Paul McCartney: Listen to what the man sang

Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson are just two of the contributors to a new album of Paul McCartney covers. Ed Power speaks to the person who put it all together

RALPH Sall’s voice dips. “You know, if it’s okay, Dylan doesn’t want that kind of conversation,” says the respected producer and soundtrack supervisor. He sounds spooked.

‘Dylan’, of course, is Bob Dylan, with whom Sall collaborated on the Art of McCartney, a sprawling tribute record to Paul McCartney, the former Beatle. Sall approached Dylan’s management with a proposal: would the rasping troubadour be interested in interpreting a McCartney song? To Sall’s surprise, the answer came back in the positive: what happened next, though, must remain a mystery — as Sall says, Dylan would prefer his working methods to remain private.