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Personalities | Paul McCartney & Wings | Seventies | Rock

(Vocal/instrumental group, 1971–81)

McCartney put together Wings in the summer of 1971, featuring wife Linda (keyboards), Denny Laine (guitar) and Denny Seiwell (drums) for the debut album Wildlife (1971). The line-up was bolstered by the inclusion of guitarist Henry McCullough.

In 1973, Seiwell and McCullough abruptly quit, refusing to travel to Nigeria to record Band On The Run (1973), a commercial and artistic triumph forged in adversity. Guitarist Jimmy McCulloch and sticksman Jeff Britton joined in 1974, the latter soon replaced by Joe English. A successful world tour in 1975–76 followed but the band splintered again in 1977 when English and McCulloch departed. Undaunted, McCartney recorded ‘Mull Of Kintyre’, which became Britain’s best-selling single. Laurence Juber (guitar) and Steve Holly (drums) were added for Back To The Egg (1979) but the ex-Beatle’s arrest for possession of cannabis in Japan in 1980 caused a cancelled tour and the end of Wings.

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

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