Blackbird Fly: The Book Before The Lyrics by Theresa Gauthier

 Blackbird Singing: Poems and Lyrics 1965 to 1999 by Paul McCartney

Long before Paul McCartney’s The Lyrics became Barnes & Nobles Book of the Year, before people decided it was a great idea to throw down $100 for copies of the lyrics of all of Paul’s songs, Blackbird Singing was released as a book of poetry.

Blackbird Singing presents Paul’s lyrics in poetry form—just words on a page with no distractions from photos or liner notes, or anything at all. It was considered at the time as something of a vanity project. Why release lyrics as poetry when most people already know them by heart, when they exist on lyric websites and on LP and CD liner notes? 

The book was Linda McCartney’s idea, and I adore that. Meant as a surprise birthday present, this idea had to be abandoned when Paul figured it out. 

I’ve always admired Linda; her talent, her ability to handle the pressure of being literally hated by so many people who erroneously blamed her for the end of The Beatles or absurdly imagined that, had it not been for her, they themselves might have married Paul. Linda was a talented woman. Regardless of what many people think, she did have a lovely voice—Silly Love Songs, and her own songs, like Seaside Woman and the CD Wide Prairie—prove that. 

This collection is one of my favorite Beatles books because I read a few pages or entire chapters at a time. With this collection, you can’t help but read the poems as songs. You hear the melody, the harmony, and every note of every song as you read through the songs included here. 

Paul McCartney writes memorable lyrics. Songs that get stuck in your head with a clever, romantic, witty or silly turn of phrase are second nature to him. The music of the last sixty years would have been far less memorable had his writing not been as prolific as it has been.

Of the lyrics included in Blackbird Singing, even casual fans would have favorites. 

I like to open the book at random and see what I find. I’ll read one or two, then come back for more some other time. Maybe days later, maybe years later, I’ll find something I forgot was in there or something that I need at the particular time that I’m reading it.

Truth is, the book was laid out with far more thought. With nine sections, the book starts with Playing at Home and includes fan favorites like Heart of the Country, Mull of Kintyre and Maybe I’m Amazed. 

Other sections include Yesterday, Friends and Enemies, and my favorite, The World Tonight. Most of the sections include some mention of a Beatles song, but it’s the one that inspired the title that I read again and again. 

Take these broken wings and learn to fly…