Flowers in the Dirt
Flowers in the Dirt is the eighth solo studio album by Paul McCartney. The album was released on 5 June 1989 on Parlophone, as he was embarking on his first world tour since the Wings Over the World tour in 1975–76. It earned McCartney some of his best reviews for an album of original songs since Tug of War (1982). The album made number one in the United Kingdom and Norway and produced several hit singles (the first being "My Brave Face"). The album artwork was a collaboration between artist Brian Clarke, who painted the canvas and arranged the flowers, and Linda McCartney, who produced the cover photography. The album was reissued in an expanded form under the Paul McCartney Archive Collection project in March 2017, with the original demos recorded by McCartney and Elvis Costello included as part of the release. Background and recording After the meager sales for Press to Play, McCartney realised that he needed to work much harder on his follow-up. Thus, he not only teamed up with several different producers, but also spent the better part of 18 months perfecting Flowers in the Dirt. A highlight of the sessions was McCartney's alliance with Elvis Costello, with whom he composed many new songs. In his 2015 autobiography, Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink, Costello described the track "That Day Is Done" as, "the unhappy sequel to 'Veronica'", which they had also co-written. Despite Costello's similarities to John Lennon, the partnership was not to endure. McCartney's then manager, Richard Ogden, confided at the time to Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn that the relationship between Costello and the former Beatle was "not entirely harmonious" and that at points McCartney had gone as far as to rant at him regarding Costello's attitude and approach to the sessions. Costello would appear on the album, even co-singing "You Want Her Too" with McCartney. Another guest included was his friend David Gilmour from Pink Floyd, who plays the guitar on "We Got Married". On "Put It There", McCartney used an old Buddy Holly trick, the knee-percussion, that McCartney recorded on the same day as the backing track. Cover art The album cover was conceived and designed by the McCartneys' friend and collaborator, the British artist Brian Clarke, who painted the background painting in oil on canvas. Clarke arranged the flowers and foliage and the cover was photographed by Linda McCartney. The two collaborated on multiple unique arrangements, resulting in Linda's series of Cibachrome images. Clarke was also responsible for designing stage sets and promotional material for the world tour which accompanied the album. A series of Flowers in the Dirt paintings and arrangements were made, and the full set of collaborative photographs that produced the cover artwork were exhibited that same year at the Mayor Gallery in London. Release With the intention of launching the biggest tour of his career, McCartney assembled a band to take out on the road, and who would appear in various forms on Flowers in the Dirt. Hamish Stuart