McGee, Garry 1966-

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MCGEE, Garry 1966-

PERSONAL:

Male. Born 1966.

ADDRESSES:

Agent—c/o Author Mail, Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, 4501 Forbes Blvd, Lanham, MD 20706.

CAREER:

Writer.

WRITINGS:

Band on the Run: A History of Paul McCartney and Wings, Taylor Trade Publishers (Lanham, MD), 2003.

SIDELIGHTS:

Beatlemaniac Garry McGee, who has worked in the film industry for several years, is the author of Band on the Run: A History of Paul McCartney and Wings. Based on the author's collection, over a decade, of facts, memorabilia, and other information, the book was designed to fill an important void for avid fans of former Beatle Paul McCartney. Henry L. Carrigan, Jr., reviewing McGee's work for Library Journal, called the book "a fan's notes on the band's approximate ten-year life span." While Joseph Kyle in MundaneSounds.com agreed that McGee's book is indeed a fan's work, he believed the piece "doesn't suffer from it."

McGee's history picks up after the break-up of the popular Beatles singing group, and documents the band Wings' journey, including their brief success from 1971 to 1981. McGee not only discusses the personalities of the various band members, but also the conflicts and lives of its most noted musicians, among them McCartney, his wife Linda McCartney on keyboards, former Moody Blues guitarist Denny Laine, guitarist Henry McCullough, and American session drummer Denny Seiwell. He also delves into the breakups, fights, problems stemming from drug use, and the constant belittling of Linda McCartney's musicianship, as reflected in the comment by McCullough that, as McGee quotes: "it didn't make any difference because she was playing a part." While McGee did not interview McCartney himself, he includes his talks with ex-band members who reflect on their relationship with the former Beatle. The consensus, McGee reveals, is that McCartney's difficult upbringing and life resulted in his relentlessness and sometimes controlling attitude.

Reviewing Band on the Run, critics lauded McGee for his objectivity in his criticism and discussion of somewhat sensitive topics. "While there have been McCartney biographies … those books were often not-so-sly hatchet jobs," Kyle maintained, going on to note that "McGee is extremely fair, offering up both sides of the argument." Critical of McGee's effort to include an in-depth appraisal of "every album and single released," as well as a detailed history of the band's tours and other appearances, Carrigan dubbed such efforts "graceless and uncompelling," and added that "the lack of interviews with McCartney or Laine means that this book is neither useful nor definitive." Mike Tribby disagreed, writing in Booklist that Band on the Run deserves "high praise. As a book-length exploration of McCartney's first post-Beatles band, this is the stuff."