Lonely Road

Song facts

“Lonely Road” is the opening track of Paul McCartney’s 2001 album “Driving Rain“. 

Recorded on 16th February 2001 onto 16-track analogue tape, then loaded into Logic audio for overdubs. Paul played Hofner bass and sang a live vocal some of which was used then overdubbed Martin acoustic, Epiphone electric guitar and another vocal. Abe played drums and overdubbed tambourine. Rusty played Gibson SG electric guitar, then overdubbed Pedal steel guitar and Gibson acoustic guitar, Gabe played Wurlitzer electric piano. David overdubbed Roland Organ.

From the liner notes of the album, and from paulmccartney.com

‘Lonely Road’ was also written in Goa, where I was enjoying the beach and the sea and generally chilling out in the new century. Again, I had a few moments in the afternoon, which is always a good time for me, a quiet spell when it’s always cool for me to go off and fondle my guitar. The songs basically wrote itself in about an hour. It is what it is, this song, you can make of it what you want to make of it. To me it’s not particularly about anything other than not wanting to be brought down. It’s a sort of anti-being brought down song, which is for anyone and everyone. It’s ‘don’t want to get brought down again, don’t want to walk that lonely road’, it’s symbolic for anyone who’s been through any sort of problems. It’s a defiant song against loneliness, written in a hotel room in Goa. – Paul McCartney, 2001

Paul McCartney – From “The Driving Rain interview” published on paulmccartney.com, November 2001

Last updated on June 3, 2022

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