"Maybe I'm Amazed" is a song written by English musician

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 ...

that was first released on his 1970 debut solo album ''

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 ...

''. Although the original recording has never been released as a single, a live performance by McCartney's later band

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expresse ...

, from the live album ''

Wings over America ''Wings over America'' is a triple live album by the British–American rock band Wings, released in December 1976. The album was recorded during the American leg of the band's 1975–76 Wings Over the World tour. It peaked at number 8 on the UK ...

'', was. Released in 1977, this version became a top ten hit in the United States and reached number 28 in the United Kingdom. In 2011, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' magazine ranked "Maybe I'm Amazed" number 347 on its "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list.

History

McCartney wrote the song in 1969, just before

the Beatles' break-up From August 1962 to September 1969, the Beatles had a lineup that consisted of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. Their break-up was a cumulative process attributed to numerous factors. These include the strain of the ...

. He credited his wife

Linda Linda may refer to: As a name * Linda (given name), a female given name (including a list of people and fictional characters so named) * Linda (singer) (born 1977), stage name of Svetlana Geiman, a Russian singer * Anita Linda (born Alice Lake i ...

with helping him get through the difficult time. Although most of his debut solo album was recorded at his home in London, McCartney recorded "Maybe I'm Amazed" entirely in

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...

's Number Two studio in

Abbey Road ''Abbey Road'' is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. It is the last album the group started recording, although ''Let It Be'' was the last album completed before the band's break-up in April 1970. It was mostly re ...

, on the same day as he recorded " Every Night". He played all the instruments: guitars, bass, piano, organ and drums. Although McCartney declined to release the song as a single in 1970, it nonetheless received a great deal of radio airplay worldwide. A promotional film was made, comprising still photographs of McCartney, his wife Linda, stepdaughter Heather, and daughter

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

, which first aired in the UK on 19 April 1970 on

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

in its own slot, and as a part of an episode of

CBS Television CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

's ''

The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television program, television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in Septembe ...

''.

Reception

Regarded as one of McCartney's finest love songs, it achieved the number 347 position in the "

500 Greatest Songs of All Time "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring survey compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and industry figures. The first list was published in December 2004 in ...

" list compiled by ''

'' magazine in November 2004, and is the only solo McCartney song to make the list. In a late 2009 Q&A with journalists held in London to promote his live album ''

Good Evening New York City ''Good Evening New York City'' is a CD/DVD double live album by Paul McCartney consisting of material performed over three nights as the inaugural concerts at New York City's Citi Field, 17, 18 and 21 July 2009, part of his Summer Live '09 conce ...

'', McCartney said "Maybe I'm Amazed" was "the song he would like to be remembered for in the future". In a review for the ''McCartney'' album on release, Langdon Winner of ''Rolling Stone'' described "Maybe I'm Amazed", as "a very powerful song", that states "one of the main sub-themes of the record, that the terrible burden of loneliness can be dispelled by love." Winner continued to describe the track as "the only song on the album that even comes close to McCartney's best efforts of the past. It succeeds marvelously." In a retrospective review for ''McCartney'', ''

Record Collector ''Record Collector'' is a British monthly music magazine. It was founded in 1980 and distributes worldwide. History The early years The first standalone issue of ''Record Collector'' was published in March 1980, though its history stretches ba ...

'' has highlighted "Maybe I'm Amazed", along with "Every Night" and "Junk", as songs that "still sound absolutely effortless and demonstrate the man's natural genius with a melody". Joe Tangari of ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

'' similarly evaluated "Maybe I'm Amazed", along with "Junk" and "Singalong Junk", as the "peaks" of ''McCartney''.

Live version

A live recording from the 1976 album ''

'' was released as a single by McCartney's band

on 4 February 1977 and reached number 10 in the US on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' pop charts, and number 28 in the UK. This live version is longer than the original and has a slower

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

. Versions of the song can be heard on several other live McCartney albums including ''

Back in the U.S. ''Back in the U.S.'' (subtitled ''Live 2002'') is a double live album by Paul McCartney from his spring 2002 Driving USA Tour in the US in support of his 2001 release '' Driving Rain''. It was released with an accompanying DVD to commemorate h ...

'' and ''

Back in the World ''Back in the World'' (subtitled ''Live'') is a live album by Paul McCartney composed of highlights from his spring 2002 "Driving USA" tour in the United States in support of McCartney's 2001 release '' Driving Rain''. It was released internati ...

