Paul McCartney is undisputedly one of the best songwriters in music history. His words and melodies have been firmly cemented into the zeitgeist. We’re taking a closer look at McCartney’s lyricism to find the best phrases from throughout his storied career. Check out our picks for McCartney’s best lyrics below.
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1. When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me… Speaking words of wisdom, let it be (“Let It Be,” The Beatles)
“Let It Be” gives the listener the sense that they have a guardian angel watching over them. For McCartney, that guardian was his late mother who died of cancer when he was a kid. McCartney issues the ultimate statement of peace amid a heartbreaking situation with the lines above.
2. And in the end… the love you take is equal to the love you make (“The End,” The Beatles)
McCartney touts the merits of good karma in this line from “The End.” The track appears on the Beatles’ swan song Abbey Road. It was equivocally their final word to the masses, so McCartney made sure to make it a powerful one. What’s more powerful, and more in alignment with the Beatles’ “Peace and Love,” mentality than this call to action?
3. But as for me, I still remember how it was before… and I am holding back the tears no more (“Here Today”)
“Here Today” is McCartney’s tribute to the memory of John Lennon. Despite the Beatles ending on somewhat of a sour note, McCartney chooses to remember the good times he had with his writing partner. He lets his tears free flow out of his eyes and onto his pen in this touching ode.
4. You’d think that people would have had enough of silly love songs / I look around me and I see it isn’t so (“Silly Love Songs,” Wings)
“Silly Love Songs” isn’t McCartney’s most complex bout of lyricism by any stretch of the imagination, but it accomplishes a specific goal for McCartney. The former Beatle is said to have written this song in response to critics–namely Lennon–who put down McCartney’s affinity for “lightweight” songs. Instead of clapping back with a seething response, he points to his success with such songs. People couldn’t get enough of McCartney’s blithe pop tunes.
5. It’s a fool who plays it cool by making his world a little colder (“Hey Jude,” The Beatles)
McCartney has delivered his fair share of timeless pieces of advice throughout his tenure in the music industry, but few are as universal as the message from “Hey Jude.” Why bring the world down with you? That’s what McCartney asks in the lines above, and we think it’s a fair question. The world would likely be a much better place if we all tried to push a little more positivity out.
6. Try to see it my way / Do I have to keep on talking till I can’t go on / While you see it your way / Run the risk of knowing that our love may soon be gone (“We Can Work It Out,” The Beatles)
McCartney perfectly captures the frustrations of being in a fight with a partner in “We Can Work It Out.” Unfortunately at times, our efforts to speak our peace go unheard. Miscommunication can be fatal to a relationship–which McCartney knows all too well in this track.
(Photo by Mick Hutson/Redferns)
