Take It Away (Paul McCartney song)
{{Infobox song
| name = Take It Away
| cover = Take It Away.jpg
| alt =
| border = yes
| type = single
| artist = Paul McCartney
| album = Tug of War
| B-side = {{ubl|"I'll Give You a Ring" (7")|"I'll Give You a Ring" / "Dress Me Up as a Robber" (12")}}
| released = {{Start date|1982|4|26|df=y}} (Tug of War album)
{{Start date|1982|6|21|df=y}} (7")
{{Start date|1982|7|5|df=y}} (12")
| recorded = 16–18 February 1981{{cite web |title=Take It Away (song) |url=https://www.the-paulmccartney-project.com/song/take-it-away/ |website=The Paul McCartney Project}}
| studio = AIR Studios, Montserrat
| venue =
| genre = Pop
| length = 4:13 (album version)
3:59 (single/video version)
| label = Parlophone/EMI
| writer = Paul McCartney
| producer = George Martin
| prev_title = Ebony and Ivory
| prev_year = 1982
| next_title = Tug of War
| next_year = 1982
| misc = {{External music video|{{YouTube|2sxAuP9wb2o|"Take It Away"}}}}
}}
"Take It Away" is a single by the English musician Paul McCartney from his third solo studio album Tug of War (1982). The single spent sixteen weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, reaching #10 and spending five consecutive weeks at that position.Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications){{cite web|title=Allmusic: Paul McCartney: Charts & Awards |publisher=allmusic.com|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=p4865/charts-awards/billboard-singles|pure_url=yes}}|accessdate=2 May 2013}} It reached #15 in the UK.{{cite web |url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/_/Paul%20McCartney |title=Paul McCartney > Artists > Official Charts |publisher=Official Charts Company|accessdate=5 May 2013}} The music video, directed by John Mackenzie, features former Beatles drummer Ringo Starr, long-time producer George Martin, and songwriting collaborator Eric Stewart, all of whom played on the track, as well as actor John Hurt, Linda McCartney and Barbara Bach.{{cite serial |title=Fly TIA: Behind The Scenes on 'Take It Away'|date=2015}}
Although there is a segue from "Tug of War" into this song on the album, the single version instead starts cleanly but fades out earlier at the end.
Track listings
7" single
- "Take It Away" – 3:59
- "I'll Give You a Ring" – 3:05
12" single (black vinyl everywhere else; clear yellow vinyl in Japan)[http://www.discogs.com/Paul-McCartney-Take-It-Away/master/141473 Paul McCartney – Take It Away at Discogs]
- "Take It Away" – 3:59
- "I'll Give You a Ring" – 3:05
- "Dress Me Up as a Robber" – 2:40
Personnel
"Take It Away"
- Paul McCartney – lead and backing vocals, bass, acoustic guitar, piano
- Linda McCartney – backing vocals
- Eric Stewart – electric guitar, backing vocals
- Ringo Starr – drums
- Steve Gadd – drums
- George Martin – electric piano
"I'll Give You a Ring"
- Paul McCartney – vocals, electric guitar, bass, piano, drums
- Tony Coe – clarinet
- Linda McCartney – backing vocals
- Eric Stewart – backing vocals
"Dress Me Up As A Robber"
- Paul McCartney – vocals, bass, guitars
- Linda McCartney – backing vocals
- Denny Laine – electric guitar, synthesizer
- George Martin – electric piano
- Dave Mattacks – drums, percussion
Critical reception
Billboard called it "a superior single that fuses a driving rhythm with a sleek, polished production" and said it was McCartney's "most assured, seamless, irresistible" single since the mid-1970s.{{cite magazine|magazine=Billboard|title=Top Single Picks|date=July 3, 1982|page=60|accessdate=2023-01-27|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-yMEAAAAMBAJ}} Cash Box said that it's a "dense, multi-layered pop confection" that "keeps the listener on his/her toes throughout the song, going from a lazy tropical-type rhythm to a galloping brass section."{{cite magazine|title=Reviews|magazine=Cash Box|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1982/CB-1982-07-03.pdf|date=July 3, 1982|accessdate=2022-07-07|page=10}} Ultimate Classic Rock critic Nick DeRiso rated it as the best song on Tug of War, stating that it starts "with an off-kilter rhythm courtesy of Ringo Starr and all of the tasteful hallmarks of a George Martin production" and becomes "one of McCartney's patented pop confections, featuring a feverish horn counterpoint, deceptively intricate bass, and an utterly indecipherable narrative."{{cite web|title=The Best Song From Every Paul McCartney Album |url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/best-paul-mccartney-songs/|author=DeRiso, Nick|accessdate=2022-06-09|publisher=Ultimate Classic Rock|date=10 January 2019}} DeRiso also praised Eric Stewart's backing vocals.
Chart performance
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
=Weekly charts=
{{col-2}}
=Year-end charts=
| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
! Chart (1982) ! Position |
| align="left"| US Billboard Hot 100{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YyQEAAAAMBAJ&q=McCartney+Take+It+Away&pg=PT52|magazine=Billboard|title=Talent in Action 1982|accessdate=1 May 2014|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc |date=25 December 1982}}
| 70 |
| align="left"| US Billboard Top AC Singles
| 47 |
| align="left"| US Cash Box Top 100{{Cite web |url=http://tropicalglen.com/Archives/80s_files/1982YESP.html |title=Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 25, 1982 |access-date=March 20, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180711062300/http://tropicalglen.com/Archives/80s_files/1982YESP.html |archive-date=July 11, 2018 |url-status=dead}}
| style="text-align:center;"| 45 |
{{col-end}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{discogs master|type=single|141473}}
{{Paul McCartney singles}}
{{Paul McCartney}}
{{John Mackenzie}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Take It Away (Paul McCartney Song)}}
Category:Songs written by Paul McCartney
Category:Song recordings produced by George Martin
Category:Music published by MPL Music Publishing
{{Beatles-song-stub}}