Spies Like Us

Song facts

From Wikipedia:

“Spies Like Us” is the title song to the 1985 Warner Bros. motion picture of the same name, starring Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, and Donna Dixon. It was written and performed by Paul McCartney, and reached #7 on the Billboard singles chart in early 1986, making it McCartney’s last US top ten hit until 2015. It also reached #13 in the UK.

Recording and release

Multiple releases were issued in the UK: a regular 7″ single, a 7″ shaped picture disc, a regular 12″ single featuring extended mixes and the B-side “My Carnival” (a Wings track from the Venus and Mars sessions) and a 12″ picture disc.

The minute-long outro is uptempo while the title is being sung repeatedly. When the movie Spies Like Us hit the theaters, producers opted to play the outro first in the closing credits before playing the entire song.

“Spies Like Us” was released on CD in 1993, as part of the release of The Paul McCartney Collection, as a bonus track on the album Press to Play. The B-side, “My Carnival“, was released as a bonus track on Venus and Mars, and the 12″ single was an exclusive to iTunes.

Music video

The video for the song, directed by John Landis (who also directed the film), was not aired by the BBC because Dan Aykroyd and Chevy Chase appeared in it playing instruments. British labour rules at the time prohibited non-musicians from performing in videos, and Aykroyd and Chase did not actually play on the record, though both have worked as professional musicians. The video ends with McCartney, Chase, and Aykroyd walking across Abbey Road, parodying the famous album cover.

The video was however played on the long running BBC show Top Of The Pops on 2 January 1986 having already briefly featured in its Top 40 Breakers section during December 1985.[…]

John Landis rang me and said he wanted an uptempo rock ‘n’ rolly thing. I thought I might have done a Bondy type song — the 75-piece orchestra, more melodic, with maybe an Eastern touch, the known ingredients for a ‘spy’ type of song. (But) I think one of the fun things about what I’m doing now is varying those things a bit.

Paul McCartney, from the press release

The song barely appears in the movie; it is only included at the very end of the credits sequence. It is also not included in the movie’s soundtrack released in the UK on February 21st, 1986.

Last updated on August 10, 2020

Lyrics