Related sessions
This song has been recorded during the following studio sessions
"McCartney" session at Abbey Road Studios
February–March 1970
Feb 23, 1970
Mixing "Hot As Sun", recording "Every Night"
Feb 24, 1970
April 1980
Rehearsals for 2010 summer concert
May 19, 2010
Related interviews
Paul McCartney Talks VIP Soundcheck Shows: 'It's a Tribal Ritual'
Aug 15, 2016 • From RollingStone
Winter 1994 • From Club Sandwich
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Song facts
“Every Night” is a track from Paul McCartney’s debut solo album, McCartney, released in April 1970. From Wikipedia:
He wrote the song while he was on holiday in Greece. McCartney first performed it live on 23 November 1979 in Liverpool. […]
The lyrics of “Every Night” reflect the difficult situation McCartney was dealing with at the time the song was written, which was in light of the imminent breakup of the Beatles; the words do, however, convey some optimism for the future. According to James McGrath, the last line, “But tonight I just wanna stay in / And be with you,” is the key to the song, in that it “quietly challenges the uneasy relationship between rock and domesticity.” McGrath points out that Bob Dylan’s song from the previous year, “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You,” ended on a similar note.
McCartney premiered it during the Beatles’ Get Back/Let It Be Sessions. The group messed around with the song on 21 and 24 January 1969 (a brief run through and John Lennon on slide guitar; respectively).
McCartney sings and plays acoustic guitar, bass and drums on this recording.
From Beatles Bible:
[Every Night] was recorded properly by McCartney on 22 February 1970 at EMI Studios, Abbey Road. McCartney had booked a session to mix the songs Valentine Day and That Would Be Something, and afterwards recorded Every Night and Maybe I’m Amazed. Every Night was mixed at the end of the session, but was redone on 24 February.
From the release note of the album:
‘Every Night’ (Blues). This came from the first two lines, which I’ve had for years. They were added to in 1969 in Greece (Benitses) on holiday. This was recorded at EMI with:
1. vocal and
Paul McCartney
2. acoustic guitar
3. drums
4. bass
5. lead guitar (acoustic)
6. harmony to the lead guitar
7. double-tracked vocal in parts
8. electric guitar (not used)
9. track.
From PopMatters:
“Every Night” is one of Paul McCartney’s greatest solo accomplishments. For the life of me, I don’t understand why it (or any songs from the McCartney album) wasn’t ever released as a single. It is rare to find a song that paints such a perfect view of romantic love while staying unique, personal, and cliché-free. […] A lot changed for Paul McCartney in the year 1969, and he reportedly didn’t handle it well. The band that his entire life revolved around—the biggest band in the world, the Beatles—was falling apart, and the resulting tangled mess of hurt feelings and legal matters left him sorely depressed. Getting him through this difficult time was his wife, Linda, who suggested that he should start working on his own music apart from the group. “Every Night” became the resulting tribute to his inspiring spouse.
The album on which it appears has a reputation of being quickly put together, but “Every Night” started out as a possible track for the Beatles’ final album, Let It Be. Though he has stated that he “had the first two lines for a few years” before its recording, Paul finished writing the song later on in 1969 while on vacation in Greece. In the final completed version, acoustic and bass guitars mix together with drums and some background vocals from Linda, who would go on to duet with Paul on many more songs.
Rumor has it that he may have recorded an electric guitar part for this song that was never used and that it may or may not appear on the first take, an alternate version that could be released in the future. […]
Last updated on June 7, 2020
Lyrics
Every night I just want to go out
get out of my head.
Every day I don't want to get up
get out of my bed.
Every night I want to play out
& every day I want to do…
But tonight I just want to stay in
and be with you… and be with you.
Chorus. oo…
Every day I lean on a lamppost
I'm wasting my time.
Every night I lay on a pillow
I'm resting my mind.
Every morning brings a new day
& every night that day is through
But tonight I just want to stay in
and be with you…and be with you.
