Written in 1985
Written by Paul McCartney • Eric Stewart
Last updated on September 15, 2019
Album This song officially appears on the Mirror Mirror Official album.
Timeline This song was written, or began to be written, in 1985, when Paul McCartney was 43 years old)
Officially appears on Mirror Mirror
“Yvonne’s The One” is a song co-written by Paul McCartney & Eric Stewart, from 10cc, during the Press To Play sessions. It appears on 10cc’s latest album, Mirror Mirror.
From The Beatles Rarity:
By the time Paul was writing the music for his Press To Play album, he was in full collaboration with Eric [Stewart], who ended up co-writing eight of the album’s tracks with Paul. One of the out-takes from Press To Play that Paul wrote with Eric, a song with the working title “Yvonne,” ended up given to him instead of going on Paul’s album. Eric changed the title to “Yvonne’s The One” and recorded it with 10cc nearly a decade later for their 1995 Mirror, Mirror album. The 10cc version features Eric on vocals and Paul guesting on rhythm guitar.
From Wikipedia:
Mirror Mirror is the 11th and last album by British pop band 10cc. It was released in 1995 and did not chart in the UK or US. […] Again featuring just two of 10cc’s core band members, Graham Gouldman and Eric Stewart, the album included performances by Paul McCartney […] [Yvonne’s The One] is Written by Eric Stewart and Paul McCartney, and first attempted in February 1985 during the sessions for Paul’s Press to Play album, but remade and completed on this album, with Paul returning the favour by playing rhythm guitar […]
Eric Stewart, from CultureSonar, December 3, 2018:
Q: You later recorded “Yvonne’s The One” with 10cc. How did your version differ?
A: That was a song we took from a postcard I got from Nick Mason of Pink Floyd. It had the line “when I first saw Yvonne, volcanoes exploded” on it. I showed it to Paul, and we wrote to that. Paul’s a perceptive guy. He wanted it in a laidback, ballad way, but I suggested to do it in a more reggae way. He did it in the smoother, ballad style, but I always wanted to do the reggae version, so I did it on my album. I wish it were more reggae, more Bob Marley. That Jamaican rhythm would suit the words.
Eric Stewart
That was a beautiful song that came about purely from a postcard I received from Nick Mason who is the drummer with Pink Floyd. It had this gorgeous picture of a girl on the front with a volcano exploding behind her. I showed it to Paul. I said, “Just look at this, this has come from Nick Mason,” and he looked at it and he said, “What’s it say?” “Oh when I first saw Yvonne volcanoes erupted”, and he sang, “Once I saw Yvonne, volcanoes erupted”, and he sang the first bloody line of the song! We went on from there and we wrote the whole song. That was the magic that he had with The Beatles. John Lennon did too. It was just something clicking and inspiring you, getting you excited about it.
Eric Steward, interview with Amped, October 2017
10CC VERSION:
When I first saw Yvonne, volcanoes erupted
And her laughter flowed into my life
She seemed so right, nothing wrong
Everything about her was so strong
So I waited for the magic to start
Somebody touch me deep in my heart
Yvonne's the one I've been dreaming on
She said, "Hold on
You're not the only one"
And so I said, "You're wrong Yvonne"
When I saw her again, I was caught in a landslide
But I didn't dare let it show
Her ruby lips were teasing me
But jealousy would never let us be
So I waited for the magic to start
But I know it's gonna tear us apart
Yvonne's the one I've been dreaming on
She said, "Hold on
You're not the only one"
And so I said, "You're wrong Yvonne"
She'll never know how much I loved her
I never got to tell
We never had the chance to say farewell
When I last saw Yvonne
She was covered in roses
But the laughter had gone from her eyes
She walked so tall, looked so grand
Everything about her truly planned
But what you get is not what you see
"So long Yvonne you're not fooling me"
Yvonne's the one I've been counting on
She said, "Hold on, you're not the only one"
And so I said, "So long Yvonne"
McCARTNEY VERSION:
Yvonne’s the one I’ve been counting on
She said, hold on
You’re not the only one,
And so I said so long Yvonne
When I first saw Yvonne, volcanoes erupted
And her laughter flowed into my life
She seemed all right, nothing wrong,
Everything about her was so strong
but I know no one’s gonna keep us apart
Yvonne’s the one I’ve been counting on
She said, hold on
You’re not the only one,
And so I said so long Yvonne
When I saw her again, I was caught in a landslide
But I didn’t dare let it show
Her ruby lips were teasing me
But jealousy would never let us be
So always gonna keep us apart
Do do do do
She never knew how much I loved her
I never got to tell her
We never found a way to say farewell
Yvonne do do do do do
Yvooooonne
When I last saw Yvonne
She’s covered in roses
But sadness had ended her life
She walked so tall, she looked so tan
Everything about her was so grand
But what you get is not what you see
So long Yvonne you’re not fooling me
Yvonne
Yvonne’s the one I’ve been counting on
She said, hold on
You’re not the only one,
And so I said, so long Yvonne.
Yvonne
Yvonne’s the one I’ve been counting on
She said so long you’re not the only one,
And so I said, so long Yvonne.
So long Yvonne
Official album • Released in 1995
4:26 • Studio version • A
Paul McCartney : Rhythm guitar
Unofficial album • Released in 2000
4:26 • Rough mix • B
Session Recording: March - May 1985 • Studio Hog Hill Studio, Rye, UK
Paul McCartney has never played this song in concert.
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Glass Onion • 8 years ago
The lyrics shown above is the official version of 10cc's. The original lyrics sung by Paul McCartney is as follows:
Yvonne's the one I've been counting on
She said, hold on
You're not the only one,
And so I said so long Yvonne
When I first saw Yvonne, volcanoes erupted
And her laughter flowed into my life
She seemed all right, nothing wrong,
Everything about her was so strong
but I know no one's gonna keep us apart
Yvonne's the one I've been counting on
She said, hold on
You're not the only one,
And so I said so long Yvonne
When I saw her again, I was caught in a landslide
But I didn't dare let it show
Her ruby lips were teasing me
But jealousy would never let us be
So always gonna keep us apart
Do do do do
She never knew how much I loved her
I never got to tell her
We never found a way to say farewell
Yvonne do do do do do
Yvooooonne
When I last saw Yvonne
She's covered in roses
But sadness had ended her life
She walked so tall, she looked so tan
Everything about her was so grand
But what you get is not what you see
So long Yvonne you're not fooling me
Yvonne
Yvonne's the one I've been counting on
She said, hold on
You're not the only one,
And so I said, so long Yvonne.
Yvonne
Yvonne's the one I've been counting on
She said so long you're not the only one,
And so I said, so long Yvonne.
So long Yvonne
admin • 8 years ago
Thanks Glass Onion ! Change applied :)
ANGEL • 2 years ago
who plays what on the solo (bootleg) version of the song by Paul ?