In the summer of
1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...
,
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 ...
's newly formed 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 ...
, set out on a
concert tour
A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often, concert tours are named to differentiate different tours by the same artist and to associate a specific ...
of
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
, in
a double decker bus, WNO 481.
Promotion
Coming on the heels of a
tour of English universities, the Wings Over Europe Tour was intended to promote recent singles "
Give Ireland Back to the Irish
"Give Ireland Back to the Irish" is the debut single by the British–American rock band Wings that was released in February 1972. It was written by Paul McCartney and his wife Linda in response to the events of Bloody Sunday, on 30 January th ...
" and "
Mary Had a Little Lamb
"Mary Had a Little Lamb" is an English-language nursery rhyme of nineteenth-century American origin, first published by American writer Sarah Josepha Hale in 1830. Its Roud Folk Song Index number is 7622.
Background
The nursery rhyme was firs ...
", as well as provide live recordings to be included on a future album. The second objective did not come to fruition for a long time, the album ''
Red Rose Speedway
''Red Rose Speedway'' is the second studio album by the English-American Rock music, rock band Paul McCartney and Wings, Wings, although credited to "Paul McCartney and Wings". It was released through Apple Records on 4 May 1973, preceded by its ...
'' was released in Spring of the next year without any of the concert material. Only the 21 August performance of "The Mess" at
The Hague
The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...
was officially released, as a
B-side
The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...
to the single "
My Love".
The live version of new song "Best Friend" was intended to be released as part of ''
Cold Cuts
Lunch meats—also known as cold cuts, luncheon meats, cooked meats, sliced meats, cold meats, sandwich meats, delicatessens, and deli meats—are precooked or cured meats that are sliced and served cold or hot. They are typically served in ...
'' compilation album, but the album was abandoned permanently.
In 2012 a live track consisting of "Eat at Home" and "Smile Away" recorded in
Groningen
Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...
was released as an
iTunes
iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...
exclusive to the reissue of Paul 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 ...
's ''
Ram
Ram, ram, or RAM most commonly refers to:
* A male sheep
* Random-access memory, computer memory
* Ram Trucks, US, since 2009
** List of vehicles named Dodge Ram, trucks and vans
** Ram Pickup, produced by Ram Trucks
Ram, ram, or RAM may also ref ...
''.
Finally in 2018, a newly compiled live album ''
Wings Over Europe'' was released in the limited edition boxset ''
Wings 1971–73'' in the
Paul McCartney Archive Collection
The Paul McCartney Archive Collection is a project to remaster and reissue Paul McCartney's solo catalogue, including various albums released with Wings. These editions feature deluxe packaging and bonus rare tracks. Thus far, there have been 14 ...
.,
while "Best Friend" and "1882" were also released as part of the ''Red Rose Speedway'' reissue. In addition, the deluxe edition of ''Red Rose Speedway'' included a DVD of ''The Bruce McMouse Show'', a concert film shot in Germany and The Netherlands interspersed with animation of a family of mice that live below the stage.
[ It was intended to promote the album, but the animation took several years longer than expected and by the time it was finished, the group had moved on.
]
Touring
The band, with the McCartney children and their road crew, loaded up in a brightly coloured double decker bus for the tour of the continent. The tour proceeded largely without incident, but on 10 August in Gothenburg
Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...
, Sweden, Paul 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 ...
were fined US$
The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...
1,200 for possession of marijuana
Cannabis (), commonly known as marijuana (), weed, pot, and ganja, List of slang names for cannabis, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the ''Cannabis'' plant. Native to Central or South Asia, cannabis has ...
. Paul joked that the incident would "make good publicity" for the tour, in comments reported around the world at the time (e.g. ''Miami Herald'', 12 August 1972). ''The Daily Telegraph'' (12 August 1972) quoted "a member of the group" as saying that this was an "excellent advertisement. ... Our name flies now all over the world".
Wings' line up for the tour was Paul and Linda McCartney, 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 ...
