| "Mull of Kintyre" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single byWings | ||||
| A-side | "Girls' School" | |||
| Released | 11 November 1977 | |||
| Recorded | 9 August 1977 | |||
| Studio | Spirit of Ranachan,Campbeltown | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 4:45 | |||
| Label | Capitol | |||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Producer | Paul McCartney | |||
| Wings singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| ”Mull of Kintyre” onYouTube | ||||
"Mull of Kintyre" is a song by the English-American rock bandWings. It was written byPaul McCartney andDenny Laine in tribute to theKintyre peninsula inArgyll and Bute in the south-west ofScotland and itsheadland, theMull of Kintyre, where McCartney has owned High Park Farm since 1966.
The single was Wings' biggest hit in Britain and is one of the best selling singles of all time in the United Kingdom, where it became the 1977Christmas number one and was the first single to sell over two million copies nationwide.[1][2][3]
The song dates as far back as at least 1974, appearing on the extended home demo recording known amongst bootleggers as "The Piano Tape". Written on piano originally, at that early stage the lyric only had the completed chorus and a few bits of the lyrics that eventually made the finished version.[4]
The lyrics of the first verse, also used as the repeating chorus, are an ode to the area's natural beauty and sense of home:
Mull of Kintyre
Oh mist rolling in from the sea,
My desire
Is always to be here
Oh Mull of Kintyre
McCartney explained how the song came into being:
I certainly loved Scotland enough, so I came up with a song about where we were living: an area called Mull of Kintyre. It was a love song really, about how I enjoyed being there and imagining I was travelling away and wanting to get back there.[5]
"Mull of Kintyre" was recorded on 9 August 1977 at Spirit of Ranachan Studio at High Park Farm in Scotland, during a break in recording theLondon Town album caused byLinda McCartney's advanced pregnancy. The song featuredGreat Highland bagpipes played by the Campbeltown Pipe Band from nearbyCampbeltown. Paul's vocals and acoustic guitar were recorded outdoors.[6]The tapes could have been ruined by insects, but they eventually managed to clean them and save the recording, as told in detail by author Luca Perasi.[7]"Mull of Kintyre" and "Girls' School" (which had been previously recorded forLondon Town) were released as adouble A-sided single on 11 November 1977, independently of the album. It was included on the Wings compilationWings Greatest in 1978,[8] the UK/Canada version of McCartney's 1987 compilation albumAll the Best!,[9] the 2001 compilationWingspan: Hits and History and the 2016 compilationPure McCartney.
The official music video was directed byMichael Lindsay-Hogg and filmed atSaddell Bay on the eastern side of the Kintyre peninsula about seven miles (11 km) from High Park Farm and two months after recording the song. Paul, Linda and Denny perform the song as they overlook the bay and walk down to the beach where the Campbeltown Pipe Band are marching and playing. It culminates in a bonfire singalong with extras from Campbeltown.[10]
The official video was shown on the nine regular editions ofTop of the Pops when the song was number one. For the 1977 Christmas Special, the band were booked for theMike Yarwood Show, and so the video shown was recorded on an indoor set, including trees, mist and the Campbeltown Pipe Band walking through the shot.[11]
The song's broad appeal was maximised by its pre-Christmas release, and it became aChristmas number-one single in the UK, spending nine weeks at the top of the charts. It also became an international hit, charting high in Australia and many other countries over the holiday period.[12] It went on to become the first single to sell over two million copies in the UK and became the UK's best-selling single of all-time (eclipsingthe Beatles' own "She Loves You") until overtaken byBand Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas?" in 1984 (which also featured McCartney on theB-side).[13] The song remains the UK's best-selling completely non-charity single, having sold 2.09 million copies.[14]Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" has sold more in its two releases, but the profits of the 1991 release were donated to charity.[2]
The millionth copy of the disc sold in the UK included a special certificate. It was sold to David Ackroyd, who was presented with a gold disc of the single by co-writerDenny Laine.[15]
Despite its international appeal, the song was not a major hit in North America, where the flipside "Girls' School" received more airplay and reached #33 on theBillboard Hot 100 and #34 on the Canadian RPM charts. "Mull of Kintyre" was not a pop hit at all in the US, but did manage to reach #45 on theEasy Listening chart.[16][17]
Meanwhile, in Canada, "Girls' School"/"Mull of Kintyre" was initially tracked as a double A-side, and reached #44 on the pop charts before "Mull of Kintyre" was dropped from the chart listings as of 21 January 1978. "Girls' School" continued its chart climb for a few more weeks, reaching #34 in Canada. After the single fell out of the top 40, it was once again tracked as a double A-side (with "Mull of Kintyre" getting first billing) for one week in April, but it did not better its previous #44 chart peak. "Mull of Kintyre" alone (without "Girls' School") did reach #30 on Canada's Adult Contemporary chart.[18][19]
Record World called it "a lovely Scottish waltz with bagpipes".[20]
The song also found popularity in the UK as aterrace chant. Notably, a version with altered lyrics has been sung by fans of English football sideNottingham Forest since their1978 title victory, and today is sung by supporters at the start of every home match.[21] In 2015, McCartney said that he would be willing to perform the song live at theCity Ground if Forest were promoted.[22]
McCartney has played "Mull of Kintyre" only occasionally in concert since Wings' 1979 British tour, and has never played it in the United States, Asia, or South America. Performances include 23 June 1990 inGlasgow, Scotland. He played it in Australia and New Zealand and also Canada in 1993, 2002, 2005, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2017. He began playing the song again inHalifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. On 11 July 2009, at a concert at theHalifax Common, he played the song accompanied by the78th Highlanders (Halifax Citadel) Pipe Band. He played the song at theO2 Arena in London on 22 December 2009, accompanied by the 18-piece Balmoral Highlanders Pipe Band.
