatles was influenced by McCartney, from the group members and the image, to the endless list of his own compositions (or Lennon-McCartney originals that were, according to Carlin, predominately the works of the latter), since...more
It is impossible for my children to understand what the Beatles meant to my friends and me when we were teenagers. They were our cue to music, fashion, politics, religion. We thought about them all the time and no conversation went far without them being brought up. I still remember which of my friends liked Paul, which George, (you had to pick one as your favorite). These days, I dearly love Beethoven, but for sentiment, nostalgia and comfort I still turn to the Fab Four. That being said, a ...more
As far as content, this book is great. Nowhere does it go too far with either beatifying or villifying the man, his friends and bandmates, or the women in his life. It's fair, it's fascinating, it's fun. It is just the right length-- you never get sick of Paul (well, who could, anyway?). Though I have yet to read a book that gives Ringo enough credit, I thought the Heather Mills episode was handled deftly.
The editing is problematic. I was distracted by bizarrely constructed sentences...more
The editing is problematic. I was distracted by bizarrely constructed sentences...more
Carlin writes this book as an extended album review. It's not a bad book but not a page turner either. There is little new insight that a fan is not already aware of here. It seems like a sympathetic essay written by an enthusiastic fan. Carlin takes a number of liberties speculating on what people thought or intended. He seems to slide through the Wings years quite quickly choosing to portray McCartney and his wife in a negative light and running from project to project with little insight from...more
An intimate look into the life of one of the four greatest rock stars of all time, Paul McCartney: A Life follows Paul's journey from grammar school in Liverpool to global super-stardom. It captures all of Paul's complexities, his slip-ups and his greatest triumphs. The bulk of this book is a very detailed account of the inner workings of the Fab Four; I loved the indulgence, but I think, at times, it lost its focus on Paul. I also felt that after Linda's death and the dissolution of Wings, the ...more
Good, fast read that covers (so far, anyway) his early days, the Quarrymen, the Hamburg ventures, all of the Beatles years, and, apparently, Wings through his current-day musical exploits. It does not go into great depth in any one period and is relatively light on the musical aspect of his compositions, which may leave a little wanting for those with a musical background. But it's not intended to be an analysis of the music in that respect, there are other books out there for that; rather, it...more
I'm not as familiar with the Wings period, so this was a nice overview. This book isn't by any means in depth but it was a quick read. I liked that the author didn't completely kiss up to Paul by actually listing off some of the reasons he had problem retaining Wings members, (principal among them: he was cheap), and why some of his solo stuff wasn't as good as it could be (a huge ego, which is why he needs John since he'd actually listen to criticism from him and him alone). The part about Lin...more
Matthew
added it
It feels more like a really long Wikipedia entry than a proper bio, but it's fun to imagine Paul McCartney slapping tables and yelling at people.
It's usually presented as a series of events of which Paul McCartney was one participant -- I don't think it has a very strong POV. About 2/3rds of the book is about his time as a Beatle, which is fair I suppose, but it also feels like the author would have much rather written a book about John Lennon. Which is funny, since one of the recurr...more
It's usually presented as a series of events of which Paul McCartney was one participant -- I don't think it has a very strong POV. About 2/3rds of the book is about his time as a Beatle, which is fair I suppose, but it also feels like the author would have much rather written a book about John Lennon. Which is funny, since one of the recurr...more
The author pulls no punches in his biography of 1/4 of the greatest rock and roll band ever. He also does a decent job of revealing the cost of devoting oneself to fame and fortune--the cost in the losing of ones very soul as well as the lost friends and loved ones.
Mr. Carlin had also steeped himself deep and long into the music itself of the Beatles and Paul's work with Wings and solo stuff. It was a treat to catch phrases of song lyrics in the story.
Unfortunately it s...more
Mr. Carlin had also steeped himself deep and long into the music itself of the Beatles and Paul's work with Wings and solo stuff. It was a treat to catch phrases of song lyrics in the story.
Unfortunately it s...more
The one thing that really struck me as I read this book is that, as much as Sir Paul would like to think otherwise, his genius as a musician and songwriter is very much a result of his collaboration with John Lennon. The music that he and John produced during their too-brief tenure as Beatles was revolutionary, transcendent of their era, and quite literally altered the course of history. After the Beatles called it quits, Paul charged ahead, attempting to recreate that magic on his own and not q...more
The Beatles were on speed in Hamburg. Becoming icons messed up their lives and their friendship. John could be a violent wacko jerk. Paul was probably much more talented musically. The Beatles started out with 3 guitars. Paul only switched to bass later. He played a lot of guitar on Beatles albums, which I never knew. The book itself is OK, I think most of it may be rehash but he may have interviewed some of the people around during the Beatles heyday and uncovered a few new nuggets.
