Paul McCartney confirms he ‘hates’ hidden detail of debut solo single

The debut single released by Paul McCartney has a detail that the veteran songwriter “hates”.

The Beatles and Wings member wrote of the little detail he doesn’t like in The Lyrics, a book breaking down the lyrics to every song he wrote. In it, McCartney suggests the debut single, Another Day, has a major shortcoming to it. While he considers the song a blend of Eleanor Rigby and Rear Window, the detail which forms the core of the song has since soured for McCartney, and it has become something he hates to admit is a part of the track. McCartney, explaining the origins of Another Day, wrote: “Think Eleanor Rigby meets Hitchcock’s Rear Window.

“For much as I hate to admit it, there is indeed a voyeuristic aspect to this song. Like many writers, I really am a bit of a voyeur; if there’s a lit window and there’s someone in it, I will watch them. Hands up, guilty. It’s a very, very natural thing.

“In a strange way, I may be interested in this subject matter because I get stared at quite a lot myself. It’s because I have a recognisable face. It happens in the underground, on the subway, which I take when I can. You don’t think people are looking at you until a little bit later, and you realise they were. Of course, I’m also looking back at them, too. So I get to experience this from both sides.”

Though it would form the basis for one of his earliest singles, McCartney says an “unwritten rule” made its way into Another Day. He continued: “There’s a decorum, an unwritten rule that you don’t say anything. But you do recognise distinct personality types. Some people will come right up to you with, ‘Hey, how you doing, man?’ You get the first bumps and everything.

“Then there are some people who don’t talk at all. The people I talk to are the ones that don’t say anything. For example, I’m on a mat in the gym, and there’s loads of people around. There’s a guy who’s doing stuff wiht a pole and I’m fascinated by what he’s doing. I say, “Oh, that’s pretty amazing,’ and then we get talking and he says, ‘I remember you’ve got horses.’ And he starts talking about horses.

“But it can really be anything that we’ll talk about – even dipping into the contents of their raincoat. It’s always interesting to hear these stories, which, in a roundabout way, can sometimes make their way into a lyric.

“So, people do notice me and I am kind of aware of it, but that unwritten rule means you don’t talk to each other about any of that obvious stuff. And you certainly don’t take photos or ask for autographs. If they do, I often tell them I’m enjoying a private moment, and pretty much everyone gets that.”