| Pipes of Peace | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by Paul McCartney | ||||
| Released | 31 October 1983 | |||
| Recorded | February/March 1981, Summer 1981, September/October 1982 | |||
| Genre | Rock, Pop | |||
| Length | 38:58 | |||
| Label | Parlophone/EMI (UK) Columbia/CBS (US) |
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| Producer | George Martin | |||
| Paul McCartney chronology | ||||
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Pipes of Peace is the fifth solo studio album by Paul McCartney, released in 1983. As the follow-up to the popular Tug of War, Pipes of Peace was nearly as successful and the source of more big hits for McCartney although critics were much cooler on the album than they were on its predecessor.
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Upon its release, many were quick to notice that Pipes of Peace mirrored its predecessor in many ways. It was produced by George Martin, it featured two collaborations with the same artist (this time with Michael Jackson; the Tug of War collaborations being with Stevie Wonder), and continued McCartney's alliance in the studio with Ringo Starr, former 10cc guitarist Eric Stewart and his last session work with Wings guitarist Denny Laine. The reason for all of this is that many of the songs released on Pipes of Peace were recorded during the 1981 sessions for Tug of War, with "Pipes of Peace", "The Other Me", "So Bad", "Tug of Peace" and "Through Our Love" being recorded afterward in September/October 1982. By November, McCartney would start shooting his self-written motion picture Give My Regards to Broad Street, co-starring wife Linda, Ringo Starr and Tracey Ullman, which would take up most of his time throughout 1983. Due to the filming commitments (and to allow a reasonable lapse of time between his new album and Tug of War), Pipes of Peace was delayed until October for release.
With momentum building for his film project—and the accompanying soundtrack album—McCartney would spend much of his energies finishing and preparing for Give My Regards to Broad Street until its release in the autumn of 1984.
In 1983 Pipes of Peace made its debut on CD on Columbia Records. In 1993, Pipes of Peace was remastered and reissued on CD as part of "The Paul McCartney Collection" series, with the previously unreleased "Twice in a Lifetime" (the title song for a 1985 film), his 1984 hit from the Rupert Bear project, "We All Stand Together", and "Simple as That", released in 1986 on an anti-heroin charity album - all as bonus tracks. "Ode to a Koala Bear" (the B-side to "Say Say Say") was overlooked for inclusion.
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | [1] |
| Rolling Stone | [2] |
| Robert Christgau | (B-) [3] |
Critical reaction was less than what had greeted Tug of War, many feeling that Pipes of Peace was a weaker execution of its predecessor's formula.
The album featured the duet between McCartney and Jackson, "Say Say Say" which reached #2 in the UK and #1 in the US where it remained for six weeks (late-1983/early-1984). From 1981 to 1985, McCartney and Jackson would enjoy a friendship, until the two fell out in 1985, when Jackson purchased ATV Music, the company that owned the bulk of The Beatles' song copyrights.
Following "Say Say Say", the album's title track became a UK #1 in early 1984, while in the US, "So Bad" was a Top 30 hit. The album itself was nearly as successful as Tug Of War, reaching #4 in the UK and #15 in the US.
All songs written and composed by Paul McCartney, except "Say Say Say" and "The Man" co-written by Michael Jackson, "Hey Hey" co-written by Stanley Clarke.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Pipes of Peace" | 3:56 |
| 2. | "Say Say Say" (with Michael Jackson) | 3:55 |
| 3. | "The Other Me" | 3:58 |
| 4. | "Keep Under Cover" | 3:05 |
| 5. | "So Bad" | 3:20 |
| 6. | "The Man" (with Michael Jackson) | 3:55 |
| 7. | "Sweetest Little Show" | 2:54 |
| 8. | "Average Person" | 4:33 |
| 9. | "Hey Hey" | 2:54 |
| 10. | "Tug of Peace" | 2:54 |
| 11. | "Through Our Love" | 3:28 |
| The Paul McCartney Collection's 1993 reissue bonus track | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length | |||||||
| 12. | "Twice in a Lifetime" | 2:59 | |||||||
| 13. | "We All Stand Together" | 4:22 | |||||||
| 14. | "Simple as That" | 4:17 | |||||||
Chart positions
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Year-end charts
Sales
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Notes
| Region | Provider | Certification (sales thresholds) |
Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | BPI | Platinum[19] | 19 January 1984 |
| United States | RIAA | Platinum[20] | 17 February 1984 |
| Preceded by Infidels by Bob Dylan |
Norwegian VG-lista Chart number-one album (6 weeks) |
Succeeded by Cheek to Cheek by Jahn Teigen and Anita Skorgan |