More (and we mean more!) McCartney III Variations

 

 

beatlesblogger.com 

More (and we mean more!) McCartney III Variations

 By beatlesblogger

 Posted on November 18, 2020

Oh boy. Just when you thought that 9 vinyl colour variations, plus 2 CD cover variations – and a cassette – were enough, the folks at MPL and Capitol have devised even more ways to get you to buy the forthcoming McCartney III album – due out December 11.

If you are a collector of rare audio then hidden in amongst what, at first glance, looks like a merchandising onslaught are four bonus “secret demo” tracks. But to get them you have to buy four more copies of the main McCartney III CD. And as you’ll see there are LOTS of permutations….

It’s all a bit confusing. We’ll try to unpack it for you starting with what is available on the official US McCartney Store site (because it’s different on the UK McCartneystore site).

First thing to get clear in your head are the colours: white, red, blue and yellow.

For example, on the US store you can buy a box containing a McCartney III white cover, store-exclusive mini-jacket CD (that includes one secret bonus demo track unique to that white cover CD), plus one of the following: a white McCartney III dice set in a pouch; a white McCartney III t-shirt; a white McCartney III cap; or a whiteMcCartney III face mask.

 

 

 

 If you prefer red  you can buy a box  containing a McCartney III red cover, store-exclusive mini-jacket CD (that includes one secret bonus demo track unique to that red cover CD), plus one of the following: a red McCartney III cap; a red McCartney IIIdice set in a pouch; a red McCartney III face mask; or a red McCartney III t-shirt.

 

 

 

 

 

And so on for the blue and yellow boxed CDs and merch.

Note however that each colour has a different McCartney III logo. (The pouch and logo for the dice sets remain the same though. Click on the image below for a larger version):

 

 

So, that means for the extremely keen collector of merchandise and audio you’d have to buy 16 boxes to get absolutely every variation – but, you still only end up with the same 4 “secret bonus demo tracks”.

Staying on the US site, if audio is your main thing, for US$7.33 you can purchase separately each of the four secret demo edition store-exclusives as mini-jacket CDs. These are the same as those in the merch-related box sets above. We believe (but it’s not definitive at this point) that the CDs contain the standard CD track listing, plus one unique demo for each colour. Here’s the yellow example. As you can see it comes in a simple card sleeve cover only – no booklet, etc:

 

 Or, for US$14.33, you can purchase separately each of the four secret demo colour-coded editions in what is described as a “Deluxe Edition” softpak CD cover. These we presume are similar to the standard retail CD packaging and will come with a gatefold and booklet. The yellow example is shown below and this would also contain the standard CD tracklisting plus the unique “yellow” secret bonus demo track:

 

 

So, for the absolute US completist they’d also have to buy four more copies of this CD to have every possible permutation.

It’s interesting that no details have been given about the titles of the four demo tracks. I guess that’s why they are secret!

Meanwhile, over at the UK McCartney store, the offer is slightly different. There, if you purchace one of the four coloured merchandise boxes on offer, you get all the merchandise (plus your CD colour of choice) in one box.

For example, if you order the white box it will bundle together the white cover, store-exclusive mini-jacket CD (including the “white cover” secret bonus demo track), the white dice set, white t-shirt, white cap, and white McCartney III face mask:

 

 

Likewise the red, blue and yellow bundles.

Also, unlike the US store, at the UK store you can’t get the simple card sleeve coloured versions separately, you only have the “Deluxe Edition” softpak CD on offer. But you can get just the red tee if you want, or just the blue dice, or just the yellow face mask. No need to get the bundle if you don’t want to.

On fan blogs and forums fans are debating this new announcement, not only trying to nut out all the confusing variations but also asking the question why? There are now 10 CD variations. Why so many permutations? And why make us buy multiple copies of the CD to add these four tracks of bonus materials to our collections?

One astute observer probably has it correct: “The whole reason for this is to juice the first-week sales of the ALBUM. Selling a CD single won’t do that. Between the four CD versions here, the green one, the regular one and the black/white/red/green/cokebottle/[blue]/pink vinyl versions (not even counting the yellow one, because hardly anyone got it), some members here will likely have purchased 5-10 copies of this EACH! Hello, Billboard…”

It’s not so much about money (though no doubt that plays a factor) – it’s about trying to get a Number 1 album on the charts the first week the record goes on sale.

