How a Home Recording Studio Helped Paul McCartney Make His First Solo Album
Home studios made everything more convenient because artists could make more music from the comfort of their home. While recording studios might have more expensive, state-of-the-art equipment, recording from home allowed artists to produce music faster without scheduling issues. Paul McCartney recorded most of his music with The Beatles at Abbey Road Studios, but the home studio allowed him to produce music more independently, leading to his first solo album, McCartney.
Paul McCartney was anxious to release more music after The Beatles broke up
Paul McCartney started playing music when he was a teenager, and he later joined The Quarrymen with John Lennon and George Harrison. They later formed The Beatles, eventually bringing in Ringo Starr. When the band split in 1970, McCartney was alone for the first time, albeit with millions of dollars.
However, The Beatles knew they were breaking up when Lennon announced his departure in 1969. McCartney took this as a sign to start working on his solo music. He released his first solo project, McCartney, on April 17, 1970, just a week after he said The Beatles were over. In an interview shared by myradiolink.com, the British singer said the album wasn’t an attempt to show off his talents but to prove he could keep going.
“It wasn’t so much muscles I hadn’t had a chance to use in the Beatles, it was (about) keeping going,” McCartney said. “It wasn’t that I was not allowed to do stuff in the Beatles and then I was allowed to do it on my own, it was more a question of I did stuff with the Beatles, then suddenly the prospect was looming that I wasn’t gonna do stuff — and that was frightening. So, I just said, ‘Well, I’m just gonna do stuff for my own pleasure.’ Then I played it for a few people and they sort of said, ‘Wow, y’know, that’s amazing.’ That’s what happened. I finally thought, ‘Y’know what? This is an album. A quirky one — but it’s an album.’”
Pete Townshend introduced the former Beatle to the home recording studio
Paul McCartney released his first album so fast thanks to advanced technology that allowed him to record it at home. In an interview with Uncut magazine, The Who’s Pete Townshend said he introduced McCartney to the world of home recording, leading to the former Beatle making McCartney.
“I was working on my first solo album, Who Came First, at Olympic,” he explained. “He was in the studio doing something as well and came in to listen to the whole album. Paul said: ‘How did you do this?’ I said that I recorded it at home. I said, ‘I’ve got a little mixing desk and an eight-track tape machine.’ He went, ‘F***! And you did it yourself?’ I said, ‘Yeah, you should do it.’”
“We had a couple of phone calls subsequently, and then he called up one day, really energized, and said, ‘The guys from Abbey Road have delivered an eight-track tape machine to my house in St. John’s Wood, and I’ve started,’” Townshend added. “So he made that first album with (McCartney). That’s how Paul started. Now he’s got this big SSL studio in his house in Sussex, he can do whatever the f*** he likes!”
Paul McCartney’s first solo album was a hit on the charts, but not with critics
McCartney was commercially successful, peaking at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and No. 2 on the U.K. album charts. However, the album didn’t score well with critics. While it did have some highlights, like “Maybe I’m Amazed”, many found the album to be underproduced and unfinished. McCartney was trying to get the album out quickly, and it did suffer due to its rushed release. However, it was still a hit for the singer and the beginning of a wildly successful solo career.
