The braille message Paul McCartney sent to “a genius” on the cover of 1973’s ‘Red Rose Speedway’
If the conspiracy theorists and satan-obsessed cranks of the world are to be believed, then Paul McCartney – in addition to potentially having died back in the 1960s – has slipped a litany of secret messages into his output over the years. The only verifiable one of these hidden messages is, however, far more wholesome than you might expect.
It is worth noting, of course, that despite numerous infamous conspiracies and rumours, there are no satan-worshipping messages to be heard if you play your Beatles albums backwards. Nor, in fact, are there any secret messages in ‘Revolution No. 9’ relating to the ‘Paul Is Dead’ conspiracy that McCartney died in a car crash – without any witnesses or press attention afforded to arguably the most famous person in Britain dying so publically – to be replaced for the rest of the Fab Four’s tenure, and Macca’s own solo career, with a body double.
That is not to say, however, that McCartney hasn’t included the odd message and tip-off to his fellow artists within his work. Whether paying tribute to his ever-expanding pool of influences, or simply creating an opportunity to dress up as various musical contemporaries in the ‘Coming Up’ video, the songwriter always seems to have taken particular pleasure in creating little easter eggs and nods for fans and fellow artists to recognise.
In terms of Macca’s influences, the realm of Motown is utterly unavoidable, and throughout his professional career, the artist has boasted a lasting friendship with the inarguable king of Motown, Stevie Wonder. Back in 1982, of course, the pair recorded the archetypal 1980s duet ‘Ebony and Ivory’ together – though the less said about that particular effort, the better. Years prior, though, McCartney placed a hidden message on his LP specifically designed for Stevie Wonder.
On the rather minimal rear cover of 1973’s Red Rose Speedway, above the spotlight image of a microphone stand with a bouquet of roses, McCartney included a message in braille, reading “We love you, baby”, intended for Wonder himself.
Whether the Motown icon ever actually took note of that message is up for debate, but the years following that Wings LP certainly saw the pair come together on multiple occasions.
‘Ebony and Ivory’ aside, the two songwriters collaborated in more recent years for McCartney’s solo record Kisses On The Bottom, on which Wonder plays harmonica on ‘Only Our Hearts’. Seemingly, the experience of recording that song encapsulated everything about Wonder that has made the soul superstar a continuous source of inspiration and hero worship for McCartney.
“Stevie came along to the studio in LA and he listened to the track for about ten minutes and he totally got it,” the songwriter once shared. “He just went to the mic and within 20 minutes had nailed this dynamite solo. When you listen you just think, ‘How do you come up with that?’ But it’s just because he is a genius, that’s why.”
Geniuses tend to flock together, which perhaps explains the lasting friendship between Stevie Wonder and Paul McCartney, which stretches all the way back to that braille message in 1973.
