Paul Is Live

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Paul Is Live
Paulmccartneyalbum-paulislive.jpg
Live album by
Paul McCartney
Released8 November 1993 (UK)
16 November 1993 (US)
Recorded22 March – 15 June 1993
GenreRock
Length72:55
LabelParlophone
ProducerPaul McCartney
Paul McCartney chronology
Off the Ground
(1993) 		Paul Is Live
(1993) 		Strawberries Oceans Ships Forest
(1993)
Paul Is Live – The New World Tour
Paul is Live in Concert on the New World Tour.jpg
Video by
Paul McCartney
Released22 March 1994
Recorded1993
GenreRock music
Length85 min.
LabelMPL
Rounder Home Video
DirectorAubrey Powell
ProducerSteven J. Swartz
Paul McCartney chronology
Get Back
(1991) 		Paul Is Live – The New World Tour
(1994) 		Live at the Cavern Club
(1999)

Paul Is Live is a live album by Paul McCartney, released in 1993 during his New World Tour in support of the album Off the Ground. The album cover is based on that of Beatles' 1969 album Abbey Road and contains multiple references to the "Paul is dead" conspiracy theory.

Title and cover[]

The album's title is a response to the "Paul is dead" rumours after the 1969 release of the Beatles' penultimate studio album, Abbey Road. The photograph used for the cover is from the same August 1969 photo session as the photo used for the Abbey Road album cover, with some digital manipulation. Differences between the two photos include different people and vehicles in the background, and on the "Abbey Road" cover, George Harrison is partly obscuring the left rear corner of the white Volkswagen with the infamous number plate, which is parked half up on the kerb on the left, whereas the cover of "Paul Is Live" gives a clear view of the Volkswagen.

Apart from these, intentional differences between the two are:[1][2]

  • The "LMW281F" on the Volkswagen Beetle's number plate – which was mis-read as "LMW28IF", purportedly meaning that McCartney would have been 28 if he had lived – is edited to read "51IS", indicating that he is alive and his age at the time was 51.
  • McCartney is wearing shoes (Vegetarian Shoes); on Abbey Road he had appeared with bare feet, while the other Beatles had shoes. This mismatch was viewed as an eyecatch to the hoax.
  • McCartney is putting his left foot forward; on Abbey Road he is seen with his right foot forward, out of step with the others, and this was purportedly meant to symbolise his being on a different plane of existence.
  • McCartney, who is left-handed, is seen holding a cigarette with his right hand on Abbey Road, supporting the idea that it was an imposter; in this cover, McCartney is holding the dog leash with his left hand.

Release and reception[]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic2/5 stars[3]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music2/5 stars[4]
Entertainment Weekly (album)B+[5]
Entertainment Weekly (video)B[6]
The Essential Rock Discography4/10[7]
MusicHound2.5/5 stars[8]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide3/5 stars[9]

Excerpted from his shows in Australia, as well as from various cities in the United States, Paul Is Live followed the 1989–90 Paul McCartney World Tour/Tripping the Live Fantastic extravaganza by only three years, confounding critics and fans as to its appearance, and in some cases its necessity (although the only song it has in common with Tripping The Live Fantastic is "Live And Let Die"). As a result, Paul Is Live became McCartney's lowest-selling live set of his career, peaking at number 34 in the UK and number 78 in the US.

A concert film subtitled The New World Tour was subsequently released on VHS, and later on DVD. It was directed by Aubrey Powell. The video release includes the controversial pre-concert film, which features vintage footage of the Beatles, solo-era live footage of "Maybe I'm Amazed" and "Bluebird" from the Rockshow film, then switches tone by including graphic animal test footage (all of which is underscored by "Live And Let Die" and "Helter Skelter"), and, finally, warmup footage of the band. The program starts with the warm-up footage, and is played in full at the conclusion of the concert. The packaging included a disclaimer warning regarding the graphic nature of the animal footage.

Afterwards, McCartney took an extended break from his solo career to begin the enormous Beatles Anthology project in early 1994 with George Harrison, Ringo Starr and George Martin. This took up much of his time for the next two years, before Flaming Pie in 1997.

Track listing[]

All songs composed by Paul McCartney, except where noted.

