Return to Pepperland

Return to Pepperland refers to the material from the studio sessions between 1986–1987 by English musician Paul McCartney with South African-born American record producer Phil Ramone. The songs recorded during these sessions have been the basis of bootleg albums usually titled Return to Pepperland.[1]

Return to Pepperland
Studio album by
Paul McCartney
ReleasedUnreleased
Recorded1986–1987
StudioHog Hill Studio (UK), Audio International Studios (London), Power Station (New York City)
GenreRock
Length72:59[1]
ProducerPhil Ramone
Paul McCartney chronology
Press to Play
(1986)		 Return to Pepperland
(1987)		 All the Best!
(1987)

Background

While promoting the release of Press To Play in New York City in August 1986, McCartney hooked up with Billy Joel's producer Phil Ramone. Ramone had first worked with Paul the previous year on the titular song of the Spies Like Us soundtrack. Using Joel's backing band plays they recorded two songs, “Beautiful Night” and “Loveliest Thing”. Further songs were recorded at McCartney's Hog Hill Studios which included: “Atlantic Ocean”, “Big Day”, “This One” and "Love Come Tumbling Down". During these sessions, the song "Return To Pepperland" was produced as a tribute to the 20th Anniversary of the Beatles' 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band as well as the mashup of Lennon–McCartney-written "Love Me Do" and "P.S. I Love You" songs.[1][2]

Aftermath

In the end, only two songs from the sessions; "Once Upon a Long Ago" and "Back On My Feet" were released at the time. "Once Upon a Long Ago" and "Beautiful Night" were originally submitted to director Rob Reiner for the 1987 film The Princess Bride, but were rejected for being “too sentimental”.[3][4] In January 1988, McCartney took the remaining songs from the Phil Ramone sessions and compiled a cassette, along with other songs he had been working on since the early 80's. This cassette was the source of many of the bootlegs associated with the Phil Ramone sessions. McCartney continued to work with other producers, the results of which would eventually become the 1989 album Flowers In The Dirt. "Beautiful Night" would be re-recorded and released on the 1997 album Flaming Pie. Other songs from his work with Phil Ramone would be released as B-sides and included on his Archive Collection releases in the following years.

Songs associated with Return To Pepperland

All songs written by Paul McCartney, except where noted.

Songs with producer Phil Ramone (1986-1987)
  1. "Beautiful Night" – 6:13
    • Recorded with Phil Ramone in 1987; this track was later re-recorded for release on Flaming Pie, 1997. This version also appeared as a B-side of some CD versions of the "Beautiful Night" single, embedded in the longer track "Oobu Joobu (Part 5)". In 2020, the 1987 version was released as a free stand alone download track on McCartney’s website.
  2. "Loveliest Thing" – 3:58
  3. "Atlantic Ocean" – 6:47
  4. "P.S. Love Me Do" (Lennon–McCartney) – 3:47
    • Released on the Japanese edition of Flowers in the Dirt, 1989. A live version appeared on the CD single version of “Birthday”.
  5. "This One" – 3:26
    • Demo version, finished for Flowers in the Dirt, 1989.
  6. "Love Come Tumbling Down" – 4:22
  7. "Once Upon A Long Ago" – 4:06
    • Released as a single in 1987 along with McCartney's best-of compilation All the Best!.
  8. "Back On My Feet" – 4:25
    • Released as the b-side to "Once Upon A Long Ago"
  9. "Return to Pepperland" – 4:53
    • Never officially released. Originally planned as a 12" single release. [4]
  10. "Big Day" – 5:36
    • Never officially released.
  11. "Peacocks" – 3:47
    • Never officially released. Aired on Oobu Joobu episode 9.
  12. "Love Mix" – 3:01

David Foster sessions at Hog Hill Studios (1984)
  1. "Lindiana" – 5:48
    • Never officially released.
  2. "I Love This House" – 3:44
  3. "We Got Married" – 5:10

Paul McCartney produced songs (1981-1989)
  1. "Squid" – 6:25
    • Recorded December 12, 1986 at Hog Hill Studio. Released as a B-side to "The World Tonight", 1997.
  2. "Christian Bop" – 2:21
    • Recorded January 11, 1981 at I.C.C Studios. The melody from “Christian Bop” has been used for the track entitled “Dance“, from “Movement III – Crypt”, of McCartney's Liverpool Oratorio, released in 1991. Released as a bonus track on the 2015 remastered edition of Pipes of Peace, 1983.
  3. "Same Love" – 3:55
  4. "Don't Break the Promise (McCartney, Eric Stewart) – 3:38[1]
    • Recorded at Hog Hill Studio June 9, 1988. Released as a B-side to "The World Tonight", 1997.

Compilation cassette tracklisting

A studio compilation cassette was made January 21, 1988 of songs recorded between 1981 and 1988. Two of these tracks, "Rough Ride" and "Figure of Eight", were from the initial sessions with Trevor Horn and Steve Lipson that were the beginnings of the Flowers In The Dirt album. This cassette is one of the sources to the Return to Pepperland bootlegs. [4]

Side A
No.TitleLength
1."Return To Pepperland" 
2."Love Come Tumbling Down" 
3."Christian Pop" 
4."Atlantic Ocean" 
5."Lindiana" 
6."I Love This House" 
7."We Got Married" 
8."Rough Ride" 
9."Figure Of Eight" 

Side B
No.TitleLength
1."Squid" 
2."Big Day" 
3."Beautiful Night" 
4."Loveliest Thing" 
5."Love Mix" 
6."Peacocks" 
7."This One" 

References
  1. "Return To Pepperland – The Unreleased 1987 Album". www.maccafan.net. Retrieved 2016-03-24.
  2. "Beatles Rarity Of The Week – "Return To Pepperland" (out-take)". The Beatles Rarity. Archived from the original on 2016-12-25. Retrieved 2016-03-24.
  3. Womack, Kenneth (2014). The Beatles Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 694. ISBN 9780313391729.
  4. "Pizza And Fairy Tales (album)". The Paul McCartney project. Retrieved 24 July 2020.
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