Decca to release Sir Paul McCartney debut ballet

Sir Paul's musical was recorded in June and was conducted by John Wilson

Sir Paul McCartney is to release his first ballet with the record label Decca, half a century after the Beatles were famously rejected by the company.

The premiere of Ocean's Kingdom takes place next month with the album coming in October next year.

Decca's original rebuff of The Beatles in 1962 on the grounds that "guitar groups are on the way out" has since passed into music legend.

The label instead signed the Tremeloes while the Beatles went to Parlophone.

Sir Paul was asked to consider the classical collaboration after meeting New York City Ballet's master-in-chief Peter Martins at the School of American Ballet's Winter Gala last year.

The music was recorded in June and was conducted by John Wilson.

Earlier this year, Sir Paul told The New York Times that the show was a love story, which would be based in two worlds - the "pure" ocean kingdom and the earth kingdom with its "sort of baddies".

The musician completed a first draft in two months, then worked with choreographer Martins to refine the work.

"What was interesting was writing music that meant something expressively rather than just writing a song," Sir Paul said.

"Trying to write something that expressed an emotion - so you have fear, love, anger, sadness to play with and I found that exciting and challenging."

Sir Paul has written and released several classical albums, the last was Ecce Cor Meum in 2006.