A little more McCartney? Here are a few words about my favorite song from the White Album . . .
“Who knows how long I’ve loved you?”
That was the question burning in the back of Paul McCartney’s mind since he’d met Linda Eastman at the Bag O’ Nails on May 15, 1967. Blonde, forthright, motherly (like John, Paul often referred to his wife as “Mama”), Linda knocked Paul’s playboy heart for a loop.
But Beatledom hadn’t allowed much time to pursue a relationship. Pepper, India, Magical Mystery Tour. The pair stole moments when they could – an afternoon in New York, two nights in LA.
Then in fall 1968 Linda came to London to stay with Paul for a few weeks. “The fridge had half a bottle of sour milk and a crust of cheese,” Paul said. “She just couldn’t believe the conditions I was living in.”
Though he couldn’t offer snacks, he did have a song for her.
The tune had been nagging him for a long time. He’d brought it to India, writing an “unsatisfactory” lyric with Donovan. In EMI studio on September 16th, Paul let his feelings flow into a beautifully optimistic expression of the que sera of romance.
The track featured only three Beatles. They recorded 67 straight takes, Ringo playing maracas and John tapping a beat with a stick. As Paul was still refining the lyric, many takes were incomplete, with a few spinning off into tangents (“Step Inside Love” and “Can you Take Me Back?”)
During those first weeks, the two hiked in the woods, painted together and went for late night drives where she encouraged Paul “to try and get lost.” In Linda, he found beauty, “a wonderful free attitude” and someone who saw beyond his fame. They married six months later.
Though Paul would write many paeans to Linda – from “Two Of Us” to “My Love” – this remains the most perfect in his catalog. Even he called it “one of my favorite melodies that I’ve written.”