Recording sessions took several years, fitted in around McCartney’s hectic touring schedule, as well as the production of the Beatles documentary Get Back and the writing of a memoir about the star’s 1970s band, Wings.
During that time, the star also won a Grammy for Now and Then, the single billed as the final Beatles track, which was recovered from demos with the help of cutting-edge audio technology.
With the star in reflective mood, the new music promises to incorporate elements of all his previous work – from “Wings style rock” and “Beatles style harmonies” to “McCartney style grooves” (according to the blurb for the album, at least).
The bird-watching motif was teased in advance, with the star posting a playlist of avian-themed songs on his website, external – including the Beatles’ classics And Your Bird Can Sing and Blackbird, as well as his 2005 solo track Jenny Wren.
Speaking on his Life In Lyrics podcast in 2024, the musician said his interest in birds stretched back over decades.
“I loved bird watching when I was a kid, because I like to be able to get out of the normal stream of life,” he said.
“We were about a mile away from quite deep countryside, so I used to just go out on my own, just being away from the normal stuff – school, family life.”
The title of McCartney’s new album was accidentally confirmed on social media by his brother Mike on Wednesday – after his son spotted posters being put up around Liverpool.
“Josh saw this teaser for r kids new album ‘The Boys of Dungeon Lane’ in Liverpool yest[erday],” he wrote, external.
The image “was familiar” to Josh, he noted, because “he had designed the… artwork for his Uncle”.