On Tuesday 9 July 1974, Wings rehearsed at the farm owned by Nashville songwriter Claude 'Curly' Putman Jr. in Tennessee. The band had been renting the property – using the garage as a rehearsal space – since rehearsals began on 10 June, at a cost of $2,000 a week.
The 9 July session was a full run-through of everything the band had worked up since June. It was also the day a set of contracts arrived from MPL Communications – Paul McCartney's management company – that would have formalised the financial relationship between McCartney and the non-McCartney members of Wings. The contracts were rejected, and the episode revealed something important about the internal dynamics of the band.
The Rehearsal: Songs in the Set
By 9 July 1974, Wings had assembled a substantial repertoire for what would become the Wings Over the World Tour. The songs run through on this day included:
- 'Band On The Run'
- 'Bluebird'
- 'Go Now'
- 'Hi, Hi, Hi'
- 'Jet'
- 'Junior's Farm'
- 'Let Me Roll It'
- 'Live And Let Die'
- 'Medicine Jar'
- 'Sally G'
- 'Wild Life'
Towards the end of the session, the band began working on a new addition: Denny Laine's song 'Send Me The Heart'. The set was heavily weighted towards Band on the Run material – 'Band On The Run', 'Bluebird', 'Jet', 'Let Me Roll It' – reflecting the album's enormous commercial success since its release in November 1973. 'Junior's Farm' and 'Sally G' were recent singles recorded in Nashville in 1974. 'Go Now' remained in the set as a showcase for Laine, as it had been on the 1973 UK Tour.
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The MPL Contracts: A Turning Point
The more significant event of 9 July 1974 was the arrival of Brian Bolly, MPL Communications' managing director, with contracts for the non-McCartney members of Wings. The contracts offered royalties on studio releases and a percentage of concert ticket sales – a formalisation of the financial arrangement that had previously been informal.
The timing was significant. Wings in July 1974 was a different band from the one that had toured Europe in 1972 and Britain in 1973. Henry McCullough and Denny Seiwell had left in September 1973. In their place were two new members: Jimmy McCulloch, a 19-year-old Scottish guitarist who had previously played with Thunderclap Newman, and Geoff Britton, an English drummer and karate champion. The contracts were intended, in part, to give McCulloch and Britton a sense of security in their new roles.
Denny Laine refused to sign. His reasoning, as he explained to the New Musical Express in August 1974, was characteristically direct:
"The idea was really designed to make the other two guys feel more secure, but first of all, I decided I didn't want to sign it because I'd never been on that kind of relationship with Paul anyway. Then it seemed like there was no point in having Wings on the basis of 'You're in the band sign here'. We've got to have that fluid thing. Like, in the studio, we might want to bring in other musicians, and maybe the other two guys won't be on every track."
"Also with the three of us having been together for such a long time you can't expect the other two to be so established. They've got to grow into it just like we've had to. For myself, it's better because I'm treated more like an equal – which I wouldn't have been if I'd signed a contract. I didn't want to sign, so I had a chat with Paul and found he didn't want to bother with it either."
— Denny Laine, New Musical Express, 17 August 1974
McCartney agreed with Laine's position. The contracts remained unsigned and were later scrapped entirely. The episode illustrated the unusual nature of Wings as a band: not a conventional employer-employee relationship, but something more fluid and harder to define – which was both its strength and, ultimately, a source of instability.
Curly Putman's Farm
Claude 'Curly' Putman Jr. was one of Nashville's most successful songwriters, best known for co-writing 'Green Green Grass of Home' – the song that became a worldwide hit for Tom Jones in 1966 – and 'D-I-V-O-R-C-E', recorded by Tammy Wynette. His farm outside Nashville provided Wings with a private, spacious rehearsal environment far from the pressures of London or Los Angeles.
The $2,000-a-week rental reflected both the scale of the operation and the band's commercial standing in 1974. Band on the Run had been a massive international success, and Wings were preparing for a world tour that would take them to Australia, Europe, and eventually the United States. The Nashville rehearsals were the foundation of that tour.
Wings in 1974: The New Lineup
The Wings lineup rehearsing in Nashville in July 1974 was:
- Paul McCartney – vocals, guitar, bass guitar
- Linda McCartney – vocals, keyboards
- Denny Laine – vocals, guitar, bass guitar
- Jimmy McCulloch – guitar, vocals
- Geoff Britton – drums
Geoff Britton would not remain with Wings for long – he left in early 1975 and was replaced by Joe English before the Wings Over the World Tour reached the United States. Jimmy McCulloch stayed until 1977. Denny Laine remained until Wings' dissolution in 1981.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Wings rehearse in Nashville?
Wings rented the farm of Nashville songwriter Curly Putman Jr. for $2,000 a week from June 1974, using the garage as a rehearsal space. The Nashville base allowed them to rehearse privately and also to record nearby – Junior's Farm and Sally G were recorded in Nashville in 1974.
Who was in Wings in 1974?
The Wings lineup in 1974 was Paul McCartney (vocals, guitar, bass), Linda McCartney (vocals, keyboards), Denny Laine (vocals, guitar, bass), Jimmy McCulloch (guitar, vocals), and Geoff Britton (drums). Britton left in early 1975 and was replaced by Joe English.
Why did Denny Laine refuse to sign the MPL contracts?
Denny Laine felt that signing a formal contract with MPL would make him an employee of Paul McCartney rather than an equal partner, and would put him on the same footing as newer members Jimmy McCulloch and Geoff Britton. He preferred the informal, fluid arrangement that had characterised his relationship with McCartney since Wings' formation. McCartney agreed, and the contracts were scrapped.
Who was Curly Putman?
Claude 'Curly' Putman Jr. was a Nashville songwriter best known for co-writing 'Green Green Grass of Home' (a worldwide hit for Tom Jones in 1966) and 'D-I-V-O-R-C-E' (recorded by Tammy Wynette). Wings rented his farm outside Nashville for rehearsals in the summer of 1974.
More from On This Day in Beatles History
- Wings live: Odeon, Leicester – 9 July 1973
- Wings live: Châteauvallon, Ollioules – 9 July 1972
- Wings Record 'Mary Had A Little Lamb' – 29 March 1972
- On This Day in Beatles History – full archive
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