And then I wake up.
I had "All the best" on CD for many years, never listened to it, but I'll agree that "Venus and Mars" is a neglected classic, as is the first McCartney LP, very primitive but rather homely.
― Rob M (Rob M), Monday, 17 February 2003 10:55 (sixteen years ago) link
I had dreams about WINGSPAN last night. or it featured in my last night's dreams. I think it was really big and cost one hundred and twenty-five pounds or twenty-five pounds and was sealed in plastic and didn't tell me the tracklisting.
record shopping w/ allyC, yesterday, we saw many mccartney/wings albums. WINGS AT THE SPEED OF SOUND looked OK but was on cassette and three pounds fifty.
― RJG (RJG), Monday, 17 February 2003 14:59 (sixteen years ago) link
― mike a (mike a), Monday, 17 February 2003 15:39 (sixteen years ago) link
― RJG (RJG), Monday, 17 February 2003 15:46 (sixteen years ago) link
― matt riedl (veal), Monday, 17 February 2003 16:05 (sixteen years ago) link
― N. (nickdastoor), Monday, 17 February 2003 18:45 (sixteen years ago) link
― PJ Miller (PJ Miller), Monday, 17 February 2003 18:59 (sixteen years ago) link
― N. (nickdastoor), Monday, 17 February 2003 19:33 (sixteen years ago) link
― N. (nickdastoor), Monday, 17 February 2003 19:34 (sixteen years ago) link
― PJ Miller (PJ Miller), Monday, 17 February 2003 19:42 (sixteen years ago) link
Does anyone else like 'Hope of Deliverance'? I think it has a haunting melody.
― N. (nickdastoor), Monday, 17 February 2003 19:46 (sixteen years ago) link
― PJ Miller (PJ Miller), Monday, 17 February 2003 20:10 (sixteen years ago) link
p.s. 'for your love'+'bus stop'=gouldman.
― RJG (RJG), Monday, 17 February 2003 20:21 (sixteen years ago) link
― N. (nickdastoor), Monday, 17 February 2003 21:17 (sixteen years ago) link
― dleone (dleone), Monday, 17 February 2003 21:42 (sixteen years ago) link
― robin carmody (robin carmody), Monday, 17 February 2003 23:12 (sixteen years ago) link
Dud: 'Wings at the Speed of Sound', 'Flaming Pie', 'Driving Rain' (a little better than 'FP'), 'Press to Play' (interesting yet not successful experimentation from Macca in 1986...) & 'Back to the Egg' (consistently average, only 'Old Siam Sir' makes any real impression).
Many albums of his i'm mixed about... yet, overall 'Classic', I maybe go towards this strongly as the general consensus is so unfairly a 'dud' opinion. You have to look deep into his work, and will find much that is good...
― Tom May (Tom May), Thursday, 20 February 2003 22:43 (sixteen years ago) link
― PJ Miller (PJ Miller), Friday, 21 February 2003 22:14 (sixteen years ago) link
― mike a (mike a), Friday, 21 February 2003 22:17 (sixteen years ago) link
― PJ Miller (PJ Miller), Friday, 21 February 2003 22:58 (sixteen years ago) link
― RJG (RJG), Saturday, 22 February 2003 01:26 (sixteen years ago) link
― Ally C (Ally C), Wednesday, 26 February 2003 21:36 (sixteen years ago) link
Too late, it was in the issue with Santana on the cover.
― dleone (dleone), Wednesday, 26 February 2003 21:38 (sixteen years ago) link
If one's scratching one's head about how badly Paul's solo cheese wears on the nerves, try the following experiment: program disc one of the white album to only play Paul's tracks. Starts off okay but the unrelenting 'Ob-la-di' to 'Martha My Dear' to 'Blackbird', by the time it gets to 'Rocky Racoon' you'll be clawing your face off.
― Jon Leidecker, Thursday, 27 February 2003 18:34 (sixteen years ago) link
― dave q, Friday, 28 February 2003 11:20 (sixteen years ago) link
It should be mentioned that it's the MCCARTNEY II version that should be considered "classic." The live version, which Columbia released as a single in the US, pales in comparison (though there's a very strange meteor-shower synth break toward the end).
