"Kisses" and "New"
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I listened to "Kisses on the Bottom" yesterday for the first time in maybe 4 months and, oddly, it helped clarify my feelings about "New." For the record, I like KOTB, but it's really not my style of music. I'm glad I have it, I enjoy it from time to time, but I wouldn't want Paul to keep doing albums in this vein. But what I love about KOTB, which really hit me after living with "New" for a few months, is its utter lack of pretense. Paul isn't trying to prove anything. He's singing, the players are playing, and everyone seems to be having a good time without anything on their mind but making music and enjoying themselves. That's not to say that there wasn't work and planning going into the arrangements, etc. -- of course there was -- but it all feels simple, spontaneous, and unforced. On "New," on the other hand, Paul and everyone involved seem to be working really hard, as if they are in fact trying to prove something. There's hardly a moment on the album that feels simple, spontaneous and unforced. Don't get me wrong. I like "New," and there are parts of it I like a lot. But I always feel a little worn out when the thing is done playing, and now I have a better idea of why, I think. As a general rule, I like it when Paul keeps things simple and straightforward.
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"Worn out?" Bruce, you slay me!
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Comparing Kisses on the Bottom to New... let's see. Well KOTB is mainly covers, albiet the song that I really enjoy the most are the two that Paul wrote. There are some other favs in there Ac Cent U Ate the Positive is a great cover... however, more mood music that I might like to listen to when I'm having dinner or relaxing. I don't sit down and listen to this whole album all the way through. New on the other hand, I find it to be... well... it's my NEW favorite Paul McCartney album to date!! My favorite thing about this album is that Paul had four producers so that there is such a solid selection of really good songs... From start to finish, each song plays a different note or instrument with various movements, to the total symphony of the album. I love the Fireman morphing to Paul McCartney in this album. There is a song for my every mood, so much so, that I have difficulty choosing a single favorite song off the album. I LOVE this album!! So to sum it up, for me, NEW is brilliant, incredible, outstanding, marvelous and a great listening experience to be listened to at any time of the day or night, and even at work!
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love2travel:
Comparing Kisses on the Bottom to New... let's see. Well KOTB is mainly covers, albiet the song that I really enjoy the most are the two that Paul wrote. There are some other favs in there Ac Cent U Ate the Positive is a great cover... however, more mood music that I might like to listen to when I'm having dinner or relaxing. I don't sit down and listen to this whole album all the way through. New on the other hand, I find it to be... well... it's my NEW favorite Paul McCartney album to date!! My favorite thing about this album is that Paul had four producers so that there is such a solid selection of really good songs... From start to finish, each song plays a different note or instrument with various movements, to the total symphony of the album. I love the Fireman morphing to Paul McCartney in this album. There is a song for my every mood, so much so, that I have difficulty choosing a single favorite song off the album. I LOVE this album!! So to sum it up, for me, NEW is brilliant, incredible, outstanding, marvelous and a great listening experience to be listened to at any time of the day or night, and even at work!
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Nancy R:
"Worn out?" Bruce, you slay me!
Well, you frequently slay me! But seriously, that's the effect the album has on me. It's much the same problem I have with "Ram." The thing just seems to keep hitting me over the head. And to love2travel: Yes, I know the two albums are totally different in tone, style and content. That was pretty much my point.
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I know exactly what you mean. I like New for the most part - and I'm always going to be more excited by the prospect of an album of McCartney songs than an album of covers - but there is something a little overworked about it. Particularly with some of the weaker tracks; it sometimes feels like they've thrown a lot at them, to disguise a song that possibly wasn't worth the effort. It's like the whole loudness wars thing: sometimes you can listen to an album and just feel tired out by it. That's not to say that I don't like the album.
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Bruce, Opinions vary and I surely respect yours but my feelings about "New" are just the opposite. None of the songs on NEW feel forced to me. I just wrote a reply on the Off the Ground thread about 2 songs on OTG that to me are great examples of "forced" Macca songs (C'mon People and Peace in the Neighborhood) with Paul trying, in my opinion, way too hard to produce a universal, grandeous world statement song. Even a genius takes a mistep from time to time. This is rare for Paul but I thought it happened on OTG with these 2 songs. I don't see any song on "NEW" in this vein. To me, almost all the songs on NEW seem very spontaneous with Paul either looking back on his younger years or love songs to Nancy...not trying too hard. I can see where some people might think some songs are overproduced (i.e. Hosanna, Road) but I like the modern production for the most part. The extra touches are not overdone and the end result are still true to Paul's various styles. New still feels very fresh to me. I do not feel "worn out" when I listen to New in any sense. Alot of this might be with the way I listen to NEW. 99% of the time I listen to music when I am driving. It just seems like the natural thing to do since driving is such a mundane task. Anyway, I mainly take short drives to do various errands we all have to do (supermarket, bank, etc.). Because of this, I hear NEW almost all the time in short bursts. Typically, I hear 3 to 5 songs. I almost always keep the tracklist true to where I left it the previous day so I might only hear specific tracks once every 3, 4 or 5 days. I think the album feels so fresh to me because of these listening habits. The only time I listen to an album from beginning to end is on long drives. In those cases, I often will pop in a Paul album that I haven't heard for quite a while. Again, I respect your opinion. PS I also liked Kisses. I think Paul largely selected good songs to cover and his renditions seemed honest to his vocal abilities. I love Always, Accentuate and a few others. It also gave me a better appreciation of songs from the 30's, 40's and how good the songwriting craft was during those eras.
