Wings

The Story of a Band on the Run

By: Paul McCartney, Ted Widmer - editor

Narrated by: Amy Noble, Barry Sloane, John Sackville, Paul McCartney, Mary McCartney, Stella McCartney

“We made what seemed like an impossible dream come true.”―Paul McCartney

An engrossing oral history of a band that came to define a generation, Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run tells the madcap story of Paul McCartney and his newly formed band, from their humble beginnings in the early 1970s to their dissolution barely a decade later. Drawn from over 500,000 words of interviews with McCartney, family and band members, and other key participants, Wings recounts―now with a half-century’s wisdom―the musical odyssey taken by a man searching for his identity in the aftermath of The Beatles’ breakup. Soon joined by his wife American photographer Linda McCartney on keyboard and vocals; drummer Denny Seiwell; and guitarist Denny Laine, McCartney sowed the seeds for a new band that would later provide the soundtrack of the decade.

Organized chronologically around McCartney, RAM, and nine Wings albums, the narrative begins when a twenty-seven-year-old superstar, rumored to be dead, fled with his new wife to a remote sheep farm in Scotland amid a sea of legal and personal rows. Despite the harsh conditions, the Scottish setting gave McCartney time to create, and it was here where this new band emerged. Wings then follows the group as they play unannounced shows at university halls, tour in a sheared-off double-decker bus with their children, survive a robbery on the streets of Nigeria, and eventually perform blockbuster stadium shows on their world tour, all while producing some of the most enduring music of the time.

With extraordinary recollections collected by Oscar-winning director Morgan Neville and edited into a genre-defining oral history by Ted Widmer, Wings transports the listener, as if on a magic carpet, to the grit and glamour of the 1970s. Pushing creative forms to produce a new history, even a Wings bible, the book refracts a bygone era in a totally new light. Introduced with a personal, heartfelt foreword by Paul McCartney—and featuring narrated contributions from Paul McCartney, Mary McCartney, and Stella McCartney, alongside narrator Barry Sloane and voice actors Amy Noble and John Sackville—Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run emerges as a work of soaring originality that presents a new art form all its own.

©2025 MPL Communications Ltd. (P)2025 Penguin Audio; Foreword: MPL Communications Ltd.

Wings Across Audiobooks

Generally a good listen. Linda came off as an immortal goddess angel who made all the right moves. In deference to her death she was an amateur musician with questionable parenting skills.

Paul, whom I have deep respect, lives up to his reputation as a penny pinching alpha who really wasn’t the compassionate liberal he likes to portray himself. Denny suffered greatly due to Paul’s decision to call in a loan that amounted to a days pay for MPL.

George was pretty much on target as to his assessment of Sir Paul.

Interesting read but totally from Paul’s perspective and his family which is their truth but not THE truth I surmise.

Very Unique and Enjoyable

Very in-depth chronological history of the band. And, a very unique way of narration. I have even more respect for Paul, his work ethic, ingenuity, and his leadership.

The voices

I liked the story being a huge Wings fan. Disappointed in the voices. It would have been nice if they used someone with a Liverpool accent instead of having the Paul narration sound more like King Charles. A little choppy with all the voices. I think this one wouldve been a better read.

Fun for the whole family!

I liked how Wings started out traveling around with their family and the band playing at the small venues. What a talented group of friends playing together and staying together in the houses they rented. I had forgotten how many hits they had produced in their 10 years! Awesome! Highly recommend this one!

A behind the scenes look!

It took me just a little bit to get used to the constant narration changes, but once I did, I really enjoyed it. The entire book is written and narrated coming from the perspective of all the different people that were involved with Paul McCartney and wings. It was a bit of nostalgia for me and filled in a lot of gaps that I was unaware of during the 70s when wings was at its pinnacle. I certainly remembered Paul McCartney being arrested in Japan, but I didn’t realize the possible consequences and Japan’s strict drug laws and how long you could be incarcerated for - at hard labor. That had to been a very scary time.