Wings Greatest

Wings Greatest
Compilation album by Wings
Released 2 November 1978 (UK)
1 December 1978 (US)
Recorded November 1970 – January 1978
Genre Rock
Length 54:28
Label Parlophone (UK)
Capitol (US)
Producer Paul McCartney
("Live and Let Die" co-produced with George Martin)
Wings chronology
London Town
(1978)		 Wings Greatest
(1978)		 Back to the Egg
(1979)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Robert ChristgauB+[2]
The Essential Rock Discography7/10[3]
MusicHound3/5[4]
Q[5]

Wings Greatest is a compilation album by Wings and is their eighth album as well as Paul McCartney's 10th since leaving the Beatles. It is notable as being the first official retrospective release from McCartney's post-Beatles career. Excepting interest in its vinyl LP mix, this collection has been superseded by the releases of All the Best! and Wingspan: Hits and History.

History

The album was compiled after McCartney's decision to leave EMI's American label, Capitol, for a six-year stay with Columbia (United States and Canada only), though he remained with EMI worldwide during his US sabbatical from Capitol. Four of the twelve tracks make their album debut with this compilation: "Another Day", "Junior's Farm", "Hi, Hi, Hi" and "Mull of Kintyre". "Live and Let Die" had previously appeared on the soundtrack album of the same name but did not appear on any previous McCartney albums.

All but two tracks were credited as "Wings" or "Paul McCartney & Wings", the exceptions being "Another Day" (single as "Paul McCartney") and "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey" (as "Paul & Linda McCartney") from their 1971 album Ram.

Despite the fact that McCartney had amassed enough hits by late 1978 to fill a double album of hits, he kept it down to a single disc for commercial reasons. Thus, several songs would be overlooked for Wings Greatest. Indeed, not one song was excerpted from 1975's Venus and Mars, despite "Listen to What the Man Said" being a number 1 US hit. The album was promoted by a TV commercial in the UK, which featured several members of the public (played by actors) singing Wings tunes in public places. At the end a dustman, waiting in his lorry at a set of traffic lights (in Abbey Road), sings to himself an out of tune rendition of "Band on the Run", at which point Paul, Linda and Denny pull up alongside and Paul shouts out "You're a bit flat mate!". The driver leans out his window and says "Funny, I only checked them this morning!"[6]

The Bulgarian pressings of the album did not include the song "Live and Let Die".[7] In 1993, Wings Greatest was remastered and reissued as part of "The Paul McCartney Collection".

Track listing

Side One
No. TitleWriter(s)Performer Length
1. "Another Day"  Paul McCartney, Linda McCartneyPaul McCartney 3:42
2. "Silly Love Songs"  P. McCartney, L. McCartneyWings 5:52
3. "Live and Let Die"  P. McCartney, L. McCartneyPaul McCartney and Wings 3:11
4. "Junior's Farm"  P. McCartney, L. McCartneyPaul McCartney and Wings 4:21
5. "With a Little Luck"  P. McCartneyWings 5:45
6. "Band on the Run"  P. McCartney, L. McCartneyPaul McCartney and Wings 5:10
Side Two
No. TitleWriter(s)Performer Length
7. "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey"  P. McCartney, L. McCartneyPaul and Linda McCartney 4:48
8. "Hi, Hi, Hi"  P. McCartney, L. McCartneyWings 3:07
9. "Let 'Em In"  P. McCartney, L. McCartneyWings 5:09
10. "My Love"  P. McCartney, L. McCartneyPaul McCartney and Wings 4:08
11. "Jet"  P. McCartney, L. McCartneyPaul McCartney and Wings 4:06
12. "Mull of Kintyre"  P. McCartney, Denny LaineWings 4:43

Cover art

Aubrey Powell and George Hardie of Hipgnosis are credited with the design, as well as Paul and Linda McCartney.[8]

The front of the album cover depicts a chryselephantine (gold and ivory) statuette in the snow. The statuette of Semiramis was created by famed Art Deco sculptor Demetre Chiparus.[9] Having bought it, Linda wanted the flying lady photographed in the snow, so on 14 October 1978 she flew the statuette and photographer Angus Forbes to the Alps, where a snowdrift was created and the photograph was taken from a helicopter.[8]

The rear cover depicts the record covers of the twelve releases, mostly singles, from which each of the Greatest's songs were taken, in columns on either side of the album. In the middle is a photograph of Paul, Linda, and Denny Laine. The original photograph also had Jimmy Mucculloch and Joe English, but both members have left the band by the time this greatest hits album was issued and, as a result, were airbrushed out. The background is another scene of the Alps.