 

 Check out McCartney’s Twitter feed too.

 

 

 www.mirror.co.uk

How John Lennon's marriage to first wife crumbled after she found Yoko Ono in bathrobe

John Lennon was married to his first wife Cynthia from 1962 to 1968, but it was destroyed the moment she found Yoko Ono sipping tea in her home dressed in nothing but a bathrobe

By Vicki Newman
Senior Celebrity Reporter
Updated07:47, 7 NOV 2020

 

 How John Lennon's marriage to wife crumbled after she found Yoko Ono in bathrobe

 John Lennon's marriage to his first wife came crashing down after he began sleeping with second wife Yoko Ono.

The Beatles star was caught red-handed by his wife when she returned home from holiday and found Yoko in her house, wearing a bathrobe and sipping on a cup of tea.

The entire marriage was a dramatic rollercoaster ride.

John married artist Cynthia Powell in 1962.

They had met in 1957 while they were both students at the Liverpool College of Art.

When he asked her out, she told him she was engaged and he responded: "I didn't ask you to f***ing marry me, did I?"

John was jealous by nature and grew to be possessive of Cynthia.

He'd often terrify her with his anger and physical violence.

He later said that it wasn't until he met his second wife Yoko that he questioned his chauvinistic attitude towards women.

 

 John Lennon with his first wife Cynthia in 1964 (Image: Getty)

And he said that Beatles song Getting Better told his own story through the lyrics.

He told Playboy in 1980: "It is a diary form of writing. All that 'I used to be cruel to my woman / I beat her and kept her apart from the things that she loved' was me.

"I used to be cruel to my woman, and physically – any woman. I was a hitter. I couldn't express myself and I hit. I fought men and I hit women. That is why I am always on about peace, you see. It is the most violent people who go for love and peace.

"Everything's the opposite. But I sincerely believe in love and peace. I am a violent man who has learned not to be violent and regrets his violence. I will have to be a lot older before I can face in public how I treated women as a youngster."

They married after Cynthia fell pregnant with their son Julian, but as Beatlemania took off, they were asked to keep their marriage a secret over fears that it could alienate the fans.

But it all came crashing down when Cynthia found John with Yoko when she arrived at their home in Kenwood.

Cynthia, who died in 2015, left the house to move in with friends.

 

 John and Cynthia met at university (Image: Mirrorpix)

John and Yoko had first met in November 1966 at a gallery in London where she was preparing her art exhibition.

She began calling him and visiting him at his home.

When Cynthia asked for an explanation, John told her that Yoko was simply trying to obtain money for her "avant-garde bulls**t".

But while Cynthia was on holiday in May 1968, John invited Yoko over and they spent the night recording what would later become his Two Virgins album.

He said that they "made love at dawn"

Cynthia came home and found Yoko wearing her bathrobe and drinking tea with John, who simply said: "Oh hi".

Another twist came in the tale when Alexis Mardas, also known as Magic Alex, an electronics engineer who had a close association with the Beatles, claimed to have had sex with Cynthia that night she left the house after finding him with Yoko.

 

 Cynthia and son Julian in 2010 (Image: Getty)

Weeks later, he told her John was seeking a divorce and custody of Julian on the grounds of her adultery.

After negotiations, John agreed to let her divorce him on the same grounds and the case was settled out of court in November 1968, with him giving her £100,000, a small annual payment and custody of Julian.

Alexis died in 2017.

Cynthia also credited the start of the breakdown of the marriage to John's use of LSD.

She felt he slowly lost interest in her because of his use of the drug.

 

 John met Yoko in 1966 (Image: Getty)

Cynthia also said once that the end of their marriage was symbolised by an incident in which a police officer didn't recognise her and stopped her boarding a train with the band in Wales.

John and Yoko then tied the knot just months later in 1969.

They were married until John was tragically murdered on December 8, 1980, at the age of 40.

He was gunned down by obsessed fan Mark David Chapman outside his home in New York as a devastated Yoko watched on.