''. "Maybe I'm Amazed" has become a centrepiece of McCartney's concerts, along with " Band on the Run" and " Live and Let Die". Live versions of the song are available on the 2011 reissue of ''

''.

Track listing

7"

# "Maybe I'm Amazed" – 5:11 # "Soily" – 5:10

12" US Promo, Record Store Day 2013 EP

Side A # "Maybe I'm Amazed – Short Version (Mono)" – 3:43 # "Maybe I'm Amazed – Album Version (Mono)" – 5:11 Side B # "Maybe I'm Amazed – Short Version (Stereo)" – 3:43 # "Maybe I'm Amazed – Album Version (Stereo)" – 5:11

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Personnel

According to author John C. Winn: ''McCartney'' studio version: *

lead and backing vocals, lead and rhythm guitars, bass, piano, organ, drums *

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 ...

backing vocals ''Wings Over America'' live version: *

lead vocals, piano *

backing vocals, organ *

Denny Laine Denny Laine (born Brian Frederick Hines, 29 October 1944) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter, known as a founder of two major rock bands: the Moody Blues, with whom he played from 1964 to 1966, and Wings, with whom he played from 1 ...

backing vocals, bass guitar *

Jimmy McCulloch James McCulloch (4 June 1953 – 27 September 1979) was a Scottish musician best known for playing lead guitar and bass, as a member of Paul McCartney's band Wings from 1974 to 1977. McCulloch was a member of the Glasgow psychedelic band One i ...

lead guitar * Joe English – drums

Covers

Faces The face is the front of an animal's head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may affe ...

covered the song for the album ''

Long Player The LP (from "long playing" or "long play") is an analog sound storage medium, a phonograph record format characterized by: a speed of rpm; a 12- or 10-inch (30- or 25-cm) diameter; use of the "microgroove" groove specification; and ...

''. *

George Lam George Lam Tsz-Cheung (born 12 October 1947), also known professionally by his surname Lam, is a Hong Kong-based veteran Cantopop singer, singer-songwriter, music producer and actor, with a career that has so far lasted more than four decades. Lam ...

covered the song for the album '' Hit Sounds Vol. 8'' in 1977. *

Joe Cocker John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014) was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice and dynamic stage performances that featured expressive body movements. Most of his best known singles were recordings of son ...

covered the song for the album '' Heart & Soul''. *

Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, pianist and songwriter. Commonly nicknamed the "Piano Man (song), Piano Man" after his album and signature song of the same name, he has led a commercially successful career as a solo ...

covered the song for the tribute album ''

The Art of McCartney ''The Art of McCartney'' is a tribute album to English musician Paul McCartney, released on November 18, 2014. The 42-song set covers McCartney's solo work, and his work with the Beatles and Wings, and features a wide range of artists such as Barr ...

''. *Soul singer

Carleen Anderson Carleen Cassandra Anderson (born May 10, 1957) is an American singer and musician. She is known for her work with the Young Disciples and numerous collaborations. Her distinguished solo career began in 1992. She is the acclaimed composer, writer ...

reached no.24 in the UK singles charts with a cover in 1998. *

Ruby Starr A ruby is a pinkish red to blood-red colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum ( aluminium oxide). Ruby is one of the most popular traditional jewelry gems and is very durable. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called s ...

covered the song for the album ''Scene Stealer'', released in 1976. *

Contemporary Christian Music Contemporary Christian music, also known as CCM, Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christian faith and s ...

Artist

Bryan Duncan Bryan Edward Duncan (born March 16, 1953) is an American contemporary Christian music artist. He is known for being lead singer of the group Sweet Comfort Band, solo career, and involvement with the Nehosoul Band. He is currently involved with ...

covered the song on his 13th studio album '' Joyride'' in 2001 backed by a full gospel choir led by

Donnie McClurkin Donald Andrew "Donnie" McClurkin, Jr. (born November 9, 1959) is an American gospel singer and minister. He has won three Grammy Awards, ten Stellar Awards, two BET Awards, two Soul Train Awards, one Dove Award and one NAACP Image Awards. He i ...

. Duncan also covered the song with The NehoSoul Band on ''Music City Live'' in 2004.

References

Sources

* {{authority control 1970 songs 1971 singles 1977 singles 1970s ballads Rock ballads Paul McCartney songs Faces (band) songs Paul McCartney and Wings songs Songs written by Paul McCartney Apple Records singles Capitol Records singles Song recordings produced by Paul McCartney Jem (singer) songs Norah Jones songs Music published by MPL Music Publishing Live singles