The Beatles legend has a solo track climbing in the charts at the moment
Paul McCartney performs live on stage at Paris La Defense Arena earlier this month(Image: Kristy Sparow/Getty Images)
Few artists have enjoyed chart success like Paul McCartney. The Walton-born music legend, 82, was named the world’s “most successful songwriter” by the Guinness book of records in 2009, at that point having penned 188 records that charted in the United Kingdom
As such, Paul’s music is rarely out of the charts. Last week, the ECHO reported that a new release by The Beatles – a vinyl boxset ‘1964 US Albums in Mono’ was a new entry in the UK vinyl charts, entering at 14. However, it is not the only music of Paul’s which is currently troubling the charts.
In the latest official UK singles charts, ‘Wonderful Christmastime’ is at 44 – a rise from its position of 79 last week. In America, the song is on five charts published by Billboard, breaking the top 40 on the rock streaming chart in the States, where it sits 15th.
‘Wonderful Christmastime’ was recorded in 1979 at Paul’s Lower Gate Farm property in Sussex while he worked on his second solo album ‘McCartney II’. It was released in November of that year, shortly after Wings’ final album ‘Back to the Egg’ hit shelves.
On its original run, ‘Wonderful Christmastime’ peaked at six in the UK charts and was also a top ten hit in Ireland, Germany, Austria, Latvia and the Netherlands. It was Paul’s first solo single since ‘Eat at Home’ in 1971 and has since become a staple in Christmas playlists.
It is quite a divisive song, with many taking against its synth-pop stylings. Music writer Robert Rodriguez said of the song: “Love it or hate it, few songs within the McCartney oeuvre have provoked such strong reactions.” So, some fans heading to Paul’s gigs in the UK this month may be hoping he plays the festive tune as they head into Christmas.
The Beatles legend plays his final show in Marid tonight before heading to the UK for the next leg of his ‘Got Back’ world tour. He will play Manchester’s Co-op Live on December 14 and 15 before heading to The O2 in London for concerts on December 18 and 19.
