Paul McCartney discusses the uncertain years after The Beatles breakup, the creation of Wings, and the role of Linda McCartney in shaping his 1970s musical reinvention in the documentary Man On The Run.
by Paul Cashmere
When filmmaker Morgan Neville began work on the documentary Man On The Run, the intention was to examine a chapter of Paul McCartney’s career that often sits in the shadow of his time with The Beatles. In a wide-ranging conversation between Neville and McCartney about the film, the former Beatle reflects on the uncertainty that followed the band’s breakup and how those years ultimately reshaped his life, family and music.
The film centres on the 1970s, a decade when McCartney was rebuilding both his personal life and professional identity. Speaking with Neville, McCartney describes the period as “very difficult”, explaining that the global scale of The Beatles left him facing a daunting question. “How do you follow that?” he says. The choice, he recalls, came down to giving up or continuing in music. For McCartney, the answer was instinctive. He wanted to keep playing.
Rather than assemble a high-profile supergroup, McCartney chose a route that echoed The Beatles’ earliest days. He formed Wings and began again from small venues and university halls. Early shows often involved travelling by van and performing to audiences unfamiliar with the new band. McCartney remembers the performances as exhilarating but nerve-racking. “Playing in a band is terrifying fun,” he says, describing the constant challenge of getting it right in front of a live audience.
The approach eventually paid off. During the decade, Wings would grow into one of the most successful touring and recording acts in the world. Albums such as Band On The Run and Venus And Mars produced enduring songs including “Jet” and “Band On The Run”, records McCartney deliberately shaped to establish a distinct identity beyond his Beatles past. “If we were forming a new group, we were trying to get people not to associate it only with The Beatles,” he explains.
Neville notes that the scale of Wings’ success during the 1970s is sometimes overlooked today. McCartney acknowledges that perception, suggesting the group’s achievements are naturally measured against the cultural impact of The Beatles. Yet for a generation of listeners, Wings became the band they discovered in real time. McCartney says younger fans often tell him their entry point was the 1970s catalogue rather than the earlier Beatles recordings.
The film also highlights how McCartney’s domestic life shaped that era. Much of the early 1970s was spent in rural Scotland, where McCartney and his wife Linda McCartney created a family life far removed from the pressures of the music industry. McCartney recalls buying a farm on the advice of an accountant and initially viewing it with scepticism. Linda’s enthusiasm changed his perspective.
The couple embraced a self-sufficient lifestyle, raising their children while McCartney continued to write and record music. He remembers improvising furniture from farm materials and composing songs in between daily chores. The environment fostered a stripped-back creative approach. With a guitar, piano and basic recording equipment, McCartney built songs layer by layer, producing recordings that carried what he describes as a “do it yourself vibe”.
Linda’s influence extended beyond family life. McCartney credits her with encouraging a sense of freedom in his decisions. When he hesitated about an idea, Linda would reassure him with a simple phrase, “It’s allowed”. That attitude, he says, helped him trust his instincts even when critics questioned choices such as recording the children’s song “Mary Had A Little Lamb”.
Touring life also reflected the couple’s family-first philosophy. McCartney recalls that their children travelled with them on the road, often sleeping on tour buses while the band crossed continents. The decision was practical as well as emotional. If the family was together, he reasoned, they would always be close if something happened.
The documentary also revisits the creative journeys behind Wings recordings. McCartney travelled widely to make albums, recording in locations including Nashville, New Orleans and Lagos. The sessions in Nigeria, where parts of Band On The Run were recorded, led to a memorable encounter with Nigerian musician Fela Kuti. Kuti initially suspected McCartney had come to appropriate African musical styles, a concern that McCartney addressed by inviting him to the studio to hear the work in progress. The two musicians ultimately developed a friendly relationship.
Neville’s film also touches on the emotional backdrop of the decade, particularly McCartney’s complicated relationship with former bandmate John Lennon after The Beatles split. McCartney recalls the tension of those early years, when Lennon publicly criticised him in songs and interviews. Over time, the hostility eased. Conversations shifted to domestic topics, from raising children to baking bread, allowing their friendship to rebuild before Lennon’s death in 1980.
Reflecting on the completed documentary, McCartney says watching it felt like revisiting a scrapbook of his life. The film captures what he describes as a period filled with unpredictable decisions and creative risks. Looking back, he believes those risks achieved their purpose. “All I was trying to do was prove that there was life after The Beatles,” McCartney says.
For Neville, the story reveals a broader narrative about artistic survival. For McCartney, it marks the moment he moved beyond the past and defined the next stage of his career, one built on family, experimentation and the determination to keep making music.
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