"On the Wings of a Nightingale" is a song written by

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

and recorded by

the Everly Brothers The Everly Brothers were an American rock duo, known for steel-string acoustic guitar playing and close harmony singing. Consisting of Isaac Donald "Don" Everly (February 1, 1937 – August 21, 2021) and Phillip "Phil" Everly (January 19, 193 ...

in 1984 for their album ''

EB 84 ''EB 84'' is a 1984 album by The Everly Brothers, and the duo's first album of new material in 11 years. Track listing #"On the Wings of a Nightingale" (Paul McCartney) - 2:33 (US #50, UK #41) #"Danger Danger" (Frankie Miller) - 3:26 #"The Story ...

,'' which Dave Edmunds produced.

Background

Paul McCartney had written the song specifically for the Everly Brothers and played guitar on the recording. The track was included as the first track on the duo's 1984 album ''

''. "On the Wings of a Nightingale" become their most popular song since 1970 and reached number 50 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Music video

The video made to accompany the song shows the brothers rescuing a classic car (specifically, a 1957

Chevrolet Bel Air The Chevrolet Bel Air is a full-size car produced by Chevrolet for the 1950–1975 model years. Initially, only the two-door hardtops in the Chevrolet model range were designated with the Bel Air name from 1950 to 1952. With the 1953 model year, ...

convertible) from a junk yard, restoring it (in a series of shots that compress an unknown number of weeks, or months, into 35 seconds of video time) to drivable condition, then finally taking it out for a spin.

Charts

Cover versions

The Spongetones recorded a version for their 2000 ''Odd Fellows'' album. Apple Jam also recorded three versions for their 2012 ''On the Wings of a Nightingale'' EP. McCartney's own version still exists, strictly as a demonstration recording; it remains unreleased as of 2020.

References

1984 songs The Everly Brothers songs Songs written by Paul McCartney Mercury Records singles {{1980s-single-stub