Key Points

Paul McCartney confessed feeling nervous while recording a duet with Barbra Streisand for her new album. The Beatles legend struggled with shifting between their vocal keys during the session. Streisand praised McCartney on Instagram, calling their studio time "truly special." McCartney was impressed by Streisand's creative direction during the filmed recording. The track will appear on Streisand's upcoming album releasing June 27.

Key Points: Paul McCartney Admits Nerves Recording Duet With Barbra Streisand

  • McCartney found singing in different keys challenging
  • Duet appears on Streisand's upcoming album
  • Song originally written for McCartney's wife
  • Session filmed on Sony's Streisand Scoring Stage
3 min read

Paul McCartney says working with Barbra Streisand on new duet was nerve-wracking'

Paul McCartney opens up about the challenges of recording "My Valentine" with Barbra Streisand for her new album, calling it "nerve-wracking."

"I did the session with her in LA and I was pretty terrified. – Paul McCartney"

Washington, May 22

Singer-songwriter and musician Paul McCartney recently recorded a duet of his song 'My Valentine' with Barbra Streisand and admitted that he found the process "nerve-wracking" and "nail-biting."

In a blog post shared to his website, McCartney, 82, opened up about working with Streisand, 83, on the track, which will appear on her upcoming record The Secret of Life: Partners, Volume Two, out June 27, reported People.

"I did the session with her in LA and I was pretty terrified. I think the session was about three hours, you know, a normal kind of session, and it was produced by my friend Peter Asher," McCartney wrote. "But it started off with a big 40-piece orchestra on the Sony lot... and we were on 'The Barbra Streisand Scoring Stage,' so no pressure there!"

TThe song McCartney and Streisand sang together, "My Valentine," was written for the former Beatle's wife, Nancy Shevell, whom he married in 2011, reported People.

"I thought, 'Well, this will be easy because it's my song, it's 'My Valentine.' What can go wrong?' But what I'd forgotten was that they'd arranged it so that it had to go in Barbra's key and then in my key," he explained. "So, to get from Barbra's key into mine was kind of difficult, and I had to launch in not knowing what key I was in. Mine was lower, hers was higher. It wasn't easy at all!"

McCartney however, expressed pleasure at the idea of the song becoming something of a modern standard, as it's also been recorded by Michael Buble.

"That was another reason I did it; I thought if Barbra is going to do my song, I've got to encourage that," he wrote. "And she was great. I didn't realize how rounded she is, creatively."

McCartney shared that the recording session was filmed, and at first, he was alarmed by all of the cameras and lights. Before long, however, he remembered that Streisand is an accomplished director.

"I thought, 'Wow, you're directing it!' But then I suddenly remembered she's directed three big movies. She's a smart cookie," he wrote.

At the time of the song's release on May 16, Streisand praised McCartney in an Instagram post that featured a photo of the two of them recording together.

"What a joy it was to record 'My Valentine' with @paulmccartney. To share time with him in the studio was truly special!" she wrote, reported People.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

R
Rahul K.
Two legends coming together after all these years! McCartney's humility is so endearing - even at 82 he gets nervous like a newcomer. Shows true passion for music never fades. Can't wait to hear this duet!
P
Priya M.
Interesting to see Western artists still collaborating at this age. In India, our veteran singers rarely get such opportunities after 60. The music industry should learn from this - talent has no expiry date! 🎶
A
Arjun S.
While I appreciate the artistry, I wish Indian media gave equal coverage to our own legendary collaborations. When Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar worked together, those were truly golden moments of music history.
S
Sunita R.
The technical details about changing keys between singers is fascinating! Reminds me of how our classical duets require such precise coordination. Respect to both artists for making it work despite the challenges 👏
V
Vikram J.
McCartney saying "she's a smart cookie" about Streisand shows such genuine admiration between peers. In Bollywood we rarely see this mutual respect - too many ego clashes. Western artists could teach us about professional courtesy.
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Neha P.
Heartwarming to see artists from my parents' generation still creating magic together! My father used to play Beatles records when I was a child. Maybe this duet will bridge the generation gap in our family music tastes 😊

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