Paul McCartney Said Muggers in Nigeria Stole ‘Original Demos’ for ‘Band on the Run’
Paul McCartney has always been a constant at Abbey Road Studios, but he decided to change things up when he went to record Band on the Run at a recording studio in Nigeria. Unfortunately, the former Beatles was involved in a frightening mugging where he was robbed at knifepoint. Unbeknownst to the muggers, they stole the “original demos” for Band on the Run.
Paul McCartney and his wife were robbed in Nigeria
Paul McCartney wanted to record Band on the Run, his third album with Wings, in an exotic location to provide the band with fresh air. McCartney knew Nigeria could be dangerous for tourists, but he wasn’t too worried.
“People kept telling us it was too dangerous to walk around,” McCartney told the Independent. “But we’d been to Jamaica, we’d been to the Caribbean and these people were squares.”
However, he should have listened to those people as he and his then-wife, Linda, were robbed at knifepoint while walking back to their villa.
“Suddenly, a car comes along this dark road and slows down in front of us. A guy winds down the window and starts shouting,” McCarney shared. “I go into friendly Liverpudlian mode. You know, ‘Hey mate, we don’t need a lift, ta very much.’ I actually bundled him back into the car, saying, ‘Yeah, yeah, I love you, man. Now come on, we’re going home.’ He looked bewildered for a moment before five guys piled out and held us up at knifepoint.”
According to McCartney, muggers in Nigeria often killed the people they robbed so they couldn’t go to the police. Fortunately, the muggers let them go but still took some of their things.
“They’re taking our money, our tape recorders, everything,” he added. “Suddenly, Linda says, ‘Don’t kill him, he’s a musician!’ Well, maybe it did help because apparently muggers in Nigeria often kill their victims to make sure they don’t go to the police.”
Paul McCartney said the muggers stole the ‘original demos’ for ‘Band on the Run’
One of the valuables the muggers took from Paul McCartney was the “original demos” for Band on the Run. The burglars at the time had no idea what they had, but it’s possible that they figured it out later on. In an interview with Clash Magazine, McCartney joked that they could have made themselves “a little fortune” if they decided to sell them.
“It was all of the stuff we did. It was the original demo of Band On The Run. It was stuff that would be worth a bit on eBay these days, you know? But no, we figured the guys who mugged us wouldn’t even be remotely interested. If they’d have known, they could have just held on to them and made themselves a little fortune. But they didn’t know, and we reckoned they’d probably record over them.”
‘Band on the Run’ became a No. 1 album on the charts
Maybe the robbers eventually understood they had struck gold as Band on the Run became a No. 1 album after its release. It reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard charts and the U.K. charts. Songs like “Jet” and the title track boosted it into becoming Paul McCartney’s most successful album of his post-Beatles career.
