In 1963, Paul McCartney Struck Gold With a Songwriting Technique He’s “Hardly Ever Used Since”

Humans are creatures of habit, and this often extends to the creative process as well. More often than not, songwriters will follow a similar formula when crafting a new song: music first, then lyrics, vice versa, and so on. But sometimes, striking gold requires you to get out of your comfort zone and try something new, which is something Paul McCartney learned in real time with The Beatles’ 1963 hit single “All My Loving”.

The Beatles were still on their fast ascent to rock ‘n’ roll stardom when they released “All My Loving” in the summer of 1963. The song became an instant success, topping the charts in Canada, Australia, and throughout Europe. The song was never technically released as a single in the United States and United Kingdom, yet it received plenty of airplay anyway. It was quite the feather to put in their cap in the early stages of their global-facing career.

Interestingly, the song was also a rare instance of McCartney switching up his writing routine. Speaking to Barry Miles in Many Years From Now, the prolific musician explained that he reversed the order in which he typically wrote his music and lyrics.

Trying Something New Paid Off For “All My Loving”

“It was the first song I’d ever written the words first,” Paul McCartney told Barry Miles of “All My Loving”. “I never wrote words first. It was always some kind of accompaniment.” The Beatles and Wings founder said he had “hardly ever done it since, either. We were on a tour bus going to a gig, and so I started with the words. I had in my mind a little country and Western song.” McCartney worked the rest of the song out on a piano in the back of a Moss Empire theatre.

Even John Lennon recognized the significance of the song McCartney wrote, calling “All My Loving” one of his “biggies.” This 1963 hit was one of many rungs that got The Beatles to the top of the rock ‘n’ roll ladder. Other tracks like “She Loves You”, “Please Please Me”, “I Want To Hold Your Hand”, “I Saw Her Standing There”, and “Love Me Do” certainly did their parts as well.

Had McCartney stuck with his routine and started with the music first, who’s to say whether that particular rhythm would have come to him? The chord progression seems to follow the flow of the sentence, leading the listener from one part of the poem to the next. Even the way the vocals seem to lead the instrumentation reflects the order in which McCartney wrote the two.

And in this early-stage Beatles hit is a life lesson all songwriters can afford to heed: your best work is often lying just beyond what’s comfortable.

Photo by David Farrell/Redferns

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