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Say Say Say
"Say Say Say" is a song by the English singer-songwriter and musician Paul McCartney and the American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson, released in October 1983 as the lead single from McCartney's 1983 album Pipes of Peace. Produced by George Martin, it was recorded during production of McCartney's 1982 Tug of War album, about a year before the release of "The Girl Is Mine", the pair's first duet from Jackson's album Thriller (1982).
After its release in October 1983, "Say Say Say" became Jackson's seventh top-ten hit inside a year. It was a number-one hit in the United States (his sixth number-one single there), Canada, Norway, Sweden and several other countries, reached number two in the United Kingdom, and peaked within the top ten in Australia, Austria, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Switzerland and over 20 other nations. In 2013, Billboard magazine listed the song as the 41st biggest hit of all time on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It has also been voted the ninth-best collaboration of all time in a Rolling Stone readers poll.
The single was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in December 1983, representing sales of one million copies. The single was promoted with an influential music video directed by Bob Giraldi. The short film centres around two con artists called "Mac and Jack" (played by McCartney and Jackson).
McCartney biographer Ray Coleman asserted that the majority of the song's lyrics were written by Jackson and given to McCartney the next day. Recording began at AIR Studios in London in May 1981. At the time, McCartney was recording Tug of War, his second solo album after the breakup of his group Wings.
Jackson stayed at the home of McCartney and his wife Linda during the recording sessions, and became friends with both. While at the dining table one evening, Paul McCartney brought out a booklet that displayed all the songs to which he owned the publishing rights. "This is the way to make big money," the musician informed Jackson. "Every time someone records one of these songs, I get paid. Every time someone plays these songs on the radio, or in live performances, I get paid." McCartney's words influenced Jackson's later purchase of ATV Music Publishing in 1985.
McCartney played several instruments on "Say Say Say", including percussion, synthesizer and guitar (though it is not mentioned in the credits for the track). The harmonica was played by Chris Smith, the rhythm guitar was played by David Williams, Nathan Watts played bass and drums were played by Ricky Lawson. The song was engineered by former Beatles sound engineer, Geoff Emerick. The production of "Say Say Say" was completed in February 1983, after it had been refined and overdubbed at Cherokee Studios in California.[citation needed]
As keyboard player Bill Wolfer recalled in a 2014 interview, he and Jackson worked on a rough sketch of the song based on the original acoustic demo with McCartney, Jackson's intention being to present the latter his vision for the song. This soon evolved into a 24-track studio recording with a rhythm section, horns and harmonica laid down, which Michael presented to McCartney instead and this was kept in the final version.
George Martin, who had worked with the Beatles, produced the song. He said of his experience with Jackson: "He actually does radiate an aura when he comes into the studio, there's no question about it. He's not a musician in the sense that Paul is ... but he does know what he wants in music and he has very firm ideas."
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Say Say Say
"Say Say Say" is a song by the English singer-songwriter and musician Paul McCartney and the American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson, released in October 1983 as the lead single from McCartney's 1983 album Pipes of Peace. Produced by George Martin, it was recorded during production of McCartney's 1982 Tug of War album, about a year before the release of "The Girl Is Mine", the pair's first duet from Jackson's album Thriller (1982).
After its release in October 1983, "Say Say Say" became Jackson's seventh top-ten hit inside a year. It was a number-one hit in the United States (his sixth number-one single there), Canada, Norway, Sweden and several other countries, reached number two in the United Kingdom, and peaked within the top ten in Australia, Austria, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Switzerland and over 20 other nations. In 2013, Billboard magazine listed the song as the 41st biggest hit of all time on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It has also been voted the ninth-best collaboration of all time in a Rolling Stone readers poll.
The single was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in December 1983, representing sales of one million copies. The single was promoted with an influential music video directed by Bob Giraldi. The short film centres around two con artists called "Mac and Jack" (played by McCartney and Jackson).
McCartney biographer Ray Coleman asserted that the majority of the song's lyrics were written by Jackson and given to McCartney the next day. Recording began at AIR Studios in London in May 1981. At the time, McCartney was recording Tug of War, his second solo album after the breakup of his group Wings.
Jackson stayed at the home of McCartney and his wife Linda during the recording sessions, and became friends with both. While at the dining table one evening, Paul McCartney brought out a booklet that displayed all the songs to which he owned the publishing rights. "This is the way to make big money," the musician informed Jackson. "Every time someone records one of these songs, I get paid. Every time someone plays these songs on the radio, or in live performances, I get paid." McCartney's words influenced Jackson's later purchase of ATV Music Publishing in 1985.
McCartney played several instruments on "Say Say Say", including percussion, synthesizer and guitar (though it is not mentioned in the credits for the track). The harmonica was played by Chris Smith, the rhythm guitar was played by David Williams, Nathan Watts played bass and drums were played by Ricky Lawson. The song was engineered by former Beatles sound engineer, Geoff Emerick. The production of "Say Say Say" was completed in February 1983, after it had been refined and overdubbed at Cherokee Studios in California.[citation needed]
As keyboard player Bill Wolfer recalled in a 2014 interview, he and Jackson worked on a rough sketch of the song based on the original acoustic demo with McCartney, Jackson's intention being to present the latter his vision for the song. This soon evolved into a 24-track studio recording with a rhythm section, horns and harmonica laid down, which Michael presented to McCartney instead and this was kept in the final version.
George Martin, who had worked with the Beatles, produced the song. He said of his experience with Jackson: "He actually does radiate an aura when he comes into the studio, there's no question about it. He's not a musician in the sense that Paul is ... but he does know what he wants in music and he has very firm ideas."