- Album This song officially appears on the London Town Official album.
Related sessions
This song has been recorded during the following studio sessions
Home recordings (aka "The Piano Tape")
Circa 1974
October 25 to December 1, 1977
Jan 12, 1978
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Song facts
From Wikipedia:
“Girlfriend” is a song written by Paul McCartney. McCartney thought of the song as one that Michael Jackson might like to record, and mentioned this to Jackson at a party in Hollywood. Jackson had stated in interviews with the music press in the 1970s that he was a fan of The Beatles and the chance to record a McCartney original helped to inspire his next project. However, McCartney ended up recording it himself with his band Wings, and it was issued in 1978 on the album London Town. Subsequently, it was suggested by Quincy Jones as a possible track for Jackson to record for his 1979 album Off the Wall. Jones was unaware that the song had been written for Jackson in the first place. Jackson’s recording omitted the middle eight heard in McCartney’s version. It was issued as a single in 1980, in the UK only, as the fifth and final single from the Off the Wall album. This proved to be another huge hit single for Jackson and one of his first recordings of a Paul McCartney song.
McCartney and Jackson subsequently worked together on “The Girl Is Mine” from Thriller and two tracks from McCartney’s Pipes of Peace album, “Say Say Say” and “The Man”. In 1985, Jackson acquired the ATV Music Publishing catalog (which held the rights to nearly every Beatles song) uncontested by McCartney. According to McCartney, they “drifted apart” after he talked to Jackson about getting a “raise” and Jackson didn’t act on it.
In June 1976, during a party in Beverly Hills, Paul McCartney met with Michael Jackson for the second time, and told him he had written Girlfriend for him. Michael Jackson had to say about this event:
We shook hands amid a huge crowd of people, and he said, ‘You know, I’ve written a song for you.’ I was very surprised and thanked him. And he started singing Girlfriend to me at this party. So we exchanged phone numbers and promised to get together soon, but different projects and life just got in the way for both of us and we didn’t talk again for a couple of years. He ended up putting the song on his own album London Town
Michael Jackson
Last updated on May 13, 2020
Lyrics
Girlfriend I'm gonna tell your boyfriend
Tell him exactly what you're doing
Tell him what you do to me
Late at night when the wind is free
Girlfriend
Girlfriend I'm gonna show your boyfriend
Show him the letters I've been saving
Show him how you feel inside
Then our love couldn't be denied
And we're gonna have to tell him
You'll only be a girlfriend of mine
Till the river stops a-flowin'
Till the wind doesn't wanna blow
Till the flowers stop a-growin'
Till my love doesn't want to know
Girlfriend we'd better tell your boyfriend
Tell him exactly what we're doing
Tell him what he needs to know
Or he may never let you go
Yes, we're gonna have to tell him
You'll only be a girlfriend of mine
Till the rivers stops a-flowin'
Till the wind doesn't wanna blow
Till the flowers stop a-growin'
Till the ocean's a sea of snow
Officially appears on
Official album • Released in 1978
4:42 • Studio version • A
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Bass, Drums, Electric guitar, Electric piano, Piano (?), Producer, Synthesizers, Vocals
- Linda McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Keyboards
- Denny Laine :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Electric guitar, Piano (?)
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Assistant engineer
- Steve Churchyard :
- Assistant engineer
- Unknown musician(s) :
- Flutes, Strings
- Session Recording:
- February 14, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- October 25 to December 1, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- January 12, 1978
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs (Vol. 1) 1970-1989 on Amazon
Official album • Released in 1993
4:42 • Studio version • A
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Bass, Drums, Electric guitar, Electric piano, Piano (?), Producer, Synthesizers, Vocals
- Linda McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Keyboards
- Denny Laine :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Electric guitar, Piano (?)
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Assistant engineer
- Steve Churchyard :
- Assistant engineer
- Unknown musician(s) :
- Flutes, Strings
- Session Recording:
- February 14, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- October 25 to December 1, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- January 12, 1978
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs (Vol. 1) 1970-1989 on Amazon
Wingspan Hits And History (US version)
Official album • Released in 2001
4:42 • Studio version • A2001 • 2001 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Bass, Drums, Electric guitar, Electric piano, Piano (?), Producer, Synthesizers, Vocals
- Linda McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Keyboards
- Denny Laine :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Electric guitar, Piano (?)
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Assistant engineer
- Steve Churchyard :
- Assistant engineer
- Unknown musician(s) :
- Flutes, Strings
- Session Recording:
- February 14, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- October 25 to December 1, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- January 12, 1978
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs (Vol. 1) 1970-1989 on Amazon
Wingspan Hits And History (Japanese version)
Official album • Released in 2001
4:42 • Studio version • A2001 • 2001 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Bass, Drums, Electric guitar, Electric piano, Piano (?), Producer, Synthesizers, Vocals
- Linda McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Keyboards
- Denny Laine :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Electric guitar, Piano (?)
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Assistant engineer
- Steve Churchyard :
- Assistant engineer
- Unknown musician(s) :
- Flutes, Strings
- Session Recording:
- February 14, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- October 25 to December 1, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- January 12, 1978
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs (Vol. 1) 1970-1989 on Amazon
Official album • Released in 2001
4:42 • Studio version • A2001 • 2001 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Bass, Drums, Electric guitar, Electric piano, Piano (?), Producer, Synthesizers, Vocals
- Linda McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Keyboards
- Denny Laine :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Electric guitar, Piano (?)
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Assistant engineer
- Steve Churchyard :
- Assistant engineer
- Unknown musician(s) :
- Flutes, Strings
- Session Recording:
- February 14, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- October 25 to December 1, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- January 12, 1978
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs (Vol. 1) 1970-1989 on Amazon
Official album • Released in 2016
4:42 • Studio version • A2016 • 2016 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Bass, Drums, Electric guitar, Electric piano, Piano (?), Producer, Synthesizers, Vocals
- Linda McCartney :
- Backing vocals, Keyboards
- Denny Laine :
- Acoustic guitar, Backing vocals, Electric guitar, Piano (?)
- Geoff Emerick :
- Recording engineer
- Mark Vigars :
- Assistant engineer
- Pete Henderson :
- Assistant engineer
- Steve Churchyard :
- Assistant engineer
- Alex Wharton :
- Remastering
- Unknown musician(s) :
- Flutes, Strings
- Session Recording:
- February 14, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Overdubs:
- October 25 to December 1, 1977
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
- Session Recording:
- January 12, 1978
- Studio :
- EMI Studios, Abbey Road
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs (Vol. 1) 1970-1989 on Amazon
Bootlegs
Unofficial album • Released in 1992
Unofficial album • Released in 1999
4:50 • Rough mix • From Stereo 1978 Test Pressing Acetate - With Rough Different Mix
Unofficial album • Released in 2007
One Hand Clapping - Ultimate Archive Collection
Unofficial album • Released in 2015
Live performances
Paul McCartney has never played this song in concert.
Going further
Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs (Vol. 1) 1970-1989
With 25 albums of pop music, 5 of classical – a total of around 500 songs – released over the course of more than half a century, Paul McCartney's career, on his own and with Wings, boasts an incredible catalogue that's always striving to free itself from the shadow of The Beatles. The stories behind the songs, demos and studio recordings, unreleased tracks, recording dates, musicians, live performances and tours, covers, events: Music Is Ideas Volume 1 traces McCartney's post-Beatles output from 1970 to 1989 in the form of 346 song sheets, filled with details of the recordings and stories behind the sessions. Accompanied by photos, and drawing on interviews and contemporary reviews, this reference book draws the portrait of a musical craftsman who has elevated popular song to an art-form.
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