Cynthia returned home to find Yoko in her bathrobe (Image: Redferns)

 The star was rushed to an emergency room in a police cruiser after being shot four times, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

 

Yoko was with John when he was murdered (Image: Getty)

Chapman didn't flee the scene after committing the murder, but sat patiently reading a copy of JD Salinger's novel The Catcher In The Rye until police arrived to arrest him.

He was recently denied parole for the 11th time and remains behind bars.

Yoko, who is now 87, shared son Sean with John.

 

 Yoko and son Sean with Paul McCartney (Image: Reuters)

 

 faroutmagazine.co.uk

John Lennon once accused Rod Stewart of plagiarising an iconic The Beatles song

Far Out Staff

November 1, 2020

 

 Credit: UM/Helge Øverås

 

We are dipping into the Far Out vault to look back at what could have been a potential bust-up between two of rock’s most cherished singers. Much like any British band in the early 1960s, The Beatles actually gained their initial fame through a series of cover versions. The Fab Four, similarly to The Rolling Stones, leant heavily on the rock and roll spewing out from The States and regurgitated it as something perfectly formed for the British customer.

Unlike the Stones, however, The Beatles quickly moved on to writing their own songs—but that wouldn’t stop them paying homages to some of their rocking icons like Chuck Berry. McCartney once admitted that he had taken Berry’s bassline for ‘I’m Talking About You’ and used it for The Beatles own ‘I Saw Her Standing There’, for example. McCartney confessed: “I played exactly the same notes as he did and it fit our number perfectly. When I tell people about it, I find few of them believe me.” The idea of sharing material, therefore, wasn’t a new one but it wouldn’t save Rod Stewart from avoidingJohn Lennon’s wrath.

 

It wouldn’t be the last time Berry and The Beatles would cross paths. After the Fab Four shared their song ‘Come Together’ Lennon was forced to change a lyric following legal battering from Berry’s publishers. It was clearly a moment that hardened Lennon as he once grew very frustrated when, as he saw it, his work was taken. His work, allegedly, was taken by none other than Rod Stewart in 1976 as, by Lennon’s reckoning, the singer adapted one of The Beatles final tracks into his own iconic song ‘Killing of Georgie’.

When talking about one of The Beatles’ classic tracks, ‘Don’t Let Me Down’, the bespectacled Beatle wasn’t shy about sharing his thoughts on Stewart’s pick up of the sound. “By the way,” Lennon later said to David Sheff, “Rod Stewart turned that into ‘[Georgie] don’t go-o-o.’ That’s one the publishers never noticed.”

It didn’t seem to bother Lennon though, seemingly he understood where Stewart was coming from: “Why didn’t he just sing ‘Don’t Let Me Down’? The same reason I don’t sing other people’s stuff: because you don’t get paid.” It’s a smart assessment from a man who has made a career from the pinching of other people’s material.

In 2016, Stewart responded to the claims via The Guardian, using his cheeky happy persona and perhaps the fact that he was then 40 years down the road from the song’s release: “It does sound like it,” he said. “Nothing wrong with a good steal.” It’s a cheeky remark but one we imagine Lennon would have let Stewart away with.

“I’m sure if you look back to the ’60s, you’d find other songs with those three chords and that melody line.” It’s a fair assessment but considering both Lennon’s lift of Berry and George Harrison’s lift from The Chiffons’ ‘He’s So Fine’ are far more slight than this, perhaps they had the knives out for The Beatles.

Listen to both songs below and make your mind up.

 

 

 

 

Paul McCartney coming back for thirds with ‘McCartney III’

 

 

 www.dailylocal.com

Rock Music Menu: Paul McCartney coming back for thirds with ‘McCartney III’

By Michael Christopher
DAILY LOCAL NEWS
October 29 2020

While in quarantine, Paul McCartney put together a whole new solo album, 'McCartney III'.
Photo by Mary McCartney

One would hope while their favorite musicians are stuck at home due to the coronavirus pandemic they might be inspired to create some new music. Few would’ve expected Paul McCartney to not just be one of them, but to write, record and release a new album less than a year into quarantine times. Yet that’s exactly what the 78-year-old has done as he plans to drop the full-length ‘McCartney III’ Dec. 11.

