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“Every Night” is one of Paul McCartney’s greatest solo accomplishments. For the life of me, I don’t understand why it (or any songs from the McCartney album) wasn’t ever released as a single. It is rare to find a song that paints such a perfect view of romantic love while staying unique, personal, and cliché-free. Several artists have covered it, including Richie Havens, Phoebe Snow, and Claudine Longet, but not as many as you would expect from a song this great. At least McCartney himself seems to hold it in high regard, featuring it on several live albums (Concerts for the People of Kampuchea, Unplugged (The Official Bootleg), Back In The US, and Back In The World) and a greatest-hits collection (Wingspan: Hits And History).
A lot changed for Paul McCartney in the year 1969, and he reportedly didn’t handle it well. The band that his entire life revolved around—the biggest band in the world, the Beatles—was falling apart, and the resulting tangled mess of hurt feelings and legal matters left him sorely depressed. Getting him through this difficult time was his wife, Linda, who suggested that he should start working on his own music apart from the group. “Every Night” became the resulting tribute to his inspiring spouse.
The album on which it appears has a reputation of being quickly put together, but “Every Night” started out as a possible track for the Beatles’ final album, Let It Be. Though he has stated that he “had the first two lines for a few years” before its recording, Paul finished writing the song later on in 1969 while on vacation in Greece. In the final completed version, acoustic and bass guitars mix together with drums and some background vocals from Linda, who would go on to duet with Paul on many more songs.
Rumor has it that he may have recorded an electric guitar part for this song that was never used and that it may or may not appear on the first take, an alternate version that could be released in the future. While McCartney has hinted that his upcoming re-release of Band on the Run would feature bonus, previously unheard material, it is unknown if he plans doing anything similar with McCartney.