The following year, on 20 June 2010 McCartney performed "Mull of Kintyre" atHampden Park in Glasgow accompanied by the Pipes and Drums ofLoretto School. He played the song at theAir Canada Centre inToronto, Ontario, on 8 and 9 August 2010 with the Paris Port Dover Pipe Band.[23] On 20 December 2011, Loretto School played with him again in the final concert of his On The Run tour at theEcho Arena in Liverpool. On 25 November 2012, McCartney performed "Mull of Kintyre" at theOn The Run Tour inVancouver, British Columbia with the Delta Police Pipe Band, and inEdmonton,Alberta with theEdmonton Police Service Pipes and Drums on 28–29 November. On 7 July 2013, McCartney performed "Mull of Kintyre" on his "Out There" tour to a sell-out crowd at theCanadian Tire Centre inOttawa,Canada accompanied by theOttawa Police Service Pipe Band.[24]
On 19 and 20 April 2016, McCartney performed "Mull of Kintyre" during theOne on One tour in theRogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, again, with the Delta Police Pipe Band. As part of that same tour, on 2 December 2017 he played the song in Perth, Western Australia with theWestern Australian Police Force Pipe Band, in Melbourne, Victoria 5–6 December 2017 with theScotch College pipe band, in Brisbane Queensland on 9 December 2017 with the Brisbane Combined Pipe Band, in Sydney on 11 and 12 December with the Governor Macquarie Memorial Pipe Band and in Auckland New Zealand on 16 December 2017 with the Auckland and Districts Pipe Band.[25]
The refrain of the song was also played at the funeral of Linda McCartney in June 1998.[26]
Glen Campbell covered the song on his 1981 albumGlen Campbell Live and in 1982 onOld Home Town. In concert Campbell would play the bagpipes himself.[27]
Co-writer Denny Laine re-recorded "Mull of Kintyre" for his 1996 albumWings at the Sound of Denny Laine.[28]
Irish singing group and stage showCeltic Thunder performed the song in their first concert DVDCeltic Thunder: The Show. The DVD and companion CD,Act Two, were released in 2008.[29][30]
Cheyenne Kimball covered the song on the album"Let Us In" Nashville – A Tribute to Linda McCartney, consisting of country-themed covers of Paul McCartney songs by various artists, released in 2011, a benefit album for the Women and Cancer Fund.[31]
Scottish actor and singerEuan Morton included "Mull of Kintyre" on his 2011 albumCaledonia – The Homecoming, a tribute to his Scottish homeland featuring traditional Scottish songs and contemporary tracks with Celtic connections.[32]
Charlie Gracie and the group Clutch Cargo covered the song as a benefit single in 2012 to help raise funds for the Philadelphia Police and Fire, Pipes & Drums Band. Their version of the single also featured the R&B vocal groupthe Orlons on backing vocals.[citation needed]Henry McMaster, Governor ofSouth Carolina, sang the song at a high school graduation inFlorence, South Carolina.[33]
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[66] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| France | — | 300,000[67] |
| Germany (BVMI)[68] | Gold | 500,000^ |
| Ireland (IRMA)[69] | 2× Platinum | 65,000[70] |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[71] | 2× Platinum | 2,080,000[14] |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
