Paul McCartney has written many love songs about the woman in his life, and several are about his first wife, Linda. The two were married for almost 30 years before her death in 1998. During their time together, McCartney expressed his love in various ways, including writing songs about her.
Here are 5 songs Paul McCartney wrote about Linda
‘The Lovely Linda’
“The Lovely Linda” is the opening track on McCartney’s first solo album, McCartney. He wrote the song in the early days of their relationship, and it features sounds of the pair hanging around the house. In an interview with Billboard, McCartney called the song a “direct diary.”
“That was when Linda and I first got together,” he said. “The record is me playing around the house. You hear her walking through the living room doorway out to the garden, and the door squeaks at the end of the tape. That’s one of the songs from my personal experience, with ‘the flowers in her hair.’ She often used to wear flowers in her hair, so it’s a direct diary.”
‘My Love’
Paul McCartney wrote many love songs for Linda but said “My Love” was the “definitive one.” The song was the lead single for Wings’ 1973 album Red Rose Speedway and reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. While “My Love” is notable for McCartney’s lyrics and vocal performance, many consider Henry McCullough’s improvised guitar solo a highlight of the track.
‘Two of Us’
Similar to “The Lovely Linda”, Paul McCartney came up with “Two of Us” spontaneously while on a date with Linda. While many imagine the song to be about John Lennon and McCartney, Paul wrote this Beatles’ song while on a date with Linda. The two got lost in the woods, and the “Let it Be” singer decided to write this song. In Barry Miles’ Many Years From Now, McCartney called “Two of Us” one of his favorites.
“It’s a favorite of mine because it reminds me of that period, getting together with Linda, and the wonderfully free attitude we were able to have,” he explained. “I had my guitar with me and I wrote it out on the road, and then maybe finished some of the verses at home later, but that picture is of me writing it.”
‘Eat at Home’
“Eat at Home” is from his second solo album, Ram. Many of the songs were written at Paul and Linda’s farm in Scotland, where the two spent many years raising their kids and escaping the busy scene of London. McCartney once called this song “a plea for home cooking,” but it’s also the joy he feels by sharing and cooking meals with Linda.
‘Maybe I’m Amazed’
Arguably the greatest love song Paul McCartney ever wrote, “Maybe I’m Amazed,” debuted in 1970 on McCartney. McCartney wrote the song in 1969 before The Beatles broke up. While it was released in 1970, it didn’t become a hit until a live version from Wings Over America was released as a single. It’s one of the singer’s most beloved tracks and, in 2009, he said it’s the song he’d like to be remembered for.
