Tell Me Who He Is was never recorded and was lost until Sir Paul, 79, began combing his vast archive for a new book. Fans can now pore over the words for signs of the songwriting genius that went on to pen The Beatles’ classics with John Lennon. Beatles biographer Bob Spitz said: “Discovering a new Beatles song would be like unearthing the sarcophagus of Cleopatra on an archeological dig.

“John’s and Paul’s notebooks were full of half-started lyrics, even finished songs. During the early years, the songs were coming so fast and furiously that several were either overlooked or stashed in the back of a drawer.

“One can only imagine how many Beatles-worthy lyrics were relegated to the bin. Beatles fans will dissect Tell Me Who He Is word-for-word for any clue to this amazing band’s past.”

It will be included in Sir Paul’s The Lyrics – a book structured around 154 of his songs and including handwritten lyric sheets, unseen personal photos and drawings.

Sir Paul, inset, adds his own insights about them. He said: “I know that some people, when they get to a certain age, like to go to a diary to recall day-to-day events from the past, but I have no such notebooks. What I do have are my songs, hundreds of them, which I’ve learned serve much the same purpose. And these songs span my entire life.”

The £75 book is out on November 2.