Everything has been a bit gloomy lately, hasn’t it?


We all need a bit of cheering up, which is why I think Paul McCartney decided to release a new single and announce his 18th solo album yesterday. Sadly, nobody at Apple returned my calls to verify this conjecture, but I’m pretty sure my theory stands up to scrutiny. In my mind, Paul got up one morning recently and said to himself, “You know what, lad? If I put a single out and tell everyone I’ve got an album coming, it’s bound to cheer everyone up, isn’t it?”


And his theory definitely worked. Everybody has forgotten all the bad stuff going on - if only for a few minutes - and let themselves luxuriate in the loveliness of Days We Left Behind. It’s classic McCartney: reflective lyrics matched perfectly with his typical gorgeous melody and harmonies. Just close your eyes, let it all wash over you, and you’ll instantly feel better. I guarantee it, or you can have your money back.


It’s beautiful and nostalgic, which isn’t surprising given that McCartney is now 83 - even he can’t stop the ageing process - and there’s a natural inclination to look back over your life.


There’s even more of a clue about where Paul’s head is at when you learn that the album title is The Boys of Dungeon Lane, which, as I’m sure the whole world knows by now, is a road in Speke where McCartney spent some of his childhood.


His close attachment to his home city is evident even in the promo campaign, which saw the world-exclusive first play of his single given to our own BBC Radio Merseyside. A lovely touch, I thought.


I love the way all of The Beatles continue to show their Liverpool roots. I’ve heard Olivia Harrison speak with great fondness about staying at George’s dad’s house whenever they came to town. Her story about driving around Huyton and being baffled by it being called “Two Dogs Fighting” was priceless. Then, at the small ceremony for the unveiling of the blue plaque at George’s childhood home on Arnold Grove, she touchingly revealed that when they stayed in hotels around the world, George always used the pseudonym “Mr Arnold Grove”. For me, that meant wherever George was, there was always a bit of Liverpool with him.


So what does it all mean?


Well, on the basis of the single, it hopefully means that one of the world’s greatest songwriters is about to deliver a great album full of even more beautiful songs, harking back to his Liverpool roots in the wistful way McCartney does so well. That really is something the world needs now.


For me, the other big thing it does is remind the world - again - of the power of The Beatles and of McCartney himself. Think back to a couple of occasions in the recent past when McCartney, just by being McCartney, practically broke the internet. His Carpool Karaoke with James Corden driving around Liverpool was pretty much the biggest thing that happened that year and must have had several trillion views by now. Even bigger than that was when he decided he just fancied doing a little gig in some old club called The Cavern in 2018. The world’s media descended on the city because, well, it was a massive story.


The single release, like The Cavern gig, was another huge surprise, and I’ve developed a theory around this which - like all my theories - is almost certain to be true-ish. My theory is that McCartney started hearing plans for all the inevitable celebrations around the 60th anniversary of Sgt Pepper next year. I’m pretty sure he then said (and you have to do this in a 1960s McCartney accent), “Sgt Pepper is okay, but it’s so old, man! I’m going to lay down some new tracks and show the world I’ve still got it.”


And on the evidence of Days We Left Behind, he definitely has.

 

(Photo Credit: National Trust)