NewsPaul McCartney to reissue We All Stand Together for Rupert’s 100th birthday
McCartney’s last really big hit single is reissued in November
Paul McCartney marks the 100th birthday of Rupert the Bear by revisiting his children’s classic ‘We All Stand Together’ with a new 4k transfer of the animated film and a physical reissue of the single which was performed with ‘The Frog Chorus’!
A seven-inch shaped picture disc of ‘We All Stand Together’ will be issued in November which features remastered audio of both the A-side and the ‘Humming Version’ B-side. This is actually identical to the original shaped picture disc issued in 1984, except that this time around it comes with a poster and a die-cut outer sleeve.
Actually recorded way back in November 1980, ‘We All Stand Together’ was an enormous success, only held off the top spot in December 1984 by those titans ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’ and ‘Last Christmas’. In the months previous, Paul had enjoyed a UK number one album with Give My Regards to Broad Street and a number two single with ‘No More Lonely Nights’. ‘We All Stand Together’ was his last ‘solo’ (lets forget about the frogs) top five single in the UK and in hindsight this marked the end of Paul’s hit-making era. Only one more single would sneak into the UK top ten (1987’s ‘Once Upon A Long Ago’) and he’d never trouble it again (as a lead solo artist).
Much of the success of ‘We All Stand Together’ can be attributed to the charming short animated film: Rupert and The Frog Song. Paul began work on in 1981 with animator Geoff Dunbar. While McCartney’s 1984 feature-length effort, Give My Regards To Broad Street was something of a misstep, this short film earned him many plaudits and silverware, including an Ivor Novello Award for Best Film Soundtrack and a BAFTA for Best Animated Short Film.
The film has now been fully restored in 4k and is getting a new audio mix. This will be available on YouTube on 6 November the same day the shaped picture disc of ‘We All Stand Together’ is reissued. The latter is only available via ‘bricks and mortar’ indie stores and Universal Music channels including The Sound of Vinyl, uDiscoverMusic etc.
Pre-order from Paul McCartney’s UK store
Pre-order from The Sound of Vinyl
Pre-order from uDiscoverMusic
- We All Stand Together (2020 remaster)
- We All Stand Together (Humming Version) 2020 remaster
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Ordered this on 6th November from Paul’s UK online store, was charged for it and then had nothing arrive in the post, so queried this 3 weeks later and they have now cancelled this “as it is no longer available” (it was when I ordered it), just lovely….. Wanted this for my 4 year old who loves Paul and met him at the ‘Hey Grandude!’ signing in Waterstones in London. Not paying the rip off prices on eBay. Not happy =(
Just noticed this morning (4th November) that they’re back in stock on both Udiscover and the Macca UK store…if you haven’t got one ordered, do it sooner rather than later
Interesting about why its callled a ‘Limted Edition’ then when it was sold out within two days.
Eu tenho esse disco original cá em casa.
Gostava de vender e o valor reverter para cães em Necessidade em Portugal.
Lovely song.
Paul McCartney was working on it back in 1980 and it was actually the song he was recording when he learned John Lennon had been shot.
Not correct. That was Ode to A Koala
The Paul McCartney biography by Philip Norman (approved by Paul McCartney) says otherwise.
“Aux studios AIR, Paul, George Martin et les autres musiciens passèrent ce 9 décembre “comme des robots”, se souviendrait plus tard Paul. Triste ironie, ls bouclèrent l’enregistrement d’un morceau, pour la série télévisée Rupert Bear, intitulé “We All Stand Together”.
Which can be translated as “At AIR Studios, Paul, George Martin and the other musicians spent that 9th December “like robots” as Paul would later recall. Sadly and ironically they finished the recording of a track, for the Rupert Bear series, titled “We All Stand Together”.
It might be in a book, but it’s not correct. Paul Robinson was the drummer on Ode to A Koala Bear, and this is what he has to say about it:
“That day was another regular session day. I think I was booked from 2pm – 5 or 6pm but as always with the possibility the session would go on a bit later, & as it was for Paul, you made yourself available of course. We put the track down with Paul playing piano, me on kit. We left the studio that evening at about 9pm (this was in December) so I think that meant 4pm New York time. It was the same day John was killed. So it may be a touch gruesome, but the Koala Bear track, (which Paul told me was about 1 of his kids toys, who were also there with Linda) was the last track Paul recorded while John was still alive. I know this is weird stuff, but I grew up loving the Beatles, & not only was it a great thrill for me to work with Paul, but such a shock to see him the following day in the same clothes he had been wearing the previous day talking to the press about Johns murder.”
