Paul McCartney Doesn’t Know How To Write Songs

Okay, Beatles superfans, calm down.

Before you prepare your beautifully crafted hate comment, let me explain.

I didn’t say this, okay? This is straight from your man, the Great Paul McCartney.

In an interview with NPR, he said songwriting is more complicated than just learning it like math or architecture.

“You’ve never got [songwriting] down,” he said. “It’s this fluid thing, music. I kind of like that. I wouldn’t like to be blasé or think, ‘Oh … I know how to do this.'”

He went on to explain how he teaches a songwriting class but admits to his students he’s figuring it out as he goes.

“I teach a class at the Liverpool Institute High School for Boys,” he said. “I do a little songwriting class with the students — and nearly always the first thing I go in and say [is], ‘I don’t know how to do this. You would think I do, but it’s not one of these things you ever know how to do.'”

This is a great mindset to have as a songwriter.

If you say, “I don’t really know what I’m doing,” then you’re next thought is probably, “I need to figure out how to do this.”

This will lead to continual learning.

Continual learning leads to improvement.

Improvement is what every songwriter really wants.

So let’s all just admit we don’t know how to write songs. If Paul McCartney admits it, so can we.

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