Paul McCartney opens his songbook to reveal the 154 tracks in new book The Lyrics

Paul McCartney: The Lyrics: 1956 To The Present
(Image credit: Liveright Publishing Corporation)

Earlier this year it was announced that Paul McCartney would release a book exploring his lyrics from throughout his career.

The Lyrics: 1956 To The Present will delve into 154 of Macca’s songs – from his earliest compositions through to the Beatles, Wings and solo career, with the book edited by Paul Muldoon. 

McCartney has now revealed a full list of all the songs that’ll be in the book, which will be published on November 2 through Liveright Publishing Corporation.

Favourites including Hey Jude, Yesterday, Band On The Run and Live And Let Die are present, while the previously unpublished lyrics to an unrecorded Beatles track titled Tell Me Who He Is will also feature. The hand-written lyrics to this forgotten track were discovered in one of McCartney’s notebooks, thought to date back to the early 60s.

In the foreword to The Lyrics: 1956 To The Present, McCartney writes: “More often than I can count, I’ve been asked if I would write an autobiography, but the time has never been right. The one thing I’ve always managed to do, whether at home or on the road, is to write new songs. 

“I know that some people, when they get to a certain age, like to go to a diary to recall day-to-day events from the past, but I have no such notebooks. What I do have are my songs, hundreds of them, which I’ve learned serve much the same purpose. And these songs span my entire life.”

Find a full list of the songs that’ll feature in The Lyrics: 1956 To The Present below.

To coincide with the release of the book, the British Library in London will host a free exhibition titled Paul McCartney: The Lyrics from November 5 - March 13, 2022. On display will be previously unseen lyrics and career-spanning photographs.

Meanwhile, a new documentary DVD and accompanying album titled The Beatles And India will be released on October 29. It was inspired by Ajoy Bose’s book Across The Universe: The Beatles In India.

A statement reads: “The Beatles And India is a unique historical chronicle of the enduring love affair between The Beatles and India that started more than half a century ago. 

“Rare archival footage, recordings and photographs, eye-witness accounts and expert comments along with location shoots across India, bring alive the fascinating journey of George, John, Paul and Ringo from their high octane celebrity lives in the West to a remote Himalayan ashram in search of spiritual bliss that inspires an unprecedented burst of creative songwriting. 

“It is the first serious exploration of how India shaped the development of the greatest ever rock band and their own pioneering role bridging two vastly different cultures.”

The documentary was co-directed by Bose and Pete Compton, and produced by Reynold D’Silva.

Paul McCartney: The Lyrics: 1956 To The Present

Volume 1
All My Loving
And I Love Her
Another Day
Arrow Through Me
Average Person

Back in the U.S.S.R
Band on the Run
Birthday
Blackbird

Café on the Left Bank
Calico Skies
Can’t Buy Me Love
Carry That Weight
Check My Machine
Come and Get It
Coming Up
Confidante
Cook of the House
Country Dreamer

A Day in the Life
Dear Friend
Despite Repeated Warnings
Distractions
Do It Now
Dress Me Up as a Robber
Drive My Car

Eat at Home
Ebony and Ivory
Eight Days a Week
Eleanor Rigby
The End

Fixing a Hole
The Fool on the Hill
For No One
From Me to You

Get Back
Getting Closer
Ghosts of the Past Left Behind
Girls’ School
Give Ireland Back to the Irish
Golden Earth Girl
Golden Slumbers
Good Day Sunshine
Goodbye
Got to Get You Into My Life
Great Day

A Hard Day’s Night
Helen Wheels
Helter Skelter
Her Majesty
Here, There and Everywhere
Here Today
Hey Jude
Hi, Hi, Hi
Honey Pie
Hope of Deliverance
House of Wax

I Don’t Know
I Lost My Little Girl
I Saw Her Standing There
I Wanna Be Your Man
I Want to Hold Your Hand
I Will
I’ll Follow the Sun
I’ll Get You 
I’m Carrying
I’m Down
In Spite of All the Danger
I’ve Got a Feeling

Jenny Wren
Jet
Junior’s Farm
Junk

The Kiss of Venus

Lady Madonna
Let Em In
Let It Be
Let Me Roll It
Live and Let Die
London Town
The Long and Winding Road
Love Me Do
Lovely Rita

Volume 2

Magneto and Titanium Man
Martha My Dear
Maxwell’s Silver Hammer
Maybe I’m Amazed
Michelle
Mother Nature’s Son
Mrs Vanderbilt
Mull of Kintyre
My Love
My Valentine

Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five
No More Lonely Nights
The Note You Never Wrote
Nothing Too Much Just Out of Sight

Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da
Oh Woman, Oh Why
Old Siam, Sir
On My Way to Work
Once Upon a Long Ago
Only Mama Knows
The Other Me

Paperback Writer
Penny Lane
Picasso’s Last Words
Pipes of Peace
Please Please Me
Pretty Boys
Pretty Little Head
Put It There

Rocky Raccoon

San Ferry Anne
Say Say Say
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
She Came in Through the Bathroom Window
She Loves You
She’s a Woman
She’s Given Up Talking
She’s Leaving Home
Silly Love Songs
Simple as That
Single Pigeon
Somedays
Spirits of Ancient Egypt

Teddy Boy
Tell Me Who He Is
Temporary Secretary
Things We Said Today
Ticket to Ride
Too Many People
Too Much Rain
Tug of War
Two of Us

Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey

Venus and Mars

Warm and Beautiful
Waterfalls
We All Stand Together
We Can Work It Out
We Got Married
When I’m Sixty-Four
When Winter Comes
Why Don’t We Do It in the Road?
With a Little Help From My Friends
Women and Wives
The World Tonight
The World You’re Coming Into

Yellow Submarine 
Yesterday
You Never Give Me Your Money
You Tell Me
Your Mother Should Know

Scott Munro
Louder e-commerce editor

Scott has spent 35 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in the summer of 2014 before moving into e-commerce in 2020. Scott keeps Louder’s buyer’s guides up to date, writes about the best deals for music fans, keeps on top of the latest tech releases and reviews headphones, speakers, earplugs and more for Louder. Over the last 10 years, Scott has written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog. He's previously written for publications including IGN, Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to tech reviews, video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, The Tragically Hip, Marillion and Rush.