McCartney can be an unreliable witness, so I tend to trust Robinson’s memory. It would be pretty memorable if you were a session musician, I think.
The book says the song was finished AFTER hearing about Lennon’s death, presumably the following day. Not the day he died.
Getting back to the point… you said “it was actually the song he was recording when he learned John Lennon had been shot” which isn’t the case.
Likewise thanks for the tip Guy.S just got one from horizons music. Cheers.
Hi Paul,
Hope you are okay during this difficult time. I was reading some of your followers posts and noticed that on one of them they mentioned USB stick in the Egypt Station Suitcase. I bought one and had never seen a USB stick in it. I have just found the USB and just watched the live film performances of some tracks and listened to the audio tracks. It can be found behind the note from Paul McCartney on the lid of the suitcase. I did find the the rubber logo of the album at the time but did not realise that it had a USB stick in it. The purpose of writing to you is that it is likely that others who purchased the Egypt Station Suitcase do not realise it is there and thought you could include an article on it to alert them.
Thanks for the good work you do, I enjoy getting you newsletters.
Regards,
Dave
Seems the Ebay brigade have snapped all these up. All links sold out
Eamonn, there are still a few independent record stores who still have this for sale in the UK – crashrecords.co.uk beyondvinyl.co.uk horizonsmusic.co.uk vinyltap.co.uk
Thanks for the tip just got one from horizons music , sold out everywhere else
Got one from horizons too. Thanks for the tip!
I like “We All Stand Together”, and I don’t care who knows it. There; I’ve said it. I’m glad I’m not alone.
The charts in the sixties and the seventies had lots of fun, juvenile – as in sweet – children style records. They sold in big numbers. Junior Choice was a great record show and is repeated once a year now on Christmas morning on radio 2 playing all the children / novelty hits. Captain Beaky still sounds great. The Frog Chorus is an inoffensive catchy song and easy to play on the piano. It should look good with the 4K restored visuals.
oh Gosh, perhaps this was well liked in the UK (it went Top 3 I think!) but here in Australia it tanked. Had a listen just now but not for me. The 80’s Pic Discs are in our second hand record stores for about $5…but no one seems interested…enough said LOL.
Please God, NO!!! Why????
When people ask what’s the first record you bought, I have friends who I think lie. They pretend their first record was something far cooler than it really was. But I’ve always admitted it!
The first records I owned that were bought for me were The Muppets and The Wombles. But the first record I actually went into a shop to buy myself with my pocket money was We All Stand Together! I still have it, although I didn’t buy the picture disc. This is a very nice item, even at my age now of 44! Cheers Paul! …Cheers to both Pauls actually!
The first I bought was Toy Dolls “Nellie The Elephant”- a record of less quality than this. Something i’m happy to keep quiet about! In the Top 10 the same time as The Frog Chorus.
In the same way that the Beatles don’t get derided as the ‘Yellow Submarine band’ Paul usually gets labelled Paul ‘frog chorus’ McCartney by lazy journalists when it was only ever a charming CHILDREN’S song?! Always liked it myself and good on him for reissuing this. Although please get on with back to the egg!
When this came out, I remember searching for a 12″ version. I looked at a copy of Music Week on the record shop counter and it was the only single in that week’s chart which had no 12″. I quite understand why – it was mainly for tots and their parents rather than teenagers so was always going to sell more on 7″ – but it would have been fun if they had created a 12″ mix to go alongside this re-release. (In an 80s style, of course.) Something else to add to that fantasy mini blu ray mooted by Guzz below!
If there is a new 4K transfer,why not do a Blu Ray mini album with the trax from the picture disc and the new 4K video and any other documentaries about the making of the video…..
Another opportunity missed methinks
Yeah, that would be cool.
That would have been brilliant. There is a VHS of this video coupled with Seaside Woman + The Oriental Nightfish. It was short in duration (under 15 minutes).
Wow. Lot of love here for ‘We All Stand Together’ – I remember everyone thinking it was really crap when it first came out.
Can’t be long now I imagine before ‘Spies Like Us’ is similarly showered with acclaim?
You must have a heart of stone to think We All Stand Together is crap. Lovely little song aimed at kids in the long tradition of McCartney (Yellow Submarine, Altogether Now etc.). It has bags of charm which is what Spies Like Us is lacking.
