That Eric Alper

The Boys of Dungeon Lane is not only the first new solo album to be released by Paul McCartney in over five years; it is a collection of rare and revealing glimpses into memories never-before shared along with some newly inspired love songs, from one of the most culturally significant figures of our time. 

With The Boys of Dungeon Lane, Paul McCartney turns the lens inward, revisiting the formative years that shaped not only his life, but the very foundations of modern popular culture. In a career defined by timeless storytelling and unforgettable characters, Paul now tells the most personal story of all, his own. The Boys of Dungeon Lane is his most introspective album to date and takes the listener back to where it all began.

These extraordinary new songs find Paul in a candid, vulnerable and deeply reflective mood, writing with rare openness about his childhood in post-war Liverpool, the resilience of his parents, and early adventures shared with George Harrison and John Lennon long before the world had ever heard of Beatlemania. These were the years that historians continue to examine, the quiet, unguarded days that unknowingly laid the groundwork for a cultural revolution. Paul visits them not as myths or folklore but as his own memories.

The album takes its title from one of the many standout tracks which is available now, “Days We Left Behind,” a stripped-back and deeply intimate track that captures the emotional core of the project. Dungeon Lane is a place Paul still sees when returning home serving as a symbolic gateway to a pre-fame world: afternoons by the Mersey, birdwatching book in hand, “smoky bars and cheap guitars”, and dreams not yet lived. Listen here.

Speaking about “Days We Left Behind:” “This is very much a memory song for me. The album title, The Boys of Dungeon Lane, comes from a lyric in this track. I was thinking just that, about the days I left behind and I do often wonder if I’m just writing about the past but then I think how can you write about anything else? It’s just a lot of memories of Liverpool. It involves a bit in the middle about John and Forthlin Road which is the street I used to live in. Dungeon Lane is near there. I used to live in a place called Speke which is quite working class. We didn’t have much at all but it didn’t matter because all the people were great and you didn’t notice you didn’t have much.”

As well as being packed with poignant reflections from an artist whose influence is woven into the fabric of our lives, The Boys of Dungeon Lane also includes new love songs in the inimitable instantly identifiable Paul McCartney style.  A world without Paul McCartney is impossible to imagine, yet here listeners can travel to a world that existed before everything changed, offering memories never previously shared and revealing, with extraordinary honesty, the human story behind a global icon. This is the story before THE story.

About the creation of the album: 

The Boys of Dungeon Lane was first brought into existence five years ago when Paul met producer Andrew Watt for a cup of tea and an exchange of ideas. While playing around on the guitar during the meeting, Paul happened upon a chord that even he — the world’s most successful living songwriter — didn’t recognise. Undeterred and driven by his experimental nature, Paul carried on changing one note, then another, until he had a three-chord sequence — which Watt suggested they should record.

This session yielded the album’s opening track, “As You Lie There.” Encouraged by his new producer, Paul would flesh out the new track, playing the majority of instruments – much in the spirit of his 1970 solo debut album, McCartney.  So began the journey of what became Paul’s 18th studio album credited solely to Paul McCartney.  

Paul’s packed schedule meant that the album was recorded in tight and efficient sessions between legs of global tour dates spanning five years and alternating between Los Angeles and Sussex. With no record label pressure and no deadline, the pair were able to make the album to their own timeline and satisfaction. Like his career, The Boys of Dungeon Lane is musically eclectic and sees Paul across an array of instruments and styles showcasing his broad musicality. There’s Wings style rock, Beatles style harmonies, McCartney style grooves, understated intimacy, melody driven storytelling, character songs – the common thread being Paul.

Track list:

As You Lie There
Lost Horizon
Days We Left Behind
Ripples in a Pond
Mountain Top
Down South
We Two

Come Inside
Never Know
Home to Us
Life Can Be Hard
First Star of the Night
Salesman Saint
Momma Gets By