Sir Paul McCartney is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished and revered songwriters of all time. From penning several hits for The Beatles and his own solo work, as well as for other artists, there is no doubt that the Liverpool-born singer’s work will be admired for generations to come. Indeed, songwriting is a unique talent that not many possess, and naturally, artists like McCartney take their work very seriously. And while it’s evident that many musicians, such as Harry Styles, have and continue to draw inspiration from McCartney’s work, there are times when influence turns into imitation. Case in point: Paul Simon, whose classic album Paul McCartney once accused of copying his own.
Paul McCartney Accused Paul Simon of Copying One of His Albums
The year was 1973, and the iconic rock album Band on the Run was released. Three years prior, Paul McCartney left the band that would catapult him into fame, which was, of course, The Beatles. From there, he embarked on his own successful solo career, which spans decades and saw him produce arguably some of his best work ever, such as the albums Pipes of Peace, Press to Play, and Off The Ground. However, as many avid McCartney fans are sure to know, the “Hey Jude” singer joined another rock band, known as Paul McCartney and Wings, which famously featured his wife, Linda, on keyboards. The American-British band released a total of seven studio albums and achieved twenty-three US Top 40 hits, including six number one singles on the Billboard 100 chart. The group’s most critically praised and popular album, Band on the Run, featured over nine songs on the original UK release, including the hit tracks “Jet” and “Band on the Run.”
The album was unique not just to McCartney but to music in general, as the entire body of work was recorded in Lagos, a city in Nigeria. The idea was McCartney’s, who stated in an interview: “I thought it’d be good to get out of the country to record, so I asked EMI where they had studios around the world. There were some amazing countries where they had studios and I thought ‘Lagos… Africa… rhythms… yeah’, cause I’ve always liked African music.” McCartney’s brilliant idea inspired many artists, including another music icon, Paul Simon. Simon famously decided to record his 1986 album, Graceland, in Africa. However, Simon took it a step further and, instead of producing a pure rock sound like Paul McCartney and the Wings did, the former chose to create a South African-inspired style of music. Not only did Simon’s efforts spawn one of his most iconic albums, including the hit single “You Can Call Me Al”, but it also caught the attention of McCartney. However, instead of being bitter about Simon’s choice of location for recording his album, McCartney praised him. “What’s the expression?” McCartney once said, “A good artist borrows, a great artist steals? Fair enough! We’re all heavily influenced. When I heard Graceland, I had always loved African things. I’d gone to Lagos to do Band on the Run. I had a similar idea in mind—to be influenced. Everybody does it in all forms of art—uses their influences as a turn-on. The difference with Paul is he does it very well. Graceland was dangerous territory, and he more than pulled it off.”
Paul Simon Called Paul McCartney One of the Greatest Songwriters of All Time
While Paul McCartney praised Paul Simon’s seventh studio album, Graceland, the latter has also gone on record to honor the former. In fact, Simon took it a step further in one particular interview and hailed McCartney as one of the greatest songwriters of all time. The compliment means a lot coming from Simon, who, like McCartney, is highly revered and decorated in the music industry both for his singing and songwriting. In a prolific career that has spanned almost seven decades, Simon has amassed sixteen Grammy Awards, has several hit singles, and a couple of number one albums, both as a solo artist and as one half of the iconic folk rock duo Simon and Garfunkel.
And the 83-year-old has, in recent years, shown no signs of slowing down as he recently wrapped up his massively successful tour. Back in 2011, he was asked the big question: Who he thinks are the best songwriters of all time? He told Mojo: “I’d put Gershwin, Berlin and Hank Williams. I’d probably put Paul McCartney in there too. Then I’d have Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart. Then, in the second tier, Lennon is there, Dylan is there, Bob Marley and Stephen Sondheim are there, and maybe I’m there, too. It’s about whose songs last.”
