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Give Ireland Back to the Irish
"Give Ireland Back to the Irish" is the debut single by the British–American rock band Wings that was released in February 1972. It was written by Paul McCartney and his wife Linda in response to the events of Bloody Sunday, on 30 January that year, when British troops in Northern Ireland shot dead thirteen civil rights protestors. Keen to voice their outrage at the killings, Wings recorded the track two days later at EMI Studios in London. It was the band's first song to include Northern Irish guitarist Henry McCullough.
"Give Ireland Back to the Irish" was banned from broadcast in the UK by the BBC and other organisations, and was overlooked by the majority of radio programmers in the United States. The single peaked at number 16 on the UK Singles Chart and number 21 on the US Billboard Hot 100, but topped the Irish Singles Chart for one week in March 1972. Having never released an overtly political song before, McCartney was condemned by the British media for his seemingly pro-IRA stance on Northern Ireland. As with Wings' then-recent album, Wild Life, the song was also maligned by many music critics. These writers found McCartney's lyrics overly simplistic and viewed the single as an attempt by him to gain credibility for his new band on the back of a pressing political issue.
Wings performed "Give Ireland Back to the Irish" throughout their February 1972 tour of English and Welsh universities. The track first appeared on an album in 1993, when it was included as a bonus track on the CD reissue of Wild Life.
Following the release of his band Wings' debut album, Wild Life, in December 1971, Paul McCartney spent Christmas and New Year in New York visiting the family of his wife and bandmate Linda. The visit also allowed McCartney to begin rebuilding his relationship with John Lennon, his former writing partner in the Beatles, after the pair had spent the year attacking each other through the music press and in their respective musical releases. The McCartneys then returned to the UK, intent on preparing to launch Wings as a live act. In January 1972, Wings began rehearsing in London with a new fifth member, Northern Irishman Henry McCullough, on lead guitar, who joined on the recommendation of the band's guitarist and occasional singer, Denny Laine.
On 29 January, McCartney returned to New York, where, during another meeting with Lennon, they agreed to end their public feud. The following day, McCartney wrote the song "Give Ireland Back to the Irish" in response to the news that British troops in Derry in Northern Ireland had just shot dead thirteen civil rights marchers, who represented the Catholic minority, and wounded many others during a protest march. With strong familial connections to Ireland on his late mother's side, McCartney was appalled at Britain's role in what became known as Bloody Sunday, and penned his protest song the very next day. McCartney later recalled: "I wasn't really into protest songs – John had done that – but this time I felt that I had to write something, to use my art to protest."
Two days after Bloody Sunday, McCartney arranged a session with Wings to rush-record "Give Ireland Back to the Irish", turning up at EMI Studios unannounced. The band agreed to release the song as a single, although author Howard Sounes suggests that McCullough, as an Ulster Protestant, may have had his misgivings. The track was recorded on 1 February at EMI's Abbey Road Studios with engineer Tony Clark. On February 3, the band then moved to Island Studios, where final overdubs were added and the song was mixed. The track was mastered at Apple Studios. This marked the first time that McCartney had worked in the Beatles' Apple Studios since the group's break-up in April 1970.
The B-side of the single, "Give Ireland Back to the Irish (Version)", is an instrumental version of the song. McCartney used this rather than another song since, anticipating problems over the political content, he thought that if disc jockeys decided to favour the B-side to avoid the lyrics being heard, they would still have to mention the track's title. McCartney took the rhythm section parts from the A-side and overdubbed lead guitar lines (played by himself and McCullough) and an Irish penny whistle. Seeking to emulate the low-fidelity quality of Jamaican reggae singles, where instrumental dubs were commonly used as B-sides, McCartney gave the track a muddy-sounding mix, with barely any high-end sound.
In the United Kingdom, the song was banned by the BBC, and subsequently by Radio Luxembourg and the Independent Television Authority (ITA). BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel was the only member of those organisations who spoke out in support of McCartney, saying: "The act of banning it is a much stronger political act than the contents of the record itself. It's just one man's opinion."
