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Paul McCartney

McCartney

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by BVS on 12/04/2006

It may be considered ironic that the first solo release from Paul McCartney, one that practically invented the off-the-cuff, one-man-band, lo-fi recording technique, came mere months after insisting the Beatles spend 3+ days getting "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" down properly. But whether this album is taken at face value or in line with the rest of McCartney's work, it is an astonishing achievement.

And what time is better for this album’s revival than late 2006, when its back-cover image of McCartney cradling his newborn daughter, Mary, in his fur-lined coat was co-opted by that loveless union of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes with their baby Suri? If that were the only relevant point on this record, it wouldn’t be worth revisiting, but that is certainly not the case.

Holding this record (especially the vinyl if you can track it down) feels like a gift from a friend – personal photos, most likely not taken for public viewing, along with home-made songs that sound quaint and warm. The record reflects its photo-album insert – pieces of this, pieces of that, written in various places and years, but all recorded at home by Sir Paul himself, with only the occasional vocal contribution from his wife and muse, Linda. “Hot as Sun” was supposedly written in the days of McCartney’s pre-Beatles band, the Quarrymen, while “Junk” and “Teddy Boy” were at one point considered for inclusion on Beatles records.

Musically, the acoustic guitar is at the forefront for most of these songs – not coincidentally an easy instrument to strum on and play for family singalongs, which is precisely what some of these tracks, especially “Man We Was Lonely,” sound like. Light percussion is featured on many tracks, along with Paul’s ramshackle electric guitar stylings and, as always, inventive bass playing.

There is also a blues-current running through the record, most notably on “Oo You,” which features some of McCartney’s most soulful vocals, right up there with “Oh! Darling” and “She’s a Woman.” “Momma Miss America” is probably the best indicator of about half of the album – instrumentals featuring bluesy electric guitar leads – yet songs in that vein are rarely mentioned when describing the album. However, five of the thirteen cuts on the record are instrumental, and all but one (the reprise “Singalong Junk”) are rock-ier than folky.

The most produced and bombastic of the songs on this album is also the one that most people know – the solo-McCartney highlight for many, “Maybe I’m Amazed.” This is the only time that McCartney ever really tips his cards as to what type of music will flow out of him for the next thirty years – melodic, piano-driven pop music with the tendency to be over-produced. However, here it does not stand out as such – it is simply a beautiful song to his wife that was, shockingly, not released as a single from this album.

If “Maybe I’m Amazed” is the piece of this record that sticks out to most, which I am fairly certain it is, than more than ever, people need to look deeper at this album. “Every Night” is one of the great songs about being lazy and in love ever written – Paul just wants to stay in with Linda – forget everything else. “That Would Be Something” features what can only be described as proto-beatboxing. And “Junk” is a brilliant composition lyrically and musically – how many other songs make you feel for items in a junkyard? Its meandering bass line, ringing glockenspiel and soaring vocals make the bridge alone the most interesting thing McCartney ever did post-Beatles. And for those who know solo-Paul as mainly the white guy from “Ebony and Ivory,” listen to “Kreen-Akore.” An instrumental featuring long periods of unaccompanied drums, this will make you shake your head and wonder how “Silly Love Songs” could come from the same mind.

Many will dismiss most of this record as filler, and I don’t know if I could convince them otherwise. But after the grandeur that was Abbey Road, and the years of star-adulation that was being a Beatle, McCartney brought himself down to our level – the level of the normal guy; the normal guy with a family and a four-track recorder who was making music for himself and his wife and kids. Gone is the veneer of the Sgt. Pepper costume – replace that with a white t-shirt and a winter coat and a scraggly beard. McCartney feels real – the product of a person making music. It almost feels criminal to remove the pops and hiss and listen to a CD version of this album – vinyl is so much warmer and more personal a medium. So this winter, start a fire, pull out the ol’ turntable and put on McCartney with your family. It may not be perfect, but intimacy isn’t meant to be perfect, it is meant to be personal. And, dare I say, there has never been a more intimate or personal account into the life of a superstar than McCartney.

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Album Details

Year: 1970
Label: Apple
Producer: Paul McCarney
Musicians: Paul McCartney - All Instruments, Vocals/Linda McCartney - Harmonies

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Tracklist

1	The Lovely Linda
2	That Would Be Something
3	Valentine Day
4	Every Night
5	Hot As Sun/Glasses
6	Junk
7	Man We Was Lonely
8	Oo You
9	Momma Miss America
10	Teddy Boy
11	Singalong Junk
12	Maybe I'm Amazed
13	Kreen -- Akrore

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