Marking 50 years since he released his self-titled first solo album, it only made sense for McCartney to revisit that milestone and the efforts behind it in 2020.

‘McCartney’ in 1970 saw him playing every instrument and writing and recording every song on an LP which would top the charts. It signified a creative rebirth for the freshly ex-Beatle, as well as a template for generations of indie and lo-fi musicians seeking to emulate its warm homespun vibe and timeless tunes including “Maybe I’m Amazed,” “Every Night” and “The Lovely Linda.”

The 1970s saw Macca form his second band, Wings, and dominate the charts, stages and airwaves of the world, with multiple No. 1 singles, sold-out world tours, multi-million-selling albums including ‘Band on the Run,’ ‘Venus and Mars’ and more. 

Then, a decade after ‘McCartney,’ to kick off the 80s, Paul delivered the surprise release of his second solo album, the electronic-tinged ‘McCartney II.’ Once again featuring McCartney entirely on his own, the LP would come to be regarded as a leftfield classic, with classic cuts such as ‘Coming Up’ and ‘Temporary Secretary.’    

Now, just two years since his last solo effort, ‘Egypt Station,’ and mere months after his Freshen Up tour was forced to a halt when Covid-19 hit, McCartney found himself fleshing out some existing musical sketches and creating even more new ones at a time when he wasn’t even planning on new material. Before long, an eclectic collection of spontaneous songs would become ‘McCartney III,’ a stripped back, self-produced and, quite literally, solo work marking the opening of a new decade, in the tradition of ‘McCartney’ and ‘McCartney II.’

‘McCartney III’ is mostly built from live takes of Paul on vocals and guitar or piano, overdubbing his bass playing, drumming, etc. atop that foundation.

“I was living lockdown life on my farm with my family and I would go to my studio every day,” he says in a statement. “I had to do a little bit of work on some film music and that turned into the opening track and then when it was done, I thought, ‘What will I do next?’”

“I had some stuff I’d worked on over the years but sometimes time would run out and it would be left half-finished, so I started thinking about what I had,” McCartney continues. “Each day I’d start recording with the instrument I wrote the song on and then gradually layer it all up, it was a lot of fun.  It was about making music for yourself rather than making music that has to do a job. So, I just did stuff I fancied doing. I had no idea this would end up as an album.”

Keeping with ‘McCartney’ and ‘McCartney II’s’ photography by Linda McCartney, the principal photos for ‘III’ were shot by Paul’s daughter Mary McCartney—with additional photography by Paul’s nephew Sonny McCartney as well as photos Paul took on his phone. 

 

The new 'McCartney' will be available Dec. 11.
Phot courtesy of Michael Christopher

‘McCartney’ and ‘McCartney II’ each saw Paul open up a new decade with reinvention, both personal and musical. Just as McCartney’s 1970 release marked Paul’s return to basics in the wake of the biggest band break-up in musical history, and the 1980 avant-garde masterpiece McCartney II rose from the ashes of Wings, McCartney III finds Paul back on his own, turning unexpected circumstances into a personal snapshot of a timeless artist at a unique point in history.

 

 

 

 

 ultimateclassicrock.com

WILL ‘MCCARTNEY III’ BE PAUL MCCARTNEY’S LAST ALBUM?

MARTIN KIELTY
Published: October 22, 2020

 

 Kevin Winter, Getty Images

Paul McCartney said he didn’t know he’d been working on his upcoming McCartney III album until he finished it. Named to emphasize the fact that it’s entirely a one-man creation like 1970’s McCartney and 1980’s McCartney II, the third instalment will be released on Dec. 11. The album's full details have not been announced yet.

Asked in a new interview with Loud and Quiet when he realized the nature of his new project, McCartney replied: “Right at the end of it. … I’d just been stockpiling tracks, and I thought, ‘I don’t know what I’m going to do with all of this – I guess I’ll hang onto it.’ And then I thought, ‘Wait a minute, this is a McCartney record,’ because I’d played everything and done it in the same manner as McCartney I and II. That was a little light bulb going off, and I thought, ‘Well, at least that makes a point of explaining what I’ve been doing, unbeknownst to me.’”