Freedom,,,that has bags of charm also!,,,he,he,I know your not to fond of that charming little ditty are you?
One man’s heart of stone is another’s discerning musical taste, I guess :)
It always makes me laugh when pretentious clowns use this song as a way to knock Macca. The type of idiots who always sneeringly mention the ‘Frog Chorus’ when they want to dispute or discredit McCartney’s genius. First of all, they make out it’s a song that was aimed to be in the same category as Eleanor Rigby or Hey Jude. We All Stand Together is a children’s song and a very good one. A light hearted bit of fun. It’s not like a classic Wings or Beatles track, but it’s not supposed to be. It’s like the buffoons who use ‘Do Ya Think I’m Sexy’ (which was originally done as a send up) as way to dismiss Rod Stewart and all his work. A lazy and childish way to criticise both men as artists.
The song itself does its job. A great kid’s song with a magic to it. It should be reissued as a double A side with Jackie Lee’s original Rupert theme.
Agree with every word, Albert! It’s a lovely little song – and the orchestration is just beautiful.
When are we going to hear news about the remastered/remixed Let It Be Deluxe Box Sets? It is nice that Paul is releasing these tidbits, but the world is waiting for the most important musical event of the year: The Beatles last album. Yet we hear no word!
Doubt that there will be any news on Let It Be until after the first quarter of 2021. The film was pushed back to August 27th 2021. And there was nothing about a remixed album (though I’m sure this will happen).
Hoping that there will be a “Get Back” official issue as part of the bonus material. Maybe even on vinyl. Wouldn’t that be something?
It’s a particularly terrific piece of writing – smart, warm – but wrongly maligned at the time – together with the lovely animation it really has, for my money, stood the test of time.
‘We all stand together’ is a really good song, I’d love to hear Paul do an acoustic version minus the Bom, Bom, Boms. When he paid Glastonbury in 2004 you could hear some wags in the crowd shouting for Paul to play this. I’d have love it if he’d whipped out his acoustic and launched in to this. It would have been a lot better than him doing ‘Follow me’ which killed the energy of the set (temporarily).
On the matter of 1980s Picture discs, has any got problems with the turning brown, My Spies Like us shaped disc has started to go. I think it has to do with the plastic sleeve they were issued in, has any one got any ideas how to stop this?
Any idea how limited, limited is?
I’ll get it to go with my original. But what’s the point of putting remastered audio on a picture disc .
I could carry that comment to its next most logical conclusion, but I’ll not open THAT Pandora’s Box today.
Great! Very good!
I’m just waiting for Back to The Egg, London Town deluxe editions maybe at the end of next year and “with a little luck” Give My Regards to Broad Street deluxe edition also although I never heard even a romour about the last one.
Let’s wait as always.
Does this mean the Rupert album done with Wings (or maybe just Denny and Linda) in late 70’s could get official release someday?
How very English! (and a bit naff…prefer Bowie and The Snowman, personally)
Ordered, bit of a guilty pleasure and the video is beautifully charming.
I had the original picture disc, long since jettisoned with the rest of my vinyl in the eighties. A guilty pleasure and felt a bit daft getting it at age twenty, but always loved the song and the video (still do). It used to be on the video jukebox at my local a lot, but never heard anyone admit they’d put it on. It wasn’t me…
Huge part of my upbringing in VHS along with seaside woman and oriental nightfish which don’t get the live they deserve
I must have watched that VHS dozens of times. Loved it.
It was disappointing that his Animation Collection DVD didn’t include Seaside Woman and Oriental Nightfish.
We All Stand Together is a much maligned song, usually by people who failed to recognise it for what it was – a brilliant melodic charming song for children.
Most non-McCartney fans don’t even know it its correct title.
The humming version on the b-side is also rather lovely.
Very much agree with you Stan
It would be nice for the Animation Collection to get a Blu-ray release
I also remember seeing an MPL short film years ago called ‘Blankit’s First Show’ about one of Linda’s Appaloosa horses, and also ‘Daumier’s Law’ which was a Geoff Dunbar short animation.
I’m not sure what other MPL films there are, but it would be great if these got to be released on Blu-ray too
Do you think it’ll avaiable on Amazon too?
It won’t be.
Thank you Paul!
I love this song. Loved it as a kid and I love it as a cynical old bugger aswell. Really puts a smile on my face every time I hear it.
Just ordered it lol
I know all the words and cant wait to see it again in pristine 4K.