Wings At The Speed Of Sound

Timeline More from year 1976
UK release date:
Mar 25, 1976
US release date:
Mar 25, 1976

About

From paulmccartney.com:

Reinforced by months on the road, the cohesion of a settled line-up was much in evidence on Wings At The Speed Of Sound, the band’s fifth album. So much so, that each band member had at least one lead vocal performance, including Linda’s ‘Cook Of The House’ and Denny Laine’s ‘Time To Hide’. Made at Abbey Road Studios, it was Paul’s first album to be recorded in Britain since Red Rose Speedway. Two more hardy perennials emerged in the shape of ‘Let ’Em In’ and ‘Silly Love Songs’. The album was another massive success, peaking at Number 2 in the UK (where it was the fourth biggest album of the year) and topping the charts in the US, spending nearly a year in the Top 100. 

From Paul McCartney’s Facebook page – Paul, Mary and Stella at Rude Studio during Wings ‘At The Speed Of Sound’ recording sessions. Scotland, 1975 #ThrowbackThursday #TBT Stella McCartney #stayhome

Last updated on January 24, 2021

The album


Wings At The Speed Of Sound

By Wings • Official album

Related films


Silly Love Songs

1976 • For Wings • Directed by Gordon Bennett

Related sessions


"At The Speed Of Sound" sessions #1

September - October 1975 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "The Note You Never Wrote"

Oct 14, 1975 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "Beware My Love"

Oct 17, 1975 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


"At The Speed Of Sound" sessions #2

January - February 1976 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "Must Do Something About It"

Jan 05, 1976 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "She's My Baby"

Jan 07, 1976 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "Wino Junko"

Jan 13, 1976 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "Silly Love Songs"

Jan 16, 1976 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "Beware My Love"

Jan 23, 1976 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "Time To Hide"

Jan 27, 1976 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "San Ferry Anne"

Jan 30, 1976 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "Warm And Beautiful"

Feb 02, 1976 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "Let 'Em In"

Feb 03, 1976 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound


Recording "Cook Of The House"

Feb 04, 1976 • Songs recorded during this session appear on Wings At The Speed Of Sound

Related interviews


Linda McCartney: Silly Love Songs

Apr 03, 1976 • From Sounds


Interview for Street Life

Apr 03, 1976 • From Street Life


McCartney: pressure cooking

Mar 27, 1976 • From Melody Maker

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WHAMMO! 4 years ago

Denny also sang lead on "The Note You Never Wrote".


The PaulMcCartney Project 4 years ago

Thanks WHAMMO. That is true - https://www.the-paulmccartney-project.com/song/the-note-you-never-wrote/ !


Mike 2 years ago

This album is a true work of love. The key track, “Let ’em in” has been overlooked for years as trivial in meaning. But its one of Paul's most important songs. It's Paul's "Imagine" offering us a metaphor for true love -- not hallmark-card love, but the kind of love where we let someone into our heart, where we let others in for real and go past the ego blinders, opening our eyes to the holy in others. We hear Paul asking for the door to be open for friends and family, but also for “Martin Luther” -- a name you might use for MLK if you were a friend -- opening the door within us to MLK's vision of agape, the love for all humanity, for even those who might hurt us, for peace. "Let 'em in" goes even deeper than “Imagine” because where John sings about the poison of surface things — borders, ideologies, etc. — Paul gets at the root of it all, the human heart. With his instinct to never preach, Macca hides the profundity under a disarming, causal line “do me a favour and let ’em in". True, the album was written quickly, maybe without much conscious thought as to a message, but if so, then it was the angels flowing through Paul and Linda when these lyrics were penned. (Its too bad critics were so against Paul in the 1970s that they dismissed this song as trivial, as some house-party ditty -- "come on in y’all and party with the McCartney’s!").

Later on in the album (as if in reply to John), Paul sings about all his “silly love songs” knowing there’s nothing silly here — and that choosing joy and self-acceptance and an open heart is really a choice between life and death.

The album as a work illustrates the theme of love & letting others in. Wings at the Speed of Sound sees Paul following his own words and letting 'em in. He puts love over commerciality, embracing Linda and his bandmates by sharing his fame and giving them each their own spotlights on the album (a few years later John did the same, sharing his last album with Yoko).

The Beatle’s were the universe’s gift to humanity, a correction for WW2. Its sad that one of their leaders is still not given the credit he deserves for his depth. Macca’s lightness of touch and distaste for being overstated & heavy gets dismissed as superficiality.

Shine on Paul!


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