Paul McCartney Cites Mark Wirtz' "Teenage Opera" as Influence

No sooner does Oldies Connection post a blog about the new single by former EMI producer Mark Wirtz than Sir Paul McCartney cites the Wirtz classic "Teenage Opera" as a major influence on his songwriting!

In an interview conducted by Paul Draper from the band Mansun and posted on Drowned in Sound, Sir Paul discusses songwriting in general and his 1971 album RAM (which has just been re-released as a special edition 2-CD digipak) in particular. During the interview, when asked about influences, Sir Paul responds that "A Teenage Opera" by Keith West was the record that helped him to realize that songs could be "cut like a film," with key and tempo changes.

The entire "Teenage Opera" concept was the brainchild of Mark Wirtz, who literally dreamed up the story of Grocer Jack (the first character in what would turn out to be a TO trilogy) one night and subsequently mentioned it to Geoff Emerick, the engineer Wirtz shared with The Beatles. Keith West from the band Tomorrow co-wrote the song "Excerpt From a Teenage Opera (Grocer Jack)" with Wirtz and recorded it at Abbey Road Studios in early 1967. The rather charming track, which features a children's chorus brought in by Wirtz, was released in May of that year. It peaked at #2 and paved the way for the "Teenage Opera" project, which was slated to become an actual rock opera (predating The Who's "Tommy" by two years). The second single, "Sam," which told the story of a steam-train engineer and also featured what had quickly become a Wirtz trademark—a children's chorus—was recorded by West and released that October. Unfortunately, although "Sam" made the Top Forty, it didn't rank as highly as its predecessor. After Keith West left the project, Wirtz recorded the third song, "(He's Our Dear Old) Weatherman" under his own name. EMI ultimately brought the curtain down on the "Teenage Opera," and it wouldn't be until 1996 when an approximation of "what might have been," featuring various Mark Wirtz tracks, was released on CD.

Despite the shelving of the project, the "Teenage Opera" concept and productions by Mark Wirtz influenced McCartney and other musicians in their own work, and continue to be fondly remembered by fans 45 years later.



(Below) Mark Wirtz MP3s on Amazon.com
(includes A Teenage Opera plus new Mark Wirtz release, Lost Pets 2)
Click on the player to hear sound samples

Mark Wirtz On the Charts With New Single

Award-winning composer/producer Mark Wirtz has a hit in the making with his wonderful rendition of "I Need to Fall in Love." The romantic tune is the first single release from his most recent album, Lost Pets 2 (PoppyDisc Records), and was co-written by Wirtz with Bob Lind (of "Elusive Butterfly" fame) and Jim David (son of Brill Building songwriter Hal David). "I Need to Fall in Love" is being played on radio stations across the country and is currently in the Top Thirty according to the latest reports. For more on Mark Wirtz and Lost Pets 2, click here.

Below is the video for "I Need to Fall in Love." Give it a listen and see if you agree with Oldies Connection that this newest release by legendary EMI producer Mark Wirtz is a winner. (Not bad for a guy who, in addition to his many musical accomplishments, is also a stand-up comedian who regularly appears at comedy venues in the southeastern United States!)







Also available on iTunes
Mark Wirtz - Official site

UPDATE (31 May 2012): See Paul McCartney Cites Mark Wirtz' Teenage Opera As Influence

Mark Wirtz - Lost Pets 2

Today, 27 September 2011, is the official release date in America for the newest CD by singer/songwriter/producer Mark Wirtz, entitled Lost Pets 2.  All of the baker's dozen tracks were composed or co-composed by the artist, and LP2 is a collection that has "hit" written all over it, from the rocking, rollicking title cut "Lost Pets (Loose Ends)" to the wistful "I Need to Fall In Love" (co-written by Jim David, the son of legendary Brill Building composer Hal David, and "Elusive Butterfly" composer/singer Bob Lind); from the energetic, electric-guitar-laden "Sindee" to the excruciatingly romantic "For Just You."

Mark Wirtz first came to prominence during the 1960s, after he moved from his native Germany to London, became an Englishman, and began working at the fabled Abbey Road Studios (then called EMI Studios) alongside Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick.  By 1966 Wirtz had written, produced and arranged "A Touch of Velvet - A Sting of Brass" which was released under the name Mood Mosaic and subsequently became the signature tune of Radio Caroline's deejay Dave Lee Travis.  In 1967, Keith West recorded "Excerpt From a Teenage Opera (Grocer Jack)," which he co-wrote along with Wirtz and which Wirtz produced and arranged.  These two songs remain among Wirtz's most well known efforts; but they are far from his only efforts.  With the exception of some fifteen years away from the music business while raising his daughter as a single parent during the '80s and '90s, Mark Wirtz has been a working arranger, producer, songwriter and singer ever since he first set foot in EMI Studios (which, as it happens, was on the same day in 1962 when The Beatles were auditioning for George Martin).  During the last several years, Wirtz has realized a long-held dream by adding stand-up comedy work to his list of accomplishments.





In the late 1970s, Mark Wirtz began work on an album, Lost Pets, but the project was abandoned when two of his band-mates, Jeff Poccaro and David Hungate, departed to record and tour with their newly successful group, Toto.  Tracks from the "lost" Lost Pets album were subsequently released on two CDs: Kitschinsync: The Hollywood Years, Vol. 1 - 1971-82 and Dreamer of Glass Beach: The Hollywood Years, Vol. 2 - 1971-82.  A few years later, in 2005, Wirtz released the delightful collection Love Is Eggshaped.  The most recent Wirtz release up to now had been Wirtz and Music, which is a reissue of Maestro Wirtz's albums, Latin A Go-Go and Smooth and Easy.  Lost Pets 2 brings Wirtz full circle, in a sense; for, as Wirtz points out on the CD booklet: "Only by returning to where we lost ourselves can we hope to find ourselves again."