McCartney had already noted that the record had come about as a result of having time on his hands during lockdown, and the lack of interruptions was the “common denominator” among all three McCartney LPs.

“After the Beatles broke up, I suddenly had a lot of time and no particular plan in mind,” he said. “And then when Wings broke up it was a similar thing. And with me, when I’ve got a lot of time, my go-to situation is, ‘Well, write and record then – that’s something to do when you’ve got some spare time.’ So, this was similar, but it was the pandemic that stopped things. We were due to go on a European tour this year, but very early on, Italy got the virus, and gradually all of the other gigs, including Glastonbury, which was going to be the culmination of it, got knocked out. So then it was, ‘Okay, well, what am I going to do?’ And that’s my fallback situation: to write and record.”

McCartney also addressed the rumor the new album will be his last. “Everything I do is always supposed to be my last," he said. "When I was 50 – ‘That’s his last tour.’ And it was like, ‘Oh, is it? I don’t think so.’ It’s the rumor mill, but that’s okay. When we did Abbey Road, I was dead, so everything else is a bonus.”

 

 

 

 www.nme.com

Paul McCartney drops major hints that ‘McCartney III’ is on the way

He's been dropping a series of clues using a set of dice

By Nick Reilly
20th October 2020

 

 Paul McCartney (Picture: Getty)

 

Paul McCartney has hinted that he is gearing up to release ‘McCartney III’, completing a trilogy of self-titled albums that he started recording before The Beatles split up.

The music icon released ‘McCartney’ in 1970 before following it a decade later with 1980’s ‘McCartney II’. Both albums were recorded at home and featured additional vocals from his late wife Linda.

McCartney fans have started to receive hints that a third release is on the way after a series of surprise animations began to appear on Spotify.

 

 When users play songs from ‘McCartney’ and ‘McCartney II’ on the Spotify mobile app, they are greeted with an animation of a dice thrown onto the images of the album covers, with three dots facing upwards.

 

I’ve checked on Spotify and it’s true. Teasers for the rumoured McCartney III album. They’re there! It’s on! This is fantastic news. #McCartney3 #McCartneyIII #McC3 pic.twitter.com/t13iXMDgri

— Jason Carty (@Doctor_J_) October 16, 2020

 

Over on Reddit , McCartney’s fans also claim to have received a bag printed with his name and containing three dice.

 

 

 The singer’s social media accounts have now begun teasing the release too, sharing a series of images which were accompanied by three dice emojis.

 

🎲🎲🎲 pic.twitter.com/LtpnCsZBWw

— Paul McCartney (@PaulMcCartney) October 20, 2020

 

 

 

🎲🎲🎲 pic.twitter.com/Q8t4czk84N

— Paul McCartney (@PaulMcCartney) October 20, 2020

 

 

 

🎲🎲🎲 pic.twitter.com/fMUHjfApLr

— Paul McCartney (@PaulMcCartney) October 20, 2020

 

 

While specific details on the release are yet to emerge, online zine GodIsInTheTV claims that McCartney recorded the album in lockdown, which would be in keeping with the DIY, homespun aesthetic he utilised on the previous two records.

Speaking to GQ earlier this year, McCartney also confirmed that he had been recording during lockdown.

“I’ve been able to write and get into music, starting songs, finishing songs. I’ve had a few little things to write and it’s given me the time to finish some songs that I hadn’t found the time to get around to,” he said.

It’s also claimed that the domain name mccartneyiii.com was registered in August by CSC Corporate Domains, the company that previously registered paulmccartney.com and flaming-pie.com (for the reissue of Paul’s 1997 album earlier this year).

When visiting the site, fans are met with a ‘303 error notice’ – a cryptic and rather telling spin on the usual 404 error.

As for a release date, it’s rumoured that the record will arrive on December 11. NME has contacted Paul McCartney’s representatives for comment.

 

 

If the reports are proven to be true, the release will be the follow-up to 2018’s ‘Egypt Station‘ – which marked McCartney’s 17th post-Beatles album,.

In a four-star review of the record, NME wrote: “McCartney’s always been about inclusivity and openness, but this latest glimpse into his life feels like a particularly enlightening one.”