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"Heart of the Country" is a song written by Paul and Linda McCartney from their album Ram released in 1971.
| "Heart of the Country" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Paul and Linda McCartney | ||||
| from the album Ram | ||||
| A-side | "The Back Seat of My Car" | |||
| Released | 13 August 1971 | |||
| Recorded | 16 November 1970 | |||
| Genre | Folk rock, country folk | |||
| Length | 2:21 | |||
| Label | Apple | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Paul and Linda McCartney | |||
| Producer(s) | Paul and Linda McCartney | |||
| Paul and Linda McCartney singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Heart of the Country" on YouTube | ||||
Origins
editThe song has simple acoustic tune with a heavy bass chorus, and an unusually mellow sound to the acoustic guitar that was achieved by tuning all of the strings a full step lower than standard pitch. The song is about a man searching for a farm in the middle of nowhere. The song reflects Paul's heading for the Scottish countryside to escape the headaches associated with the Beatles' break-up at the time.[1]
Composition
editThe song is played in the key of D Minor at a tempo of 172.
Personnel
edit- Paul McCartney – lead vocals, bass guitar, guitar
- Linda McCartney – backing vocals
- Hugh McCracken – guitar
- Denny Seiwell – drums (with brushes)
Reception
editIn a contemporary review for Ram, Jon Landau of Rolling Stone gave "Heart of the Country" a negative review, calling it the album's "lowest point", and the song that "most clearly indicates [Ram's] failures".[2] Landau described the song as "an evenly paced, finger-picking styled tune, with very light jazz overtones, obviously intended as Paul's idea of "mellow."".[2] However, Landau believed McCartney's lyrics about the country "ring false".[2]
Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic described the song as "an effortless folk-pop tune that ranks among [McCartney's] very best songs".[3] Erlewine also praises its "imaginative and gorgeous arrangement".[4] In 2013, Rolling Stone rated "Heart of the Country" at number 26 in its list of Paul McCartney's best post-Beatles songs.[1]
Aftermath
editMcCartney and Elvis Costello re-recorded the song, with Mark Ronson producing, in 2013 for a commercial featuring his late wife Linda's vegetarian recipe book.[5]
It was also included on The 7" Singles Box in 2022.[6]
References
edit- ^ a b "Paul's 40 Greatest Solo Songs". Special Collector's Edition: Paul McCartney. Rolling Stone. 2013. p. 89.
- ^ a b c Landau, Jon (8 July 1971). "Ram". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 30 July 2017.
- ^ Erlewine, S.T. "Wingspan". AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-10-15.
- ^ Erlewine, S.T. "Ram". AllMusic. Retrieved 2013-12-25.
- ^ "Paul McCartney tunes up with song for Linda's vegetarian food range". The Guardian. 18 January 2013. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
- ^ "'The 7" Singles Box' – Out 2 December 2022". PaulMcCartney.com. 10 November 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
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