portrait of this blog's author - by Stephen Blackman 2008

Saturday, January 29, 2022

SONG OF THE DAY - WINGS - 'JET'

 


 . . . . just because it cheered me up. From happier times when Paul and Linda were enjoying their  young family in the midst of performing with WINGS!

  • "Jet" was the name of a black pony that Paul McCartney and his wife Linda owned; the pony provided the title for the song. The McCartneys owned a variety of animals, and at the time their brood included a golden lab named Poppy, a Dalmatian named Lucky, and the old sheepdog Martha (from the Beatles song "Martha My Dear"). "Jet" was chosen because the name makes a very stadium-ready title, perfect for throwing your fist in the air when it's performed in an arena. The song is really about freedom; McCartney did something similar when he used an amusement park ride as the title for a song about madness in "Helter Skelter."

    Paul's wife Linda gave some clues to the thought process behind "Jet" when she said in 1976: "He wanted that one to be totally mad. Paul's had a lot of practice in the studio. He's done some very trippy things. Every now and then he remembers how much he loves it."
    Speaking with GQ in 2018, Paul McCartney told the story behind this song: "I was in a songwriting mood and I was up in Scotland. I just thought, OK, I just gotta go somewhere and try and write a song. We happened to have a little pony that was called Jet on the farm. I took my guitar and hiked up this great big hill. I found myself a place which was in the middle of nature, and just sat there and started making up a song.
    I don't know where all the words came from. Well I know where 'Jet' came from - I liked the name. The words are probably about me and my father-in-law. The early days of getting married and when your father-in-law is kind of a nuisance. He's probably the 'Major' in it but it's only a song so you kind of work your things out.


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