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My favourite "Kisses" track is "Paper Moon". Great litle tune. I think he sings really well on the album. You appreciate it even more on the Blu-ray recorded live at Capitol studios.
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I keep meaning to write my own review of New, but as time goes on, there's nothing much I could say that hasn't already been said. I'm a fan of both KOTB and New. I like Kisses mainly as a fun side project, but I love New for the same reasons I loved Electric Arguments. In fact, I think New sounds like a more "mature" Fireman project. My favorite song is Queenie Eye. I love the energy. My least favorite is On My Way to Work. I don't think it's terrible, I just don't care for the Asian sounding solo in between verses. AND, here's where I'm getting nit-picky, I don't like hearing about cigarettes in songs. I'm not a smoker, I'm also not an anti-smoking zealot, but to me, even if it's just an observation and just a song for Pete's sake, it diminishes it for me. And back to Queenie Eye, I don't care to hear him say "bitches" either....again, I'm being nit-picky here. I just quickly turn it down when my kids are in the room! I think the bonus songs, Get Me Out of Here and Turned Out are two stand outs that could have been included in the regular track listing.......and I'm not sure what purpose having a "hidden" track serves anymore. He's done that so many times it just seems unnecessary. I don't think it's cute anymore. It took a couple listens, but Early Days is the one that has grown on me the most. In fact, I think he could do a whole album of nothing but an acoustic guitar and his voice, with little studio effects, worn to perfection. Another standout track is Everybody Out There. I didn't care for it when I first heard it live last Fall, but it has really grown on me. I just like the energy......and the grace of God line I think is cool. If Band on the Run is his gold standard, I consider Chaos and Creation to be somewhere close to meeting it, and New a peg or so below Chaos.
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Martin Luther:
And back to Queenie Eye, I don't care to hear him say "bitches" either....again, I'm being nit-picky here. I just quickly turn it down when my kids are in the room
Wow! What do you do when Big Boys Bickering is being played?
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Nancy R:
Martin Luther:
And back to Queenie Eye, I don't care to hear him say "bitches" either....again, I'm being nit-picky here. I just quickly turn it down when my kids are in the room
Wow! What do you do when Big Boys Bickering is being played?
Let alone the backwards gibberish at the end of Sgt. Pepper!
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Nancy R:
Martin Luther:
And back to Queenie Eye, I don't care to hear him say "bitches" either....again, I'm being nit-picky here. I just quickly turn it down when my kids are in the room
Wow! What do you do when Big Boys Bickering is being played?
Nancy, You have me laughing again! Bernie
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Nancy R:
Martin Luther:
And back to Queenie Eye, I don't care to hear him say "bitches" either....again, I'm being nit-picky here. I just quickly turn it down when my kids are in the room
Wow! What do you do when Big Boys Bickering is being played?
"Daddy needs some alone time."
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Nancy R:
Martin Luther:
And back to Queenie Eye, I don't care to hear him say "bitches" either....again, I'm being nit-picky here. I just quickly turn it down when my kids are in the room
Wow! What do you do when Big Boys Bickering is being played?
Oh I just don't play that one! It's his art and he can do what he wants, but, I like the nice, clean cut, family man Macca.
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Martin Luther:
Nancy R:
Martin Luther:
And back to Queenie Eye, I don't care to hear him say "bitches" either....again, I'm being nit-picky here. I just quickly turn it down when my kids are in the room
Wow! What do you do when Big Boys Bickering is being played?
Oh I just don't play that one! It's his art and he can do what he wants, but, I like the nice, clean cut, family man Macca.
I like that he's a nice, cleancut family man who doesn't feel like he always has to look, act or sound like one!
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B J Conlee:
Nancy R:
Martin Luther:
And back to Queenie Eye, I don't care to hear him say "bitches" either....again, I'm being nit-picky here. I just quickly turn it down when my kids are in the room
Wow! What do you do when Big Boys Bickering is being played?
Nancy, You have me laughing again! Bernie
Glad I could be of service!