US album release: Thrillington by Paul McCartney

Paul McCartney’s Thrillington album was released in the USA on 16 May 1977.

Thrillington was an orchestral version of Paul and Linda McCartney’s 1971 album Ram, recorded that same year but held back until 1977.

The album was issued by Capitol in the US. In the United Kingdom it was released on 29 April 1977 by Regal Zonophone.

McCartney wrote sleeve notes under the name Clint Harrigan – whose name also appeared on the first Wings album. A press release was issued to accompany Thrillington:

Percy ‘Thrills’ Thrillington was born in Coventry Cathedral in England in 1939. As a young man he wandered the globe. His travels took him to Baton Rouge, Louisiana in the US where he studied music for five years. He later moved to LA where he gained expertise in conducting and arranging as well as the marketing end of the music business. Eventually his path led to London where his lifelong ambition to form an orchestra was finally realized… he takes all the songs from Paul and Linda McCartney’s Ram album and, with the help of some of London’s best orchestra and ‘big band’ musicians, forges the pop music themes into new orchestral versions. He is assisted by Richard Newson [sic] who arranged and conducted. When McCartney heard what ‘Thrills’ was doing he even gave the project his seal of approval.

Due to the commercial failure of Thrillington, it became a collector’s item for a time – although nobody was quite sure whether or not it was by Paul McCartney.

McCartney never volunteered the truth at the time, but was asked about it by journalist Peter Palmiere at a Los Angeles press conference on 27 November 1989.

What a great question to end the conference. The world needs to know! But seriously it was me and Linda – and we kept it a secret for a long time but now the world knows! – you blew it!