Maybe I'm Amazed

"Maybe I'm Amazed"
Song

"Maybe I'm Amazed"
Song
B-side	"Soily"

"Maybe I'm Amazed" is a song written by Paul McCartney that was first released on his McCartney album on 17 April 1970. The studio version from the album has never been released as a single. McCartney dedicated the song to his wife, Linda, who had helped him get through the break-up of The Beatles. Later, McCartney's band Wings released a single of a live performance of the song from the band's 1976 tour of America, which became a top-ten hit in the United States and reached number 26 in the United Kingdom.

History

McCartney wrote the song in 1969, just before The Beatles' break-up. He credited his wife Linda with helping him get through the difficult time.

Although most of his debut solo album was recorded at his farm in Scotland, McCartney recorded "Maybe I'm Amazed" entirely in EMI's Number Two studio in Abbey Road in London, where he was mixing "Every Night". He played all the instruments: guitars, piano, organ and drums.

Although Paul declined to release the song as a single in 1970, it nonetheless received a great deal of radio airplay worldwide, making it one of his most recognisable solo successes. A promotional film was made, comprising still photographs of McCartney, his wife Linda and stepdaughter Heather.

The original studio version of the song ended with a fade instead of a full ending, but McCartney later composed an ending that can be heard on the live versions of the song.

McCartney first performed this live with Wings, in Châteauvallon, France, on 9 July 1972.

Later release

A live recording from the 1976 album Wings over America was released as a single by McCartney's band Wings on 4 February 1977 and reached number 10 in the US on the Billboard pop charts, and reached number 28 in the UK. Versions of the song can be heard on several other live McCartney albums including Back in the U.S. and Back in the World. "Maybe I'm Amazed" has become a centrepiece of McCartney's concerts, along with "Band on the Run" and "Live and Let Die", live versions of the song are available on the 2011 reissue of McCartney'.

Aftermath

Regarded as one of McCartney's finest love songs, it achieved the number 338 position in the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list compiled by Rolling Stone magazine in November 2004, and is the only solo McCartney song to make the list. In a late 2009 Q&A with journalists held in London to promote his live album Good Evening New York City, McCartney said "Maybe I'm Amazed" was "the song he would like to be remembered for in the future".

Covers

The Ronnie Lane & Rod Stewart led Faces featured this song on their 1971 album Long Player. Carleen Anderson released a version as a single in 1998 and was released on her album Blessed Burden. The Welsh singer Jem did a cover of this song which was included in Music from the OC: Mix 2 soundtrack in 2004. Marc Cohn covered this song on his 2010 album Listening Booth: 1970. Black Oak Arkansas covered this song at a 1976 concert on the album 'King Biscuit Flower Hour 1976'.

Dave Grohl and Norah Jones together performed a version of the song during the 2010 Kennedy Center Honors ceremonies as a tribute to 2010 honoree Paul McCartney who was seated in the President's Box alongside First Lady Michelle Obama and fellow 2010 honoree Oprah Winfrey.

On the tenth season of American Idol, contestant James Durbin sang this song as a part of the Top 13 week's theme "Your Personal Idol". He stated that McCartney was his idol.

On the 27 May 2011 the official Paul McCartney YouTube channel held a "Maybe I'm Amazed Cover Competition" where users would submit video responses of themselves covering the song, the winner being the user whose video gained the most 'likes'. On 28 June 2011, YouTube user "Troubleclef" was named winner of the contest.