56 Years Ago, Paul McCartney Invented Alternative Rock— and Nobody Noticed

A the Beatles were in the midst of an extended breakup, Paul McCartney his new wife Linda McCartney, along with his stepdaughter Heather and new baby Mary, decamped to a farmhouse in Campbeltown, Scotland. For awhile, rumors circulated that McCartney had died, leading to the infamous "Paul is Dead" hoax, and ultimate unhinged fan theory. However, out of this period, thanks to some home-recording in London in late 1969, McCartney basically invented a new kind of rock subgenre. But nobody noticed.