Cherry Red/Esoteric Recordings has announced the June 28 release of one of the most anticipated Beatles-related reissues:  an expanded, remastered 2-CD/DVD edition of Mike McGear’s McGear album.  The 1974 album was produced by McGear’s brother Paul McCartney who also wrote or co-wrote the majority of the tracks.  Linda McCartney, Denny Laine, Jimmy McCulloch, and Denny Seiwell also appear on McGear, which has been dubbed by some fans as a “lost Wings album.”  McGear follows Esoteric’s previous reissues of the artist’s McGough and McGear and Woman.

Originally released in September 1974, McGear presented a more serious side of Mike McGear (a.k.a. Mike McCartney), who had previously found success as a member of the Liverpool-based satirical pop group The Scaffold.  For this, his second album, he and Wings set up at Strawberry Studios and recorded nine selections (a tenth, “Leave It,” had already been recorded at Abbey Road).  The result was a collection of tracks that remain as “charming, eccentric, and unique” (accurately per the press release!) as they were when they were first released, from the inspired McCartney/McGear collaborations “Rainbow Lady,” “Simply Love You,” “Givin’ Grease a Ride,” and “The Man Who Found God on the Moon,” to the Roxy Music cover “Sea Breezes,” and the Paul-penned hit single “Leave It.”

For their reissue, Cherry Red/Esoteric has worked closely with Mike McCartney to create the most comprehensive version of the album.  McGear has now been newly remastered from the original master tapes and expanded with 21 bonus tracks, including 13 that have never been released, plus rare single edits that make their CD debut here.  Among those is the non-album single “Dance the Do” featuring Vivian Stanshall.

The set also includes a DVD featuring interviews with Mike McCartney recorded at Liverpool’s Everyman Theatre and the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, as well as the 1974 promotional film for “Leave It.”  Rounding out the set is an illustrated booklet with new liner notes and a specially created poster, all housed in a clamshell box.  In all, it looks to be a fab presentation of the acclaimed but long-out-of-print album.

The newly remastered album will also be released on 180-gram vinyl in a gatefold sleeve with an illustrated booklet and poster.  This edition’s track listing replicates the original ten-track album.

The expanded McGear will be released on June 28 on Cherry Red/Esoteric.  You can find a full track list below.  We’ll have Amazon links posted as soon as they go live.  In the meantime, Mike McCartney has signed 200 postcards, which will be slipped into 100 LP copies and 100 CD sets available exclusively on Cherry Red’s online store! 

Michael McGear, McGear (originally released Warner Bros Records LP BS 2825, 1974 — reissued Cherry Red/Esoteric Recordings, 2019)

2CD/DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Cherry Red Online Store
LP:  Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Cherry Red Online Store 

CD 1: McGear remastered

1. Sea Breezes
2. What Do We Really Know?
3. Norton
4. Leave It
5. Have You Got Problems
6. The Casket
7. Rainbow Lady
8. Simply Love You
9. Givin’ Grease a Ride
10. The Man Who Found God on the Moon
    Bonus Tracks:
11. Sweet Baby
12. Dance the Do

CD 2: McGear outtakes and extras

1. Sea Breezes (without orchestra)
2. Leave It (extended version)
3. Dance the Do (rough first mix)
4. What Do We Really Know? (monitor mix)
5. Paddy Pipes 1
6. Do Nothing All Day
7. A to Z
8. Girls on the Avenue
9. Paddy Pipes 2
10. All the Whales in the Ocean
11. Blowin’ in the Bay
12. Keep Cool (version 1)
13. Keep Cool (version 2)
14. I Just Want What You Got — Money!
15. Paddy Pipes 3
16. Viv Stanshall Sings
17. Let’s Turn the Radio On
18. Dance the Do Radio Ad 1
19. Dance the Do Radio Ad 2

DVD:

1. Mike (McGear) McCartney reminisces at the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts
2. Mike (McGear) McCartney interview at the Everyman Theatre, Liverpool
3. Leave It (promotional film, 1974)

LP Track Listing: McGear remastered

Side 1:

1. Sea Breezes
2. What Do We Really Know?
3. Norton
4. Leave It
5. Have You Got Problems

Side 2:

1. The Casket
2. Rainbow Lady
3. Simply Love You
4. Givin’ Grease a Ride
5. The Man Who Found God on the Moon