McCartney releases box set of classic "I," "II," "III" albums

Aug. 9—Written, performed and produced entirely by Paul McCartney, his three eponymous career-spanning solo albums (1970's "McCartney," 1980's "McCartney II" and 2020's "McCartney III") have been packaged together and are now available in one special boxset for the first time.

The "McCartney I II III" box set is available in three different formats — limited edition color vinyl, black vinyl edition, and CD — each including three special photo prints with notes from Paul about each album. The newly created boxset cover art and typography for the slipcase are by Ed Ruscha.

Bookending 50 years of unparalleled work, each album demonstrates Paul McCartney's restless creativity and adventurous artistic spirit. "McCartney," the No. 1 album, was Paul's first solo album released in 1970 and features timeless tracks "Every Night" and "Junk," along with the immortal classic "Maybe I'm Amazed." This album saw a global music superstar pioneer a novel homespun approach to recording that would, in time, become a sought-after sound and the highly influential precursor to the "lo-fi" alternative genre.

Just as "McCartney" marked the end of an era with Paul's first release after leaving the biggest band in history, Paul did it again in 1980, this time signaling the end of '70s rock giants Wings. Taking a fresh approach to things, Paul wrote, performed, and produced the avant-garde masterpiece "McCartney II," which reached No. 1 in the UK, and No. 3 in the U.S., producing such classics as "Coming Up," "Waterfalls," and "Temporary Secretary."

With "McCartney III," Paul went back to basics again to create some of his most revealing work to date. Released in December 2020, just two years after Paul's Billboard-topping "Egypt Station" album, "Rockdown," saw Paul turn unexpected time on his hands into an opportunity to get into the studio on his own. An intimate and loose record featuring "Find My Way" and the now live favorite "Women and Wives," McCartney III features Paul's melodic gift at its forefront throughout. Upon release, "McCartney III" charted at No. 1 on the UK's Official Album Charts and No. 1 on Billboard's Top Album Sales Chart.

In an unrivaled career, McCartney has always been willing to take risks and have fun along the way — his musical projects have included classical albums, electronic albums, ballet scores, writing for video games, and left-field collaborations — along the way, breaking chart records, box office records, winning countless awards and remaining one of the world's most influential and revered artists of all time. "McCartney," "McCartney II" and "McCartney III" captured and documented landmark moments of his singular career, each offering a personal snapshot of a unique artist at a particular moment in time.

FORMAT INFO:

1) Limited Edition Color Vinyl

—Three-disc 180g audiophile vinyl set ("McCartney" — clear, "McCartney II" — white, and "McCartney III" — creamy white vinyl)

—Three 8 x 10-inch photo prints with introductions from Paul

2) Limited Edition Black Vinyl Edition

—180g audiophile vinyl set

—Three 8 x 10-inch photo prints with introductions from Paul

3) Limited Edition CD

—Limited Edition three-disc set

—Three photo prints with introductions from Paul