, Henry McCullough
Henry Campbell Liken McCullough (21 July 1943 – 14 June 2016) was a musician and singer-songwriter from Northern Ireland. He was best known for his work as a member of Spooky Tooth, the Grease Band and Paul McCartney and Wings. He al ...
, and Denny Seiwell
Denny Seiwell (born July 10, 1943) is an American drummer and a founding member of the rock band Wings. He also drummed for Billy Joel and Liza Minnelli and played in the scores for the films ''Waterworld'', ''Grease 2'', and '' Vertical Lim ...
.
Set list
The following typical set list was performed in Amsterdam on 20 August, 1972:
# " Eat at Home"
# "Smile Away"
# "Bip Bop"
# "Mumbo"
# "1882"
# "I Would Only Smile"
# "Give Ireland Back to the Irish
"Give Ireland Back to the Irish" is the debut single by the British–American rock band Wings that was released in February 1972. It was written by Paul McCartney and his wife Linda in response to the events of Bloody Sunday, on 30 January th ...
"
# "Blue Moon of Kentucky
"Blue Moon of Kentucky" is a waltz written in 1945 by bluegrass musician Bill Monroe and recorded by his band, the Blue Grass Boys. Some think the origins may trace back to "Roll Along, Kentucky Moon", a similar waltz recorded 15 years prior by ...
"
# "The Mess"
# "Best Friend"
# "Soily"
# "I Am Your Singer"
# "Henry's Blues"
# "Say You Don't Mind
"Say You Don't Mind" is a song written and originally recorded by English musician Denny Laine. It was a top 20 hit for Colin Blunstone in 1972.
History
Laine wrote the song in 1967 after he had quit the Moody Blues and was forming the Electric ...
"
# "Seaside Woman
"Seaside Woman" is a 1977 single by Wings released under the pseudonym Suzy and the Red Stripes. It charted at number 59 in the US and in the UK at number 90 in 1986.
History
"Seaside Woman" was the first song Linda McCartney wrote by herself, in ...
"
# "Wild Life"
# " My Love"
# "Mary Had A Little Lamb
"Mary Had a Little Lamb" is an English-language nursery rhyme of nineteenth-century American origin, first published by American writer Sarah Josepha Hale in 1830. Its Roud Folk Song Index number is 7622.
Background
The nursery rhyme was firs ...
"
# "Maybe I'm Amazed
"Maybe I'm Amazed" is a song written by the English musician Paul McCartney that was first released on his 1970 debut solo album '' McCartney''.
Although the original recording has never been released as a single, a live performance by McCartne ...
"
# "Hi, Hi, Hi
"Hi, Hi, Hi" is a song written by Paul McCartney, Paul and Linda McCartney and performed by Paul McCartney and Wings, Wings. It was released as a double A-side single with "C Moon" in 1972.
Release
The single was issued on 1 December 1972 in the ...
"
# "Long Tall Sally
"Long Tall Sally", also known as "Long Tall Sally (The Thing)", is a rock and roll song written by Robert "Bumps" Blackwell, Enotris Johnson, and Little Richard and released on Richard's album '' Here's Little Richard''. Richard recorded it fo ...
"
This set list remained largely static for the duration of the tour. Other songs played, tried on only one date each, included "Will the Circle Be Unbroken?
"Will the Circle Be Unbroken?" is a popular Christian hymn written in 1907 by Ada R. Habershon with music by Charles H. Gabriel. The song is often recorded unattributed and, because of its age, has lapsed into the public domain. Most of the c ...
", "Help Me Darling" (penned by McCartney), "Turkey in the Straw
"Turkey in the Straw" is an American folk song that first gained popularity in the 19th century. Early versions of the song were titled "Zip Coon", which were first published around 1834 and performed in minstrel shows, with different people cl ...
" and "Cotton Fields
"Cotton Fields (The Cotton Song)" (also known as In Them Old Cotton Fields Back Home) is a song written by American blues musician Huddie Ledbetter, better known as Lead Belly, who made the first recording of the song in 1940.
Early versions
Reco ...
."
Tour dates
References
{{Paul McCartney
Wings (band) concert tours
1972 concert tours