• Track Listing

After all the complex compositions and carefully crafted sonic inventions of the late-period Beatles, McCartney chose to make an album full of first takes, simple arrangements and defiantly raw recordings with this 1971 LP. Collaborating with Linda and debuting his band Wings, Paul delivered a self-consciously casual affair here, and yet even a relaxed, playful Paul McCartney can easily outdo the most diligent of singer-songwriters, and "Wild Life" promptly rose to the pop Top 10. The two-disc reissues here (2 CDs or double vinyl) take us inside Paul’s process, bringing us home recordings of "I Am Your Singer," "Bip Bop," "Dear Friend" and more of the album’s tracks plus "Give Ireland Back to the Irish," "Love Is Strange" (single edit), "When the Wind Is Blowing," "Indeed I Do" and more bonus tracks (17 in all). And then there’s the deluxe boxed set, which begins with the complete album (which has been remastered at Abbey Road, by the way), expands the bonus material by eight tracks (all these releases are flush with previously unreleased recordings) and includes a DVD with rare footage of acoustic home videos, rehearsals and more. A 128-page book penned by David Fricke chronicles the making of "Wild Life," a 48-page scrapbook shares lyrics, tour diaries, set lists and unpublished Polaroids, and this deluxe set’s download card gets you all the audio in 24/96 hi-res. It’s an opulent reissue of an easygoing album from the dawn of Paul’s Wings era! Capitol.