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Episode details

Radio 2,26 May 2026,150 mins

Paul McCartney selects his Tracks Of My Years this week

Vernon Kay

Available for 28 days

Paul McCartney is Vernon's guest all this week on Tracks Of My Years, choosing ten songs that have soundtracked his life. Today, he takes us back to his childhood in Liverpool, hearing songs by Gene Vincent and Chuck Berry at a young age. Plus, two listeners take on Ten To The Top and Vernon visits the BBC Archive in Vernon's Vault. Born in Liverpool in 1942, Paul McCartney began playing music at an early age, teaching himself Spanish guitar, trumpet and piano and writing the song When I’m Sixty-Four by the age of 16. In 1957, he met John Lennon and was invited to join John’s band The Quarrymen, who by 1960 had become The Beatles. They became one of the most influential bands of the time and Paul wrote a huge number of their songs including Hey Jude, Let It Be and Yesterday to name just a few. After releasing twelve studio albums they disbanded in 1970 and Paul began a solo career with the self-titled album McCartney that year. He has continued recording music and touring ever since, with a brand new album The Boys Of Dungeon Lane, his first in over five years, out on 29th May. You can find Vernon's full chat with Paul in Tracks Of My Years on BBC Sounds, and watch the conversation on BBC iPlayer, just search for 'Tracks Of My Years'. A BBC Audio production for BBC Radio 2.

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Tracklist

  1. Track
    Artist
  2. 1.
    Shake Your Body (Down To The Ground)
    Shake Your Body (Down To The Ground)
    The Jacksons
  3. 2.
    Right By Your Side
    Right By Your Side
    Eurythmics
  4. 3.
    Free to Love (feat. Nile Rodgers)
    Free to Love (feat. Nile Rodgers)
    Duran Duran