Am I the only person who thinks BACK TO THE EGG is almost the equal of BAND ON THE RUN/VENUS & MARS? Probably.
― mike a (mike a), Friday, 28 February 2003 16:33 (sixteen years ago) link
― John Bullabaugh (John Bullabaugh), Sunday, 9 March 2003 02:13 (sixteen years ago) link
― Tom May (Tom May), Sunday, 9 March 2003 19:19 (sixteen years ago) link
Most obvious cases of search:"Tug Of War", "Flowers In The Dirt", "Band On The Run", "Venus And Mars"
Destroy:"Wild Life", "McCartney II", "Press To Play", "Wings At The Speed Of Sound", "Pipes Of Peace".
Other than the disastrous "Wild Life", even the worst albums contain at least one or two great tracks each though.
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Sunday, 9 March 2003 19:22 (sixteen years ago) link
The production on that album is definitely classy, but the songs are just too weak for it to avoid the dustbin. "Tug Of War" has the same marvellous production, and contains almost exclusively great songs. (Yes, even "Ebony & Ivory" isn't that bad, really)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Sunday, 9 March 2003 19:25 (sixteen years ago) link
"Waterfalls" is the only really good song on that album. "Coming Up" is a dud IMO. Just because John Lennon liked it doesn't automatically mean it was good (in fact, most of Lennon's solo work sucked anyway)
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Sunday, 9 March 2003 19:27 (sixteen years ago) link
'Flowers in the Dirt' has a far worse production than 'Pipes of Peace'; it really lacks focus and sympathy for the songs. There is some fine material on there, but much of it is middling.
Do *not* destroy 'McCartney II'... it's a revelation frankly! Such a massive step up from 'Back to the Egg' and more cohesive and compelling I believe than 'McCartney' (though 'Junk' & 'Every Night' are sublime). It is McCartney very interestingly going down the route of electronic music; which sadly he didn't continue so much on his next two (nevertheless good) albums. 'Summer's Day Song' is among McCartney's most beautiful, as is 'Waterfalls'... 'Frozen Jap' and 'Front Parlour' see a Kraftwerk-type influence beautifully used to make jaunty, expressively melancholic electronic pieces. 'Dark Room' is oddball in a great manner... 'One of these Days' is a masterful close to the album.
'Press To Play' possibly does... but it is mis-produced and really inadequate in its music and songwriting (will have to give it another chance, mind).I fully agree on 'Wings at the Speed of Sound'; apart from 'Silly Love Songs' (a badly produced and sounding recording of it) and the towering pop of 'Le 'Em In', it is a seriously mediocre record and the one with the most detrimental influence of the other Wings members.'Ram', 'Band on the Run', 'Red Rose Speedway' and 'Venus and Mars' are unreservedly recommended as an fine early quartet of albums.
― Tom May (Tom May), Sunday, 9 March 2003 19:40 (sixteen years ago) link
Wouldn't call any of them awful. Although they are clearly tracks that seem like partly failed attempts to copy his duet partner's musical styles.
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Sunday, 9 March 2003 19:42 (sixteen years ago) link
I love the production on that one too. But, then again, I enjoy most of what Mitchell Froom and Trevor Horn/Stephen Lipson have ever done sonically.
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Sunday, 9 March 2003 19:43 (sixteen years ago) link
― Tom May (Tom May), Sunday, 9 March 2003 19:51 (sixteen years ago) link
The hits are mainly produced by Mitchell Froom (Crowded House, Suzanne Vega, early 90s Elvis Costello). But Trevor Horn produced "How Many People" and "Figure Of Eight"
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Sunday, 9 March 2003 19:54 (sixteen years ago) link
― Tom May (Tom May), Sunday, 9 March 2003 19:57 (sixteen years ago) link
i have heard neither, and know very little about mccartney solo. what are these songs like?
