Studio Album · No. 5
Band on the Run Songwriting Credits by Paul McCartney
Produced by Paul McCartney, Geoff Emerick · Engineered by Geoff Emerick
Holds writing credit on 9 of 9 tracks
Authorship Breakdown 9 / 9 documented
Scored across the 9 tracks with documented writers, by whether Paul McCartney carries a lyricist or composer credit.
Share of the 9 tracks where a band member is credited, by role.
By the Numbers
Awards & Recognition 2
All compositions on Band on the Run were written by Paul and Linda McCartney except No Words, which Paul co-wrote with Wings guitarist Denny Laine. The album was recorded by a trimmed-down Wings after two members left, with Paul, Linda, and Laine carrying the sessions. Engineer Geoff Emerick won a Grammy for his work, and the record became one of McCartney's biggest commercial successes.
Band on the Run is the third studio album by Paul McCartney and Wings, released in December 1973 on Apple Records and produced by McCartney himself, recorded in Lagos, Nigeria, after most of the Wings lineup quit before the sessions, leaving McCartney, Linda, and guitarist Denny Laine to record the bulk of the album with hired local musicians before adding overdubs in London. McCartney wrote all the original material; the album's conceptual theme, escape and freedom from constriction, reflected in song titles like 'Jet,' 'Let Me Roll It,' and the title track's jailbreak narrative, is among the most sustained in McCartney's solo catalog and gives the album a thematic coherence unusual for his work. 'Jet' and 'Helen Wheels' were released as singles, with 'Helen Wheels' reaching the top ten in the United States, and the title track became one of McCartney's most celebrated post-Beatles compositions. Band on the Run was McCartney's first critical and commercial rehabilitation since Ram: it reached number one on both the UK Albums Chart and the Billboard 200, won the Grammy for Best Pop Vocal by a Duo, Group or Chorus, and was certified five-times platinum in the United States. The album is universally regarded as McCartney's finest post-Beatles solo work and is cited by critics as a definitive example of mainstream rock album-craft in the early 1970s.
Track Listing & Credits 9 tracks
| # | Title | Lyricist(s) | Composer(s) | Producer(s) | Performers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Band on the Run
#1
|
Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyGeoff Emerick | Paul McCartney (Vocals, Bass, Guitar, Piano, Drums) |
| 2 |
Jet
#7
|
Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyGeoff Emerick | Paul McCartney (Vocals, Bass, Guitar, Piano, Drums) |
| 3 |
Bluebird
|
Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyGeoff Emerick | Paul McCartney (Vocals, Bass, Guitar, Piano, Drums) |
| 4 |
Mrs Vandebilt
|
Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyGeoff Emerick | Paul McCartney (Vocals, Bass, Guitar, Piano, Drums) |
| 5 |
Let Me Roll It
|
Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyGeoff Emerick | Paul McCartney (Vocals, Bass, Guitar, Piano, Drums) |
| 6 |
Mamunia
|
Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyGeoff Emerick | Paul McCartney (Vocals, Bass, Guitar, Piano, Drums) |
| 7 |
No Words
|
Paul McCartneyDenny Laine | Paul McCartneyDenny Laine | Paul McCartneyGeoff Emerick | Paul McCartney (Vocals, Bass, Guitar, Piano, Drums) |
| 8 |
Picasso's Last Words (Drink to Me)
|
Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyGeoff Emerick | Paul McCartney (Vocals, Bass, Guitar, Piano, Drums) |
| 9 |
Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five
|
Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyLinda McCartney | Paul McCartneyGeoff Emerick | Paul McCartney (Vocals, Bass, Guitar, Piano, Drums) |