"Bluebird" is a song written by

Paul Paul may refer to: People * Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people * Paul (surname), a list of people * Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament * Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo ...

and

Linda McCartney Linda Louise, Lady McCartney ( Eastman; September 24, 1941 – April 17, 1998) was an American photographer, musician, cookbook author, and activist. She was the keyboardist and harmony vocalist in the band Paul McCartney and Wings, Wings tha ...

and originally performed by the British rock band

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces both lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-drag ratio, which compares the bene ...

, released on their 1973 album ''

Band on the Run ''Band on the Run'' is the third studio album by the British–American rock band Paul McCartney and Wings, released on 30 November 1973. It was McCartney's fifth album after leaving the Beatles in April 1970 and his final album on Apple ...

''. According to author John Blaney, it was written during a vacation in

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

. However, author Vincent Benitez claims the song was written as early as 1970 or 1971, noting that Paul and Linda sang the song during a live interview in New York City in 1971. In

Continental Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous mainland of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by som ...

it was also released as the B-side of the "

Mrs. Vandebilt "Mrs. Vandebilt" is a song by the British–American rock band Paul McCartney and Wings from the album ''Band on the Run''. The track was not issued as a single in the UK or US, but was a single in Continental Europe and Australia. Writing and re ...

" single.

Recording and music

"Bluebird" was reportedly composed by McCartney in 1971, during his holiday in Jamaica. Although much of the ''Band on the Run'' album was recorded in

Lagos, Nigeria Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

in August and September 1973, "Bluebird" was completed later in 1973 at

AIR Studios Associated Independent Recording (AIR) is an independent recording company founded in London in 1965 by record producers George Martin, John Burgess (record producer), John Burgess, Ron Richards (producer), Ron Richards, and Peter Sullivan (rec ...

in London. The percussionist on the song,

Remi Kabaka Remi Kabaka (born 27 March 1945) is a Nigerian Afro-rock avant-garde drummer. He worked with John Martyn, Hugh Masekela, on '' Rhythm of the Saints'' by Paul Simon, and '' Short Cut Draw Blood'' by Jim Capaldi. He was also an important figure in th ...

, was from Lagos but happened to be in London when the song was being recorded. One highlight of the song is a

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...

solo played by session musician

Howie Casey Howard William Casey (born 12 July 1937) is a British rhythm and blues and rock saxophonist. He came to prominence in the early 1960s as a member of Derry and the Seniors, the first rock and roll band from Liverpool to play clubs in Germany, a ...

. Casey repeated his solo during the Wings Over the World tour in 1975 and 1976. Other musical elements of the song include

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked, its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

s and calypso-like percussion.

Lyrics and chords

In the lyrics, Paul McCartney compares himself in love to a

bluebird The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous passerine birds in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas. Bluebirds lay an ...

. The opening lyrics are: Blaney interprets the bluebird as "a

metaphor A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide, or obscure, clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are usually meant to cr ...

for the transcendent power of love and the liberation of the human spirit from mental and physical bondage". Benitez regards the bluebird as a metaphor for love itself - love that is the only source of transcendent freedom. The song describes the singer's revitalization after having been upset at the beginning of the song.

Jon Landau Jon Landau (born May 14, 1947) is an American music critic, manager, and record producer. He has worked with Bruce Springsteen. He is the head of the nominating committee for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and received that institution's Ahme ...

describes the song as "a simple love song" but sees in its "flying" motif a continuation of the theme of escape that runs throughout the ''Band on the Run'' album. The singer tells his lover that when he, as a bluebird, kisses her she can also become a bluebird, at which point they become absolutely free. The song is in the key of

F major F major is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat.Music Theory'. (1950). United States: Standards and Curriculum Division, Training, Bureau of Naval Personnel. 28. Its relati ...

although it sounds like it is in

E-flat major E-flat major is a major scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has three flats. Its relative minor is C minor, and its parallel minor is E minor, (or enharmonically D minor). The E-fla ...

due to the way the guitars are tuned. The

refrain A refrain (from Vulgar Latin ''refringere'', "to repeat", and later from Old French ''refraindre'') is the Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeated in poetry or in music">poetry.html" ;"title="Line (poetry)">line or lines that are repeat ...

is simply a rhythmic chant based on the phrase "I'm a Bluebird" sung by McCartney with Linda and

Denny Laine Brian Frederick Hines (29 October 1944 – 5 December 2023), known professionally as Denny Laine, was an English musician who co-founded two major rock bands: the Moody Blues and Wings. Laine played guitar in the Moody Blues from 1964 to 1966 ...

providing

harmony In music, harmony is the concept of combining different sounds in order to create new, distinct musical ideas. Theories of harmony seek to describe or explain the effects created by distinct pitches or tones coinciding with one another; harm ...

. Benitez states about the music that "the

harmonic In physics, acoustics, and telecommunications, a harmonic is a sinusoidal wave with a frequency that is a positive integer multiple of the ''fundamental frequency'' of a periodic signal. The fundamental frequency is also called the ''1st har ...

schemes of verse and

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song), the part of a song that is repeated several times, usually after each verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in whic ...

strongly suggest that the text of each verse raises a question, only to be answered by each chorus through its exclamations of being a bluebird."

Reception

Donald Guarisco of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

describes "Bluebird" as "a simple bit of acoustic pop that overflows with hooks thanks to a slick arrangement" and "a delightful, breezy pop tune". ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' critics

Roy Carr Roy Carr (1945 – 1 July 2018) was an English music journalist, covering pop, rock and jazz. He joined the ''New Musical Express (NME)'' in the late 1960s, and edited ''NME'', '' Vox'' and ''Melody Maker'' magazines. Biography Born in Black ...

and Tony Tyler commented that McCartney's "lightweight touch ... works superbly on 'Bluebird'" and likened it to " Blackbird" from the Beatles' self-titled double album (also known as the "White Album"). Paul McCartney & Wings (with Joe English and

Jimmy McCulloch James McCulloch (4 June 1953 – 25 September 1979) was a Scottish musician best known for playing lead guitar and bass as a member of Paul McCartney's band Wings from 1974 to 1977. McCulloch was a member of the Glasgow psychedelic band One i ...

) recorded "Bluebird" along with an apology to Japanese fans for their being unable to tour in Japan after he was denied entry into the country. An incomplete version of the video was included with the 25th Anniversary Edition of ''Band on the Run'', and a longer version (including the apology) was included on the 2001 documentary ''Wingspan – An Intimate Portrait''. In 2017 ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' magazine ranked "Bluebird" as McCartney's 14th greatest post-Beatles song, stating that it "features a bittersweet melody only McCartney could have written, carried along by guitar that lilts like Brazilian bossa nova and soft-touch percussion from Nigerian instrumentalist

Personnel

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

– lead vocals,

, bass guitar, drums, drum machine *

– harmony vocals *

– harmony vocals, acoustic guitar *

–

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (whi ...

– percussion

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bluebird (Paul McCartney and Wings song) 1973 songs Paul McCartney songs Paul McCartney and Wings songs Songs written by Paul McCartney Songs written by Linda McCartney Song recordings produced by Paul McCartney Music published by MPL Music Publishing Songs about birds