Take It Tony

From Wing's much maligned first LP Wildlife, here is Little Richard Paul McCartney cranking up the volume and rocking out like nobody's business on Mumbo.  Frankly I always loved this album.  Granted a lot of folks - who also hated Ram - groused about the lack of studio finesse.  But for me this album has a bit of everything that Paul does so well.  Great melodies, interesting harmonies, and the ability to rock out.   Sure Mumbo has little to offer in the lyrics department, but Paul's bass and Denny Seiwell's drumming just tear it up.  And then there are those awesome organ interjections and the energy level just keeps pumping all the way through. 

The cat in satin trousers said it's oily

In light of the recent announcement of the next two archive releases from Paul McCartney and Wings, here is the white hot live-in-the-studio version of Soily from the One Hand Clapping film.  I have never understood why a studio version of this song was never released.  A fine live version appeared on the Maybe I'm Amazed (live) 45 b-side, but this OHC version  just smokes it.  Apparently Paul intended it to be part of the planned two-record release of Red Rose Speedway but that was cut to a single LP before release.

Every time I watch and listen to this performance on the Band on the Run archive release DVD I contemplate what an album full of stompers like this might have done for Wing's image back in the day.  Along with Junior's Farm, this is as heavy as McCartney ever got outside of the Beatles.  Anyway, I just love this song to death.  Also dig Linda jigging about in the background, looking too cool for school.  Big time Linda fan here!

Shake it. Baby don't break it.

I am an unabashed a fan of the album Band On The Run. There - I said it. It feels good to let it out. Unlike many other 70's LPs that came into my collection back in the day (including several by Wings), this is a record that I still listen to, and always with a big smile on my face. In Geoff Emerick's must-read Here, There, and Everywhere not only does he cover his engineering days with The Beatles from Revolver through Abbey Road but he also includes a chapter on his experiences as producer for BOTR.

One of Paul's crazier ideas was to record his next record in a small EMI studio in a tropical land far away from the UK. Only after he had signed up as producer did Mr. Emerick learn that the studio was in fact in Lagos, Nigeria. Paul had recently ejected Wing's drummer and lead guitarist, leaving only the core of Paul and Linda, and the ever-faithful Denny Laine. Upon arrival in Lagos the hardy travellers were met with hostile locals, flooding monsoon rains, and a recording studio which was - shall we say - something less than modern.

In the process Paul pulled himself together to write what is likely his finest collected batch of post-Beatles songs. No worries about his departed band mates - Paul was more than up to the task of playing drums and guitar along with his vocals and always stellar bass work. And no solo McCartney or Wings record ever sounded as good as this album. Whatever was in the water in Lagos, Paul should go back for another drink.

The album closing track, Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five finds Mr. McCartney in a rockier groove with a super fine bass sound. Then there are the lovely vocal harmony sections that weld together all the pieces. When the final buildup occurs at about 3:45, the smile on my face gets so big that my moustache touches the bottom of my reading glasses. Brass, synthesizer, piano, bass, and a final explosion that leads back to a reprise of the Band On The Run chorus. Thank you Paul -- all memory of At The Speed of Sound has been erased.

Paul was in a band before Wings?

Mr. McCartney took his lumps after the Beatles split, and some of the reasoning behind it is valid. Without John to prod him, he could be a lazy lyricist, and the fill factor on his albums is often too high. And My Love ranks with the worst of 70s radio. But consider these observations about his songwriting:

• His average number of songs on a Beatle's record was five or six.
• His best songs were recorded methodically over a period of time. Unlike Lennon, he was not well-suited to off-the-cuff recordings.
• He was in a deep depression in 1969/1970 over the breakup of the Beatles
• It took some time to find his "solo" voice. John had a head start, as he was releasing solo records before the split.
  

Call me a McCartney apologist, but I believe that his overall track record up to 1975 (ed. previously stated 1980) was successful, and that his catalog has a few masterpieces. Ram is a sleeper, and my appraisal of it has only increased over the years. Band On The Run is considered overrated by some, but recent listenings tell me that it was the pinnacle of his post-Beatles work. The singles that came just before and after it are some of his finest rockers.
Before BOTR

• Hi Hi Hi - chunky rocker with lyrics that dared radio stations to ban it
• Live And Let Die - absolutely the best Bond theme song evah!
• Helen Wheels - chunky rocker #2 with a thudding bass that rocks the planet

After BOTR

• Junior's Farm - chunky rocker #4 (Jet from BOTR would be #3); perhaps his finest single, and it contains a phenomenal coda with soaring harmonies and Jimmy McCullough's white hot guitar work.

Mention Wings and expect to get some laughs, or rolling of the eyes. But once the group found its legs, they created a recognizable sound apart from that of the Beatles. Nowhere nearly as good for sure, but certainly acceptable and with a few gems to remember them by.