McCartney II by Paul McCartney – UK Album Release, 16 May 1980
Friday 16 May 1980 | Paul McCartney, Release
On 16 May 1980, Paul McCartney released McCartney II in the United Kingdom. The album — a completely solo recording made during six weeks in the summer of 1979 — topped the UK album charts and reached number three in the United States, where it was released on 26 May 1980. Its lead single, 'Coming Up', had already reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number two in the UK following its release in April 1980. McCartney II sold more copies than its predecessor, Wings' Back to the Egg.
The Making of McCartney II
McCartney II was recorded entirely by McCartney alone — playing every instrument, singing every vocal, and producing every track himself, in the tradition of the original McCartney album of 1970. The sessions began in the summer of 1979 at a farmhouse on the McCartney estate in Peasmarsh, East Sussex, and continued at the Spirit of Ranachan Studio at his farm near Campbeltown in Kintyre, Scotland — the remote peninsula that had given Wings the title of their 1977 number one single.
The recordings were made over approximately six weeks and were not originally intended for release. McCartney has described the sessions as a private experiment — an opportunity to explore synthesisers and electronic music without the pressure of a commercial deadline. The result was an album that sounded unlike anything else in his catalogue: spare, synthetic, and in places genuinely avant-garde.
The Sound of McCartney II
McCartney II was a significant departure from the polished rock and pop of the Wings years. Recorded at a time when synthesiser-based music was reshaping the pop landscape — Kraftwerk, Gary Numan, and the early electronic experiments of David Bowie and Brian Eno were all in the cultural air — the album reflected McCartney's curiosity about the new technology rather than any attempt to follow trends.
Tracks like 'Temporary Secretary' — with its sequenced synthesiser pattern and deadpan vocal — were genuinely experimental, and have been retrospectively claimed as proto-techno. 'On the Way' and 'Frozen Jap' (later retitled 'Frozen Japanese' for reissue) showed McCartney exploring ambient and minimalist territory. The album's eclecticism was both its strength and, for some listeners, its weakness.
Coming Up
'Coming Up' was released as the album's lead single in April 1980, backed by a live version recorded by Wings in Glasgow in 1979. The studio version — from McCartney II — reached number two in the UK. In the United States, it was the live Wings version that received radio airplay and topped the Billboard Hot 100, making it McCartney's first US solo number one since 'My Love' in 1973.
John Lennon, who heard 'Coming Up' on the radio in 1980, cited it as one of the reasons he returned to the recording studio after five years of retirement — a detail that gives the song an additional biographical weight. Lennon's Double Fantasy, recorded in the summer of 1980, was released in November of that year. He was shot and killed on 8 December 1980.
Context: The End of Wings
McCartney II was released at a pivotal moment. Wings had effectively dissolved following the Japanese drug bust of January 1980, when McCartney was arrested at Tokyo's Narita Airport for possession of cannabis and held for ten days before being deported. The Wings world tour that had been planned for Japan was cancelled, and the group never performed together again. Back to the Egg (1979) was Wings' final studio album.
McCartney II was therefore both a return to the solo format of 1970 and a statement of independence — an album made entirely alone, in private, at home, at a moment when the group context that had defined the previous decade had collapsed.
Chart Performance
- UK albums chart: Number one
- US Billboard 200: Number three
- 'Coming Up' (studio version) UK: Number two
- 'Coming Up' (live Wings version) US: Number one (Billboard Hot 100)
- Sales: Outsold Back to the Egg (Wings, 1979)
Key Facts: 16 May 1980
- UK release date: 16 May 1980
- US release date: 26 May 1980
- Recorded: Summer 1979
- Recording locations: Farmhouse, Peasmarsh, East Sussex; Spirit of Ranachan Studio, Campbeltown, Scotland
- Performed by: Paul McCartney (all instruments and vocals)
- Lead single: 'Coming Up' (released April 1980)
- UK chart position: Number one
- US chart position: Number three
- Preceded by: Back to the Egg (Wings, 1979)
- John Lennon on 'Coming Up': Cited as inspiration to return to the studio in 1980
Frequently Asked Questions
What is McCartney II?
McCartney II is Paul McCartney's second completely solo album, released in the UK on 16 May 1980. Like the original McCartney (1970), it was recorded entirely by McCartney alone — playing all instruments and singing all vocals — during six weeks in the summer of 1979.
Where was McCartney II recorded?
Recordings began at a farmhouse on the McCartney estate in Peasmarsh, East Sussex, and continued at the Spirit of Ranachan Studio at McCartney's farm near Campbeltown in Kintyre, Scotland.
Did Coming Up reach number one?
The live Wings version of 'Coming Up' reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100. The studio version from McCartney II reached number two in the UK. Both versions were released as a double A-side single in April 1980.
What was the connection between McCartney II and John Lennon?
John Lennon heard 'Coming Up' on the radio in 1980 and cited it as one of the reasons he returned to the recording studio after five years away. He recorded Double Fantasy in the summer of 1980 and was killed on 8 December 1980.
Why did McCartney record McCartney II alone?
Wings had effectively dissolved following McCartney's arrest in Japan in January 1980. McCartney II was also originally a private experiment — an exploration of synthesisers and electronic music without commercial pressure — that McCartney decided to release.
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