Chorus. oo…
Officially appears on
Official album • Released in 1970
2:40 • Studio version • A
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Bass, Drums, Producer, Vocals
- Phil McDonald :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1970
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Feb 24, 1970
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Concerts for the People of Kampuchea
Official album • Released in 1981
4:22 • Live • L1
Concert From "Concert For The People of Kampuchea" in London, United Kingdom on Dec 29, 1979
Concerts For The People Of Kampuchea - Promo EP
EP • Released in 1981
4:17 • Live • L1
Concert From "Concert For The People of Kampuchea" in London, United Kingdom on Dec 29, 1979
Unplugged (The Official Bootleg)
Official live • Released in 1991
3:25 • Live • L2
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Producer, Vocals
- Robbie McIntosh :
- Acoustic guitar, Vocal harmonies
- Hamish Stuart :
- Acoustic bass, Vocal harmonies
- Paul Wickens :
- Piano
- Blair Cunningham :
- Drums
- Geoff Emerick :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Eddie Klein :
- Assistant engineer
- Gary Stewart :
- Assistant engineer
- Peter Craigie :
- Assistant engineer
- Gary Bradshaw :
- Monitor engineer
Concert From "MTV Unplugged" in Wembley, United Kingdom on Jan 25, 1991
McCartney (by DCC Compact Classics)
Official album • Released in 1992
2:40 • Studio version • A1992 • 1992 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Bass, Drums, Producer, Vocals
- Phil McDonald :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Steve Hoffman :
- Remastering
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1970
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Feb 24, 1970
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Official album • Released in 1993
2:40 • Studio version • A1993 • 1993 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Bass, Drums, Producer, Vocals
- Phil McDonald :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1970
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Feb 24, 1970
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Official album • Released in 2001
2:35 • Studio version • A2001 • 2001 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Bass, Drums, Producer, Vocals
- Geoff Emerick :
- Remastering
- Phil McDonald :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Peter Mew :
- Remastering
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1970
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Feb 24, 1970
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Official live • Released in 2002
2:51 • Live • L3
- Paul McCartney :
- Executive producer
- Performed by :
- Paul McCartney • Rusty Anderson • Abe Laboriel Jr. • Paul Wickens • Brian Ray
- David Kahne :
- Producer
- Michael Brauer :
- Recording engineer
- Ricardo Chavarria :
- Assistant engineer
Concert From the concert in Dallas, USA on May 09, 2002
Official live • Released in 2003
2:51 • Live • L3
- Paul McCartney :
- Executive producer
- Performed by :
- Paul McCartney • Rusty Anderson • Abe Laboriel Jr. • Paul Wickens • Brian Ray
- David Kahne :
- Producer
- Michael Brauer :
- Recording engineer
- Ricardo Chavarria :
- Assistant engineer
Concert From the concert in Dallas, USA on May 09, 2002
McCartney - Archive Collection
Official album • Released in 2011
2:35 • Studio version • A2011 • 2011 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Bass, Drums, Producer, Vocals
- Phil McDonald :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Session Recording:
- Feb 23, 1970
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
- Session Mixing:
- Feb 24, 1970
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Studio Two, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969-2013) on Amazon
Bootlegs
A/B Road Complete Get Back Sessions - Jan 21st, 1969 - 1 & 2
Unofficial album • Released in 2004
1:13 • Rehearsal • Jan.21 - D1-24 - Every Night 21.19
- Session Recording:
- Jan 21, 1969
- Studio :
- Apple Studios, 3 Savile Row, London
A/B Road Complete Get Back Sessions - Jan 24th, 1969 - 3 & 4
Unofficial album • Released in 2004
1:50 • Rehearsal • Jan.24 - D3-17 - Every Night 24.60
- Session Recording:
- Jan 24, 1969
- Studio :
- Apple Studios, 3 Savile Row, London
Live performances
“Every Night” has been played in 136 concerts and 78 soundchecks.
Latest concerts where Every Night has been played
Paul McCartney in Casual Conversation from LIPA
Jul 25, 2018 • United Kingdom • Liverpool • Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts
Tokyo • Nippon Budokan • Japan
Apr 25, 2017 • Part of One On One Tour
May 28, 2016 • United Kingdom • London • BBC Maida Vale Studios • Radio show
Special Valentine’s Day Concert
Feb 14, 2015 • USA • New York • Irving Plaza
Mexico City • The Zocalo • Mexico
May 10, 2012 • Part of On The Run Tour
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