The Paul McCartney Song He Wrote After a ‘Marital Tiff’ With Linda

Paul McCartney dedicated many of his greatest love songs to his first wife, Linda. However, not every aspect of their relationship was perfect, and they did have their arguments, as every marriage does. One fight gave Paul McCartney the inspiration he needed to write one of his biggest hits.

Paul McCartney wrote ‘Ebony and Ivory’ after having an argument with Linda

“Ebony and Ivory” was released in 1982 as the lead single for McCartney’s Tug of War album. The song featured Stevie Wonder, and it quickly became one of the most successful tracks of the former Beatle’s solo career. However, its origin may come from an unexpected place. 

In an interview with Record Collector, Paul McCartney discussed how writing songs works as a form of therapy for him. When he suffered from the “teenage blues,” he’d go off with his guitar and write a song. This method carried over into his adulthood, and “Ebony and Ivory” came from him blowing off steam after a fight with Linda.

“Music for me has always been a consolation,” McCartney said. “When I was a kid I would often just wander off to the bog with my guitar, because the acoustics are good, and write songs to stop myself going round the bend! When you get the teenage blues, the great remedy is to write a song. I’ve always done that. It’s amazing therapy. I wrote ‘Ebony & Ivory’ after a little marital tiff with Linda: it was like ‘why can’t we get it together – our piano can.’ You just grab any old idea to get yourself out of it.”

Paul McCartney released the song as an ode to racial harmony

While Paul McCartney later said the song came from marital issues, he initially claimed the track was about racial harmony. In archive footage from his YouTube page, McCartney said the title refers to piano keys and how the black ones can’t work without the white ones. It’s a not-so-subtle metaphor for how races should work together in any country. 

“On a piano, you have black notes and you have white notes,” McCartney shared. “It’s no good just having all the black notes because you need the white notes. It’s no good having just all the white notes. You need the two together because then you get a harmony. Two together is perfect on a keyboard, and so my song says, ‘Why don’t we do it like that?’”

How did ‘Ebony and Ivory’ perform on the charts? 

“Ebony and Ivory” is one of Paul McCartney’s biggest hit songs. The track reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and the U.K. Singles chart. It was also No. 1 in a few other countries, such as Finland, Canada, Israel, Spain, and Norway. It currently holds a record on the U.S. Billboard charts, as it held the No. 1 spot for seven weeks, the longest duration for any McCartney track. 

However, it remained on the chart for only 19 weeks, three weeks less than his collaboration with Michael Jackson, “Say Say Say”.