Bluebird (Paul McCartney and Wings song)

"Bluebird" was reportedly composed by McCartney in 1971, during his holiday in Jamaica.{{cite book |first=Luca |last=Perasi |title=Paul McCartney: Recording Sessions (1969–2013) |publisher=L.I.L.Y. Publishing |year=2013 |isbn=978-88-909122-1-4 |page=105}} Although much of the Band on the Run album was recorded in Lagos, Nigeria in August and September 1973, "Bluebird" was completed later in 1973 at AIR Studios in London.{{cite book |title=Eight Arms to Hold You |last1=Madinger|first1=Chip|last2=Easter|first2=Mark|name-list-style=amp |pages=188–189 |year=2000 |publisher=44.1 Productions |isbn=0-615-11724-4}} The percussionist on the song, Remi Kabaka, was from Lagos but happened to be in London when the song was being recorded. One highlight of the song is a saxophone solo played by session musician Howie Casey. Casey repeated his solo during the Wings Over the World tour in 1975 and 1976. Other musical elements of the song include acoustic guitars and calypso-like percussion.

In the lyrics, Paul McCartney compares himself in love to a bluebird. The opening lyrics are:

{{Poemquote|

Late at night when the wind is still

I'll come flying through your door

And you’ll know what love is for

I'm a bluebird}}

Blaney interprets the bluebird as "a metaphor 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 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.{{cite magazine|title=Band on the Run Album Review|last=Landau|first=Jon|author-link=Jon Landau|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/band-on-the-run-19970121|date=21 January 1997|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=2011-10-17}} 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 although it sounds like it is in E-flat major due to the way the guitars are tuned. The refrain is simply a rhythmic chant based on the phrase "I'm a Bluebird" sung by McCartney with Linda and Denny Laine providing harmony. Benitez states about the music that "the harmonic schemes of verse and chorus 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."

Donald Guarisco of AllMusic describes "Bluebird" as "a simple bit of acoustic pop that overflows with hooks thanks to a slick arrangement" and "a delightful, breezy pop tune".{{cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/song/t4221748 |title=Wings: 'Bluebird' – Review |last=Guarisco |first=Donald |website=AllMusic |access-date=2011-10-15}} NME critics Roy Carr 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").{{cite book|title=The Beatles: An Illustrated Record|page=110|year=1978|publisher=Harmony Books|isbn=0-517-53367-7|author1=Carr, Roy|author2=Tyler, Tony|name-list-style=amp }}

Paul McCartney & Wings (with Joe English and Jimmy McCulloch) 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.{{cite book|title=Lennon and McCartney: Together Alone – A Critical Discography of Their Solo Work|author=Blaney, John|pages=85–87, 236–237|year=2007|publisher=Jawbone Press|isbn=978-1-906002-02-2}} 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 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 Remi Kabaka".{{cite magazine|title=Paul McCartney's 40 Greatest Solo Songs|author=Dolan, Jon|author2=Vozick-Levinson, Simon|author3=Hermes, Will|author4=Sheffield, Rob|name-list-style=amp|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/paul-mccartneys-40-greatest-solo-songs-194193/here-today-204434/|access-date=2020-06-19|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=13 September 2017}}

• Paul McCartney – lead vocals, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, drums, drum machine
• Linda McCartney – harmony vocals
• Denny Laine – harmony vocals, acoustic guitar
• Howie Casey – tenor saxophone
• Remi Kabaka – percussion

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Category:1973 songs

Category:Paul McCartney songs

Category:Paul McCartney and Wings songs

Category:Songs written by Paul McCartney

Category:Songs written by Linda McCartney

Category:Song recordings produced by Paul McCartney

Category:Music published by MPL Music Publishing

Category:Songs about birds