McCartney to release album of cover songs

Paul McCartney announced Monday that he'll be releasing a new album of cover songs, along with two new compositions, on Feb. 7, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Featuring songs that McCartney says were key early influences on him and fellow former Beatle John Lennon -- in his words, "the songs me and John based quite a few of our things on" -- the as-yet-untitled album has guest appearances by Diana Krall, Stevie Wonder and Eric Clapton.

Following in the footsteps of other baby boomer crooners dipping into the classics, McCartney digs into the attic of American popular music to uncover gems that inspired him.

"When I kind of got into songwriting, I realized how well structured these songs were and I think I took a lot of my lessons from them," McCartney said in a statement. "I always thought artists like Fred Astaire were very cool. Writers like Harold Arlen, Cole Porter, all of those guys -- I just thought the songs were magical. And then, as I got to be a songwriter I thought it's beautiful, the way they made those songs."

McCartney, 69, has also penned two new songs in the spirit of the others on the album, called "My Valentine" and "Only Our Hearts." The former began streaming at McCartney's website Monday morning. (The track listing will be released at a later date.)