Co-founder of Wings bankrupt

Press, 20 December 1986, Page 13

Co-founder of Wings bankrupt

NZPA-PA London

The Rock star, Denny Laine, aged 42, co-founder with Paul McCartney of the hugely successful group Wings, is bankrupt. His debts total £76,035 ($211,477).

He told a London bankruptcy court why he left the band in 1980. . “It was because Paul McCartney was caught by the police going into Japan with drugs and so it was impossible for us to work in Japan,” he said.

"We did not know what to do next.” In addition, he was going through a divorce and it seemed a good idea to leave Wings. He was later paid £135,000 ($375,300) by McCartney Productions for the remainder of his share of the world-wide

hit song, “The Mull of Kintyre,” which he had written with McCartney.

Laine said he had been a musician all his life. He was with the Moody Blues from 1963 to 1968 and then with Denny Laine’s Electric String Band which was not financially successful.

He joined Wings in 1971, he and Paul McCartney forming the group. A company called Denny Laine Ltd was formed to receive his income and pay him a salary of £3OO ($834) a week. Advances were also made by the company for various projects in which he was interested. He was “well off” and had invested some of his money in motor car racing. He bought a Ferrari for £30,000 ($83,400) but

it was damaged in an accident and he had to spend £12,000 ($33,360) repairing it because he had been unable to get full insurance cover. As a result of the accident, he was banned from driving and during that period he had the extra expense of having to hire a chauffeur.

He also bought a boat for £32,000 ($88,960) but it ran aground while he was taking it through a French canal and was eventually sold for only half the purchase price. He laughed when somebody suggested that Paul McCartney might be willing to help him out with his debts.

“No, I think he regards all this as part of my training,” he said.