Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now [Paperback]

Barry Miles (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 15, 1998

During the past year Paul McCartney has been in the public's eye more than at any time since the peak of Beatlemania over thirty years ago. His fans have been treated to the best-selling Flaming Pie and Standing Stone albums, a full hour of Paul on "Oprah," and this thoughtful and comprehensive biography that brings us closer to the man than ever before. Based on hundreds of hours of exclusive interviews over a period of five years, and with complete access to Paul's own archives, Barry Miles has succeeded in letting Paul tell the story of his life as a Beatle in his own words. It includes Paul's recollection of the genesis of every song that he wrote with John Lennon and the fascinating details about their remarkable collaboration.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

If you think John Lennon was the smart, arty Beatle while Paul was an empty head twittering prettily, this book will hip you to the facts. While John sat in the suburbs getting stoned to numb the pain of his imminent divorce, bachelor Paul was feeding his head by immersion in the London avant-garde. He pioneered the Beatles' experimental stuff, though his witty song-by-song account proves that it really was a 50-50 partnership--and some of the best innovations, like the snarling 1964 feedback intro to "I Feel Fine," happened by pure accident. Paul's insight into John's genius, which sprang from howling paranoia and a stark childhood, is still deeper than his insight into himself, but the book's true glory is its inside info on all those songs--the six tunes about John's marriage on A Hard Day's Night; Paul's heist of the "I Saw Her Standing There" bass line from Chuck Berry's "I'm Talking About You" (found on Berry's The Chess Box); the true meanings of "Norwegian Wood" (pine paneling, which the song's narrator burns to avenge the girl's refusal to have sex with him), "Got to Get You into My Life" ("you" is marijuana), and "Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da" ("life goes on" in Yoruba). This book is even better than A Hard Day's Write: The Stories Behind Every Beatles' Song and Revolution in the Head. Here is the last word on the Beatles, inevitably slanted toward McCartney but generally more convincing than Lennon's own recollections. --Tim Appelo

From Library Journal

McCartney in his own words.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 720 pages
• Publisher: Holt Paperbacks; Reprint edition (October 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805052496
• ISBN-13: 978-0805052497
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (142 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #104,261 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

104 of 108 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars McCartney unusually candid and open....... June 21, 2000

By L. Power TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

John Lennon's untimely death was one of the great tragedies of Paul McCartney's life.

Not only did he lose a former best friend and half of the best songwriting team of all time, but the resultant rush to eulogise Lennon was often done at the expense of McCartney, whose own contribution was often trivialised.

This is McCartney's version of the history of the Beatles and their music. It is hard to imagine McCartney being insecure about anything, but he certainly seems territorial, protective and sensitive of his own legacy.

Perhaps the greatest injustice to McCartney was being inducted to Rock and Roll Hall of fame seven years after Lennon, in spite of being an equal contributor to the Beatles, and having a far more commercially successful solo career.

As far as the Lennon McCartney compositions go, there are a few surprises, for instance, he says he wrote the music to 'In My Life' a song which is obviously very Lennon but this actually makes sense. On many of the other Lennon songs he wrote the middle eight or the words of the last verse and vice versa. At times this seems petty, but to be fair he does give Lennon credit on some songs that are obviously strongly McCartney compositions such as the middle sections of Michelle and She's Leaving Home, and a 50/50 credit on I saw her standing there. On Eleanor Rigby he credits Lennon some of the lyrics to the final verse, although in the Anthology documentary he says the song is 100% his. The key to crediting any Lennon McCartney song is he who sung it wrote it or most of it.

The most interesting portions of this book are the direct quotations by McCartney about his life, his relationship with John and the other Beatles and his relationship with Linda, and his insights into John and the meaning of many of his songs which are the best I've read. He is surprisingly candid and open, compared to tv interviews where he has rarely allowed interviewers to get behind the McCartney persona.

Some of his comments about John are quite touching. The history of how he met Linda, and how their relationship developed is a compelling love story.

