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Paul McCartney's Official Top 20 most-streamed songs revealed
We look at which of the former Beatles' solo hits stand up in the streaming era.
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Often hailed as Britain's greatest living songwriter, Sir Paul McCartney is about an illustrious as you can get as a musician in the modern world.
As a founding member and chief songwriter of The Beatles along with John Lennon, McCartney earned a staggering 17 Number 1 singles with the band, including a record-breaking four Christmas Number 1 singles.
As a solo artist, however, McCartney has worn many hats. Most recently, this week he's completed a trilogy of albums decades in the making with the release of McCartney III. Written, performed and produced entirely by the man himself, the record follows the first and second installments, released in 1970 (after the break-up of The Beatles) and 1980 (after the final Wings record).
MORE: The Beatles' full Official UK Chart history
But with a career now spanning over 60 years and including a total of 22 UK Number 1 singles, which of McCartney's hits are holding up in the streaming era?
MORE: Paul McCartney's full Official Chart history
Perhaps unsurprisingly, McCartney's biggest streaming hit is a collaboration with two of the most popular stars in the world. FourFiveSeconds, a team-up between the Beatle, Rihanna and Kanye West, comes out on top with just over 100 million streams to date.
Originally planned as the lead single from Rihanna's eighth album, the acoustic-tinged track peaked at Number 3 on the Official Singles Chart in 2015 and is McCartney's most recent Top 10 single, as well as his first since 1987.
In second place is festive classic Wonderful Christmastime (56.6 million streams), which peaked at Number 6 in 1979. The track continues to prove a popular staple of the festive season, and is one of the most-streamed Christmas songs of all time in the UK.
Also featured on the list are Wings, McCartney's band formed with his late wife Linda, and their biggest hit Band On The Run (14.6 million streams) and their James Bond theme Live And Let Die (5.9 million streams).
There's also collaborations aplenty on the list too. Throughout his career, McCartney has teamed up with a large variety of acts, including Kanye West on 2015's Only One (8.6 million streams), King of Pop Michael Jackson on the Number 2 hit Say Say Say in 1983 (4.2 million streams) and Stevie Wonder on unification anthem Ebony and Ivory in 1982 (2.6 million streams), which counts as one of McCartney's 17 solo Number 1 singles.
Paul McCartney's Official Top 20 most-streamed songs
| TITLE | ARTIST | PEAK | YEAR | |
| 1 | FOURFIVESECONDS | RIHANNA/KANYE WEST/MCCARTNEY | 3 | 2015 |
| 2 | WONDERFUL CHRISTMASTIME | PAUL MCCARTNEY | 20 | 1979 |
| 3 | BAND ON THE RUN | PAUL MCCARTNEY & WINGS | 3 | 1974 |
| 4 | ONLY ONE | KANYE WEST FT PAUL MCCARTNEY | 28 | 2015 |
| 5 | LIVE AND LET DIE | PAUL MCCARTNEY & WINGS | 9 | 1973 |
| 6 | MAYBE I'M AMAZED | PAUL MCCARTNEY | 28 | 1977 |
| 7 | SAY SAY SAY | PAUL MCCARTNEY & MICHAEL JACKSON | 2 | 1983 |
| 8 | JET | PAUL MCCARTNEY & WINGS | 7 | 1974 |
| 9 | MULL OF KINTYRE | PAUL MCCARTNEY & WINGS | 1 | 1977 |
| 10 | EBONY AND IVORY | PAUL MCCARTNEY & STEVIE WONDER | 1 | 1982 |
| 11 | COME ON TO ME | PAUL MCCARTNEY | N/A | 2018 |
| 12 | FUH YOU | PAUL MCCARTNEY | N/A | 2018 |
| 13 | NINETEEN HUNDRED AND EIGHTY FIVE | PAUL MCCARTNEY & WINGS | N/A | 1974 |
| 14 | LET ME ROLL IT | PAUL MCCARTNEY & WINGS | N/A | 1974 |
| 15 | PIPES OF PEACE | PAUL MCCARTNEY | 1 | 1983 |
| 16 | MY LOVE | PAUL MCCARTNEY & WINGS | 9 | 1973 |
| 17 | JUNK | PAUL MCCARTNEY | N/A | 1970 |
| 18 | COMING UP | PAUL MCCARTNEY | 2 | 1980 |
| 19 | BLUEBIRD | PAUL MCCARTNEY & WINGS | N/A | 1974 |
| 20 | LET IT BE (2002) | PAUL MCCARTNEY | N/A | 2002 |
©2020 Official Charts Company. All rights reserved.
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Fact Checker
Thanks very much for this list. Very interesting...
..But. "Ebony and Ivory...counts as one of McCartney's 17 solo number one singles". Do you read what you write before you put it on your website ? As far as I know, McCartney has 1 solo number one single - "Pipes Of Peace". Plus 1 in a duet - "Ebony And Ivory". I can't think what the other 15 are. Perhaps you could list them for us ?
Miserable Mozz
One (Mull of Kintyre) with Wings, another (Ferry 'Cross The Mersey) for the Hillsborough disaster, and I'm guessing the others with The Beatles.
Velvet Android
No, he had 17 with the Beatles – as the second paragraph in the article does correctly say. Add in his later solo and collaborative efforts (with Wings, with Stevie and Ferry 'Cross The Mersey) and you get 21, but even in the loosest sense only 4 of those were 'solo', i.e. non-Beatles. As the appropriately-named Fact Checker observes, the reference to "17 solo number one singles" is just completely confused and wrong.
Velvet Android
More impressively, in terms of chart trivia at least, is that McCartney holds a unique chart record for achieving Number Ones...
...solo
...in a duo (with Stevie Wonder)
...in a trio (with Wings)
...in a quartet (with the Beatles)
...in a quintent (with the Beatles & Billy Preston)
and
...in a sextet at least (the charity Scouse supergroup had probably 6-7 members, depending how many there were in the Christians at the time)
Not to mention his (uncredited) appearance with the Band Aid II charity ensemble!
Pedro Maldonado
Lol you did not get it well. Give it a second read !
Lars Van Moer
Is it really the 1977 live version of "Maybe I'm amazed" by Wings which is in the top 10 of most streamed songs, or would that be the original solo studio version from 1970 ? Given that even "Junk" from the 1970 "McCartney" album made this top 20, I suspect it is the studio version of "Maybe I'm amazed" from the same 1970 album which should be mentioned here. (On a personal note, I would have loved to see "With a little luck" and "My Valentine" in the list ...)
Pedro Maldonado
Is the original version