- Album This song officially appears on the Pipes Of Peace Official album.
- Timeline This song has been written (or started being written) in 1980 (Paul McCartney was 38 years old)
Related sessions
This song has been recorded during the following studio sessions
August 1980
Recording "Sweetest Little Show"
Jul 11, 1983
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Song facts
“Sweetest Little Show” is a track from 1983 album “Pipes Of Peace“. Along with “Average Person” and “Keep Under Cover“, this song has been written in 1980, 3 years before the release of “Pipes Of Peace“. The basic track was recorded during the initial sessions for “Tug Of War” in January 1981.
That just came out of a jam, just a little chord sequence which was lying around for a while. It nearly got into a medley with two other pieces, and we suddenly didn’t like the two other pieces, but we liked “The Sweetest Little Show” bit. So then I added the guitar show — I fancied playing a bit of guitar — so I played a little bit of acoustic in the middle of it, and that got a little bit of applause and that became the Little Show. So it became its own little thing. I quite like that track, it’s just a soft little track.
Paul McCartney, from Club Sandwich N° 31, 1983
Last updated on May 10, 2020
Lyrics
Well they can treat you like a brother
Yeah they can treat you like a clown
But if they treat you like a lover
They've got the sweetest little show in town
You got the sweetest little show
Sweetest little show
Sweetest little show in town
You've been around a long time
But you're still good for a while
And if they try to criticize you
Make them smile, make them smile
And if they treat you like a brother,
Well, you will never let them down
But if they treat you like a lover
They've got the sweetest little show in town
They've got the sweetest little show
Sweetest little show in town
You got the sweetest little show
Sweetest little show
Sweetest little show in town
You got the sweetest little show
Sweetest little show
Sweetest little show in town
- guitar piece -
You got the sweetest little show
Sweetest little show…
Officially appears on
Official album • Released in 1983
2:54 • Studio version • A
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Arrangement, Backing vocals, Bass, Castanets (?), Drums (?), Electric guitar, Piano (?), Shaker (?), Synthesizers (?), Vocals, Vocoder
- George Martin :
- Arrangement, Producer
- Geoff Emerick :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Jon Jacobs :
- Mixing engineer assistant, Recording engineer assistant
- Session Recording:
- Jan 02, 1981
- Studio :
- Parkgate Studio, Sussex, UK
- Session Recording:
- Jul 11, 1983
- Studio :
- AIR Studios, London, UK
- Session Mixing:
- Jan 25, 1983
- Studio :
- AIR Studios, London, UK
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
Studio version • A • 1993 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Arrangement, Backing vocals, Bass, Castanets (?), Drums (?), Electric guitar, Piano (?), Shaker (?), Synthesizers (?), Vocals, Vocoder
- George Martin :
- Arrangement, Producer
- Geoff Emerick :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Jon Jacobs :
- Mixing engineer assistant, Recording engineer assistant
- Session Recording:
- Jan 02, 1981
- Studio :
- Parkgate Studio, Sussex, UK
- Session Recording:
- Jul 11, 1983
- Studio :
- AIR Studios, London, UK
- Session Mixing:
- Jan 25, 1983
- Studio :
- AIR Studios, London, UK
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs (Vol. 1) 1970-1989 on Amazon
Pipes Of Peace - Archive Collection
Official album • Released in 2015
2:52 • Studio version • A2015 • 2015 remaster
- Paul McCartney :
- Acoustic guitar, Arrangement, Backing vocals, Bass, Castanets (?), Drums (?), Electric guitar, Piano (?), Shaker (?), Synthesizers (?), Vocals, Vocoder
- George Martin :
- Arrangement, Producer
- Geoff Emerick :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Jon Jacobs :
- Mixing engineer assistant, Recording engineer assistant
- Sam Okell :
- Remastering
- Alex Wharton :
- Remastering
- Session Recording:
- Jan 02, 1981
- Studio :
- Parkgate Studio, Sussex, UK
- Session Recording:
- Jul 11, 1983
- Studio :
- AIR Studios, London, UK
- Session Mixing:
- Jan 25, 1983
- Studio :
- AIR Studios, London, UK
Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • Buy Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs (Vol. 1) 1970-1989 on Amazon
Pipes Of Peace - Archive Collection
Official album • Released in 2015
3:01 • Demo • B
- Paul McCartney :
- Mixing engineer, Recording engineer
- Performed by :
- Paul McCartney
- Alex Wharton :
- Mastering
- Session Recording:
- August 1980
- Studio :
- Rude Studio, Campbeltown, Scotland
Bootlegs
Unofficial album
Unofficial album • Released in 1989
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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