The statuette also appears on the inner sleeves of the original vinyl, as well as on the record's labels.[8] It can also be seen on the album cover of Back to the Egg in the background, on the mantelpiece.

Charts

Chart positions

Chart (1978–79) Position
Australian Kent Music Report Chart[10] 8
Canadian RPM Albums Chart[11] 25
Dutch Mega Albums Chart[12] 18
French SNEP Albums Chart [13] 2
Japanese Oricon LP Chart[14] 24
New Zealand Albums Chart [15] 16
Norwegian VG-lista Albums Chart[16] 20
Swedish Albums Chart[17] 32
UK Albums Chart[18] 5
US Billboard 200[19] 29
US Cashbox albums chart[20] 21
US Record World albums chart[20] 23
West German Media Control Albums Chart[21] 18

Year-end charts

Chart (1979) Position
Australian Albums Chart[10] 53
UK Albums Chart[22] 43

Certifications

Region Certification
Canada (Music Canada)[23] Platinum
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong)[24] Gold
United Kingdom (BPI)[25] Platinum
United States (RIAA)[26] Platinum

References

  1. ↑ Wings Greatest at AllMusic
  2. ↑ "CG: Wings". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 2011-09-09.
  3. ↑ Strong, Martin C. (2006). The Essential Rock Discography. Edinburgh, UK: Canongate. p. 696. ISBN 978-1-84195-827-9.
  4. ↑ Gary Graff & Daniel Durchholz (eds), MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide, Visible Ink Press (Farmington Hills, MI, 1999; ISBN 1-57859-061-2), p. 731.
  5. ↑ Nicol, Jimmy (October 1993). "Re-releases: Paul McCartney The Paul McCartney Collection". Q. p. 119.
  6. ↑ "Wings Greatest". Jpgr.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-09-09.
  7. ↑ "Wings (2) - Greatest (Vinyl, LP) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  8. 1 2 3 Wings Greatest visited 2013-08-20
  9. ↑ Art Deco Semiramis Figurine Chiparus Statue Sculpture visited 2013-08-20
  10. 1 2 Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  11. ↑ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 30, No. 19, February 03 1979". RPM. Retrieved 2011-10-03.
  12. ↑ "dutchcharts.nl Wings - Greatest Hits" (ASP). dutchcharts.nl, Hung Medien (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved 2011-09-12.
  13. ↑ "InfoDisc : Tous les Albums classés par Artiste > Choisir Un Artiste Dans la Liste : Wings" (in French). infodisc.fr. Retrieved 2011-09-12.
  14. ↑ a-ビートルズ "- Yamachan Land (Archives of the Japanese record charts) - Albums Chart Daijiten - The Beatles" Check |url= value (help) (in Japanese). 2007-12-30. Retrieved 2011-09-14.
  15. ↑ "charts.org.nz - Wings - Greatest Hits" (ASP). charts.org.nz, Hung Medien. Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 2011-09-12.
  16. ↑ "norwegiancharts.com Wings - Greatest Hits" (ASP). norwegiancharts.com, Hung Medien. VG-lista. Retrieved 2011-09-12.
  17. ↑ "swedishcharts.com Wings - Greatest Hits" (ASP). swedishcharts.com, Hung Medien (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2011-09-12.
  18. ↑ "Chart Stats - Wings - Greatest Hits". UK Albums Chart. Archived from the original on 2012-12-18. Retrieved 2011-09-12.
  19. ↑ "allmusic ((( Wings at the Speed of Sound > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2011-09-14.
  20. 1 2 McGee, Garry (2003). Band on the Run: A History of Paul McCartney and Wings. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield. p. 233. ISBN 978-0-87833-304-2.
  21. ↑ "Album Search: Wings" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 2011-09-12.
  22. ↑ "Complete UK Year-End Album Charts". Retrieved 2011-09-12.
  23. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Wings – Greatest Hits". Music Canada.
  24. ↑ "IFPIHK Gold Disc Award − 1979". IFPI Hong Kong.
  25. ↑ "British album certifications – Wings – Greatest Hits". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Greatest Hits in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Platinum in the field By Award. Click Search
  26. ↑ "American album certifications – Wings – Wings Greatest". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
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