Paul McCartney nominated for 2026 Mercury Prize with album 'The Boys of Dungeon Lane'

The album received widespread acclaim from international critics and, in July, was shortlisted for the 2026 Mercury Prize. This award marks Paul McCartney's first-ever Mercury Prize nomination and sees “The Boys of Dungeon Lane” alongside some of the most exciting and acclaimed artists and albums of the year.

The Special Edition

The upcoming Special Edition will give fans four more recordings from the world of “The Boys of Dungeon Lane,” including a new version of “Home To Us,” which once again reunites Paul and Ringo Starr. The song is already one of the most touching moments on the album, with the two still-living Beatles exchanging verses that encapsulate the weight of their extraordinary shared history, while remaining deeply personal and contemporary. The new "flip mix" involves the exchange of the two artists' original parts within the song. In addition to the new version of "Home To Us", the special edition will contain three previously unreleased songs, titled "City Fox", "One Night Stand" and "Chelsea Boots", offering fans the opportunity to discover other songs created during the recording sessions. The physical edition of “The Boys of Dungeon Lane (Special Edition)” will feature a stunning cover created from a silk-screened collage by Kate Gibb, using over 100 images from Paul's personal collection. Physical formats, including a limited edition double LP on orange and blue marbled vinyl with a zeotropic cut, are available for pre-order HERE.

he revelatory collection of stories never shared

“The Boys of Dungeon Lane” is not only Paul McCartney's first new solo album in over five years; is a revelatory collection of never-before-shared stories, personal memories, and some newly inspired love songs, from one of the most culturally significant figures of our time. Turning his gaze inward, Paul revisits the formative years that shaped both his life and the very foundations of modern popular culture. The album is undoubtedly his most personal and introspective to date, with never-before-seen stories that transport the listener back to where it all began. The new songs show Paul in a sincere, vulnerable and reflective mood, as he writes with rare openness about his childhood in post-war Liverpool, his parents' resilience and early flings with George Harrison and John Lennon, long before the world had ever heard of Beatlemania. “The Boys of Dungeon Lane” is the story before History.

The album takes its title from one of its most significant songs, “Days We Left Behind”, an essential and deeply intimate song that captures the emotional core of the project. Dungeon Lane is a place Paul still sees when he returns home, and it serves as a symbolic gateway to a world before fame: afternoons by the Mersey, clutching a book on birdwatching, “smoky bars and cheap guitars” and dreams not yet fulfilled.

the words of Paul McCartney

"For me this is really a song of memories. The title of the album, The Boys of Dungeon Lane, comes from a line in this song. I was just thinking about this, about the days I've left behind, and I often wonder if I'm just writing about the past, but then I think: how can you write about anything else? It's just so many memories of Liverpool. There's a part in the middle that talks about John and Forthlin Road, the street I used to live on. Dungeon Lane is nearby. I used to live in a place called Speke, a pretty working-class neighborhood, we had almost nothing, but it didn't matter because the people were great and you didn't realize you didn't have much.”

Since its release, “The Boys of Dungeon Lane” has continued to connect with audiences in a particularly personal way. Paul has personally organized a series of exclusive album listening events, offering fans the opportunity to listen to the album in full and experience the stories, memories and music at its heart in an intimate atmosphere.

It's impossible to imagine a world without Paul McCartney, yet “The Boys of Dungeon Lane” transports listeners to a world that existed before everything changed, offering memories never before shared and revealing, with extraordinary honesty, the human story behind a global icon.

Now, as the album continues its remarkable journey from chart-topping success to Mercury Prize recognition, the story of 'The Boys of Dungeon Lane' is set to continue this October with four more songs.

The Boys of Dungeon Lane Special Edition Tracklisting

1. As You Lie There

2. Lost Horizon

3. Days We Left Behind

4. Ripples in a Pond

5. Mountain Top

6. Down South

7. We Two

8. Come Inside

9. Never Know

10. Home to Us

11. Life Can Be Hard

12. First Star of the Night

13. Salesman Saint

14. Momma Gets By

15. City Fox

16. One Night Stand

17. Chelsea Boots

18. Home to Us - Flip Mix