On a quiet summer day—August 30, 1974—Paul McCartney took a break from the studio and wandered into the garden behind Abbey Road Studios. With only an acoustic guitar in hand and a single microphone, he sat down for an impromptu performance that would come to be known as The Backyard. Captured during a lull in the One Hand Clapping sessions, this stripped-down set offered something rare: McCartney at his most relaxed and unfiltered, revisiting the roots of rock and roll.
This informal performance, now referred to by fans as The Backyard Tapes, stands out not just for its musical content but for the raw, unpolished setting in which it was recorded. Positioned behind the echo chambers at Abbey Road, McCartney delivered a roughly 25-minute acoustic set, parts of which were filmed with two cameras. Unfortunately, only a brief portion—less than four minutes—has surfaced, with reports suggesting that just nine minutes of footage were actually recorded before the crew ran out of videotape.
Over time, audio recordings from this session have circulated among collectors and fans. Recently, a cleaned-up version has emerged, restoring some of the performance’s original warmth. By reducing the tape hiss and applying equalization and imaging enhancements, the restoration highlights McCartney’s nuanced delivery, breathing new life into these timeless tracks.
The setlist blends rockabilly classics with personal deep cuts, including songs like “Twenty Flight Rock,” “Peggy Sue,” and “Blackbird.” One standout is “Blackpool”, a playful original tune that McCartney once described as one of several off-the-cuff songs he used to sing but never formally recorded. He considered it a “mess-around song,” yet its presence in this session offers insight into his creative spontaneity.
Though The Backyard was recorded during a pause in the production of One Hand Clapping—a documentary-style project that aimed to showcase McCartney and Wings in the studio—it stands apart as a unique artifact. Where One Hand Clapping was carefully staged, The Backyard feels off-the-cuff and heartfelt, like a private concert held under the open sky.
What makes The Backyard so special isn’t just the music—it’s the setting, the looseness, and the sense of McCartney simply playing for the joy of it. There’s a nostalgic charm in hearing him revisit the songs that inspired his early career, performed without fanfare or elaborate production. The simplicity—a man, a guitar, a garden—makes it all the more powerful.
More than just a bootleg curiosity, The Backyard captures the spirit of an artist reconnecting with his roots. It’s a love letter to the music that shaped him, delivered with warmth, humility, and unmistakable McCartney charm.