It is difficult to say what exactly the world of rock and roll would have looked like without the pioneering influence of Paul McCartney and The Beatles, but it would have been very different. After all, Macca and company changed the whole game, bridging the gap between the old-school rock and roll of the 1950s and the defiant, modern sounds of the 1960s. McCartney has always had a unique ability to look forward to the next big thing, but he took much of his early inspiration from the early moments of rock ‘n’ roll.
This probably should not come as a huge surprise, given that McCartney was first spurred on into songwriting by listening to the revolutionary sounds of rockabilly during his youth. You only need to look at early photographs of the bassist, with his Vince Taylor-esque quiffed hair and Teddy Boy getup, to know that the songwriter was completely immersed in the world of early rock ‘n’ roll. Seemingly, though, this early appreciation for the genre never really went away, even after The Beatles had indefinitely altered the landscape of popular music.
Back in 1984, shortly after the release of his successful solo record Give My Regards to Broad Street, McCartney appeared as a guest on the BBC’s long-running programme Desert Island Discs. Of course, back in those times, the radio show was focused a lot more on the music itself rather than the story it tells with regard to the artist’s life. Nevertheless, you can certainly learn a lot about the former Beatle from his choice picks.
Indeed, most of his choices affirmed his dedication to rock ‘n’ roll despite the middle-of-the-road pop that Macca was producing at the time. Out of eight total choices, six were released within the first wave of rock ‘n’ roll, pre-Beatles. Incidentally, the other two choices were made up of John Lennon’s ‘Beautiful Boy’ and a track composed by McCartney’s father, Jim, entitled ‘Walking In The Park With Eloise’, which was later rerecorded by Wings.
Just as The Beatles defined the rock scene of the 1960s, Elvis Presley was an unavoidable figure during the 1950s. So it only seems right that McCartney’s first choice was Presley’s ‘Heartbreak Hotel’. During the programme, he went on to explain the specific reason for the choice, saying, “Elvis was one of the first people that made me take an interest,” going on to add that his wife, Linda McCartney, had once bought the bass guitar used on the song and given it to Macca as a birthday present.
The rest of McCartney’s selections could easily stand as a ‘best of the 1950s’ compilation, featuring truly iconic figures like Chuck Berry, Little Richard and the rockabilly king Gene Vincent. His picks give credence to the ever-lasting legacy of early rock ‘n’ roll, showing that – even during the electronic age of the 1980s – the seditious sounds of Gene Vincent and Little Richard still resonated with artists like Paul McCartney.
Paul McCartney and his songwriting has provided a wealth of inspiration to countless artists over the years, so to listen to the tracks that first influenced him is pretty insightful. Although he curated these tracks decades ago, in 1984, it seems unlikely that his desert island choices would have changed all that much in the intervening years.
Paul McCartney’s favourite songs from the 1950s:
‘Heartbreak Hotel’ – Elvis Presley
‘Sweet Little Sixteen’ – Chuck Berry
‘Be-Bop-A-Lula’ – Gene Vincent
‘Searchin’’ – The Coasters
‘Tutti Frutti’ – Little Richard