― gareth (gareth), Monday, 24 March 2003 14:58 (sixteen years ago) link
― dleone (dleone), Monday, 24 March 2003 15:11 (sixteen years ago) link
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 24 March 2003 15:18 (sixteen years ago) link
― russ t, Monday, 24 March 2003 16:23 (sixteen years ago) link
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Monday, 24 March 2003 18:38 (sixteen years ago) link
― j fail (cenotaph), Monday, 24 March 2003 19:18 (sixteen years ago) link
― PJ Miller (PJ Miller), Monday, 24 March 2003 20:58 (sixteen years ago) link
Would anyone care to share their thoughts? You can make them up if you like. I'm just trying to get better value for money.
― PJ Miller (PJ Miller), Friday, 25 April 2003 18:59 (sixteen years ago) link
― kyle (akmonday), Thursday, 25 November 2004 19:04 (fifteen years ago) link
― kyle (akmonday), Thursday, 25 November 2004 19:10 (fifteen years ago) link
Your last comment is OTM btw.
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 25 November 2004 22:33 (fifteen years ago) link
― kyle (akmonday), Thursday, 25 November 2004 22:37 (fifteen years ago) link
Among his recent musical adventures was a recording session earlier this year in Los Angeles with rock legend Paul McCartney. "That was amazing," Falkner tells Billboard.com. "It was just me and Paul and this drummer, James Gadson, who was the original drummer for Bill Withers."
Falkner was called into the sessions by producer Nigel Godrich (who produced "Can You Still Feel?") and he played guitar on a number of songs with McCartney. "He's doing different sessions with different producers," Falkner says of the former Beatle, "but nobody knows ... if those sessions are gonna be his record."
McCartney wasn't familiar with his collaborator's musical history when they met, so Falkner gave him a copy of "Bedtime With the Beatles," the instrumental children's lullaby album Falkner released through Sony/Wonder in 2001. He admits it "blew his mind" after McCartney gave him a glowing review of the disc the next time they met.
If one suspects (as I do) that Falkner has been disappointed/angry/disgruntled over the way the industry has treated him these last several years, essentially reducing him to a sideman/cover-artist/enhancer-of-others'-work, it follows that the Paul love must do his heart good. A moral victory of some sort, I suppose.
The larger point, though, is interesting, regarding Falkner/Godrich working with Paul for material that may or may not be on his next album — it's exactly what you'd expect from Paul, that searching, persistence and sort of endless curiosity. It's funny — because it's exactly what makes Paul's output so maddenly elusive, frustrating and inconsistent for some, while making others (well, me) love him so. For the latter crowd, he's the quintessential restless artist, which is why so many are still waiting for—expecting even—that late-period masterpiece.
― Naive Teen Idol (Naive Teen Idol), Friday, 26 November 2004 20:00 (fifteen years ago) link
If pushed, that or "Another Day" would be my POO Macca solo song.
― an incoherent crustacean (MatthewK), Thursday, 21 March 2019 05:28 (eight months ago) link
I'm finally going out and listening to all of the Beatle's solo records. "Monkberry Moon Delight" was a nice find off of RAM. I kinda think that Paul is trying to get a Leon Russell thing going in the verses, but it's a bit more over the top. Kinda gets almost a Tom Waits kinda sounding growl at points.
― earlnash, Tuesday, 13 August 2019 23:06 (three months ago) link
https://www.paulmccartney.com/news-blogs/news/paul-to-write-first-musical
― timellison, Wednesday, 21 August 2019 14:20 (three months ago) link
I was thinking more Beefheart - his "Monkberry moooon deliiiiight" phrasing isn't too far from "Mooonlight on vermooooooont"
― Οὖτις, Wednesday, 21 August 2019 16:10 (three months ago) link
That's a good call ... certainly contemporaneous and in keeping with a lot of his solo efforts nicking other artists' styles for his own purposes.
― Naive Teen Idol, Wednesday, 21 August 2019 17:44 (three months ago) link
monkberry moon delight is a bit of a favourite in my household.
listened to Ram on sunday afternoon for the first time in ages. actively enjoyed it, especially uncle albert/admiral halsey, despite that being so excruciatingly paul at his whimsical worst
― Seany's too Dyche to mention (jim in vancouver), Wednesday, 21 August 2019 17:47 (three months ago) link