Paul McCartney After The Beatles

What you'll learn
Paul McCartney's transition from The Beatles to solo artist and his early experimental work
The formation and evolution of Wings and his move towards global pop-rock success
Linda McCartney's Role and Influence
The McCartney Trilogy
Paul McCartney's Classical music and global collaborations
Requirements
B.A. or M.A. degree in any stream of the humanities
Description
This course examines the post-Beatles musical trajectory of Paul McCartney, focusing on his evolution as a solo artist, collaborator, and innovator from 1970 to the present. Through a series of lectures, students will explore how McCartney redefined authorship, production, and musical identity in the aftermath of The Beatles' breakup.
Beginning with McCartney (1970), the course situates the album within its historical context of personal and professional upheaval. It highlights McCartney's retreat into home recording, his embrace of lo-fi aesthetics, and his pioneering role in shaping DIY and independent music practices. The course then turns to Ram (1971), analyzing its innovative studio techniques, genre hybridity, and layered sonic textures through frameworks such as auditory scene analysis and ecological listening.
Students will also examine the formation of Wings, including its collaborative dynamics and global recording practices, with particular attention to Band on the Run. The course explores how geography, technology, and group identity influenced McCartney's sound, while also introducing key theoretical concepts such as the "refrain" as a structuring musical principle.
A significant component of the course is dedicated to Linda McCartney and her role in challenging gender norms within 1970s rock culture. Through her contributions to Wings, students will critically assess issues of authorship, authenticity, and gender performativity.
Expanding beyond rock, the course also explores McCartney's experimental career and his ventures into classical composition. Works such as Standing Stone and Ecce Cor Meum are examined in relation to traditions of sacred music, drawing comparisons to Martin Luther's emphasis on accessible hymnody and the integration of melody with vernacular text. These ideas are further contextualized through the legacy of Johann Sebastian Bach, whose elaboration of simple chorales into complex cantatas and oratorios provides a historical parallel to McCartney's blending of communal and individual musical voices. Concepts such as contrapuntal dialogue and techniques like retrograde are introduced to demonstrate how musical ideas evolve from simplicity to structural complexity.
Finally, the course concludes with McCartney III (2020), examining its creation during the COVID-19 pandemic as a continuation of McCartney's self-sufficient, experimental ethos. Using cognitive theories of music perception, students will analyze how the album balances familiarity and complexity in late-career creativity.
Overall, this course offers a comprehensive, interdisciplinary study of McCartney's enduring influence across popular and classical music traditions.
Who this course is for
Anyone with an interest in the history of rock music, musicology, and sound studies