The daughter of pop megastar Paul McCartney has taken an intimate look into the hallowed halls of Abbey Road, the studio where he, and countless other music stars, recorded masterpieces.
Mary McCartney directed the new documentary, ‘If These Walls Could Sing’, which will premiere worldwide on Disney+ on January 6 after opening in North America in December.
The London studio gave its name to arguably the Beatles’ most beloved record, 1969’s “Abbey Road,” and it was at the nearby zebra crossing that the Fab Four took their legendary cover photo.
“I have a personal connection to the studio,” Mary McCartney told AFP.
“I grew up coming here, we lived close by. I have a very funny photo that I love: my mother (Linda McCartney) driving a pony across the zebra crossing.”
Inevitably, The Beatles occupy a large part of the 90 minutes of the documentary, since there they recorded no less than 190 of their 210 songs.
But Abbey Road has a long history, established in 1931 by the EMI record company.
Initially dedicated to classical music, it had state-of-the-art technology for the time, and was used by the composer and conductor Edward Elgar shortly before his death in 1934.
“A lot of people come to Abbey Road at the crosswalk but don’t go in because it’s a busy work studio, so I wanted to bring the viewer inside,” McCartney said.
The studio became “the bunker” for The Beatles after the hysteria surrounding the group led them to stop touring in 1966, recalls Giles Martin, son of their producer George Martin, in the film.
Since then, many stars have sought to harness the magic of the place, from Elton John and Pink Floyd to Led Zeppelin and the Oasis, all of whom appear in the new film.
“Every person tells a different story, different aspects of what makes Abbey Road whole,” said Mary McCartney.
Beatles fans have been spoiled recently, with the new documentary premiering just over a year after “Get Back,” in which director Peter Jackson painstakingly reworked footage of the band writing and rehearsing the album.” Let it Be”, including his famous performance on the roof. from Abbey Road.