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Give Ireland Back to the Irish
"Give Ireland Back to the Irish" is the debut single by the British–American rock band Wings that was released in February 1972. It was written by Paul McCartney and his wife Linda in response to the events of Bloody Sunday, on 30 January that year, when British troops in Northern Ireland shot dead thirteen civil rights protestors. Keen to voice their outrage at the killings, Wings recorded the track two days later at EMI Studios in London. It was the band's first song to include Northern Irish guitarist Henry McCullough.
"Give Ireland Back to the Irish" was banned from broadcast in the UK by the BBC and other organisations, and was overlooked by the majority of radio programmers in the United States. The single peaked at number 16 on the UK Singles Chart and number 21 on the US Billboard Hot 100, but topped the Irish Singles Chart for one week in March 1972. Having never released an overtly political song before, McCartney was condemned by the British media for his seemingly pro-IRA stance on Northern Ireland. As with Wings' then-recent album, Wild Life, the song was also maligned by many music critics. These writers found McCartney's lyrics overly simplistic and viewed the single as an attempt by him to gain credibility for his new band on the back of a pressing political issue.
Wings performed "Give Ireland Back to the Irish" throughout their February 1972 tour of English and Welsh universities. The track first appeared on an album in 1993, when it was included as a bonus track on the CD reissue of Wild Life.
Following the release of his band Wings' debut album, Wild Life, in December 1971, Paul McCartney spent Christmas and New Year in New York visiting the family of his wife and bandmate Linda. The visit also allowed McCartney to begin rebuilding his relationship with John Lennon, his former writing partner in the Beatles, after the pair had spent the year attacking each other through the music press and in their respective musical releases. The McCartneys then returned to the UK, intent on preparing to launch Wings as a live act. In January 1972, Wings began rehearsing in London with a new fifth member, Northern Irishman Henry McCullough, on lead guitar, who joined on the recommendation of the band's guitarist and occasional singer, Denny Laine.
On 29 January, McCartney returned to New York, where, during another meeting with Lennon, they agreed to end their public feud. The following day, McCartney wrote the song "Give Ireland Back to the Irish" in response to the news that British troops in Derry in Northern Ireland had just shot dead thirteen civil rights marchers, who represented the Catholic minority, and wounded many others during a protest march. With strong familial connections to Ireland on his late mother's side, McCartney was appalled at Britain's role in what became known as Bloody Sunday, and penned his protest song the very next day. McCartney later recalled: "I wasn't really into protest songs – John had done that – but this time I felt that I had to write something, to use my art to protest."
Two days after Bloody Sunday, McCartney arranged a session with Wings to rush-record "Give Ireland Back to the Irish", turning up at EMI Studios unannounced. The band agreed to release the song as a single, although author Howard Sounes suggests that McCullough, as an Ulster Protestant, may have had his misgivings. The track was recorded on 1 February at EMI's Abbey Road Studios with engineer Tony Clark. On February 3, the band then moved to Island Studios, where final overdubs were added and the song was mixed. The track was mastered at Apple Studios. This marked the first time that McCartney had worked in the Beatles' Apple Studios since the group's break-up in April 1970.
The B-side of the single, "Give Ireland Back to the Irish (Version)", is an instrumental version of the song. McCartney used this rather than another song since, anticipating problems over the political content, he thought that if disc jockeys decided to favour the B-side to avoid the lyrics being heard, they would still have to mention the track's title. McCartney took the rhythm section parts from the A-side and overdubbed lead guitar lines (played by himself and McCullough) and an Irish penny whistle. Seeking to emulate the low-fidelity quality of Jamaican reggae singles, where instrumental dubs were commonly used as B-sides, McCartney gave the track a muddy-sounding mix, with barely any high-end sound.
In the United Kingdom, the song was banned by the BBC, and subsequently by Radio Luxembourg and the Independent Television Authority (ITA). BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel was the only member of those organisations who spoke out in support of McCartney, saying: "The act of banning it is a much stronger political act than the contents of the record itself. It's just one man's opinion."