The Biography of Paul McCartney

Paul McCartney was born in Liverpool on 18th June 1942. He was raised in the city and educated at The Liverpool Institute.

Since writing his first song at the age of 14, Paul McCartney has dreamed and dared to be different. In the sixties, as the writer and co-author of their greatest songs, he changed the world of music with The Beatles. Legendary albums include: Please Please Me, Revolver, Help!, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and The White Album. Through the following three decades, first with Wings and then as a solo artist, he has continued to break boundaries and to influence the sound of music around the globe.

In 1990 he was commissioned by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Society to write The Liverpool Oratorio, which has received more than 100 performances in 20 countries since its premiere in 1991, a performance recorded live by EMI Classics. The double-CD album topped the charts in both the UK and USA and was released on VHS and laserdisc.

In 1995 - the 30th anniversary of Paul McCartney's most-acclaimed song Yesterday - his second classical work, A leaf - for solo piano, was premiered at St James' Palace in the presence of the Prince of Wales. Since then, Paul McCartney has taken other steps into the classical form, composing Stately Horn, Inebriation, Spiral and his major challenge, Standing Stone.

Paul McCartney was commissioned by EMI Records in 1996 to compose a major orchestral work to mark EMI's 100^th anniversary in the autumn of 1997. The symphonic poem Standing Stone was recorded in the legendary Abbey Road studios, conducted by Lawrence Foster and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. The world premiere was held at the Royal Albert Hall in October 1997, with a 10-minute standing ovation given to its composer by the capacity audience, and has been released by EMI Classics on both VHS and DVD-Video. Standing Stone then proceeded to go to No.1 in both classical charts in the UK and USA and McCartney later won the USA's National Public Radio New Horizon Award for Standing Stone, in recognition of his work in broadening the appeal of classical music.

Paul McCartney's third album on EMI Classics Working Classical was released in October 1999 and features three new short orchestral works, A Leaf, Spiral and Tuesday in addition to string quartet arrangements of songs written for his late wife, Linda. The launch of this album was a performance of the complete works of Working Classical on October 16^th in Liverpool, with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Andrea Quinn and the Loma Mar String Quartet. Paul McCartney himself attended this historic concert.

His latest album is A Garland for Linda - an album to commemorate the life of Linda McCartney, while also raising funds for cancer research, with original music from Sir Paul himself and other contemporary composers. The launch of this album took place in January 2000, with a special performance of all the works on A Garland for Linda, at St Andrew's Church in Holborn, London.

A freeman of The City of Liverpool and Lead Patron of The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, Paul McCartney was appointed Fellow of The Royal College of Music in 1995 by The Prince of Wales. In 1996 Paul McCartney was knighted by H.M. The Queen for his services to music.