One of Paul McCartney‘s most cinematic songs didn’t make it to No. 1 on the charts because of Wham!’s “Freedom.” The former Beatle wasn’t bitter about it. He had fun making the tune.
Paul McCartney’s most cinematic song
In his book, The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present, Paul wrote that his song, “No More Lonely Nights,” is a straightforward love song. It’s about a lonely person saying, “Can’t wait till we’re together.” Other lines reinforce that idea: “Cause I know what I feel to be right” and “You’re my guiding light.”
Paul said the tune is also about heartache, being apart from a loved one, and wishing never to be apart again once you’re reunited. The “Yesterday” singer wrote the tune specifically for his film, Give My Regards to Broad Street. Paul confessed the song did better than the film.
“Originally, the opening of the film was me walking around Broad Street station with some sound effects played over the top,” Paul explained. “But I wanted to do a film tune, so I wrote this song to go with the music. I then later rearranged it as an up-tempo version so that when it played out at the end there was a dance version.”
The film also had songs like “Ballroom Dancing” and “Eleanor Rigby.” Give My Regards to Broad Street was a flop, but “No More Lonely Nights” is one of Paul’s best songs. However, another tune stopped it from going to No. 1.
One of Paul McCartney’s most cinematic songs didn’t make it to No. 1 because of Wham!
Paul released “No More Lonely Nights” around the time MTV blew up. Every artist was making elaborate music videos. Paul chose to do two music videos for his cinematic tune.
He had one video shot in the train station at night, and the other was like a clip reel with highlights from the Give My Regards to Broad Street.
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Outside of the film, the single did very well. “No More Lonely Nights” reached No. 6 in the U.S. and No. 2 in the U.K. However, Wham!’s “Freedom” stopped it from reaching No. 1. Paul didn’t comment on whether that upset him. “Freedom” became the group’s second No. 1 hit on the U.K. singles chart and reached No. 3 in the U.S.
Even though “No More Lonely Nights” is slower than “Freedom,” it’s a catchier tune and one of Paul’s most memorable songs.
Paul’s famous collaborator on the tune
The former Beatle had a famous collaborator on “No More Lonely Nights,” Pink Floyd’s guitarist, David Gilmour. Paul and Gilmour have known each other since the early days of Pink Floyd. The “Let It Be” singer admired Gilmour’s playing and had seen him around. The guitarist had just done his solo album, About Face.
So, Paul called Gilmour and asked if he’d play on “No More Lonely Nights.” Gilmour played the guitar solo. “It sounded like his kind of thing… Dave is a genius of sorts, so I was pulling out all the stops,” Paul wrote.
Paul loved what Gilmour did with the solo, especially on the album version, which is longer. He went “to town” on it because he had more space to play.
“No More Lonely Nights” might not have been a No. 1 hit, but Paul had a great time making the song. It became a cinematic epic with some help from a genius guitarist.
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