SirPaul McCartneyneeds no introduction as a former Beatles member, one of the most revered bands in music history, and as a successful soloist in his own right. After nearly seven decades in the music industry, McCartney is still admired in the industry and by fans worldwide for his vocals, songwriting, and proficiency with multiple musical instruments. Regarding his songwriting, McCartney has penned some of music’s most legendary songs, such as “Hey Jude” and “Let It Be”. Writing melodies and lyrics is no easy task, yet McCartney has made it sound effortless with his innate talent and diligent work. But there is one classic song by another music legend that McCartney wishes he had written himself.
Paul McCartney Wished He Had Written This Sting Classic
Paul McCartney has long been revered for his songwriting, so much so, in fact, that Rolling Stone Magazine ranked him as the second-best songwriter of all time, just narrowly beating out Bob Dylan. And after nearly 70 years in the music industry, still going strong, with his last album, McCartney III, released to critical and commercial success, it would seem unlikely that the nineteen-time Grammy Award winner would have any regrets in his prolific career. However, according to the rock ‘n’ roll legend, he has one regret in particular, which is that he wished he had written this classic rock song. And the song in question is “Fields of Gold” by fellow British singer Sting.
“Fields of Gold,” which was released in 1993, was written by Sting and has become not only one of his most career-defining songs but also one of the most recognizable and popular rock/pop songs of all time. It was not only a huge commercial success for Sting, but so was the album it was featured on, which is titled “Ten Summoner’s Tales”. In his 2017 memoir titled Lyrics By Sting, the latter described what inspired him to write “Fields of Gold”: “In England, our house is surrounded by barley fields, and in the summer it’s fascinating to watch the wind moving over the shimmering surface, like waves on an ocean of gold. There’s something inherently sexy about the sight, something primal, as if the wind were making love to the barley.”
McCartney has praised the song on several occasions. During a Q&A session at The Liverpool Institute in 2018, he stated, “I liked Sting’s ‘Fields Of Gold’” and “I thought, ‘Y’know what, I should have written that.’” “How dare he?’ I told him: ‘You stole my song.’ I thought that was a nice one, y’know.”
The Classic Hit Song That Reduced Paul McCartney to Tears
The Beatles and The Beach Boys were among the most impactful bands that defined the 1960s. Each group revolutionized popular music with their inventive sound and infectious lyrics. While The Beatles integrated fusions of rock, pop, and experimental styles from the United Kingdom, The Beach Boys alternately combined impeccable harmonies with California’s surf culture into the forefront of music. Although their music and legacy are often compared, resulting in a rivalry between them, the two bands have always expressed admiration for each other. Discussing the rivalry between them, McCartney once said, “Brian Wilson sort of proved himself to be a really amazing composer. I was into chords and harmonies and stuff at that time, and we ended up with kind of like a rivalry. We put a song out and Brian would hear it, and then he’d do one. Which is nice – it’s like me and John. You know, you kind of try and top each other all the time.”
McCartney also once revealed that The Beach Boys’ song, “God Only Knows”, greatly impacted him. He told BBC Radio 1 in 2007, “‘God Only Knows’ is one of the few songs that reduces me to tears every time I hear it. It’s really just a love song, but it’s brilliantly done. It shows the genius of Brian. I’ve actually performed it with him, and I’m afraid to say that during the sound check I broke down.”
McCartney continued, referencing his 2002 performance of “God Only Knows” with Wilson, “I got to sing it with Brian once when we did a benefit [show] together. I was okay at the actual performance; I held it together. But at the rehearsal, at the soundcheck, I lost it, because it’s very emotional, this song, I find it… ‘Oh my god, I’m singing with Brian,’ it just got me, I couldn’t. So all it is, it’s little vibrations reaching your music, it’s only little vibrations, little words, and little things. There is this powerful effect, you know.”
