Bluebird

Written during a holiday in Jamaica, ‘Bluebird’ continued the themes of personal emancipation explored by Paul McCartney on his 1968 song ‘Blackbird’.

When you write something satisfying, it’s a feeling that makes you want to do it again. It’s an ‘at home’ songs, when I would have some free time, sitting around with a guitar. It’s a bird flying in, from the point of view of the bird. It’s actually the bird singing it, so it’s mystical, I suppose. It could work in a mystical Chinese movie like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragen; it’d fit in something like that.

McCartney used the flight of a bluebird as a metaphor for the power of love to set a person free from mental and physical constraints. Whereas ‘Blackbird’ had been written about the civil rights struggle in the United States, ‘Bluebird’ was more personal, and reflected his contentment with Linda McCartney and the stability after the dissolution of The Beatles’ business partnership.

Recording for ‘Bluebird’ began in Lagos, Nigeria, and the song was completed at George Martin’s AIR Studios in London. Coincidentally, the percussionist on the song was a Nigerian working in the English capital.

The only other musician on the album, other than the orchestra, is, funnily enough, African! We were gonna use African musicians, but when we were told we were about to pinch the music we thought ‘Well, up you, we’ll do it ourselves then, so there’s no question about it.’ Then we were back in London working at AIR Studios and this old friend from the past named Remi Kabaka turns up. And he’s from Lagos! He played on one of the tracks, he plays a bit of percussion on ‘Bluebird’, so he’s the only one who ended up doing anything on the album.

The other session musician on ‘Bluebird’ was saxophonist Howie Casey, who also performed on ‘Jet’ and ‘Mrs Vandebilt’. Casey was a former member of Liverpudlian band Derry And The Seniors, who The Beatles had known in their Cavern Club days.

The sax solo was Howie Casey, and it was one of those first takes. Howie thought he was just busking it through, very roughly, and wasn’t thinking about it. We said, ‘OK! That’s it!’ He said, ‘Oh, no, can I do another one?’ I said, ‘Look, do another one by all means, but believe me, Howie, that was it.’

‘Bluebird’ was the b-side of ‘Mrs Vandebilt’, a January 1974 single released in Australia and mainland Europe and Australia. The song was also performed by Wings throughout their 1975-76 tours.

In the Wingspan TV thing, there’s a nice little moment where we do an a cappella version with just one guitar accompanying it. Again, that version will get in the box set. It’s from when I was busted in Japan, for marijuana possession and was not allowed to go back in by the minister of state.

The promoter said that it would be good to not disappoint the fans – and it would help my case if I ever wanted to get back in – to do a little message for the Japanese fans. So I’m there saying, ‘Hello, people of Japan. Sorry I can’t come on my tour. But we hope to see you in the future. Meanwhile…’ And we do our a cappella version of ‘Bluebird’.