"Biker Like an Icon" is a song by

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

from his 1993 album ''

Off the Ground ''Off the Ground'' is the ninth solo studio album by Paul McCartney, released on 2 February 1993. As his first studio album of the 1990s, it is also the follow-up to the well received ''Flowers in the Dirt'' (1989). Recording and structure Afte ...

''. It was released as 7" and CD singles.

History

Commenting this song,

stated that the line "Biker like an icon" came from a conversation about photo cameras with his wife

Linda McCartney Linda Louise McCartney, Lady McCartney ( Eastman; September 24, 1941 – April 17, 1998) was an American photographer, musician, animal rights activist, vegetarian cookbook author and advocate, and entrepreneur. She was the keyboardist in th ...

. The phrase "I like a Leica" became "I like a

Nikon (, ; ), also known just as Nikon, is a Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, specializing in optics and imaging products. The companies held by Nikon form the Nikon Group. Nikon's products include cameras, camera ...

" and the lyrics were built around that line with a story of a girl loving a biker like an icon. The song reached number 62 in Germany.

Music video

The music video for the song first aired on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

's ''First Look'' television show. The clip was repeated the following day.

B-sides

A live version of the song "Biker Like an Icon" is taken from ''

Paul is Live ''Paul Is Live'' is a live album by Paul McCartney, released in 1993 during his New World Tour in support of his studio album ''Off the Ground'', released that same year. ''Paul Is Live'' contains live recordings of McCartney and his touring ...

'' album. The songs "Things We Said Today" and "Midnight Special" were recorded live at the ''

MTV Unplugged ''MTV Unplugged'' is an American television series on MTV showcasing musical artists usually playing acoustic instruments. The show aired regularly from 1989 to 1999 and less frequently from 2000 to 2009, when it was usually billed as ''MTV Un ...

'' in 1991 but not included on McCartney's ''

Unplugged (The Official Bootleg) ''Unplugged (The Official Bootleg)'' is a live unplugged performance by Paul McCartney, recorded and released in 1991. Following the vastness of his world tour recently captured on '' Tripping the Live Fantastic'', McCartney relished the oppor ...

'' live album.

Track listing

;7" single, CD single version 1 # "Biker Like an Icon" # "

Things We Said Today "Things We Said Today" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released in July 1964 as the B-side to the single " A Hard Day's Night" and on their album of the sam ...

" ;CD single version 2 # "Biker Like an Icon" # "Biker Like an Icon" (live) ;CD single version 3 # "Biker Like an Icon" # " Midnight Special" # "Biker Like an Icon" (live) ;EP Promo # "Biker Like an Icon" # "Things We Said Today" # "Mean Woman Blues" # " Midnight Special"

References

Paul McCartney songs 1993 singles Songs written by Paul McCartney Song recordings produced by Paul McCartney Music published by MPL Music Publishing 1993 songs Parlophone singles {{Beatles-song-stub