A story I love re-reading no matter how many times I read it. This time with lots of details about how much of a dick McCartney could be. But now I have a much clearer picture of what exactly he did after the Beatles, an informed interest in exploring his solo work, and a sense of how much Linda meant to him. The scene where she dies is heartbreaking. Carlin writes with a precise insight that strives to explain the reasoning behind, if not always justification for, things Paul did, such as treat...more
The early Beatles stuff is a detailed review of information everyone from my generation is familiar with. The more interesting stories are from more recent events that I didn't follow as closely. The best thing in the book for me was finding out about the album Run Devil Run that I had never heard of. The previews on amazon.com are enough to sell it to me. It's a collection of blistering hot 50's rockers, the kind of music I really want to hear from Paul, and the opposite of his later mostly sed...more
This book has it's problems. Chief among them is the fact the Beatles story, well and thoroughly told elsewhere, takes up more than half of this book, even though that group ended in 1970 and McCartney has continued to live and work all the time since then. Nevertheless, it is a fun if occasionally infuriating read. Visit From The Bookshelf to hear my interview with the author. http://web.mac.com/garyshapiro
Well, Paul is portrayed as a real stinker here. Considering he is the purported richest musician EVER, he is amazingly tight-fisted and unwilling to assist family or colleagues. His working class parents, whom he admired greatly, would be ashamed of his self-centered behavior. This obviously unauthorized bio definitely took some of the shine off of my admiration for this rock legend.
This is a comprehensive biography of the man, from birth up to his third marriage, warts and all. McCartney is a great performer, song-writer and composer, and his work with John Lennon produced some of the greatest songs of the 20th century. Paul fell into depression when the Beatles finally broke apart, but got Wings started and experienced great popularity and success again, this time as an adult and without the screaming mania, and with Linda by his side giving him stability and support. A...more
Algumas vezes me senti incomodada de gostar de Beatles e sentir algo tão bom e puro em suas letras quando na verdade, tudo que se vivia era tensão e brigas, e processos na justiça. Tirando isso, o livro flui bem e é extremamente agradável. Também me interessei muito por saber mais sobre Paul e seus pensamentos, seus problemas e até sua forma ás vezes grosseira de tratar aos outros.
Percebo muito rancor no livro, muito sofrimento, mas acima de tudo muitas alegrias e muita grana.
A históri...more
Percebo muito rancor no livro, muito sofrimento, mas acima de tudo muitas alegrias e muita grana.
A históri...more
Laurie
is currently reading it
Went to see RAIN last weekend, and it spurred my interest in the Beatles. Plus, the author is a local columnist. When I read about a famous person's early life, I like to see pictures and there aren't many. For instance.........his house in Liverpool, pictures of his brother and mom (there is one of him and his dad). I guess I'm a historian at heart. Am only on Chapter 3.
a good book about sir.paul mccartney and his life story.it talks about him with the beatles,wing, and his relationships he had. when you read this from start to finish you say to yourself "damn he had a sad life" but at least he overcame all the trouble's that stood before him. its a good book that beatles fans should read :)
Very enjoyable book. I heard it on CD read by a bloke who did accents and impressions of the characters he was quoting. I've been through the entire Beatles story many times by other authors, and more often John-centric stories - by his sister, ex-wife, school chum. The story never gets old. This author had a knack for mixing the biography with details of the McCartney (and Lennon/McCartney) song catalog. But this book also went into more story of Wings and even Heather. It'll send you back to l...more
Thorough telling of McCartney's life and music. Not thrilled with the reader and wish that when he talked about a particular song in detail, they could have played it. But it seemed a mostly unbiased view of Paul and the other Beatles, none of whom come off as particularly likable in this telling.
Here's the summary (aka, I read this so you don't have to): Oh, that darn Paul! Sure, he acts like a jerk, but how can you stay mad at him? John, on the other hand, is a sociopath who abuses everyone he comes into contact with. And there were a couple other guys in the band, too.
A fan's perspective; sometimes he dwells overmuch on his own disappoinment in Wings. I was left with the feeling that perhaps we are all too harsh in our assessement of Sir Paul in measuring him constantly against the Beatles legend.
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