- Album This song officially appears on the Wings At The Speed Of Sound Official album.
Related sessions
This song has been recorded during the following studio sessions
"At The Speed Of Sound" sessions #2
January - February 1976
Feb 04, 1976
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Song facts
From Wikipedia:
“Cook of the House” is a song written by Paul and Linda McCartney that was first released on Wings’ 1976 album Wings at the Speed of Sound. It was also released as the B-side to the number 1 single “Silly Love Songs.” The song was included on Linda McCartney’s posthumous 1998 solo album Wide Prairie.
Music and lyrics
“Cook of the House” is a “1950s-style rock ‘n’ roll song.” Linda McCartney sings the lead vocal, her first lead vocal performance for Wings. Paul McCartney plays the same double bass Bill Black played on Elvis Presley songs. Other musicians on the song are Denny Laine and Jimmy McCulloch on guitar and Joe English on drums. Either Thaddeus Richard or Howie Casey plays saxophone. The song opens with the sound of bacon and chips frying in the key of E-flat. This sound effect is the only part of the song recorded in stereo; most of the track is in mono to enhance the retro feel.
“Cook of the House” was inspired during the McCartneys’ stay at a rented house in Australia during their 1975 tour, and was written in November of that year. A plaque in the kitchen stated “Wherever I serve my guests, they like my kitchen best,” which inspired some of the lyrics. Most of the remaining lyrics came from the McCartneys looking at the food in the kitchen and listing the items in the song. […]
Reception
“Cook of the House” was largely panned by critics. Rolling Stone called the song a “celebration of scatterbrained wife-in-the-kitchen coziness.” Authors Chip Madinger and Mark Easter claim that Paul McCartney’s double bass playing is the song’s only redeeming value. Author Robert Rodriguez calls it an “embarrassment,” and author Tim Riley calls it a “feminist’s nightmare.” Paul McCartney biographer Howard Sounes praised the song’s production values but called it a “weak song” which was not sung well. Entertainment Weekly described it as a “simpleminded domestic anthem” and claimed it was “genuinely terrible.” On the other hand, Wings’ guitarist Jimmy McCulloch was happy for Linda’s lead vocal opportunity and considered the song a “tribute to her talent of whipping up a meal in no time.” Allmusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine found the song charming, though acknowledging that it is “awkwardly sung.” Paul McCartney biographer Chris Welch called it “one of the most popular items” on Wings at the Speed of Sound.
Other appearances
“Cook of the House” appeared as the B-side of Wings’ 1976 single “Silly Love Songs.” That represented the second time a singer other than Paul McCartney sang the lead vocal on a Wings’ single, the first being Denny Laine’s vocal on “I Lie Around,” the B-side to “Live and Let Die.” Linda also sang “Cook of the House” live on Wings’ 1979 UK tour. “Cook of the House” was included on Linda McCartney’s 1998 posthumous solo album Wide Prairie. The Eastmans covered “Cook of the House” on Love in Song: An Atlanta Tribute to Sir Paul McCartney.
From Wide Prairie liner notes:
Late one night when we were on tour renting a house in Australia, we were looking at one of those plaques found in many kitchens worldwide. “wherever I serve my guests, they like my kitchen best“. This led to the song. It was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in 1976 and was included on the Wings album At The Speed of Sound. The noise at the beginning is our chip pan simmering.
Last updated on November 5, 2016

The book "The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present", published in 2021, covers Paul McCartney's early Liverpool days, the Beatles, Wings, and solo careers, by pairing the lyrics of 154 of his songs with first-person commentaries of the circumstances in which they were written, the people and places that inspired them, and what he thinks of them now.
"Cook Of The House" is one of the 154 songs covered.
