THE SUNDAY TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR Winner of Non-Fiction Book of the Year British Book Awards
(Nibbies) 2022 A self-portrait in 154 songs by our greatest living songwriter 'More
often than I can count I've been asked if I would write an autobiography but the time has
never been right. The one thing I've always managed to do whether at home or on the road is
to write new songs. I know that some people when they get to a certain age like to go to a
diary to recall day-to-day events from the past but I have no such notebooks. What I do have
are my songs hundreds of them which I've learned serve much the same purpose. And these songs
span my entire life.' In this extraordinary book with unparalleled candour Paul McCartney
recounts his life and art through the prism of 154 songs from all stages of his career - from
his earliest boyhood compositions through the legendary decade of The Beatles to Wings and his
solo albums to the present. Arranged alphabetically to provide a kaleidoscopic rather than
chronological account it establishes definitive texts of the songs' lyrics for the first time
and describes the circumstances in which they were written the people and places that inspired
them and what he thinks of them now. Presented with this is a treasure trove of material from
McCartney's personal archive - drafts letters photographs - never seen before which make
this also a unique visual record of one of the greatest songwriters of all time. We learn
intimately about the man the creative process the working out of melodies the moments of
inspiration. The voice and personality of Paul McCartney sings off every page. There has never
been a book about a great musician like it. Each volume is 480 pp not available separately
