Paul McCartney’s daughter Mary McCartney is ready to get some memories out for the people. These are not her direct memories or her family’s. Instead about the legendary Abbey Road Studios in London, where many legends have recorded and have fond memories of the location.
It’s the halls where people walked by who later became legends in their division. John Battsek of the “Searching for Sugar Man” and “One Day in September” approached him, but she didn’t want to jump into it instantly. It’s a place where his father, Paul McCartney always went. He loved the vibe of the location.
Everyone has some memory or the other to cast out of the place where some legendary songs were recorded. The project picked up by McCartney is called “If These Walls Could Sing.” It recently premiered at the Telluride Film Festival over the weekend and has been picked up for airing on Disney+.
McCartney said that she wanted nothing to do with her family legacy and was always shy of being in the public eye. She was proud of the family legacy but never wanted to use the name to her advantage. Mary wanted to accomplish things on her own instead of her family lineage.
The Beatles have recorded in the studio. It’s a remarkable space there, and that’s not all. Roger Waters, David Gilmour, and Nick Mason will talk about their stories around the making of “The Dark Side of the Moon,” Paul McCartney is in the video, as is Ringo Starr, and even John Williams.
Williams has fond memories of how the studio came into being, and his insight will be valuable for all those that love the work of their favorite superstars and the legendary studio that has been there for a considerable time. The chats are formal and not pushed to gain as much insight as possible.
McCartney knew that the place had valuable treasures, but she never knew that she would stumble on a piano from the days in one of the rooms. She played Lady Madonna on it. Mrs. Mills was a novelty artist of the ’60s who had an upright piano.
The music influenced the Beatles and Pink Floyd. Sir Elton John never recorded there but has fond memories of “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother” where he was a studio musician and played the piano on the song mentioned. The glamorously youthful cellist Jacqueline Du Pre’s story needs to be told and McCartney discussed it with his fellow team members.
It’s the rare appearance of Kate Bush that makes all the difference who is the only one to appear in an audio-only format. Mary McCartney also makes a rare appearance thanks to a photograph at the studio where she could be seen as a kid with her mom. Time flies, and while McCartney didn’t want anything to do on screen, her editor asked her to open up the documentary before putting it out to the audience for viewing.
Jimmy Page has seen people play there and also collapse at the same time. He talks about how he saw Shirley Bassey belting while he played as a session guitarist on “Goldfinger” before she collapsed. Every great thing must come to an end one day, and so did the studio that faced competition from the up-and-coming studios.
Things have changed, but the memories of the place haven’t changed. The moments shared at the place can never be duplicated. There are some things money can’t buy, and these memories and moments are one of them.
Have you visited the Abbey Road Studios in London? Share your memories in the comments.