For instance we get to hear about the death of Paul's mother when he was 14, the tragic death of John's mother the business relationship with Brian Epstein, the Apple fiasco,the wrangling, the naivety of the Beatles in business matters, the loss of ownership of their songs and so forth.

As for Mr Miles himself, he is not the world's greatest writer, which is why I only give it 3 stars. The chapter on avantgarde London is the most boring thing I have ever read. He could easily have edited 100 pages out of this book without compromising the content.

In addition, he is obviously biased towards McCartney and disses Lennon by act and omission. He zeroes in on McCartney as a painter making him out to be a better artist than Lennon, and making the most pretensious comparisons between McCartney's art and classic painters.

He doesn't seem to understand that by undermining Lennon he is also undermining McCartney's credibility. Fortunately, McCartney's own comments are far more respectful, and seemingly objective.

In Mr Miles favour, I must say there are very few questions about McCartney that are left unanswered, and in spite of all its obvious flaws this is still the best psychological insight into Paul McCartney and John Lennon that I have read, so I would recommend this book. I would strongly recommend the books by Hunter Davies and Philip Norman. I hope this review was helpful.

46 of 50 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific Look Over The Wall Into McCartney's Private World! January 28, 2001

By Barron Laycock HALL OF FAME

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Those of us who grew up watching the evolution of the Beatles and Paul McCartney will find this authoritative biography written by longtime friend Barry Miles a thought-provoking and interesting glimpse into many aspects of McCartney's otherwise quite private and personal life story. The view is startling, given the fact that so many in the media have forwarded the view that Paul was the lesser of the two main creative forces within the group. The account delivered here via a long-running series of interviews with Paul puts the lie to that notion, showing just how influential and fateful were Paul's contribution to the Lennon and McCartney writing genius. It also gives the fascinated reader a mind-boggling glimpse into the creative forces behind the individual songs, and travels knowingly along the historic path leading each of the "Fab Four" from poverty and obscurity to fabled fame and fortune. The result is a marvelous biography and an immensely entertaining reading experience.

The book is full of insider information about the genesis and sources of each of the songs and albums along the way, ranging from the creation of "I Saw Her Standing There" all the way to the "Long And Winding Road", at a time when the members of the group could barely stand to inhabit the same space for any period of time. We come to understand how the arrival of fame and fortune changed each of them forever, and although Paul's perspective is the only one aired here, one marvels at just how fair-minded and self-effacing he seems to be in assessing the values, contribution, and failings of each of the Beatles, himself included. It also shows just how instrumental the guidance of the so-called fifth Beatle, George Martin, was to both their initial breakthrough as well as to their successful riding of the wave-crest of fame that swept over them with such an enormous impact.

It also illustrates just how versatile and intelligent Paul has been, masterfully managing and orchestrating both his music and his fortune to become one of the wealthiest and most successful of the rock luminaries emerging from the sixties. And while his later music may have been disappointing in more critical terms, there is no doubting that he has been a continuing critical influence in the continuing evolution of popular music in the thirty years since the Beatles disbanded. Paul has had a rich and rewarding life, and has become a well-known benefactor of worthy causes and sometimes-reclusive widower of his long-time love and wife Linda, who died several years ago, succumbing to cancer. Still, the McCartney magic seems to shine, and this biography of him is both an interesting read and a privileged look behind the tall walls that he has built around himself in the last several decades. Given the crazed attack that fellow Beatle George Harrison suffered from a deluded fan, perhaps his concern about privacy and protection are all too well advised. Enjoy!

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars How the Music Evolved June 8, 2008

By Donald Gallinger

Format:Paperback

Barry Miles' biography of Paul McCartney (Many Years from Now) is distinctive from other Beatles's biographies for its detailed look at how all that iconic music came together. As one example, McCartney gives an insider's view of where he was and what he was doing when he composed "Here, There, and Everywhere," as well as the off hand remark that playing one particular chord led to "Fool on the Hill." Improvisation and luck appeared to have influenced so many wonderful Beatles' tunes. By the time you've finished Miles' book, you'll begin to wonder whether some higher power was also a Beatles' fan.

Donald Gallinger is the author of The Master Planets