[3] On 11 September 2001, McCartney was sitting in a plane parked on the tarmac at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York when the terrorist attacks occurred, and was able to witness the events from his seat.

[3] At the same time, McCartney became heavily involved in organising The Concert for New York City, a massive all star charity show planned to be staged at Madison Square Garden in front of 20,000 people on 20 October.

[4] Due to the strong audience reception after the performance of "Freedom", featuring Eric Clapton on lead guitar with McCartney's touring band, a single with re-recorded studio vocals was rush released to radio a week after the concert.

[1] Additionally, Capitol Records decided to halt production of the Driving Rain album in order to include "Freedom" as a bonus track.

[5] McCartney performed the song at the Super Bowl XXXVI pregame show with a Statue of Liberty tapestry rising up in the background as a tribute to the victims of the terrorist attacks.