Paul McCartney’s album-closing songs were sometimes romantic pop asides, including “Warm and Beautiful” on 1976’s Wings at the Speed of Sound, or story songs like “Momma Gets By” from 2026’s The Boys of Dudgeon Lane. They might rock, too, as with “Nod Your Head” on 2007’s Memory Almost Full.

The following ranked list tends to echo McCartney’s particular genius in this way. Few could claim such thrilling variation.

For instance, McCartney never really let go of the album-closing medley concept he first oversaw on the Beatles’ penultimate album, 1969’s Abbey Road. He’d wrap up things with “Hold Me Tight / Lazy Dynamite / “Hands of Love” / Power Cut” on 1973’s Red Rose Speedway, “Treat Her Gently – Lonely Old People / Crossroads” from 1975’s Venus and Mars and “Hunt You Down/Naked/C-Link” on 2018’s Egypt Station.

What’s Paul McCartney’s Best Album Closing Song?

At the same time, McCartney wasn’t always so grandiose. He played a simple acoustic guitar on closers like “Great Day” from 1997’s Flaming Pie and “Winter Bird/When Winter Comes” on 2020’s McCartney III.

Sometimes, he sounded almost nothing like his former self during moments like “Kreen-Akrore” on 1970’s McCartney, “Motor of Love” from 1989’s Flowers in the Dirt and “Road” on 2013’s New. But McCartney also regularly reunited with Beatles producer George Martin. They paired for “Through Our Love” on 1983’s Pipes of Peace and “C’Mon People” from 1993’s Off the Ground, among others.