Album
  1. "Drive My Car" (John Lennon, McCartney) – 2:34
  2. "Let Me Roll It" (McCartney, Linda McCartney) – 4:10
  3. "Looking for Changes" – 2:43
  4. "Peace in the Neighbourhood" – 4:50
  5. "All My Loving" (Lennon–McCartney) – 2:16
  6. "Robbie's Bit (Thanks Chet)" (Robbie McIntosh) – 2:00
  7. "Good Rockin' Tonight" (Roy Brown) – 2:48
  8. "We Can Work It Out" (Lennon–McCartney) – 2:42
  9. "Hope of Deliverance" – 3:29
  10. "Michelle" (Lennon–McCartney) – 2:56
  11. "Biker Like an Icon" – 3:40
  12. "Here, There and Everywhere" (Lennon–McCartney) – 2:29
  13. "My Love" (P. McCartney, L. McCartney) – 4:06
  14. "Magical Mystery Tour" (Lennon–McCartney) – 3:15
  15. "C'Mon People" – 5:38
  16. "Lady Madonna" (Lennon–McCartney) – 2:33
  17. "Paperback Writer" (Lennon–McCartney) – 2:39
  18. "Penny Lane" (Lennon–McCartney) – 2:58
  19. "Live and Let Die" (P. McCartney, L. McCartney) – 3:51
  20. "Kansas City" (Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller) – 3:54
  21. "Welcome to Soundcheck" – 0:41
  22. "Hotel in Benidorm" – 2:00
  23. "I Wanna Be Your Man" (Lennon–McCartney) – 2:36
  24. "A Fine Day" – 6:18
Video release
  1. "Drive My Car" (Lennon–McCartney)
  2. "Let Me Roll It" (P. McCartney, L. McCartney)
  3. "Looking for Changes"
  4. "Peace in the Neighbourhood"
  5. "All My Loving" (Lennon–McCartney)
  6. "Good Rocking Tonight" (Brown)
  7. "We Can Work It Out" (Lennon–McCartney)
  8. "Hope of Deliverance"
  9. "Michelle" (Lennon–McCartney)
  10. "Biker Like an Icon"
  11. "Here, There and Everywhere" (Lennon–McCartney)
  12. "Magical Mystery Tour" (Lennon–McCartney)
  13. "C'Mon People"
  14. "Lady Madonna" (Lennon–McCartney)
  15. "Paperback Writer" (Lennon–McCartney)
  16. "Penny Lane" (Lennon–McCartney)
  17. "Live and Let Die" (P. McCartney, L. McCartney)
  18. "Kansas City" (Leiber, Stoller)
  19. "Let It Be" (Lennon–McCartney)
  20. "Yesterday" (Lennon–McCartney)
  21. "Hey Jude" (Lennon–McCartney)

Band line-up[]

  • Paul McCartney – lead vocals, acoustic, electric and bass guitars, piano
  • Linda McCartney – backing vocals, keyboards, percussion, autoharp
  • Hamish Stuart – acoustic and electric guitars, acoustic and electric bass guitars, backing vocals
  • Robbie McIntosh – acoustic and electric guitars, backing vocals
  • Paul 'Wix' Wickens – keyboards, accordion, acoustic guitar, percussion, backing vocals
  • Blair Cunningham – drums, percussion

Charts[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Paul Is Dead – Conspiracy Theories – TIME". time.com. 20 November 2008. Archived from the original on 23 November 2008. Retrieved 10 August 2011.
  2. ^ "Beatles CD's – Paul Is Live withdrawn issue". rarebeatles.com. Retrieved 10 August 2011.
  3. ^ Paul Is Live at AllMusic
  4. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th edn). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. p. 1257. ISBN 0-19-531373-9.
  5. ^ Sinclair, Tom (19 November 1993). "Music Review: Paul McCartney: Paul Is Live". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 30 August 2011.
  6. ^ Givens, Ron (8 April 1994). "Video Review: Paul McCartney: Paul is Live: In Concert on the New World Tour". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 30 May 2011.
  7. ^ Strong, Martin C. (2006). The Essential Rock Discography. Edinburgh, UK: Canongate. p. 696. ISBN 978-184195-827-9.
  8. ^ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel (eds) (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 730. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
  9. ^ "Paul McCartney: Album Guide". rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on 4 July 2014. Retrieved 22 December 2014.
  10. ^ "Paul McCartney – Paul Is Live – austriancharts.at". Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  11. ^ "dutchcharts.nl Paul McCartney – Paul Is Live". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  12. ^ "Album Search: Paul McCartney – Paul Is Live" (ASP) (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
  13. ^ "ポール・マッカートニーポール・イズ・ライブ～ニュー・ワールド・ツアー・ライブ！！／ポール・マッカートニー-リリース-ORICON STYLE-ミュージック" [Highest position and charting weeks of Paul Is Live by Paul McCartney] (in Japanese). oricon.co.jp. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  14. ^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  15. ^ "swedishcharts.com Paul McCartney – Paul Is Live". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  16. ^ "Paul McCartney > Artists > Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 1 May 2013.
  17. ^ Allmusic – Paul Is Live > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums
  18. ^ "Solo Exitos 1959–2002 Ano A Ano: Certificados 1991–1995". Solo Exitos 1959–2002 Ano A Ano. ISBN 8480486392.
  19. ^ "American video certifications – Paul McCartney – Paul Is Live". Recording Industry Association of America.

External links[]

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