Paul McCartney competitive? Of course he is. And it’s the keen sense of competition that partially led him to his purchasing his first Minimoog.

“You’d read about them…these synthesizers that can do anything.” McCartney told Mark Ronson on his Watch The Sound series. “It was a dream machine…crazy expensive, but Stevie Wonder had one, so I just thought ‘It’s about time I got one.”

McCartney’s Model D would make its first appearance on his “Red Rose Speedway” record in 1973, but it’s truly prominent on the follow-up - “Band On The Run.” Recorded under trying conditions at a studio in Lagos, Nigeria after two band members walked out on the band, Paul, Linda and guitarist Denny Laine were all pushed to greater heights to make up the difference. When “Jet,” was released as the first single released from the record, it showcased Linda soloing on the Minimoog.

“People used to say she had numbers on the keys to help her, but that was only on the Mellotron,” remembers Wings keyboard technician Peter “Rocky” Morley. “And that was only so she would know what sounds would come out…like violins or doorbells or something.”

On the road with Wings, however, Morley found that Linda was more than capable of working the synth on her own despite her critics.

“If she was playing the piano or doing the Mellotron, then I would change the settings because she obviously couldn’t do the two things at the same time. So I used to creep up and do it.”

During the rarely seen 1975 TV special “One Hand Clapping,” Linda can be seen piloting the McCartney’s Model D during a rehearsal of “Jet.” As she wraps the solo, Paul looks back at her lovingly, clearing happy that she’s on board for the ride.