Credit Sonny McCartney / MPL Communications

Yesterday, Paul McCartney took part in a special fan album playback at London’s Abbey Road Studios, ahead of the imminent arrival of his twenty-first solo studio LP, The Boys of Dungeon Lane, due for release on May 29. During the conference of sorts, McCartney spoke about a forthcoming feature of the collection, “Home to Us,” the set’s second single and first-ever duet between Macca and his Beatles bandmate, Ringo Starr, due out on Friday, May 8. 

During yesterday’s event, McCartney surprised 50 fans with an exclusive first listen of The Boys of Dungeon Lane while also sharing tales and reminiscing about the recordings. As a lauded feature of the gathering, the musician spoke about his first single, “Days We Left Behind,” before shifting gears and sharing details about his forthcoming debut with Starr. 

“Home to Us” was derived from a drum track that McCartney invited Starr to record for the Andrew Watts-produced LP. In addition to the famed timekeeper, “Home to Us” bolsters backing vocals from Chrissie Hynde and Sharleen Spiteri, representing some of the set’s rare guest slots, given the artist’s intent to provide the vast majority of instruments in the spirit of his own 1970 solo debut. 

Talking directly about teaming up with Starr, McCartney shares, “Ringo went round to the studio and drummed a bit. I said to Andrew, we should make a track and send it to him. So this song is done totally with Ringo in mind. In writing the song I’m talking about where we came from. In common with a lot of people, you come from nothing and you build yourself up. Ringo was from the Dingle, and that was well hard. He said he used to get mugged coming home, because he worked. Even though it was crazy, it was home to us. I made the song around that idea and sent it to Ringo.” 

McCartney continues, “He sent me back a version where he just added some lines to the chorus, so I thought, maybe he doesn’t like it. I rang him and he said he thought I only wanted him to sing one or two lines, and I said I’d love to hear him sing the whole thing. So we took my first line, Ringo’s second line, and then we had a duet. We’d never done that before. Then we wanted some backing vocals and I had the idea it would be nice to hear girls. Chrissie Hynde said she’d do it, and Sharleen Spiteri, they’re mates. So they did it.”

The Boys of Dungeon Lane represents McCartney’s first new solo set in five years, drawing on untold stories, memories, and freshly inspired love songs that focus inward and allow the musician to piece together his most intimate and introspective offering to date. From his post-war Liverpool salad days to his budding friendship with George Harrison and John Lennon, and the onset of Beatlesmania, the set is a tried-and-true reflection of experience. 

“Home to Us” is due on Friday, May 8. The Boys of Dungeon Lane will be released on May 29 via MPL/Capitol Records.

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