Paul McCartney & Wings’ “One Hand Clapping“, one of the most bootlegged live albums in musical history will finally receive a proper release. The recordings, from August 1974, took place at London’s Abbey Road Studios when Band on the Run was enjoying a seven-week stint at #1 on the U.K. album chart, as the band were filming a video documentary and possible live studio album.
Despite overwhelming demand for newly recorded material from the biggest band in the world at that time, “One Hand Clapping” was never officially released. Fifty years later, the wait is over: it arrives June 14th, 2024, via UMe.
A 2-LP + 7” package features an exclusive vinyl single of previously unreleased solo performances recorded on the final day of the sessions in the backyard of Abbey Road Studios. These include the unreleased track “Blackpool,” The Beatles’ iconic “Blackbird,” Wings B-side “Country Dreamer,” and cover versions of Eddie Cochran’s “Twenty Flight Rock” (the first song Paul played to John Lennon when they met in 1957) and Buddy Holly’s “Peggy Sue” and “I’m Gonna Love You Too.”]
Opening with an instrumental jam that would become the “One Hand Clapping” theme song, the album features live-in-studio renditions of Wings mega-hits “Live and Let Die,” “Band on the Run,” “Jet,” “My Love,” “Hi, Hi, Hi,” “Junior’s Farm.”
From the April announcement: Filmed and recorded over four days and directed by David Litchfield, the release of “One Hand Clapping” is a historic moment for Paul McCartney fans. Over the years, various parts of “One Hand Clapping” have been bootlegged with varying degrees of success. Some of the material has also appeared on official McCartney releases. However, the 2024 release, which features the original artwork designed for the project, including a TV sales brochure for the unreleased film at the time, is the first time the audio for the film—plus several additional songs recorded off-camera—will be officially issued.
“One Hand Clapping” showcased Wings‘ new line-up, fresh off their return from Nashville, where they recorded the classic single “Junior’s Farm.” Following the sudden departure of Denny Seiwell and Henry McCullough the previous year on the eve of recording the Wings masterpiece Band on the Run, Paul, Linda, and Denny Laine were now joined by guitarist Jimmy McCulloch and drummer Geoff Britton. Additionally joining the band in the studio were orchestral arranger Del Newman and saxophonist Howie Casey, who had previously played with Paul in Hamburg and would go on to join the Wings touring band.
Also featured is Paul’s much loved solo song “Maybe I’m Amazed,” reworked extracts of Beatles’ classics “Let It Be,” “The Long and Winding Road” and “Lady Madonna,” the Moody Blues hit “Go Now” with Denny Laine singing, and a Paul solo piano version of the Harry Akst/Benny Davis Tin Pan Alley classic “Baby Face.” The sessions were produced by Paul McCartney.
“One Hand Clapping” serves as a celebration of the enduring legacy of Paul McCartney and Wings. It captured a moment when Wings had found and defined their signature sound
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