The Paul McCartney Lyric That Respects Its Elders

Give credit to The Beatles for rarely falling in with the rest of the crowd when it came to their approach to writing their songs. When they embarked on their solo careers, the four members of the band continued to blaze their own trails.

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On Paul McCartney and Wings’ 1975 song “Treat Her Gently – Lonely Old People,” the former Beatle wrote a tender ode to those getting on in years. It wasn’t the typical topic you’d expect from a popular rock band, but it proved to be just the right sendoff to Wings’ 1975 album Venus and Mars.

A Sweet “Treat”

By 1975, the rough start Wings underwent when Paul McCartney first brought them into existence four years earlier was long forgotten. They had ascended to elite status among international rock bands, forging their own identity and escaping the shadow of Paul McCartney’s former group, a little band called The Beatles.

McCartney had provided much of that momentum when he rallied with an outstanding set of songs on the 1973 album Band on the Run. Wings recorded that album as a trio (Paul, wife Linda, and Denny Laine) after a pair of defections from the group right before sessions began.

When Wings returned in 1975 with Venus and Mars, McCartney had added two more members to make it easier for the band to tour. They stayed on a roll with the album, which found the band firing on all cylinders with a rocking approach.

But McCartney made sure to include a little balladry, with the final proper song “Treat Her Gently – Lonely Old People” filling that role. (The minute-long instrumental “Crossroads” is the only thing that follows it in the running order.) McCartney wrote the “Treat Her Gently” section first, before deciding a distinct second section in the same key would be a good way to structure the track.

Examining the Lyrics of “Treat Her Gently – Lonely Old People”

It’s not like there had never been songs in the rock/pop/folk vein dealing with the elderly. Top examples include “Old Friends” by Simon & Garfunkel and “Hello in There” by John Prine. Still, on an album that had thundered unrelentingly with a youthful outlook up to that point, it was a clever change of pace.

McCartney had written with respect about the older generation when he was with The Beatles. Think of the respectful “Your Mother Should Know,” or “She’s Leaving Home,” which presents the perspective of the grieving parents as they deal with the knowledge their daughter has run away.

“Treat Her Gently – Lonely Old People” tackles a demographic that’s even further along in life’s journey. The opening words suggest bestowing dignity on someone who’s struggling with the pitfalls of old age: Treat her gently, treat her kind / She doesn’t even know her own mind.

In the refrain, McCartney switches gears and actually takes the guise of this august generation who are eking their lives away. Out of breath and relegated to keeping the time of day, they ask for just the simplest interaction to spice up their lives: Nobody asked us to play.

There’s a little bit of a “Hey Jude” vibe to the singalong chorus that essentially brings the song to its conclusion. “Treat Her Gently – Lonely Old People” is an unheralded McCartney composition, one that has somewhat slipped through the cracks when people talk about his best work. Maybe that’s fitting, because it’s a song all about the unfairly overlooked.

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