Lyrics
Ground rice, sugar, vinegar, seco salt
macaroni too
Cook of the house
I'm the cook of the house
No matter where I serve my guests
They seem to like the kitchen best
'Cause I'm the cook of the house
Cook of the house
The salad’s in the bowl
The rice is on the stove
Green beans in the colander
And where the rest is
Heaven only knows
Cinnamon, garlic, salt, pepper
Cornbread, curry powder, coffee too
Cook of the house
I'm the cook of the house
No, matter where I serve my guests
They seem to like the kitchen best
'Cause I'm the cook of the house
Cook of the house
And the rest is heaven only knows
Cinnamon, garlic, salt, pepper
Cornbread, curry powder, coffee too
Cook of the house
That's the cook of the house
I'm the cook of the house
She's the cook of the house
No matter where I serve my guests
They seem to like the kitchen best
'Cause I'm the cook of the house
That's cook of the house
Cook of the house
She's the cook of the house
Cook of the house
That's the cook of the house
I'm the cook of the house
Take it fellow
Officially appears on
Official album • Released in 1976
2:46 • Studio version • A
- Paul McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Double-bass, Mellotron, Piano, Producer
- Linda McCartney :
- Vocals
- Denny Laine :
- Backing vocals, Electric guitar
- Howie Casey :
- Horns
- Joe English :
- Drums
- Thaddeus Richard :
- Horns
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant mixing engineer, Assistant recording engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Steve Howard :
- Horns
- Tony Dorsey :
- Horns
- Session Recording:
- Feb 04, 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Silly Love Songs / Cook Of The House
7" Single • Released in 1976
2:46 • Studio version • A
- Paul McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Double-bass, Mellotron, Piano, Producer
- Linda McCartney :
- Vocals
- Denny Laine :
- Backing vocals, Electric guitar
- Howie Casey :
- Horns
- Joe English :
- Drums
- Thaddeus Richard :
- Horns
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant mixing engineer, Assistant recording engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Steve Howard :
- Horns
- Tony Dorsey :
- Horns
- Session Recording:
- Feb 04, 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Wings At The Speed Of Sound (1993)
Official album • Released in 1993
2:46 • Studio version • A1993 • 1993 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Double-bass, Mellotron, Piano, Producer
- Linda McCartney :
- Vocals
- Denny Laine :
- Backing vocals, Electric guitar
- Howie Casey :
- Horns
- Joe English :
- Drums
- Thaddeus Richard :
- Horns
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant mixing engineer, Assistant recording engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Steve Howard :
- Horns
- Tony Dorsey :
- Horns
- Peter Mew :
- Remastering
- Session Recording:
- Feb 04, 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Official album • Released in 1998
2:40 • Studio version • A
- Paul McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Double-bass, Mellotron, Piano, Producer
- Linda McCartney :
- Vocals
- Denny Laine :
- Backing vocals, Electric guitar
- Howie Casey :
- Horns
- Joe English :
- Drums
- Thaddeus Richard :
- Horns
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant mixing engineer, Assistant recording engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Steve Howard :
- Horns
- Tony Dorsey :
- Horns
- Session Recording:
- Feb 04, 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Wings At The Speed Of Sound - Archive Collection
Official album • Released in 2014
2:46 • Studio version • A2014 • 2014 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Double-bass, Mellotron, Piano, Producer
- Linda McCartney :
- Vocals
- Denny Laine :
- Backing vocals, Electric guitar
- Howie Casey :
- Horns
- Joe English :
- Drums
- Thaddeus Richard :
- Horns
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant mixing engineer, Assistant recording engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Steve Howard :
- Horns
- Tony Dorsey :
- Horns
- Session Recording:
- Feb 04, 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Wings At The Speed Of Sound (Limited Orange LP)
Official album • Released in 2017
2:46 • Studio version • A2014
- Paul McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Double-bass, Mellotron, Piano, Producer
- Linda McCartney :
- Vocals
- Denny Laine :
- Backing vocals, Electric guitar
- Howie Casey :
- Horns
- Joe English :
- Drums
- Thaddeus Richard :
- Horns
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant mixing engineer, Assistant recording engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Steve Howard :
- Horns
- Tony Dorsey :
- Horns
- Session Recording:
- Feb 04, 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Official album • Released in 2019
2:40 • Studio version • A2019 • 2019 remaster
- Alex Wharton :
- Remastering
EP • Released in 2020
2:46 • Studio version • A2014 • 2014 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Double-bass, Mellotron, Piano, Producer
- Linda McCartney :
- Vocals
- Denny Laine :
- Backing vocals, Electric guitar
- Howie Casey :
- Horns
- Joe English :
- Drums
- Thaddeus Richard :
- Horns
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant mixing engineer, Assistant recording engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Steve Howard :
- Horns
- Tony Dorsey :
- Horns
- Session Recording:
- Feb 04, 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
7" Single • Released in 2022
2:46 • Studio version • A2014
- Paul McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Double-bass, Mellotron, Piano, Producer
- Linda McCartney :
- Vocals
- Denny Laine :
- Backing vocals, Electric guitar
- Howie Casey :
- Horns
- Joe English :
- Drums
- Thaddeus Richard :
- Horns
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant mixing engineer, Assistant recording engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Steve Howard :
- Horns
- Tony Dorsey :
- Horns
- Session Recording:
- Feb 04, 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- January - March 1976
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Bootlegs
Unofficial live • Released in 1998
2:49 • Live
Concert From the concert in Glasgow, United Kingdom on Dec 17, 1979
Unofficial live • Released in 2005
Live
Concert From the concert in Liverpool, United Kingdom on Nov 25, 1979
Unofficial live • Released in 2005
Live
Concert From the concert in Liverpool, United Kingdom on Nov 26, 1979
Live performances
“Cook Of The House” has been played in 18 concerts.
Latest concerts where Cook Of The House has been played
Concert For The People of Kampuchea
Dec 29, 1979 • United Kingdom • London • Hammersmith Odeon
Glasgow • Apollo Centre • United Kingdom
Dec 17, 1979 • Part of Wings 1979 UK Tour
Glasgow • Apollo Centre • United Kingdom
Dec 16, 1979 • Part of Wings 1979 UK Tour
Newcastle upon Tyne • City Hall • United Kingdom
Dec 14, 1979 • Part of Wings 1979 UK Tour
Birmingham • Odeon Cinema • United Kingdom
Dec 12, 1979 • Part of Wings 1979 UK Tour
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