1971 Paul & Linda McCartney – Ram

Ram is the only album credited to the husband-and-wife music duo Paul and Linda McCartney, released on 17 May 1971 by Apple Records. It was recorded in New York with guitarists David Spinozza and Hugh McCracken, and future Wings drummer Denny Seiwell. Three singles were issued from the album: “Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey” (Paul’s first number 1 hit in America without the Beatles), “The Back Seat of My Car” and “Eat at Home”. The recording sessions also yielded the non-album single “Another Day”.

The album’s release coincided with a period of acrimony between McCartney and his former Beatles bandmates, and followed his legal action in the United Kingdom’s High Court to dissolve the Beatles partnership. John Lennon perceived slights in the lyrics to songs such as “Too Many People”. Although McCartney felt that he had addressed the criticisms he received with his 1970 solo debut, McCartney, Ram elicited a similarly unfavourable reaction from music journalists. It nonetheless topped the national albums charts in the UK, the Netherlands and Canada. Today, Ram is held in high regard by many music critics and is often ranked as one of McCartney’s best solo albums. It has also been recognised as an early indie pop album.

In 1971, McCartney produced Thrillington, an instrumental interpretation of Ram that was released in 1977 under the pseudonym “Percy ‘Thrills’ Thrillington”. In 2012, an expanded edition of Ram was reissued with over two dozen bonus tracks as part of the Paul McCartney Archive Collection. In 2020, Ram was ranked number 450 on Rolling Stone’s list of the greatest albums of all time.

Tracks

1  Too Many People (Paul McCartney) 04:10
2  3 Legs (Paul McCartney) 02:47
3  Ram On (Paul McCartney) 02:29
4  Dear Boy (Paul McCartney; Linda McCartney) 02:13
5  Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey (Paul McCartney; Linda McCartney) 04:55
6  Smile Away (Paul McCartney) 03:52
7  Heart Of The Country (Paul McCartney; Linda McCartney) 02:23
8  Monkberry Moon Delight (Paul McCartney; Linda McCartney) 05:24
9  Eat At Home (Paul McCartney; Linda McCartney) 03:22
10  Long Haired Lady (Paul McCartney; Linda McCartney) 06:05
11  Ram On (Paul McCartney) 00:55
12  The Back Seat Of My Car (Paul McCartney) 04:31

Musicians

BassPaul McCartney
DrumsDenny Seiwell
GuitarPaul McCartney
GuitarHugh McCracken
Acoustic GuitarPaul McCartney
KeyboardsPaul McCartney
PianoPaul McCartney
Background VocalsLinda McCartney
VocalsPaul McCartney

Other Musicians

2 3 Legs

GuitarDavid Spinozza


3 Ram On

UkelelePaul McCartney


4 Dear Boy

SynthesizerPaul Beaver
FlugelhornMarvin Stamm
BrassMel Davis
BrassRay Crisara
BrassSnooky Young
ViolinDavid Nadien
ViolinAaron Rosand
XylophonePaul McCartney


8 Monkberry Moon Delight

Background VocalsHeather McCartney


9 Eat At Home

GuitarDavid Spinozza


10 Long Haired Lady

VocalsLinda McCartney


12 The Back Seat Of My Car

GuitarDavid Spinozza

New York Philharmonic  (Tracks 5, 6)

Liner Notes

Producer – Paul McCartney, Linda McCartney
Engineer (Mixing)- Eirik Wilhelm Wangberg
Engineer (Sound) – Armin Steiner, Dixon Van Winkle, James William Guercio, Phil Ramone, Ted Brosnan, Tim Geelan

Photography – Linda McCartney

Copyright McCartney Productions Inc