Paul McCartney has said he finds it emotional listening to a song he wrote that was him "talking to John (Lennon) after we'd had all the sort of disputes" about The Beatles' split.
The 79-year-old was reflecting on the track Dear Friend from Wild Life, the debut album from Paul McCartney and Wings, formed in 1971 after the Fab Four had parted ways.
The band, also known by their original name Wings, had a founding line-up that included Paul McCartney's late wife Linda on keyboards, drummer Denny Seiwell and The Moody Blues guitarist Denny Laine.
In a Q&A featured on PaulMcCartney.com, McCartney said of the song: "And then with 'Dear Friend', that's sort of me talking to John after we'd had all the sort of disputes about The Beatles [sic] break up. I find it very emotional when I listen to it now. I have to sort of choke it back."
He added: "I remember when I heard the song recently, listening to the roughs (remastering works-in-progress) in the car. And I thought, 'Oh God'. That lyric: 'Really truly, young and newly wed'.
"Listening to that was like, 'Oh my God, it's true!' I'm trying to say to John, 'Look, you know, it's all cool. Have a glass of wine. Let's be cool'.
"And luckily we did get it back together, which was like a great source of joy because it would have been terrible if he'd been killed as things were at that point and I'd never got to straighten it out with him.
"This was me reaching out. So, I think it's very powerful in some very simple way. But it was certainly heartfelt."
Lennon was shot dead aged 40 in 1980 as he left his apartment in The Dakota building in New York.
A reissue of Wild Life will be released on 4 February to mark the album's 50th anniversary.
McCartney released his album McCartney III at the end of 2020 and last year he published The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present, a book featuring 154 songs from all stages of his career, spanning The Beatles, Wings and as a solo artist.
Source: Press Association
